Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Winchester M70 Ultimate Shadow SS

Anybody have one yet? I just ordered a 300WSM. Originally wanted an EW, but couldn't locate one, and I found a good deal on the Shadow SS. Do they shoot as well as the other FN M70's? Planning to order Talley LW's and mount a Meopta Meopro 3-9x42 with BDC. Will lows give enough clearance for the bolt handle, or should I start with mediums?

That one should shoot great. I know you were wanting an EW, but there are no flies on the ultimate shadow. The moa trigger will probably need to be lightened a hair, but other than that all else should be great (this includes factory bedding). Talley lightweights are a good choice but the lows might be a cnt hair too low for that size of objective. I run the lows with my leupold VX3 3.5-10x40's on my EW and fwt's. Another good option for the short action would be leupold DD's (dual dovetails). I actually prefer those over the lightweights on my short action 300 wsm. The talleys just didn't look right, but they worked great on my long actions. Here's a pic of the difference between the 2 just to give you and idea:

Leupold low DD's:


Talley lightweights (lows):

If you are even remotely thinking about upgrading the stock the SS Ultimate Shadow is probably a better choice anyway. You'll get the same rifle minus a fluted barrel for less money. Use the savings toward a McMillan. Much better than the factory B&C stock.

I agree with JMR40. I hated the stock on my EW. I had to change it out with a micky edge first thing. Went into it with that in mind. I also don't mind the duratouch stock on the ultimate shadows. I spruced one up recently. Unfortunately I sold the rifle I mated to it and still have the stock ...If the plain black doesn't do it for you, you can always paint the duratouch too:



They are a lot lighter than the B&C too...

Thank you for the info. BSA, I do agree that the DD's look better. Thank you for sharing the pics! I had been planning on Talleys, but I may get those instead. I don't intend to upgrade the stock initially, but may down the road. I have a 180gr load with Speer DeepCurls that shoots very well through my A7, and will be my starting point for the M70. I'm also going to try 180 Interbonds, 168 TTSXs, and 165 TSXs. Can't wait to get my hands on it!

I purchased a new Ultimate Shadow SS in 308 this past December and could not be more happy. Fit and finish are great. Have only tried out four different factory loads, but the largest group at 100 yards was 1.5�. The best group so far, see pic, was using 180gr. Federal Thug ammo (sold only at Walmart I believe). If I hand loaded, who knows how well it might shoot. The factory stock will be replaced with a McMillan Edge. That being said, for a factory plastic stock, it feels good. The rubber inserts are a nice touch. For my scope, a Bushnell Elite 4200 3-9x40, I used a low DNZ one piece mount. It is ugly, but works great. Easy to mount with no lapping or ring marks. I think you will be very happy with your new purchase. Chris

Gibby, actually those DNZ mounts/rings don't look too bad and that thing shoots buddy!!!! That's a keeper..

BSA so you still have the EW factory stock then?

Gibby, I sure hope mine shoots as good as yours! I'm getting anxious for this thing to get here. After reading all of the Model 70 to Portugal stuff, I hope mine was built late in 2012 or early 2013 in the USA. The DNZ mount is nice as well. I still kind of like the look of the Leupold DD's the best though.

Alex,

As far as the mounts go, I agree. I think that the DD mount is the cleanest look you can get. I also know what it is like to wait for an ordered gun. I am not real patient. Hang in there. As for how mine shoots, I am very happy. Crazy thing is, I bought the 308 because I think it is a "Do All" cartridge for most big game here in the US. And, ammo is cheap and available everywhere...up until a few months ago. Oh well.

I almost ordered mine in .30-06 for the same reason. Already have two rifles chambered in 06 though. I was thinking that the 300wsm would be about perfect for an elk hunt in a few years, and work well for shooting hogs until then. Also hope to take it to Africa for plains game some day. I know it's not a huge step up from the .30-06, but I like the idea of having that power in a short action.

Nope, got rid of it a long time ago...It was only on the rifle for about 3 days and then it was replaced by the micky edge...

Picking it up soon. Can't wait!!

I like the rifle itself very much. Smooth action, good trigger, feeds very slick. The metalwork is all very nice. Only issue I've noticed is that the barrel, while it is free floated all the way to the receiver, does not sit perfectly centered in the channel in the stock. I might call Winchester and see what they say. Seems like someone should have seen that before it passed inspection, unless they're not as picky as I am.

I love the way Model 70's feed WSM rounds, just so true N slick & CRF . Excellent news on the overall rifle. Don't worry too much on the barrel inletting, I have seen Sauer 101, 202's & Sako 75 85's with the same issue and as much as it pisses me off , at the end of the day that rifle is one of the finest factory rifles on the market today, for the bills$.
Great buying!

ps- That said. NOTHING IS PERFECT, EVERYTHING IS A COMPROMISE, but that Model 70 is a peach and will give trouble free hunting for many lifetimes.