[OneShotKill]

I'm not convinced about short magnums, so have never seen the need to own any of them. Consequently, I don't have any first hand experience with reloading for them or using them on game.

I'm interested to hear the thoughts of others on them. If you're like me and never bought one, why was that? If you've owned them and sold them, why? Those of you who still own them and love them, again, why? Anyone reloaded for them? How did you find it? Any other observations or experiences?

I'm just interested to know what everyday shooters think about them. The seem to have died a relatively quick death in Australia.

When I get a chance I'll put up some ideas of mine and see what you guys think and how they compare. I'm not against progress or new offerings, I'm just keep to know the thoughts of others on the subject.

I really hope we don't see personal attacks over this one. I've seen it elsewhere and it's not good at anytime anyway.

 

[BarkBuster20]

I dont personally own a short magnum, but i have cleaned in sighted in one, shot another, and seen its performance on game, these were both .300 WSM's. One was a savage, the other was a tika t3. One thing that is nice about the short magnums, is the fact you have a smaller gun, it shoulders quicker, carrys better, balances better, and is generally lighter than a standard magnum, or even your average '06. They perform on game just as you would expect, isnt like the bullet knows what pushed it out ofthe barrel anyway. This year my buddy shot a nice cow at about 20 yards in the timber, 180 grain balistic tip of some sort, had a golden tip on it anyway. double lung shot, and she went about 100 yards. The bullet was deflected by a branch before entering, and did in fact enter sideways. I cant speculate on reloading for these cartridges, but i do believe the performance comes at a price, both of the WSM's i have experience with have had sticky extractions from factory ammo on cold days. over all i think there pretty good, but in no way replace the standard magnums, they just cant handle the heavy bullets. I think they do have a niche though.

 

[MontyF]

Guess all I'm going to relate here is just hearsay. At one point I was interested in a .25WSM. After reading several gun tests in magazines I was almost sold. I liked having better velocity than a 25-06 in a short barrel, short action rifle. From posts I've seen on this site and those who have some practical experience, it seems they don't perform as advertised. Also reloaders can't duplicate factory velocities, I'm guessing the powders the ammunition manufactures use aren't avalable to the public.

I just know there seems to be lots of WSM's in the used racks around here.

 

[Range Junkie]

If you're like me and never bought one, why was that?

Because I think they are a solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

 

[Saskshooter]

Because I think they are a solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

That's my thinking too.

 

[Bird Dog II]

I have a 7mm WSM that performs great. It really shoots Federal Premium Trophy Bonded 160s hard. A noticable step up from .30-06 165s (with which I have killed a lot of animals). I have not yet been able to duplicate the power of this factory load with handloads. I also have a .350 Rem Mag, the original short mag if you will. It is much like a .358 Win with more zip I guess. I have yet to hunt with it or handload it. I look forward to it though.

 

[Rugerfan0374]

I will throw my thoughts and opinions in here, even though I don't own a short magnum.

I witnessed a guy at the shooting range a couple of years back, shooting a 300 WSM. Altough it looked to be an accurate rifle, as he was shooting it through a chronogragh, he was complaining about not getting the published velocities out of it.

I have also heard that there have been issues reloading them. I do not have any solid facts, just things I have heard and read. Something about the necks caving in.

For a short time I did have a 270 WSM, but I never got to shoot it, before selling it back to the guy I bought it from. He told me that it was an accurate rifle, but I never got any input out of him on how it did on game, nor did he reload so he could not tell me if the reloading issues were true or not.

Now for me, I am a traditional guy, and like some of the others that have posted, this was a solution to a problem that did not exist, and this was nothing more than a marketing gimmick to sell rifles.

When these came out, I already had a 270 Weatherby Magnum and a 300 Winchester Magnum. So did not have the need for a short magnum, nor did I want one. All this hoopla about how fast the 270 WSM is, Bull______ I can load my 270 Weatherby up to smoke the ever-loving doors off the Short Magnum, and if I really wanted to, I could load my 270 Winchester up to near velocities of the short magnum.

Yes I agree with Barkbuster on the fact that the short light rifle would be easy to carry, and easy and quick to shoulder, that would be great I guess, but still have no need for one.

