300wsm vs270win

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Kwaynem

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What are your opinions on deer hunting is there much difference between 300wsm and 270win? I have both but never hunted with the 300wsm yet
 
What are your opinions on deer hunting is there much difference between 300wsm and 270win? I have both but never hunted with the 300wsm yet
For deer? They'll both dead them just fine, one has noticeably more recoil but the deer don't seem to notice..... basically with today's technologies, the average deer dies if you point a high speed .22 or bigger center-fire at them and pull the trigger at reasonable distances.
 
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If you don’t reload, you will have more ammo choices (in normal times) in .270, which doesn’t directly apply to your question but indirectly matters a great deal. Reason being, if you have more ammo options you are more likely to find hunting ammo.
That being said, I love the .300wsm for deer. It’s very versatile if one does reload. It does not kill any better than a .270, but then again I prefer short actions.
Just go with your preferences.
 
I do reload I have enough 270 to last the rest of my life but was wondering about deer reaction after the shot say behind the shoulder in heart lung area with the 270 they might go 50 yards or less just curious if 300wsm was better at far as reaction after the shot
 
Friend of mine uses his 300WSM for deer and I use a .270.

He loads his 300WSM to be about a 30-06+P; 168s at a little over 3000 FPS. I load my .270 130s at 3170FPS.

We both have killed deer at about the same distances, really no discernable difference in effect. This past Sept we both shot antelope, his ran a bit, mine bang flopped at about the same distance. The difference was the bullet placement, not the cartridge.

When I head out to western KS for mullies it's a toss-up between taking my .270 or my 300WM with 165s at 3100FPS. Both are effective at the distances we encounter. Last deer I shot with the .300WM was a double lung at just shy of 300 and he went about 40yds.
 
I would say either would be better than many other rounds routinely discussed here. So much better, the difference between the two is insignificant, when compared to many others.
 
Deer are strange animals.
They can run for hundreds of yards with broken legs and a smashed heart, dead on their feet.
I hunt with a 30-06 usually, and my Brother In-law uses a 300wsm.
We have had similar results in deer continuing after being hit well.
His sounds like a cannon and leaves a little bit bigger hole.
His cartridges are a bit more expensive whether buying boxes of ammunition or handloading it.
My deer this season I took with a 300 grain muzzleloader bullet. Took a substantial sized chunk out of its heart and disintegrated the far side from leg. He still ran 150 yards before expiring.
 
Both are great for deer, more then you need unless your reaching out past 300-400 often. Even some both have plenty of energy at 500 or so which I think is a good max range on most animals. I've owned and shot deer with both I'd pick the wsm.

This is probably the best way to look at it.

IMHO, the .300WSM and .300WM will get you some additional range due to increased energy. Lets say for example you went with the often recommended 1000 lbs of energy at impact. My .270Win with 130 at 3170FPS gets that out to 650yds. My .300Win mag with a 180 grain at 2998 gets that out to 800yds.

There's some other considerations like wind drift and drop that will also favor the .300s, but at the distances most guys shoot deer, it really won't matter.

For an elusive "all around" rifle the .300WSM would be a better choice, for a strictly whitetail rifle at normal distances +, the nod might go to the .270Win. Cool part for loaders with any .300 magnum is you can easily turn them into .308/.30-06 equivalents when you don't need or want the extra distance.
 
One reason I’m leaning towards the 300wsm is it’s lighter and easier to carry

And it's a very valid reason!

Both my .270Win and .300WM are set up as open country rigs; 24" barrels, higher magnification scopes, 8+lb setups. For about 85% of my deer hunting I get by wit a 20" .260Rem that weighs 7lbs 5oz "all up" in a compact rifle that works well in blinds and stands. So I fully understand the rifle setup playing a huge role in selection.
 
just curious if 300wsm was better at far as reaction after the shot
Calibre doesn't matter much when it comes to reaction from the deer. Some drop from shock and just don't get up and some have enough adrenaline and oxygen in thier brain to run 100yds when they shouldn't have moved an inch.
I've shot deer with .223 that dropped like a hammer, and I shot a doe last year at close range from high above with my 300wm , she had nothing left in her chest , it all blew out a softball size hole, and she still ran 75yds.

If you reload, then you probably already know that bullet selection for .308 is more abundant and available compared to 270.
 
Others have a lot more experience than I, but I've taken deer with: .338 win mag, .300 win mag, .30-06, ,25-06, .44 rem mag, .50 cal in-line ML with saboted hollow-points, and saboted hollowpoints from Savage 212 shotgun. I usually shoot for the heart/lung and the deer almost always run. 40 yards is pretty common, even with the heart and both lungs destroyed. The only gun/ammo combo that has always dropped them in their tracks is the Savage 212 with saboted 300 gr bullets; but that may be just a result of only shooting 4 deer with that setup.
 
