Is the WSM here to stay?

[SleazyRider]

I'm not asking this question in the rhetorical sense nor do I wish to stir the pot, but I've got designs on a new rifle, quite possibly a Kimber, and I'm scratching my head wondering about the .270 WSM compared to the .270 Winchester. I don't reload, so my concern is that the WSM will be short-lived, or that the .270 will become obsolete, and in 10 years my pricey rifle will become prohibitively expensive to feed. Both rounds are more than adequate for the range and type of hunting I intend them for, but I'd appreciate your opinions on their longevity.

 

[Sebastian the Ibis]

You can only shoot what you can buy. Is whatever theoretical benefit of the WSM realistically available with the ammo you can buy off the shelf? What about with extra practice you will get with cheaper ammo? Unless there is something extremely special you are planning on doing, I'd just go with the more common cartridge.

 

[mljdeckard]

I think that AR platforms shooting them will keep them around for a while, I don't know about the .270 in particular.

 

[sappyg]

i don't see the 270 win. becoming obsolete any time soon. seriously.

 

[HOOfan_1]

The original .270 will never become obsolete as long as big game hunting is allowed in the United States. The consensus seems to be that of the WSM cartridges out there, the .270 WSM is one of only a couple that will stick around for a while.

Me personally, I would just get the .270 original.

 

[Abel]

The 270 & 300 WSM's seem to be holding on. I would feel safe with one of those two for the long run.

But the regular old 270 is as sweet as it gets. Why mess with perfection?

 

[Bird Dog II]

Safe? I feel safe with my 7mm WSM which is clearly less popular than the .270 and .300 WSMs (even though it is superior to the .270). Federal and Winchester both offer good factory ammo and I have dies and brass to boot.

My .350 Rem Mag (another short magnum) is more problematic on the factory side. There is plenty of brass available for it too.

 

[Mr_Pale_Horse]

7mm-08 if you want to go short action. 270/280/30-06/7mm Rem Mag in a long action.

 

[Otony]

In the last what, fifteen years, we have seen a plethora of "new" cartridges introduced by Winchester, Remington, Ruger, and Weatherby.

Every single Remington short magnum is already obsolete for all intents. There were a very few rifles chambered to the Remington offerings by other manufacturers early on, but that practice is now ancient history.

The Ruger magnum class (short and long) offerings are less than a few years old in most cases. If you look at their current catalog, a great many of their short offerings are already discontinued. That should say something about sales graphs.

The Weatherby offerings are in the "super" magnum class, and clearly do not impact day to day Wal-Mart sales in any respect. These are boutique rifles, almost proprietary, and as such are some what outside the realm of the subject.

But the Winchester Short Mags, the .270, 300, and to a lesser extent, the 7mm cartridges still have an active market share plus these same offerings are chambered by a great many other manufacturers. Even Ruger still chambers the .300 WSM but has dropped their own .300 from current production on many models!

I rather doubt those three are going to be cut short any time soon, but if you are that doubtful of their continued existance, but yourself 500 pieces of brass and a set of dies. Problem solved!

 

[1stmarine]

They are good cases (Strong) and WSSM show some admiration from many shooter for various uses. The downs are than the larger the caliber the less accurate they get. Also in the AR platform they are not accurate. Ok for short range hunting but not in long range also due to the poor bullet selection due to the short magazine therefore very low COAL.
You do not see many in the bench rests and high power long range competitions.
Other than that I heard people reloading the same case up to 30 times so there is some pretty strong brass in these suckers.
Consider barrel life, some had issues.
I think that they will stay but with limited use therefore always more expensive but if they can be loaded so many times, who cares?.

 

[1stmarine]

MLJDeckcard. Just one curiosity. When did the president say he didn't think the American People should not have firearms?

In any case he can say all things he wants but NOBODY can go against the supreme law of the land, which is the United States Constitution. Some that tried before eventually failed. Freedom of speech, Right to own firearms, color, race, religion freedoms. These are rights we all US Citizens have and nobody can take away. Rest assure of that.

 

[GregC]

I have a .270 WSM and don't have problems finding ammo, although it is a little pricey. I can even pick it up at most Wal-Marts. As for the price being a major problem, if it is primarily for hunting like mine is, I rarely go through more than a box of ammo per season. I have other rifles that I use for target shooting that are cheaper, like .22 and .223.

