Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 325 wsm horrible, 8x68s awesome

I bought a Browning X-Bolt 325 WSM impulsively a few months ago because GM had a used one for $400. Nikon Monarch 2.5-10x42 scopes were on sale, so I got a nice rig pretty cheap. It is very accurate, although the recoil is a little uncomfortable.

There is not a lot of love on the internet for the cartridge, though.

Chuck Hawks even complains about the name of the cartridge.
"The new .325 Winchester Short Magnum (WSM) cartridge is actually a .315 caliber by bore diameter" The rest of the article seems negative, or at best ambivalent .But, Hawks raves about the 8x68s, the ballistic twin of the 325. "Except for thick skinned dangerous game, this load should be adequate for any large game in the world" He bemoans its lack of popularity in North America.

Any 325 WSM or 8x68s fans out there?

I like .325. If paired with the right rifle it's pretty cool. For instance, in a short action 22" BLR it's a whole lotta whupass in a very light, compact package. Likewise, I bought a Montana in .325 for elk and have been very pleased with how it's done.

The knocks on .325 are two. First, Winchester really pretty much flat out lied about it's performance, saying it was more powerful than a .338. That alienated some folks. Second, IF a person intends to shoot past 450, 500 yards the .325 is the worst of the bunch as far as the WSM's; there just aren't any good hunting bullets with a high BC. So, there's where the 300 WSM really kills it. Run the numbers on a .325 shooting 200-gn NAB's ( BC .450) at 2900 fps, vs. a 300 wsm shooting 200-gn NAB's (BC .588) at 2875 fps. It ain't purty.

That second point gets a lot of play around here. Seems like half the guys here choose a cartridge based on paper ballistics out to xxx yards... generally way further than they'd ever actually shoot. I'm certainly guilty! I can say that an accurate .325 will get you to 500 yds just fine- having done that a bunch- but it really does seem to peter out about there....

I like my 325 WSM Montana. It shoots 4 or 5 different loads into 3/4" or so at 100yds. With the load that shoots a 200gr TSX at 2900-2950 I made my longest shot I've ever killed a whitetail with. I can't think of any game in the America's that a 200gr TSX at 2950 wouldn't work for. Silly prejudices aside it's an excellent round........................DJ

Nothing wrong with any of the 8 mm's except for bullet availability being pretty slim. Not every shop you go to is going to have them.

Yeah! Plus there's also a 220-gn A-frame if a guy wanted to approach it (penetration) from a more old-school direction.

The .325 puts impressive holes in elk! It's a lot of rifle.

The 8mm 220gr Sierra GK has a pretty nice BC at .521

Just as a quick check I jumped over to Midsouth shooters supply's site to check availability on 8mm bullets. They had 19 different .323 bullets available. Not as wide of a variety as say a popular caliber as say .264 where they had 63! different bullets available. How many do you really need?

With the internet I think that rarer calibers are today easier to reload for than some more popular calibers were 20years ago. You can order up an amazing variety of different bullets, brass, and other components from several excellent sources. Does your average local store carry 19 different 30 caliber or other popular bullets? I don't know that what your local store may or may not carry is really all that important. I try and buy local when I can but buying stuff off the net is often cheaper and saves gas money and time plus there's an immensely greater variety of stuff out there than there is local in some spots.

So basically you'd think 325 components might be hard to come by, they aren't.....................DJ

Very good point Dj. Sometimes it's nice to be able to run down to Bi-mart and pick up some bullets and start reloading, but if they don't have them you are forced to buy off the internet. Nothing wrong with that either and like you said, there are great deals on the net. Speaking of that, I turned to the fire for some once fired brass for my 300 wsm and a few guys pm'd me and now I have enough to last for quite a while.

I'm pretty much hooked on the 8mm's. My 325 WSM is also a Browning Crossbolt - actually, among of the first out. Recoil is a bit stiffer than I like, but it is manageable. Factory loaded Accubonds have done an impressive number on hogs and deer.

Working up some loads for this rifle is among my first reloading projects this spring.

While bullet selection isn't the greatest, there are higher weight bullets - like Sierra's 220 gr Gameking and Woodleigh's 220 gr PP SN for the 325 WSM. If I were shooting 400-500 yds (which most hunters really don't regularly do), I'd choose one of these bullets - matching BC's with BC's. There, I think the 325 WSM will hold its own.

Personally, I'd like to see some good spitzers in the 250-280 gr range for the 8mm's...

My son has used his in africa on several different plains game animals..200 grain Nosler Partition @ 2900fps kills everything, great penetration with big exit holes.

I pay for his charts and graphs, but I always take Chuck's articles with a grain of salt. I was confused with the .315 stuff, when I read that the .325WSM uses a .323 bullet. No mention of the .325WSM in a BLR. I would think that it would be an excellent elk/bear carry rifle in the woods. Recoil should not be a problem in the heat of the hunt.

Never shot one but the 8x68 has a pretty good reputation in parts of Africa.

I run a 325 Montana with RL 17 & 200 gr. TSX's. It easilly gives me 3000 fps. If I go past that,pressure signs come with it. On a calm day, it holds better than 1 moa out to 600 yds. I like it.

Agreed on Hawks; he did seem to have a bee in his bonnet with regards to .325.

Also agreed on the coolness of a .325 BLR. I have one, the pistol-grip version (recommended as I find it handles recoil better)... it's one potent timber rifle, with that 2nd shot ready as soon as you recover from recoil & get back on target. My only beefs are the trigger, which Neil Jones can fix, and that when it's really cold, the receiver is cold to carry... also, the comb on the stock is quite low. I run a Leup 2.5-8 in extra-lows and wish for a bit lower still.

I've actually done a bit of looking into having it bored out to a .358 WSM wildcat. How cool would that be?!

Dayum, this thread is making me reconsider my rebarrel! Lol...

I got into the .325 WSM very soon after it came out as I was considering necking the .338 WM down to 8mm and a factory round made more sense than a wildcat and the big euro 8s are hard to source brass. I have used the .325 WSM with 200 g Swift A frame and 180 g Barnes TSX on whitetail, mule deer, warthog, hartebeest, kudu, gemsbok and eland; very happy with the cartridge. The rifle is a M70 tuned up by Corlane sports in Dawson Creek BC, the boys did a very good job. I also shoot a 8X57 in a late 40s vintage BRNO.

Chuck Hawks may have a lot of knowlage but he is pro Remington and pro Hornaday. He has never really warmed up to any WSMs and seems fond of the heavier classic long actions and their cartridges. He also collected info from Globals and Euros who have used other 8mm for generations.

The .325WSM is made to cut rifle length and weight and gain accuracy over the other rifles in its heavy game class.

The .325WSM is the great short action elk rifle. If you don't like the X-Bolt recoil rebarrel to 7WSM and get a nice all-rounder.

I want to work up some loads this spring, too.

I took it hunting this year, but got blanked. I figure the deer were terrified of the cartridge and decided to hide.

Mandocaster, just for grins.... I've actually played a Mandocaster!

Awesome... a fellow electric mandolin player. I used to have a 1966 Fender electric mandolin. Hence the name. I play a 5 string Schwab,now.