I can remember hunting as a kid with 30-06 and most of them dropped in their tracks the others only took a few steps
I'm not trying to be a wise guy (I'm really not) but that's anecdotal at best. I've said it before, the first deer I ever killed (nearly 60 years ago) was a doe mule deer that I shot through the heart with a .308 Winchester at about 40 yards. She jumped and ran about 100 yards uphill before stopping, and as she stood there, I put 4 more bullets through her heart area (because I didn't know she was dead on her feet) before she finally collapsed.
Yet I've had many a mule deer drop in their tracks when I hit them in the chest/heart with the same Model 100, .308 Winchester I killed that first doe mule deer with. I've also had mule deer drop in their tracks when I hit them with in the chest/lungs with bullets from a 50 caliber muzzle loader, a .30-30 Winchester, a .270 Winchester, a .30-06, a 300 Win Mag, a .338 Win Mag, and now my beloved .308 Norma Mag.
I've also had mule deer run a ways before they buckled and fell down after being hit in the chest/heart with bullets from all of those rifles except my .308 Norma Mag. Don't get me wrong though - I'm fully aware that the ONLY reason I've never had a mule deer "run a ways" after being hit in the chest/heart with bullets from my .308 Norma Mag is because I haven't had that rifle for very long, and haven't shot many mule deer with it yet. ;)
You just can't tell for sure how a mule deer is going to react when it's shot in the chest/heart with any normal sized deer rifle. I know this - about the fasted I've ever seen a mule deer drop was when I shot one with a little 30 Carbine. But I put that little 110gr bullet right behind that big 4-point mule deer's ear. :thumbup:
 
I understand what your saying I wasn’t trying to imply anything sorry if I came across that way
No man - no reason to be sorry. I didn't think you were implying anything. :)
When it comes right down to it, all of the experience I've had in 60 years of killing deer with various big game cartridges is anecdotal too. Besides, I've never shot a deer with something like a .22-250, or a .416 Rem Mag. Maybe one of them would drop every deer shot in the heart/lungs in its tracks every time. I kind of doubt it though. ;)
 
No man - no reason to be sorry. I didn't think you were implying anything. :)
When it comes right down to it, all of the experience I've had in 60 years of killing deer with various big game cartridges is anecdotal too. Besides, I've never shot a deer with something like a .22-250, or a .416 Rem Mag. Maybe one of them would drop every deer shot in the heart/lungs in its tracks every time. I kind of doubt it though. ;)
The .22-250 will :p
 
I will say that the 270 is more efficient ie less powder per rd. 130gr bullet in 270 using about 55gr+- depending on powder vs 60gr or so for 300wsm, but you get 1000fps more with the 300wsm. If I was hunting in thick woods with 130gr bullet, might as well use the 270. But if I've got some 300yd plus possibility, then I'd go 150gr or more in the 300wsm.
 
I do reload I have enough 270 to last the rest of my life but was wondering about deer reaction after the shot say behind the shoulder in heart lung area with the 270 they might go 50 yards or less just curious if 300wsm was better at far as reaction after the shot
I've had a deer shot with a hot loaded 165gr run 50 yards with it's heart rolling around in it's chest. The 300 is an awesome round but the only advantage that it has over the 270 is bullet weights. They both kill when you do your part. Some run, some don't. After shooting a dump truck load of deer with both calibers, I say flip a coin.
 
Both are fast enough to cause consistent bang flops with solid hits at short to medium range. At least in my experience.....
The 300 though is capable of delivering a heavier bullet at the same velocity, and if chosen correctly will blow a larger exit hole ( which again can be good or bad depending on your view of exit holes).

The major advantage for me with a 30 calibers is simply that those big holes bleed more, So when the animals do scurry off I have less issue tracking them.
The other advantage that I don't use as often, is that it's easier to crush large bones with a bigger bullet. I've never seen anything go very far after turning its pelvis into a jigsaw puzzle.
 
Like all things carry the one you like best, for deer and like there is not enough difference to make a difference. I settled on a .270 years ago and Sold or traded off all my bigger rifles. I have had to do some tracking but usually not far I have had many more bang/flops than tracking. I loaded various bullet types and pushed the limits at times but found that my rifle loved green box 130 grain bullets and settled on those. My .270 has accounted for approaching 300 deer so far and is now being used by my son where I hope it takes many more.
 
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