Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game .300 Mags / in the real world?

I had a 300RUM that I bought specifically for when I used to hunt the rifle elk season in Colo. The shots were typically from one ridge to the next and one year the closest shot was a lasered 425 yards. I put a muzzle brake on it until I shot an elk when not wearing hearing protection. I don't know who hurt more, me or the elk. Decided recoil was temporary, hearing loss is forever so got rid of the damned brake. The recoil wasn't bad at all without the brake.
Don't hunt elk anymore so it went down the road, if I go again my 270 will do the job. If you want to really reach out and touch something, the big 300's have their place.

I had a Savage 111 and a Mossberg Patriot in 300 WM. Also a Springfield sporter in 308 Norma. Never took one hunting though.

Real world difference? Not much. If the recoil is not an issue then they are easier to hit with. They do instill confidence and have a rightness about them for medium game especially in Africa or if big bears may be lurking about.

With 150 grain BT it seems to put down deer with more authority than an 08 or 06 but this could be my imagination. The 300 WM seems to be one of those inherently accurate cartridges but this may be due to the Krieger and Shilen barrels I was shooting them out of. I think the 300s have the versatility of the 30-06 and then some especially with bullets of 200+grains. They take to loading down or up well. There are few situations where I would feel under gunned with a 300 and only a few where I would feel over gunned.

I like the 300 WM. 200 Nosler Partitions or accubonds work great on elk at 2900 fps. I have only taken one elk past 100 yds but I hunt thick trees and nasty country. The 300 seems to stop elk quick to keep them from falling into nasty country and gives an exit on hard quartering shots. I’ve also down loaded it for less recoil when hunting pronghorn. I like less recoil so I can see them fall. They can be a pain to find dead in thick sage brush. I feel there’s a slight advantage in less then perfect broadside shots at close range.

While there is nothing I've done with my .300WM that I could not have done with my 7mm RM, I find myself taking the .300WM elk hunting more often these days. (The 7mm RM was my only "elk" rifle for the first 20+ years.)

I've had various .30 cal magnums over the years, 300Win Mag, 300 Weatherby Mag and 308 Norma Mag. The 308 Norma is the only one I still have, mostly because of the rifle it's chambered in. I handload, so ammo isn't a problem. The big 30's do hammer game, still have to put it in the right spot, but they do work. Mine have accounted for moose, elk and deer. The plethora of great bullets offered today do make smaller cartridges very effective, and to this end, I find myself grabbing my 7mm-08 much more often. But I can't/won't ignore all the old trails my 308 Norma accompanied me on and have no plans on getting rid of it.

They work perfectly for a Plains Game rifle ( we used Barnes 180) they are flat shooting, penetrate like crazy. For Long Range ( over 500yds) they excel with the heavier bullets. For elk they are hammers...which is a good thing! For a non- handloader, they are just OK. If you are a handloader, wow, you can go from 110s to 240 Woodleighs. I think they really come into their own for longer shots on elk, etc or as an All Around Western rifle. In the real world down South, back East, mostly deer/bear/hogs, not really. 30-06 or .270. With the right loads ( even factory) they can work fine even as "Beanfield Rifles".

Now, saying all that, IF the "Rifle" you want at the time ( say it tickles your fancy) is only available in 300WM, its always a good choice. How do I know? I recently sold three really nice rifles and bought a Christiansen Arms Mesa, in 300WM. Only way I could afford it! Of my choices, I could have had it in 7mm Rem Mag, but have a nice .270 that does my "7mm duty now". ( Besides, I have had and hunted with just about every 7mm, standard to magnums) I would have "preferred" a Mesa in 30-06 or 6.5 PRC, and the situation was such I happily chose the 300WM. But I am a happy Handloader type of guy! I would almost rather workup loads, shoot than hunt...almost! The Mesa is a Mod 700 Clone, super accurate, easy to shoot ( I don't use the supplied brake) and just heavy enough to help calm recoil. SO....the RIFLE...can determine how much one ends up liking/using it in 300WM. AND....the type of animals/country one hunts in.

I have a few in .300 Win. Mag. Turned out that the other day I found one I didn't remember buying. For a Ruger #1s, three "S" models, the #1 style I prefer and one "B" model which was my first .300 Mag. of any kind that I bought back in 1975. It was very accurate with the older Nosler Partition 200 gr. that more of a round nose bullet than a spitzer. It was also the rifle that taught me the fact that Ruger does a pisspoor job of sealing the interior wood. The fifth .300 Win. Mag. is a Winchester M70 Walmart special that I got for $350. The guy selling it said it wasn't accurate. I gave it a good cleaning, adjusted the trigger and took off the cheapie Simmons scope and put a 3x9 Leupold on the rifle. Worked up a load with the 200 gr. Speer Hot Core and went to the range. Long story short is that rifle will stay inside .75" for three shots all day long as long as I let it cool down between strings. I took the rock hard excuse for a recoil pad off and replaced it with a Decelerator.The stock has a blind magazine and looks suspiciously like a McMillan. I also have an M70 in .270 Win. and the stock on it looks like a McMillan. It too is extremely accurate. I took a cow elk at a lasered 530 yards about12 or so years ago with the .300 and really haven't used it since. Mayber I should remedy that situatio. Ya think?
Paul B.

