.300 wm versatility

[cr500man]

I got into reloading my .44mag about 3 months ago and love the flexibility I have with it. If I want full power and recoil, I load to the .44's max. If I want to plink, I load to .44spl specs and so forth. I know this concept is not new with pistols and small capacity rifle cases, but what about Magnums?

Is it practical or even possible to get .308 win and 30-06 performance out of the .300wm when one dose not need to have their shoulder dislocated. I have studied the Speer manual and all of there starting loads are still in magnum territory. There is one reduced load for each bullet listed but its ballistics are in the 30-30's range.

I would like to kill 3 birds with one stone here by getting the .300wm but im not sure if it works that way

 

[Sharps Shooter]

I have to respectfully disagree with you cr500man. My Speer Manual lists several 300WM loads using several different powders and 165-grain bullets in the 2800-2900fps range. Those 165-grain bullet velocities are nearly identical to the 165-grain bullet velocities I’ve been getting out of my 30-06 for years. My Speer Manual also shows one 308 Win load that will push a 165-grain bullet out at 2800fps.
Versatility is one reason I shoot the 300WM these days. But perhaps we don’t define “versatility” the same way. In the type of country I’ve been hunting deer and elk the last 10 years or so, I not sure whether I’m going to get a 50 yard shot on opening day, or a 350 yard shot on the last day of the season. But I know my 300WM, loaded with 165-grain bullets at 3100fps, is up for either. Furthermore, all that nonsense about too much meat destruction is just that – nonsense. There’s no meat on a deer’s ribs and little on an elk's ribs, to ruin. And if you shoot an animal in the hindquarters with a 30-06 you’re going to ruin just as much meat as you would with a 300WM. I've pulled one of those "Texas Heart Shots" with a 30-06 a time or two myself, so I know of what I speak.
However, I will go along with you about recoil. Because of recoil, I don’t believe a 300WM is the best choice for someone new to rifles. Then again, because of its versatility, it could be. A person could load it down 11 months out of the year, practice a lot with it, then come 2 weeks before hunting season, sight it in with some serious hunting loads.