 

[Sinbad12-2007]

Gee, guys, remember waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay back when the .300 Winchester came out? The .264 Win Mag, the .338 Win Mag, the 7mm Rem Mag. They were considered "short magnums" too. And they were, compared to the parent .300 H&H Magnum. Didn't need a Magnum length action ... the standard .30-06 length action worked perfectly. The main reason they were brought out was to ignite some fires in the wallets of sportsmen so they'd buy the latest Remchestersavlin rifles. Just a business move. And my goodness, the boys sure had their fun with these latest "short magnums".

I'm of the school that says "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". And these new ones are fixing a problem that didn't exist. Not many of us could tell the difference of 2 or 3 oz from the shorter action, or the inch or so less in overall rifle length ... especially from a blind or tree stand. Personally, I don't believe they'll stand the test of time, not like the last set of "short magnums".

No, I don't own one. Matter of fact, I've never even shot one. I've never experienced the .001 seconds of faster reloading time. Now, if they were to give me a jump in performance like from a .30-30 to a .30-06, well, that would be a different story. I just couldn't get excited about perhaps .1" less drop at 100 yards or 50 ftlbs more energy. Dead is dead.

Yeah, I'm old. It figures. Just turned 64. My 7mm Rem Mag just turned 48 this year. Amazing ... it still kills like it did when it was but a pup.

But if the guys using them are happy with them, who am I to say they're wrong. I have my fun, they have theirs. Nothing wrong with either. Fun is fun.

 

[ah-ha]

the small gain in velocity is not worth the cost of not practicing as much with 308 millsurp ammo. Firing 3x as many rds, same cost, is bound to make you a better marksman, if you will fire those rds with intelligence, at least.

 

[tkbigbore]

i think the wssm have had more luck lately as a few companies are making ar15 uppers in them . a 10 rd 223 ar mag holds about 6 of the wssm . i know coyote hunters really like the wsm,wssm and 257 wby

http://www.olyarms.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=50&Itemid=37

id get one if i wasnt head over heels for a wby .i think for small game they probably are fun i like the funny look of the big shell case . **** i think if you strait walled it and added a rimm you would have a mean new big bore round

 

[fritz1]

I dont like them, I beleive they have more disadvantages than advatages. The rifles hold less rounds, dont feed as well or load as easy, and most do not offer velocity advantages over the rounds that they are compared to. Just another way for gun companies to get you to buy a new gun, just about like the clothing manufactors that come out with a new line of camo every year, its called marketing, do you actually think the deer get wise to the different camo patterns and you really have to have different stuff every year. deer have been dieing with the old 30-06 for years, to this day they still die just as quick and effectively as they did 100 years ago. JMO.

 

[Red Pepper]

I own a .270 WSM, in a Winchester 1885, and I like it. A LOT. I've owned 3 .270 Winchesters and a couple of 30-06's, but this is my favorite of the bunch. I didn't buy it because I felt there was some magic I needed that my .270 Winchesters didn't provide; I purchased it because I wanted the 1885 in a .270, and the WSM was available (and the standard .270 Winchester was not, at least at that time).

Once I had it, though, I found it was a wonderful cartridge - easily the most accurate rifle I've owned (1/2" groups @ 100 yards are quite common), and the performance is hot - well above what the .270 Winchester will deliver (Max loads with a 90 grain varmint bullet are around 3900 fps!). Of course, this is with a 28" barrel that lets the cartridge really burn that extra powder. My sense is that most of the WSM rifles have compromised an effective barrel length for the sake of creating a lighter, shorter rifle. Note that a lot of .300 Win Mags have 26" barrels, whereas most .300 WSM's have 23" or 24" barrels. If you're using a bolt gun, the fatter WSM's will probably cut your magazine capacity in comparision to standard calibers (.270 Win, 30-06, .308), but no more than the comparable magnums.

Reloading this cartridge is as easy as any other in this caliber class, with just a couple of caveats: the neck is a little short (I haven't found any issues coming from it, but it may impact your ability to use cast bullets), and the larger diameter case may not fit your Lee primer tool, if you're using such a device. It seems to respond well to IMR4350.

