Short action magnums

[Beluebow]

...the .300 saum is the best kept secret other than the 8mm rem mag of all time. It's a shame both were sabotaged by their inventor. Both loaded with correct bullets will handle any North American with ease and both fit into the category of " if you could only have one".....and are capable of outstanding accuracy.

The 300saum (even if you improve it) is a baby WSM

 

[Mike D Texas]

The 300saum (even if you improve it) is a baby WSM

We shall see soon.

 

[JuddL]

^^^ tale of the tape, I wouldn't have guessed that. Thanks for sharing.

 

[ARlife4me]

I need to be able too use quick design! I have the program, but haven't successfully used it. Knowing ALL of the identifiers (r1, R1, etc) and being able to input it.

 

[Mike D Texas]

^^^ tale of the tape, I wouldn't have guessed that. Thanks for sharing.

It definitely takes some practicing.

 

[Phil Rizzo]

Wonder where the 300 Max would fall in that line-up capacity wise?
I've been thinking about my next project and….
Elkaholic?

thread on 300 Max says 78 grs

 

[Frank in the Laurels]

...my own personal experience tells me your SAUM will shoot better groups than the WSM...just feed it the "mother's milk " of all short mags..H-4350..

 

[Kimber7man]

Thankfully for me I have a pretty good stash of primers, 4350, 555, 565 and h1000. I think at this time, I'm narrowed down to 7saum and concentrate on the 175's. Going to order a 22" carbon tube and run it suppressed.

R23 is your friend...

 

[Methow Packer]

I would never try to sway anyone toward or away from a direction they want to follow. For me the 300 WSM was 'IT' for me. I've owned quite a few, factory and custom. I am currently building on a Win 70 CRF Stainless, an 8.5 twist 24" Rock Creek Carbon, and Nosler brass is my choice. This Rifle will be throated for 210 Bergers. Just prepped all brass and loads this week. I shot a former colleagues gun in almost exact the configuration last year, making small rocks out of big rocks at 1200 yards. I am quite impressed with this particular, caliber and cartridge setup. For me, a lightweight rifle for hunting in mountainous terrain, or across the coolies of eastern Montana is an extremely hard combination to beat. I have always been someone who is not so much a cartridge fan, more a projectile fan. Ballistics, after all, is a three-way game. Internal, external, and terminal. The latter is most important for me. A cartridge is merely a suitcase for that projectiles journey. Alas, at the end of the day, unless you make your own, most of us are relegated to choosing 'that' luggage from the available isle. I am a firm believer in the fact that almost any cartridge, and a quality set up, can be made to shoot accurately. The end result should be in the beginning of your search. Start with the target at the maximum distance that you plan to engage and reduce that target to the highest percentage of the time. Decide how much terminal performance you require at that distance to accomplish the task, and that should put you on the pathway to achieving that ballistic goal. It's at that point you can begin to formulate what your system will ultimately look like in size, weight, and length based upon what you can do with the components available today. I've decided on mine, and have begun the journey . I wish you success in yours. Please PM me as you go.

Well done

 

[Jack300WSM]

Sliced bread in the Christensen. 6.5PRC in the Rem 700. Happy with both. Both hold 1/2" or better all day @100yds. I've settled on 185 VLDH in the wsm with no issues in mag utilizing .007" off lands. So she's good for shooting well past my capabilities. The PRC I did have bolt face work done dual ejectors and M16 extractor installed to help with extraction as the standard rem setup wouldn't cut it. Ran into issues with 140's trying to load to mag length. Shoots awesome single shot though. I've since changed to 127g Barnes LRX seated to mag length @3020fps so should be good from 0-550yds to keep it above that 1900fps range I need. Just something to think about when using a short action.

 

[wldcat]

I had a similar choice to make this year with a savage short action I had laying around. Most will argue it was a waste of money to build on the savage but that's for a different discussion all together…. Everything I read brought me to one conclusion and that's the Sherman short has the most performance at 2.95 coal out of any short mag. I understand the fear of running a cartridge that's not commercially supported but from a pure performance standpoint the ss can't be beat in a true short action. I went 6.5 not 7mm but am very happy with it and it feeds better than I expected. Every rifle is different but this one runs a 135 badlands at 3117 with what looks like will be very very good brass life but it's to new to know for sure. No signs of pressure at that load but the low body taper of the Sherman's do hide pressure, hopefully primer pockets hold up

 

[RAGGED EDGE]

I think you're thinking about this backwards. Who cares what the cartridge is? Pick a bullet, then figure out the speed, then determine your barrel length and the cartridge list will be significantly narrowed down for you.

Now, saying all that 300wsm has Norma, Nosler and ADG brass, I shoot 155's at 3260 in a 24" barrel. There isn't much that can stand it and it's fast enough that out to 800 it takes a significant wind for it to even matter. My next one will be a 20" barrel because I'm addicted to hunting suppressed.

Good luck…but pick your bullet, then figure out what cartridge will do what you want.

Seen something like this before. Makes a GREAT DEAL of sense to me.

 

[RAGGED EDGE]

I feel like it's the case of what's new. If the WSM never existed and Gunwerks brought out the new 7 GWSM and supported it with SRP Alpha OCD brass, a new copper mono equipped with a carbide tip, tungsten partition core encapsulated by the same synthetic indestructable plastic my fake marble countertops are made of, a .7 G1 that'll fly stable out of 1:9" ... people would be just as excited about as they are the PRC.

Wouldn't the bullet just be an "upgrade" on something Winchester put out years ago?

 

[RAGGED EDGE]

Well, the 300 WSM is the best thing since sliced bread in .308. I own 2. Maybe not better than cinnamon toast….

I believe it is as good or better performing than every other 30 cal on all N American game. Maybe doesn't qualify as "heavy for caliber" but 180 gr bullets will kill everything you want to, will fit in the SA magazine, is incredibly effective and easy to obtain 2800+ fps = low realized recoil, more so with a brake or can. You can also easily fit any bullet with ogive and length that is reasonably close to the 190 Accubond LR. FWIW: I shoot 200+ gr bullets from a long action.

Historically, brass availability is better than your other options.

Really hard to beat good cinnamon toast. I eat two pieces with a cup of "boutique" coffee every morning for breakfast.