 

[Roughneck08]

The .270 and 300 WSM are here to stay they have made a pretty big hit with the hunters.

 

[Smokey Joe]

And we have a winner!!

Sleazy Rider--Otony wins the thread, with his comment:

But the Winchester Short Mags, the .270, 300, and to a lesser extent, the 7mm cartridges still have an active market share plus these same offerings are chambered by a great many other manufacturers. Even Ruger still chambers the .300 WSM but has dropped their own .300 from current production on many models!
I rather doubt those three are going to be cut short any time soon, but if you are that doubtful of their continued existence, buy yourself 500 pieces of brass and a set of dies. Problem solved!

I would add, however, that you pointed out that the original .270 Win was quite adequate for your uses--Therefore, the .270 WSM is unnecessary overkill, not to mention using more powder for each shot if you reload (recommended) or costing more for ammo if you don't.

 

[300grains]

I choose the old longer cartridge. Practically no feeding problems contrary to WSM´s and other fat shorties.

 

[Kachok]

OK just to clear a few things up. Yes the 270 and 300 WSM are here to stay they still are selling well after almost a decade now, and ammo is available just about everywhere. There is no feeding problem with the WSM I don't care what geometric formula anybody quotes me I own one and have never had anything but perfect feeding, which is more then I can say for my 7mm rem mag.

 

[SleazyRider]

Thank you all for your replies, which I take to heart. There's another concern that I guess I really can't factor in, yet one that I confess to thinking about from time to time. It's about resale. I'm not exactly old but I'm not exactly young either, and there will come a time when my rifle will have to be liquidated by either myself or my estate, as my kids have no interest in firearms. Or maybe a medical emergency or other financial crisis will occur and I'll need some money. So I was toying with the notion of which would be easier to liquidate, a .270 Win, a .270 WSM, or the ever-popular .30-06? I was thinking the latter. I'm not suggesting, of course, that this should influence one's choice of caliber; these are just musings of someone with too much time on their hands. But the notion crossed my mind nonetheless.

You've answered my question and I am deeply appreciative. Thank you!

 

[Rancho Relaxo]

In regards to liquidation, the older, more popular cartridges are always a sure bet. Regular old .270 Win is so darn good though, why choose anything else?

 

[joed]

The .270, 7mm and .300 WSM's seem to be popular and have been for about 10 years. But what about the next 10? It's a gamble.

I own one rifle that is becoming obsolete and that is a .300 H&H mag. I bought enough brass to last the life of the rifle and dies so I'm not concerned. That's how I got around a cartridge becoming obsolete.

The WSM brass I know nothing about. Can it be made from another case that exists? I don't think so. Tough call.

Hate to say it but I'd play it safe and go with the tried and true .270 Win. My money says it will outlast the WSM's.

 

[Kachok]

I think it is very safe to say that the 270 win and 270 WSM will outlast all of us. I highly doubt that you will ever have any issue finding brass or loaded ammo for either. Heck I can still get ammo for a 7.65x53, 7.92x57, 38-40, and 30-40 Kraig all of which have been very out dated for over 40 years. 270 WSM provides exelent external ballistics besting even the 7mm rem mag for long range shooting, and the recoil is much lower, so I doubt it is going anywhere anytime soon.

 

[RonE]

The short magnums are here to stay but so what? What do you gain by a short fat case? The 300WSM is slower than the .300Win Mag. and the cartridges generally cost more.

Most of the short mags were just that, new cartridges because the gun magazines were short of stuff to write about and the manufacturers realized that if it was new, improved and basically advertised as a better mouse trap, people would have to have it.

It is true that in bolt action rifles that a quarter inch less bolt throw equates to a faster follow up shot but, so what? Hit what you are shooting at and you don't really need a follow up shot. Another thing.....how much faster?

Short magnums were designed for only two things, to sell more rifles and to sell more ammo.

 

[Kachok]

I don't agree. I thought that the WSMs might me a fad like everyone else did but by golly it is one remarkably flat shooting and very accurate rifle. I leave my 7mm mag and 270 win at the house because my 270 WSM is all in all a better ballenced rifle period. The performance excedes the big 7 with 270 class recoil in one heck of an accurate short action package. I can speak with great athority on this because I have been hunting with the "big 7" for over a decade now.