I have a 300 rum that I use as my primary rifle. It works very well both near and far. I also own a 300 win mag, 300 wsm and a 30-06. I guess I am just a 30 caliber guy at heart.
If you can shoot a 30 cal magnum well there are really no downsides to using one over something like a 30-06 or 308.

Practical? I would not have set out on any trail differently had I been armed with a 7mm-08.

I got my first 300 around 30 years ago when I started doing a lot of hunting. Up until then I hunted a lot with a 270, which I still really enjoy using, and a 338. Both did well but just didn’t have the versatility I was after. Once the 300 arrived I knew I’d found what I’d been looking for. I’ve carried a 300 in one form or another all over the globe and never once have I wished to be carrying something else when I’ve had it in hand. I can’t say that about other cartridges that I’ve used....and that’s a pretty long list.

I really WANTED a 300 WSM. Being a 308 Winchester fan, I now have the low end & the highest end of the spectrum covered.

I shoot nothing but 155 Scenar’s for hunting in both the 308 & 300 WSM’S.

None.

With you, Brad.

Still own a couple .300's, an extremely accuratelt Heym SR-21 .300 Winchester that I mainly use to break test-scopes, and a Model 70 Winchester.300 WSM that I mainly use for writing articles about handloading the .300 WSM. But have never hunted with either, because after hunting a lot with various .300's including the WSM, .H&H, Winchester and Weatherby, never could see any noticeable advantage in "killing power" over other .30 caliber rounds (or even some sub-.30's) but did notice the difference in recoil. So why put up with the recoil?

But if somebody else really believes in their .300 "maggie," then why not? Killing "power" is mostly bullet placement and bullet performance, but hunter confidence is probably at least as important.

I have a 300win mag 20" carbine. I kill Elk with it, And Bear if I see them while Elk hunting. No complaints on its effectiveness.

ummm, never mind.


After deleting a few sentences, let me just say

MMV and I’m not the only one.


Jerry

I used a very similar 300 WSM for many years and shot a lot of elk and deer with it. I certainly can't fault it's effectiveness. But then I realized that in all those years, I'd never shot a single animal that I couldn't have got just as easily with a 30-06 that weighed a pound less. I'm to the age where a pound counts so I'm back to the '06.

I agree, but I am still not getting rid of my 300 H&H. This year's nod goes to my 338-06 after using 270's for the last couple of years.

I have a Colt Light Rifle that went back to Melvin Forbes for all the upgrades he offers, it is a wonderful package, and is seriously accurate. Melvins stock is a remarkable piece of work.
I have since given the rifle to my son.
Simultaneously, I've been seriously attracted to a 300 Savage in a 1922 vintage Savage 1899 takedown. It has worked on 3 or 4 whitetail bucks and a Newfoundland bull moose.
Roughly, half the powder charge, and critters remain cleanly killed.
After about 50 years of trialing all sorts of calibers, the only thing important to me is a rifles ability to place an decent bullet in the right spot.
Not gonna criticize the 300WM in any way, but...no change here.

I started hunting whitetail deer when I was 19 years old. Now I am 46 and I’ve never had the want for a 300 Magnum until about the last couple of years. The most powerful cartridge I’ve used regularly is a 7mm RM up until last year in which I killed a spike buck with my .338 Lapua Magnum. I thought shooting that spike with that Lapua was going to just lay him flat out, but he flopped around more than any deer I have ever shot. I figure that was because the 250 grain Sierra soft point boat tail didn’t expand on our tiny Texas deer. I shot him through the shoulders and heart and it looked like somebody drove a steel rod through him. Just straight through! I’ve used that 7 mag for killing whitetail deer, mule deer, and hogs. The 7 mag will make some spectacular kills. Anyway, I got my first 300 mag last month. It’s a Remington 700 in 300 WSM I took in on a trade for some work I did for my brother in law. He bought the 300 to go on a black bear hunt. He said the bear that he killed didn’t take a single step. He’s killed several Aoudad sheep with the 300 and said it did very well. I was surprised at how little it kicks compared to how I thought it was going to kick. Our season opens tomorrow but I won’t be taking the 300 because it’s at the gunsmith’s getting the extractor replaced. I’m extremely excited to get it back and start load development with the 190 grain Bergers. Then, we’ll see what it can do.