Bottom Line: I wouldn't trade off a cherished .270 Win or similar to get a WSM (the advantages wouldn't add up enough for most hunting to outweigh the cost of the change), but if I didn't have something in that line already I would certainly look hard at the WSM.

 

[Red Pepper]

Works great for thinning out vast herds of 2 liter water bottles...

 

[MikeG]

Sounds like fun. Hey if they make you happy then go buy a short magnum.

 

[Shawn Crea]

The only recent short mag that blew my dress up was the 325 WSM, and yet I still haven't gotten one. That I already have a 338 WM is probably mostly the reason I haven't bought one.

As one poster already mentioned, the 350 RM is a rather aged 'short mag'. I have a Rem Mod 600, & 673 in the 350. The feeding is anything but smooth. They function fine and I don't get any misfeeds, but it isn't smooth like a 30-06 in a std-length action. I haven't handled many rifles in the WSM's, but I can imagine the feeding is similar to my 600 & 673. No worries at all with this in Red Pepper's 1885's. But maybe that lack of silky feeding deters some from making the purchase if they've tried them from those that have already bought them (after all, the gun shops are not going to let you cycle a live round in the store).

My neighbor has a Win Mod 70 black shadow in 270 WSM and it is a nice rifle and he loves it. And it performs well on deer and elk.

It's almost certain that the short mags that don't get a foothold - soon - will be collectibles 30+ years down the road, like the Rem 600's in 350 RM are!

 

[Davers]

I've heard both good & Bad issues regarding these Short Magnum Cartridges. My question would be how long will they be manufactured? I've seen several cartridges introduced and soon disappear quickly.

 

[Invader]

short mags

I have many rifles in the short mag configuration tikka t3 300wsm, kimber 84 m in 300 wsm ,browning classic stainless in 300wsm and new winchester extermes in 300 and 325wsm.all these rifles are tack drivers and are my go to calibers for hunting big game,never had a problem with loading extraction or accuracy.the 300 wsm has been out for ten years the 325 wsm has been out for five. savage, winchester ,browning sako,kimber,nosler currently produce guns in these calibers,they are flying off the shelf around here and I personally can vouch for there accuracy ,short and long range shooting,I have other calibers 270 winchester ,308 winchester 30-06,these short mags are still my favorites,regards marc

 

[Harry Snippe]

Know an old timer that shakes his head and tells me that his old Savage 99 in 303 was all he ever needed to take Moose , bear and any deer .
Then a friend of his (Native) tells me new cartridges are just needed to sell new guns . But he is happy just having his 32/ 20 which took it's share . Just learn to suit it with in it's limit.During the depression You were given maybe three shells which had to account for three animals or your taken to the woodshed and you got it.

 

[MZ5]

I have a Browning A-bolt in 25 Winchester Super Short Magnum (WSSM rather than the WSM that OP asked about), and I had a Savage with 2 barrels: 223 WSSM and a wildcat 26-caliber WSM. I love both the idea and the execution of the WSSMs. I don't dislike the WSMs, but neither do I particularly love them. OTOH, I'm not a really big 'magnum' cartridge kind of guy; I don't own and don't care to own a 300 WM, for example.

The brass for the WSSMs at least is very thick. That makes it very different to work and reload. I wouldn't really say more difficult, just different. If you're using 'regular' dies and the die-maker didn't think about this fact, then you might have trouble resizing properly, I suppose.

I find that WSSM brass needs to be annealed immediately. This is unfortunate, but of course has nothing to do with the cartridge design; just a manufacturing difficulty to be overcome by the handloader.

I have only ever had feeding hangups in my 25 WSSM when loading very stubby 75 grain Hornady HPs to a very short COAL. I typically shoot 120s in that gun with no hangups whatever. Anything longer than those Hornadys feed well for me.

In all, the super-short cartridges and actions are very convenient/handy in any platform, but especially in an AR15 platform. It's extremely difficult to ignore the benefits of having 243 Win, 25-06 Rem, 260 Rem+, or 308 Win+ power in a standard AR15 chassis.

 

[Andy6965282]

Short mags maybe a marketing ploy, but as long as your not reloading there are some performance differences. It maybe hard to beat the parent rounds in smoothness. Maybe a lighter rifle that is easier to shoulder is not really important to you.

The real question is, can you really own enough guns? Just keep shooting