A friend of mine purchased a Rem 700 in 300 RUM a few years ago. He hunts Elk with it and some of his shots are quite long, 500+ yards.

He wants use my equipment and load his own ammo in order to save money and to improve accuracy.

He asked me what Bullets to purchase, 180gr or a 200gr? Told him I duno, am not a Long Range Elk Hunter.

Thought I would ask you guys for some advice. What bullet weight and design do you recommend for this type of Hunting?

I'm thinking 180gr Accubond, but he feels the need for a 200gr?

Thanks

I took a buddy on his first (rifle) elk hunt 2 years ago. He used a 700 xcr in 300 RUM loaded with 200 AB's. They did the trick with authority. Would the 180 have worked? I think so...but why not use the 200? Made me think about trying them in my 300 wby

I used Barnes 180's in mine. Whatever he decides make sure they are premium bullets because if he gets a shot in the woods at less than 100 yards, you need something that will hold together. IMHO this is one place where monometals really shine but NP's or A-frames would probably work too. I don't think there is an elk that will know the difference in 20 grains of bullet.
BTW my 180gr Barnes turned 3400fps MV. Reach out and touch someone!

200gn Accubond and 94gn of Retumbo over the 215 primer.
One load for anything a RUM would be pointed at.

I don't have a 300 RUM but if I did I would use 190 grn Nosler LR Accubonds

I currently use 180 gr. Swift Scirocco's in mine. The elk don't like it much at all.

The 200 gr. AB has some impressive ballistics, but it comes with a lot of blast and recoil. The 180 gr. Scirocco or AB is a perfect combo for me personally, but if a guy didn't mind the recoil of the 200 gr. AB it would be a great choice.

I used to use the 200 gr accubond. It worked well on several elk and I never found a bullet until I shot a cow at 560 yds.
While it may be Nosler's highest BC bullet is does have considerable wind drift compared to what I believe is the ultimate LR bullet and perfect match for the 300 RUM, the Berger 230 gr Match Hybrid Target.


The BC of the 230 hybrid is .743 and it has been shown to be a great big game bullet.

I shot my cow elk at 250 yds with a high double shoulder shot that dropped her in her tracks. The bullet exited with a excellent wound channel.




One could argue that my one elk with this bullet is not enough information to conclude it is good or bad choice for elk.

Here are two threads that I think would convince someone to use them:

http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f19/230gr-berger-used-africa-success-138852/

http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f19/berger-230-300-otm-hybrid-terminal-results-80283/

No way, not enough gun or bullet.

Either/or. In a RUM, with shots to 500, Any solid bullet 180-200 would be good. I'd go 200AB if I was him. Not for need, but for the smack factor at 500. Partitions would be good too.

At RUM speed, the ABLR are not awesome, I am guessing. Nosler is a great company, but 1300fps expansion and 3200fps impact velocity on a 400-800lb animal seems beyond the limits of copper and lead. Just a guess though, based on reports I've read from the field.

I wouldn't rule out the 180BT.
I have used the 180 bt, 165ab, 180ab and 200 ab with good results.

Call me old-fashioned, but I have run 180 NPs over H1000 for 10 years now. They group so tight I've never had reason to try anything else. Killed elk from 80 to 550 yards with it. I don't seek out long range shots on purpose, but based on plinking out well beyond those ranges, I'd confidently take a longer shot on an elk in the right conditions. I always read the .300 RUM threads as I come across them and don't think you'd go wrong with any of the bullet types recommended here.

Lots of elk are killed with bullets/calibers smaller than that so I'd say a 180g is plenty. I'm a velocity fan myself so would pick that over a 200 or heavier for elk. I have several buddies who love the 168g bullets in their .30 magnums for elk.

Pick any of the above. Personally I'd pick two from whatever you can actually consistently purchase locally, run a ladder test on each, and go with whichever is tighter.

Good luck!

200 ab for me

either is fine but whatever you pick go premium. no cc bullets

H1000 is the Aussie powder AR2217 which I tried extensively when the RUM first appeared. It was the absolute best powder for that cartridge in the late 90's and will still do a terrific job today and yes, accuracy was commonly 3 shot clusters in the .5" range in the several rifles I tested it.
John

I'm running a 200gr AB in mine, over 92gr retumbo, and a winchester magnum primer. Accuracy is superb. I've only killed a few deer and a black bear with mine, but they all died right quick.

I use nothing but the 180 gr Accubond in my 300 RUM. It will get it done.

I've used both 180s and 200s on game in mine. Both work really well. Currently using 200gr LRX bullets and have taken a bull bison so far with them.

180gr Swift Sciroccos worked fine in mine.

He calls 500 yds long range? p shaw...


a teeny tiny 115 gr bullet at 715 yds.....not me but I took the pic

EH what chambering?

I used the .300 RUM feral culling in Australia, partly to see just exactly how much a 180 Accubond could take and partly because I had a new custom Sako and wanted to put some miles on it.

