Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Need a good deer load for 300 WBY

Just got a new 300 Weatherby Vanguard. I plan on useing it in a couple of weeks to hunt deer with. I have tried 165, 150 and 180gr bullets. It seems to shoot them all very well, But at different points of impact. I want to chose one for deer. Looking for any help I can get. Also pros and cons.

you'll be undergunned.

180gr Barnes TSX, but I'd try to get several lined up for the shot.

TSX ? I still have not got on the copper band wagon as of yet.
I tend to like traditional pointed soft points and some plastic tips.

Loaded some 150 SST's at 3500fps, Thought it might be a bit much. Down loaded them to 3228 fps,
Have a few 180 Remington core-lokt ultra bonds left. Looking for an opinion of what weight in a standard 30 cal soft point would be better. Shots would be 175 to 350 yards.

My 358 won't quite reach that far. Got the gun cheap and it is all I have to work with this season.

180 grain Hornady SP over 81 grains of H4831 for 3150 fps. Or 83 grains of IMR7828. Great deer load, but it will mess up a shoulder.

For a better all-around load, listen to what Steelhead said. Load the 180TSX to 3150 fps and you're good to go for deer to bigfoot.

Generally anything fired from a .300 Wby will take a deer with a degree of authority. With my two .300 Wby's I use 165 or 168's on deer and hogs. It is the best of both 150's and 180's and if you use a Barnes, you are covered up to dangerous game. I have never used a Vanguard, so I have no idea how much free bore you are working with. My old Mark is a West German with about 3/4 of an inch of free bore, the other is an Accumark USA that has only about 1/4 inch of free bore. Both have 26 inch barrels, the old Mark (a 1 in 12) requires a hotter load to hit it's sweet spot. In my rifles I use a standard bullet, I shoot the 165 gr Sierra Game King HPBT. It will shoot about a 1/2 inch group everyday, if I do my part.

I use this load out to 500 yards. Old Mark: .300 Weatherby - Sierra 165 gr Game King HPBT, 79 grs of IMR-4350, Federal GM215M primer, Weatherby/Norma brass, Velocity - 3300 fps - checked with my Oehler 35P. (might be a little hot in yours)

Accumark: .300 Weatherby - same load, except 77.5 grs of IMR-4350, Velocity - 3225 fps - checked with 35P. (should be OK)

There a lot of good bullets that work in a .300 Wby, over the last 40 years I have loaded everything from a 110 gr to a 220 gr bullet, most shot well. The best group I ever got from the old MK was with a 180 gr Remington Bronze Point around 200 rounds down the barrel. The best group I have gotten out of the Accumark was with a 165 gr Swift Scirocco with a 150 passes down the barrel. Best of luck to you!
Good shooting,
Marcus.

I always preferred the 165s and killed a lot of deer with 165 Ballistic tips and X bullets. I got tired of all the messy capes and meat and have long since ditched the BTs.

I mostly load 165 Hornadys and Partitions. I use 84 grains of H4831.

Most recently, I have used 150 grain Partition Golds. I got a complete pass-through on my Kodiak Island buck as well as a couple of bulls. I shot my antelope last year with a 150 SST load at 3600 fps. I carried 150 Accubonds for two seasons but didn't get a chance to kill anything bigger than coyotes with it.

I rarely can keep a 165 in the carcass so have felt no reason to switch to 180s. One thing about the TSX is you gotta make sure what's beyond your target because you are hitting it!

About anything that travels down the bore of a 300 Weatherby will work on deer,but I like what Dennis says about 165 Partitions.If I were loading the cartridge for a deer hunt I would not look much beyond a 165 or 180 Partition,depending on factors such as which shot best in my rifle.

Friends and I have used both these bullets from the 300 Winchester and 300 Weatherby magnums with very good success.

I'd still load 180's but I'm goofy that way. Not one to have 7 different loads for a rifle. A good 180gr bullet out of the 'Bee will cover it all.

Running 168 TSX's out of mine ...shoot very accurately and stomp deer

SH: I agree;one bullet...shoot everything.Hard to find anything better than a 180 in the 300.

can't see the 168TSX failing on any game animal in this continent.....

I have tried the Sierra 165 HPBT with 76grs of IMR4350. Very accurate indeed. I was concerned about the bullet being to "hard" for small deer size game. I clocked these at 3220 out of mine (24" barrel). I think I will take your suggestion and load the 165 Sierra 165 SBT and try that.

too "hard"?

Yes I was told by Sierra that the 165HPBT in a lung shot may not have enough "media" to expand the bullet. He advised to take sholder shots with that bullet. He stated that even though it was a hollow point, it is a VERY tough bullet designed for bigger game such as elk or moose.

Shoulder shots at 3200 fps with a standard construction lead bullet? Yeah...sure. It's not like anyone actually eats venison, right?

One constant with Sierra advice, you always need multiple bullets to perform multiple shot presentations, distances and animals. Use a good bullet like the NP or TSX and you don't need to worry about it.

Yeah, this one confused me as well. I read the reviews on Midway's web site about these bullets and out of 28 reviews, most claimed alot of expansion, Sierra says just the reverse. Not having tried these on game or knew of anyone using them on game at these speeds I droped them from my list.

I do know someone using plain jane 180 remington core-lokts with 76gr of IMR4350 and he gets pencil size hole going in and about a tennis ball comming out with boiler room shots.

I want something just a little less distructive.

In my experience, though I haven't used the Sierras in almost 20 years, unless they have changed considerably, they are among the more destructive bullets.
But they kill in a spectacular manner.

I have shot them....ALOT but only at paper. On game I have tried the ballistic tips with mixed results, Partitions (not sure they are worth the cost for deer) winchester power points, worked ok. And I have taken many a deer with plain old remington core-lokts 180gr pills out of a 30-06. Out of 70 or so deer taken with that load. Almost all went 40 feet or so and realized that they were dead and fell over. These were factory loads. But I know that bumping up the horse power by 400fps changes everthing. I'll admit, ultra fast 30 cal's are new to me.

A different 300 maybe?