Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Long Range Hunting Does a guy need both? 270 WSM / 300 Wby

Just snagged a new rifle. Stainless M70 Classic in 270 WSM. It was a screaming bargain with a Zeiss 3-12x56 MC scope sitting on it and has been Mag-na-ported.

I've already got a seldom-used Rem 700 BDL AS in 300 Wby in the safe. Curious, I did some comparisons between the two via Federal's ballistic comparison with the 300 shooting a 180gr and and the 270 shooting a 150 grain Nosler Partition bullet.

Almost identical performance. The 300 is doing it with the a 30 grain heavier bullet, so its obviously got more energy - but otherwise the graphs almost overlap completely.

So what situations would call for the 300 WBY that the .270 WSM couldn't handle? In my Michigan world of whitetails, I'd have a hard time 'needing' both. But maybe out west on Elk or on Moose or some dangerous game the 300 is the only thing that could do the job?

This is just me but if it shoots well and once I wrapped a stock around it that I liked then I'd see less and less reason for the 300 to be around.

But, I'd make sure it worked well b4 I did anything with the 300.

Elk and Moose the 270 WSM will work very well. On dangerous game I'd want more than a 300 something along the lines of a 375 Ruger or 375 H&H.

Just the way I see it.

When's your elk and moose hunts?

Dober

I don't think you can compare the two really, apples and oranges for sure. I haven't looked at the chart that you did, but if you compare the 200 gr. in the Weatherby to the 150 gr. in the 270 things would start to look a lot different.

Tim

Need is such an ugly term...I have a 300 Weatherby for use out West chasing elk, but it's really an overkill for what and where I hunt in Idaho.

Yeah, I like the extra margin of power with the heavier bullet, but I probably don't "really" need it if I do my part with placing the shot right. I think we get into the "bigger is better" mentality, forgetting that good shot placement is a better killer than the bad shot tearing up enough damage to put the animal down.

This year, I practiced for 200-300 yard shots with a 7mm Mag, but the shot presented was a 50 yard stationary and mostly broadside. First shot "killed" the elk by taking out the junction of the lungs and the blood vessels above the heart. The two following shots were to get the animal down before he ran off a rockslide into a deep canyon before he figured out he was dead. With 154 partitions, the shoulders were taken out effectively, but had he been further out, I'd rather have been pushing a heavier bullet for my peace of mind.

The WSM were designed to build lighter guns with less weight and more punch. I was shooting the 7mm because it weighs less than the Weatherby, so don't know that I "need" the 300 either. JMO...

Stick a 200 grain Partition in that 300 Wby and there are few things on this earth you couldn't hunt and very little blood shot meat on a whitetail.

...........See? This is what happens when ya go out and snag a great killer deal on a rifle when you already own another or maybe more.

Then the `ol noggin starts to think. Overlapping? Do I need? What game for this round and what game for that round?

Keep and use both appropriately! If you get rid of the 300 Bee and keep the 270 WSM, then when ""ANOTHER"" killer deal comes around (AND IT WILL), you may have some doubts about keeping the 270 WSM if the new cartridge overlaps there too. The same questions will come up.

The cycle keeps going and going. Keeps the rifle world a spinning.

Sure! You can use a 270WSM for any NA big game dangerous or otherwise. But I`d feel more comfortable using a 300 Bee with heavier pills for the dangerous end of that equation.

I am a rifle loonie and "need" never comes into the conversation.

buy em all, love em all!

The 300 Wby will kick the 270 WSM's arse. Being in Michigan, it won't matter though. I push 200 grain Bergers to 3075. There is nothing about the 270 WSM that can touch that.

I agree that "need" is a poor term to use when talking abuot the rifles in you cabinet. I have to make up a lot of excuses to explain to my wife that I need a small game rifle, small/medium game rifle, medium game rifle, medium/large game rifle, large game rifle, really large game rifle, super large game rifle and then two of each of those depending on terrain........it keeps going from there. I think she is on to me, but will keep trying.

Need has not come to mind in 50 years for me. Right now I need a .340 Weatherby and a .460 Weatherby, because I don't have one. I always carry back up rifles everywhere I go. That would come to mind as a good enough reason to keep your .300 Weatherby and the .270 WSM. If I go out with my old MK 5 in .300, I always bring the newer Accumark in .300 Wby as well. The .270 WSM would appeal to me as an extra reason to work on a few more loads at my range. I have a Remington 700 in .270 Winchester as well as an Accumark in .270 Wby, if I thought more than a few days I would have to have a .270 WSM as well. Now bear in mind, everything I have bought for myself in the last 30 years is left handed. Keep'em both!

BTW, get your wife into shooting and hunting with you and you'll never worry about multiple rifles again, my wife is getting another new rifle for Christmas. That's my experience over the past few decades.
Good shooting,
Marcus.

Need and want are 2 totally different animals...

This gets to the heart of the matter....for years I had a 300 Weatherby and a 300 Win mag around at the same time I also had a 7 Rem Mag and 270's and gawd knows what else.They all got shot regularly and standard practice on western hunts is the 30's always went along with one of the others.On elk hunts I mostly carried the 30 caliber mag and it is very versatile and capable,and there is very little they won't do.I have used them and seen them used onlots of animals with decisive results.

This might be tough for some to wrap their heads around but I always considered the 300 Weatherby to be in the same category as the 338 and 340 Bee due to the ability to start heavy bullets fast....really a medium bore cartridge.i think had I not tired of the recoil and rifle weight of the 300's I might still be using them because they are great killers when the bullet lands in the right place.

Having something in the 270/7mm range is always a good idea and a guy might find that he used it more than a 300 mag but there are times and places where that magnum 30 is nice to have.I see no conflicts in having both around.

Animals die from a loss of blood pressure , I am not advocating using a 22lr on Moose but when comparing calibers for killing non dangerous game we tend to over complicate things a bit , I would use either without worry and what is this need thing ? If guns = fun for you than more guns = more fun

Well, I shot the .270 WSM yesterday along side some other rifles just to get it zeroed in with some of the relatively cheap Fusion ammo I had picked up. Shot a decent group at 100, but I will move out to 200 next week and see what she (and I) can really do. Patience is required, because that slim barrel contour gets warm quickly. She's also going to need a little trigger work to soften that up a bit.

With the Mag-na-Port on this thing, recoil isn't bad at all. But it is a bit louder and scared some other guys at the range. I have the same brake on my 300 Wby and like how it works in taking the edge off.

Lots of fun so far. Thanks for the encouragement.

yeah why not i have both

I wonder with your brake if you aren't just a whole lot closer to 270 Winchester performance levels than that of a non braked 270WSM. What does your chronograph say? sort the wheat from the chaff here a little. Magnum Man

Great point. Will try to get some numbers next week. I'd assume the braking is taking equal amounts off both guns if there indeed is any loss in velocity to be measured.

Easy argument to keep both....bullets UP to 150gr, you got the WSM, bullets FROM 150gr and up, you got the 'Bee.

I don't think we need to use the word "need". If you want it, get it. When it come to firearms, all we really "need" is just one more.