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270 wsm vs 300 wsm vs ????

32K views 16 replies 14 participants last post by  leverite 
#1 ·
I am looking at a new semi auto rifle, most likely Browning BAR to complement my 30.06 bolt action tikka. I will mostly use this rifle on deer, wolf and bear hunting in in No Minnesota and NW Ontario but also may use on Elk if I get a chance. I reload so ammo supply/cost is not really an issue.

I have been comparing the 270 wsm vs the 300 wsm vs 300 win mag vs ???? and was looking to see what others think would be my best option.

Thanks for your input!!:)
 
#2 ·
Well i think if you use it for bear and elk you would be well suited to either get a .300 WM or a .338 WM. Since you handload if you got a .338 you could load up some 160 grain TSX bullets at around 3350 FPS, for elk and bear you could go 225 or 250.

.300 WM will out preform any short mag and have more available ammunition (same applies to the .338) If most of your hunting was blackbear and whitetail the .300 WM might better suit you, if you were gettin elk some 200 gr bullets would do nicely.
 
#3 ·
I agree, the 300wsm doesn't offer much of an improvement over the .30/06, being close to a 300 H&H in performance. The .300 win mag offers a bit more punch.

I have a .270wsm, it is a nice cartridge in its own right but probably not really a necessery one. In the field the standard .270 is so close you can't really pick them. I'm sure the .270 would handle bears and elk alright though with a sturdy projectile.
 
#5 ·
Check out some of the newer chambers in the AR15 platform you may be surprised to see some very hard hitters. You can get them in just about any wsm cartridge. Olympic has a new 300 Olympic that gets you right between the 30/06 and the 300 WM. Plus after you have the lower you can just buy uppers and get whatever caliber you want from 204 ruger up to 50 Beowolf.

AL
 
#6 ·
I would either get a 338 Win mag, 300 Win Mag or I would consider a 35 Whelen. The 300 Win mag is a great Elk and Bear round and the 35 Whelen hit's like a mack truck and if you reload it shoots only 200 FPS less then a 338 Win mag.

The 388 Win Mag and the 300 Win Mag had pretty stout recoil and the Whelen recoil is more like a 7mm mag.
 
#7 ·
There are lots of options, depending on the ranges you will be shooting... the 358Win and 338Federal look like good elk rounds for up to 300yds shots (maybe a little less... 250yds). Should work good for black bear, too... browns you might want to carry a 338 WinMag, though.
 
#8 ·
thanks

I appreciate the input so far. I was starting to lean towards the 270 due to less recoil, most of my shots will be less than 200 yards for sure with many less than 50. The reason I want to go to a semi auto is to be able to get off mutiple shots fast than with my bolt. I am not sure about being able to bring in the AR15 platform into canada as I think it may be classified as a restricted firearm.

Another thought was since I already have a 30.06 should i stick with tha caliber?:confused:
 
#9 ·
No Question!

I won a Win. Mod. 70 .300 WSM at a Safari Club dinner. Never was interested in before. Now that I've killed Tule Elk, Mtn. Goat and a bunch of deer I love it! It's my main rifle now.

I reload and have found out the heavier bullets shoot better. start at 165 and work your way up to 180
 
#10 ·
I won a Win. Mod. 70 .300 WSM at a Safari Club dinner. Never was interested in before. Now that I've killed Tule Elk, Mtn. Goat and a bunch of deer I love it! It's my main rifle now.

I reload and have found out the heavier bullets shoot better. start at 165 and work your way up to 180
I'm not a big .300 wsm fan, but a friend of mine owns one, and i did shoot it. It has a lot of positive attributes, very light, short, and very accurate. One thing i dont like about it is how stiff the recoil is due to the lightweight, and possibly poor stocking, the gun was more unpleasent to shoot than my .338WM.

Would probably be great for a person doing a lot of mountain hunting, or covering a lot of ground on foot.
 
#11 ·
I had one of the original Model 70's in 300WSM. It kicked like a mule.
And certainly isn't necessary for our deer down here in Texas.
My son hammered a big mule deer last week with his 270WSM at about 220 yds.
I can see this caliber as a long range super star for hunting. Short action so you could put a longer barrel on it if you wish, and not screw up the balance. With the 140 grain bullets, its hard to beat. There isn't a big choice out there in the 277 caliber. But there are a lot of options out there for the 300 mags.
I think the 270WSM will make it in this market and be around a while.
( My 270 WIN, did just as well on the mule deer I shot!)
 
#16 ·
I had one of the original Model 70's in 300WSM. It kicked like a mule.
I've shot one of those and you are correct.

BarkBuster20 said:
One thing i dont like about it is how stiff the recoil is due to the lightweight, and possibly poor stocking, the gun was more unpleasent to shoot than my .338WM.
I think it has a lot to do with the stock. My son has a Browning A-Bolt Stalker in 300WSM that I took to Alaska in 02. I took a 60" moose with one shot with it. Recoil is moderate and even light compared to that older M70 300WSM.

I bought a Kimber a year or so later to elk hunt with. Recoil is about the same as the Browning. Browning's stocks actually slope down toward the front and I think that makes the recoil feel lighter than the stocks that slope up and bang your cheek when you shoot them.

New M70s have a flat stock profile with the drops both being 1/2 inch. This may make the newer guns shoot with less felt recoil.

Well, that's my thoughts anyway. :)
 
#12 ·
the 338wm would be the most logical choice to me as it would be a noticable jump in performance from the '06 that you already have. the 300 win mag would be a good alternate as a good 200gr bullet will really separate it from the '06.
i wouldn't bother with the short mags as they really don't offer anything that isn't already out there performance wise... if you look at the manuals the 270 doesn't even better the std 270 by much more than 100fps and that to me is not worth dealing with the higher priced brass, ammo, poor resizing and potential feeding issues of the wsm case...
 
#15 ·
I have the 270 and the 300 wsm love them both the 135 grain is best all around for the 270 and 168 for the 300. The 300 sure is a kicker too muzzel brake needed for sure.
I would not be afraid to shoot an elk with either of them.
but only with a Nosler accubond or Hornady interbond or Seirra game kings.
 
#17 ·
I have a Win 70 in 300 WSM. It's very accurate with everything from a 168 gr Barnes TSX thru a 200 gr Swift A-frame.

This is a very fine elk rifle. Aside from a 325 WSM, it's dang near THE perfect elk caliber.

I would also highly recommend a good 30-06, a 358 Win, 350 Rem mag or a 35 WHelen as excellent elk calibers.

Tough choice, you ought to get a couple rifles as prices are low now. You always need a spare in camp anyway.
 
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