The way it turned out I shot animals as large as water buffalo with that little bullet and found there was nothing to worry about. I also found that for shooting mag after mag in a screaming hot rifle the RUM was an obnoxiously loud pig and after fifty animals I put it away. A guy almost shouldn't need to be told that, but that part of the experiment was just to stress the Accubond as much as possible. Ranges were relatively short too, so the bullet didn't get a break on velocity.

Long story short, there isn't an elk in the world that I wouldn't clobber with a 180 grain AB. You can try the 200 if you want but you don't need it. For this 500 and down stuff a argument can be made that you don't need the RUM either, but that's a whole nuther conversation.

6mm-06AI...bull made it 15 yds.....bullet took a rib going in and out.

Bergers?

My 300 RUM has killed elk with 168 Berger VLD's and 180 gr. BT. Both bullets shoot very well in the rifle, the 180 BT seems to be the best of both worlds, giving me solid penetration and great expansion. The Bergers are impressive bullets though. One big old bull was shot center spine at around 400 yards from above, 6" of spine disappeared. Can't complain about the performance of them on smaller big game either. From antelope to deer, they were like setting off an explosive inside the animal. The Ballistic Tips are just as accurate and seem to buck the wind better. Performance has been very good with these bullets as well. I'm not a huge AB fan, if for no other reason than they didn't provide the kind of on game performance that I like through my .280.

JLK same same

Model70guy, I was waiting for someone else to say that a RUM isn't needed for elk to 500. I agree. I use a 30-06, and if I felt comfortable taking the shot, I know it would work perfectly to 700. 600 is my self-imposed distance limit, because the drops get steep beyond that, let alone wind calling. I've yet to test that, but I am confident in my shooting. I can't imagine pulling the trigger if I wasn't confident.

What we don't know is what kind of shot the guy is, or what country he hunts, or where he aims on elk. What is known though is if he thinks he needs a RUM for elk to 500, it will work just fine, as long as he can shoot.

Killed six bulls and one cow with my 300 rum. One 180 gr Partition, one 200 gr AB and five with 180 gr TBBC's. All worked great. Have not had to track a single animal shot with that rifle.

Thanks guys, now I have to figure out what powder to use. Retumbo is nowhere to be found around here, neither is H1000. I do have a few pounds of 7828 and 16 pounds of DP 86 (3100)as well as a couple pounds of R-22, but it looks like none of these are ideal for the 200gr.

How does R-25 work? I might be able to find a few pounds.

I would be more concerned with accuracy than absolute max velocity, especially at long range where that fraction of an inch becomes 5-6 fractions of an inch ... or worse.

If 7828 is the slowest powder you've got, run some and see what it does. I've often had the best accuracy with a powder that was a hair fast for highest velocity.

RL 25 might be a good choice.

You're not really going to know 'til you start pulling the trigger with YOUR rifle. What someone else's gun does is better than no information at all but it's a long ways from an answer.

Tom

I've killed two bull elk with a 300 RUM one with a 180 AB and one with a 200 AB...both worked fine both pushed by retumbo...I hunt with a 280 Ackley now, less recoil and blast and way more efficient !

My pal came home from an elk hunt last year with two recovered 200 gr AB's and a dead 6x6.

I've never gotten too excited about the Accubond so never used them on elk but seems to me they expand to a little bigger frontal area than a Partition and seem not to penetrate quite as deep.

I have used the 180 and 200 gr Partition and have stumbled on a couple of 180's recovered from mature bulls but it took a long shot angle to stop one;and I could never find a 200 gr at all,since they all exited.

I would not hesitate to use a 180 or 200 AB but would take the Partition over either if I had a choice.

Interesting, I have several Hundred 180gr Partitions and only one box of 200gr AB. How do you think the Partition will stack up accuracy wise at 500+ yards?

Well Steve, I have killed a couple of bulls with the 180 NPT at about 500 yards from a 300 Win Mag started at about 3125 fps.

One went down immediately to a shoulder shot but his head was still up. I broke his neck (on purpose) with the second shot.

All this of course was preceded by a lot of range time with the bullet to 500-600 yards.

So.....I guess it'll work.

RL25 has been my go to powder for 10 years with my 300 RUM. I run 96.0 grains with 180 grain partitions, Accubond and BT's.

Dink

God to know, thanks.

RL22 has been my go to powder under 180 gr. bullets in the 300 RUM for several years as well. Tried Retumbo and didn't get the groups I was looking for.

Why not the 210 gr long range accubond

As with just about every other bullet mentioned here, they do not exist. Out-of-Stock and No-Backorder is pretty much "Why".

I used the 210 gr LRAB last year. That being said, I will be going back to the 200 gr Accubond I've used since 2003. I've been hunting with a .300 RUM since 2000 and have used other bullets from time to time, but with the exception of using an E-Tip one year, the last 13 bulls have all been taken with an Accubond. I use RL-25, a federal 215 and Remington brass. mtmuley

OK, managed to pick up a pound of R-25 today. Now all I have to do is get an accurate load worked up with Minimal # of bullets (200 AB).

Thanks.

That'll do. I've tipped over a pile of elk with that combo. I like the slower MV for close in encounters over the 180's.