Home Forums Hunting & Shooting AR and Tactical Rifles 300 Whisper...

Thinking of buying one of the new S&W AR-15's in 300 Whisper to use as a suppressed Hog Hunter. Wondering if anyone out there has advise on accuracy & trajectory from personal experience ? I've studied all the ballistic info & am trying to decide between that or the Remington R-15 in .30 AR caliber.... Most of my shots will be 100 yards or less.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I would bet my house that the 30 AR is stillborn.

I would go with the 300 Blackout (SAAMI version of the Whisper). I think the rifle you are looking at will fire them as well, but I would make sure of that.

Loads of good information here:

300 BlkTalk

Ammo and brass for the 300 Blackout will be a LOT more available, and a LOT cheaper.

You can shoot hogs suppressed with the Whisper but I dont see the point in the 30 ar subsonic. The Whisper can be use either super or sub sonic with readily available ammo, the 30ar not so easy. The whisper is fun but a toy mostly.

If I was looking for a dedicated supressed hunting platform I'd consider the 458 socom. A 30 cal non-expanding bullet at 1000 fps just isn't going to provide a bloodtrail, and as we all know, not all kills are bang flops. A 45 cal non expanding bullet at 1000 fps is going to leave a blood trail.

I think the 300 whisper and the blackout are a fascinating concept and have their place in the spec op world, but I don't see the round as the best option for hunting.

I just built an AR in .300 AAC Blackout. Accuracy is MOA or less at100yds shooting 110gr Sierra Varmint Hollowpoints. Looking for a suppressor, now.

I can see by your screen name that you are not a smallbore guy, but this is quite a generalization, don't you think?

I would agree with his theory.

It's not a theory. If you do some research you'll find that in general, consistant blood trails require a 35 caliber or larger bullet. 30 cal and smaller non expanding bullets produce wounds that will be covered up by hair and hide and not produce a consistant blood trail.

If you're just taking headshots, then the 300 will be outstanding. If you're taking heart/lung shots and the hog doesn't drop at the shot, you'll be facing a tracking job with little or no blood trail.

I guess that was misleading. I agree with your theory.

I don't have much interest in sub-sonic (non-expanding) bullets, but the other "theory" is that they tumble on impact, thereby creating a much larger than 30 caliber bullet would provide. Just another theory. Probably right sometimes right, and sometimes not.

I do wonder though, whether a 5.56 expanding bullet ever meets your 35-caliber minimum required for a blood trail. There are a lot of guys that say the 5.56 is enough for deer, and I doubt they are limiting their shot selection to head shots. They must be part-Indian when it comes to tracking.

Until 2 years ago, every deer I ever killed was taken with a Rem 788 in .223, with the exception of a couple taken with a .41 Mag revolver. Never had to track one and never lost one. 2 yrs ago I took a buck with a 788 in .308 just to use the rifle. This year, I'm using my AR in .300 AAC Blackout. I'll borrow the statement that the guys who carry sub .38spl handguns use. "It's not what you shoot 'em with, it's where you hit 'em that counts". I don't agree with them when my life is at stake, but couldn't agree more when it comes to taking non-dangerous game. The 300 AAC has plenty of energy to take a deer.

I think the argument was when fired subsonic...

CAFR . . .

I agree with you completely that the 300 blackout will be great on deer. No question. Within 200 yards or so (YMMV), there is plenty of horsepower.

I was just trying to wrap my arms around the no blood trail if less than 35 caliber statement. It still seems like a huge generalization to me, unless a boatload of additional qualifiers are added.

Have you decided on the bullet yet?

_

So far, I'm hovering around the 110gr Sierra Varmint Hollow Point or the Hornady V-Max in 110gr. I have both loaded up. Just need to get to the range to crony and accuracy test them.

Won't be trying it on deer anytime soon (maybe antelope in October?), but I traded a couple .308 Win rifles for this today:



S&W M&P-15 with .300 Blackout upper
Rock River "coyote" 5.56 upper.
RCBS .300 Blackout dies
21 loaded .300 Whisper rounds plus 18 empty cases

The Magpul MBUS sights are something I added so I can try shooting tomorrow.

I saw your other post too. Looks like you got a nice setup, and a smokin' deal.

Have fun with it!

The original post was in regards to using the 300 blackout as a supressed hunting rifle. I assumed that meant the use of subsonic ammo. A 220gr 30 cal bullet impacting at 1000 fps or less is not going to expand, and hence my assertion that one is not going to get consistant blood trails if that load is used for a broadside chest shot. We're talking about bullet dia and impact velocity in the realm of the 32 H&R magnum, albeit with a heavier bullet that will have better penetration. A 30 caliber non expanding bullet impacting at 1000 fps into the vitals is in no way shape or form going to be a dramatic killer.

If the discussion is a 120gr expanding bullet at 2000 fps, then it's an entirely different animal. But I think it's important that people who are planning to hunt with a supressed 300 using subsonic ammo have a clear understanding of the rounds limitations.

Another note, subsonic rounds may not make the legal requirements for hunting big game.

Here in Colorado the requirement is 550fpe @ 50 yards if using a handgun and 1000fpe @ 100 yards if using a rifle. The Hornady subsonic 208g AMAX .300 Whisper load (480fpe @ muzzle) fails on both counts.

In fact, no subsonic 220g can meet the requirements for a rifle as the most they can generate and stay subsonic is 619fpe at the muzzle, well below 1000fpe @ 100 yards.

I have a .300 Whisper from J.D. Jones, and I'm not calling the others, "knock offs". Mine is suppressed with the gas block valve for subsonic and full powered loads. The Jones suppressor is pretty heavy and the rig ends up heavier than I would like. I haven't spent that much time with it and don't think I'd want to use it on game of any size. Varmints and 'yotes would be about my limit.

I was frankly a bit disappointed with the weight and stuck it in my safe. One of these days, when I'm between projects, I may take to out and shoot it some more. I load for it and my Dillon 550B .300 Whisper tool head is all set up for 220 gr. Sierras.

DF

I was enamored when it was first announced, if your going to shoot suppressed its probably the way to go, I decided there was nothing I could not kill with a 5.56 and not interested in suppressed shooting anyway and as the world turns want to stay with one common cartridge readily available etc.