I'm looking at a Kimber Montana in WSM as my long range gun.

Would you get a 300 or 7mm WSM, and why?

Whatchya gonna do with it?

Regardless, flip a coin as it amounts to that much difference... me, I like 30's.

I'd get the .300 WSM over the 7mmWSM.

The reason is, I think the .30s are more versatile on a wider variety of game and just-plain kill stuff better. I also think the .30s are more inherently accurate, and less fussy to work with than 7mms. That's been my experience anyway.

Once I started using the .300 Win. Mag. in earnest more than a decade ago, I haven't revisted the 7mm Rem. Mag. I've had no practical reason to.

I'd look at these two WSM cartridges in pretty much the same way.........

AD

.270 WSM and never look back!



Mike

I am going to buy a Kimber Montana as well, I will get the .300 as I backpack in Grizzly country and prefer the larger, heavier bullet. I have seen very large coastal and interior Grizzlies killed stone dead with a single Nosler PT. from .300 Win. Roy and RUM mags. I fully expect that the WSM will do exactly the same thing, I will try the 200 gr. NP as it used to shoot lifesaver holes in my old Mod. 70s in .300H&H, melud!

Right now, I doubt that there is a better option for the solo, backpacker-hunter who finds, shoots and guts, then packs out his own game. I do prefer even more gun for Grizzly country as do most of the really experienced bushwhackers I know in rural B.C., but, a .338 Win. in a rifle as light as the Kimber is just too much for me. I once considered one of those titanium Mausers that Ed Dillon made some years ago, but, the cost was too high for any real advantage one would get.

My thinking is that this Kimber in .300 WSM especially is going to sell in the 100,000s for years to come; it's hard to imagine a more practical rifle for most big game hunters in North America. Of course, I will keep my other rifles because I badly "need" them......................

If the late outfitter and writer Les Bowman was right then the 300 magnum hunters do the worst shooting of any. Bowman was a primary impetus for the 7mm RM and that cartridge became very popular.

I was at the range today with five rifles. One was a 300 WM shooting the 180 Accubond at about 3030 fps. I fired two shots with it and put it away. Then I fired dozens of shots out of a 260 Rem, 7x57 and 270 WSM. I can enjoy shooting those rounds.

On the other hand a 300 WSM will be a tiny bit more powerful and could even be loaded down some.

The Kimber 8400 Montana is a nice rifle. They are light enough to carry for woods hunting.

Have the dealer keep the factory bases. They are not a good design. At the moment the only alternative is the Talley standard steel base for their rings. It's a pricey system but the Kimber's copy of the old Redfield bases and rings are just not a good design.

Buy both of 'em!

300 WSM.

I have Kimber 8400's in all three of the WSM's. Hopefully I can start on the Montana's next year. My three rifles have the following personalities:
The 270 WSM is the most accurate i.e. 1/2 to 3/4" 3 shot groups at 200yds.
The 7 WSM is driving me nuts because I haven't yet found a handload that shoots better than Federal 160gr Accubonds (at 3120fps). I shot Sunday and out of a cleaned bore the first 2 shots were less than 1/2" the third opened it up to a little over an inch. This rifle always dead centers the first 2 shots at 200yds from a cleaned bore - I'm taking it Elk hunting next weekend.
The 300 WSM hasn't yet shot as well. Some 1 to 1 1/2 200yd groups. I may have been trying to make loads that have worked well in my other 300 WSM's work in it too much instead of trying to find what it likes. So far it's my least favorite of the three - but I have a Sako Finnlite in 300WSM that's also going on the Elk hunt for days I may be walking in rain or snow......

-Federal loads the 180 Accubond in the 300 WSM and the 160 Accubond in the 7 WSM. At 300yds and out the 7 WSM has more energy than the 300.

So in conclusion:
-If you don't handload definitely buy the 300 WSM, it's far the most popular
-If you want the most efficient ballistically buy the 7 WSM.
-If you want the most accurate and easiest to shoot buy a 270 WSM

The 7 WSM in a Montana might be pretty hard to find.