New 300 WM —How to find “THE”bullet

I like the hammers too. Great rifle you got. I was thinking to get one myself in 300 WM but I do have the Xbolt hells canyon in a 28 and like it a lot. The thing with the hammers are that they are easier to load than most so even though they are expensive they can save a lot of load work and cost of extra powder and bullets. The bullets are turned on a laythe and more concentric and less weight differences than most bullet out there. They are also extreamly deadly. I've never see a single complaint from anyone about their ability to cleaning take game.
 
All my Long Range shooting has been with a Ruger Precision 308, and it is way to heavy to take to the mountains
Just got a Browning Xbolt Long Range Max in 300 WM,26" barrel, 1:8 twist Bought for a Colorado Bull Elk hunt. Range limited by me to 800 yds
I have a decent selection of 30 cal bullets and powders for testing and I can get others.
I also have a LabRadar for the range.
What process to you use to optimize bullet selection to give you max range and max impact energy? Any help would be appreciated
208 gra
All my Long Range shooting has been with a Ruger Precision 308, and it is way to heavy to take to the mountains
Just got a Browning Xbolt Long Range Max in 300 WM,26" barrel, 1:8 twist Bought for a Colorado Bull Elk hunt. Range limited by me to 800 yds
I have a decent selection of 30 cal bullets and powders for testing and I can get others.
I also have a LabRadar for the range.
What process to you use to optimize bullet selection to give you max range and max impact energy? Any help would be appreciated
I have had great success with Hornady 212 gr. Eld X....66 gr. H4350
All my Long Range shooting has been with a Ruger Precision 308, and it is way to heavy to take to the mountains
Just got a Browning Xbolt Long Range Max in 300 WM,26" barrel, 1:8 twist Bought for a Colorado Bull Elk hunt. Range limited by me to 800 yds
I have a decent selection of 30 cal bullets and powders for testing and I can get others.
I also have a LabRadar for the range.
What process to you use to optimize bullet selection to give you max range and max impact energy? Any help would be appreciated
I have great success using 208 gr Hornady eld match with 66 gr. H4350 B.C. is .690 fps2875. 800 yrds...fps is 1974.7 and energy 1801ft/lb.
 
I have a 215 Berger load as well and it shoots well out further than I would feel comfortable shooting game. No experience on game with it.

With your twist I would also look to the Hammer Hunter in the 199/214 gr variety to see. May not be able to fit in a factory mag. Those pills have to be close to the length of the case!!!
Would be cool to see one shoot
 
I would do a mono or a partition/A-frame. The thing about Elk hunting is that you don't know if your shot will be 50 yards or 500yards, the bullet needs to hold up to high and low velocity.

B.C. doesn't kill elk, energy transfer to the vitals does. Shoot at reasonable range with a bullet designed for killing. Elk are big tough well constructed animals that make many African plains game seem thin skinned and delicate. Don't let a computer program talk you out of proven bullet design.
 
300 win mag load.png
300 win mag load.png
300 win mag load.png Enough said
300 win mag load.png

Enough Said
elk2016#2.jpg
300 win mag load.png
 
All my Long Range shooting has been with a Ruger Precision 308, and it is way to heavy to take to the mountains
Just got a Browning Xbolt Long Range Max in 300 WM,26" barrel, 1:8 twist Bought for a Colorado Bull Elk hunt. Range limited by me to 800 yds
I have a decent selection of 30 cal bullets and powders for testing and I can get others.
I also have a LabRadar for the range.
What process to you use to optimize bullet selection to give you max range and max impact energy? Any help would be appreciated


Get the LTL measurement and determine the best jump with a moderate load of whatever propellant you want to use. I load with H1000 but your choice. I'd start at .0300 off the LTL measurement Sizing with bushing dies and bumping the shoulder 0.001 or whatever chambers the best in your piece. Jump will be determined by how long your mag well will accept unless you install a Wyatt box.

Once you determine the 'sweet spot', start increasing the propellant load until you chrono where you want it and the groups stay tight. My rule of thumb is as close to 3000 fps as I can get without exceeding 3000 fps (don't matter what weight the pill is).

My 300 WM will shoot consistent 1/2" groups (5) at 250 yards.
 
All my Long Range shooting has been with a Ruger Precision 308, and it is way to heavy to take to the mountains
Just got a Browning Xbolt Long Range Max in 300 WM,26" barrel, 1:8 twist Bought for a Colorado Bull Elk hunt. Range limited by me to 800 yds
I have a decent selection of 30 cal bullets and powders for testing and I can get others.
I also have a LabRadar for the range.
What process to you use to optimize bullet selection to give you max range and max impact energy? Any help would be appreciated

Ok, seems everyone just jumped to the "personal recommendation" phase, and skipped right over the title of the thread, and your last paragraph.

There is a reason for this, as many have sought the same as you, and a good portion of them ended up in the 215 Berger Hybrid Target, H1000, camp, pretty much going back about 7 years now.

If you are interested in what procedure to follow, anything you can come up with that will get you where you want to be will work .

These are the steps in the process I use:

Define what it is I am trying to accomplish and how I intend to achieve it. (I want a bullet with so much energy, it'll run right up next to whatever I'm shooting with it out to 800 yards and say BOOO! and the animal will be dead right there.)

Research what worked for others in similar situation.
(I usually don't come out and ask on a forum. There are people in this industry and this hobby that I trust, so I look to them. Again, I don't usually ask, I dig in to research it.)

Research data pertinent to my goals. (For example, in your bullet quest, I would be looking at BC, bullet weight, jacket material, ballistics drop tables, energy vs range,etc.)

Narrow the field by what works in my rifle. (Doesn't matter what the latest whiz bang shiny precious is capable of, if it doesn't shoot out of my rifle.)

Using what I know and have learned through research, to attempt to obtain suitable, repeatable results that meet or exceed my original definition.

If I were you, I'd be looking to the 220 -230 class bullets if you can push them fast enough.
 
Buy a Berger reloading manual and read Walt Berger's regimen and use it. It works. Been using it for years in every caliber I shoot.\, and every pill I use, not jut Berger.

There is no easy way to determine the 'Best' except by doing it. Every stick shoots differently. Chambers are like fingerprints, no 2 are exactly alike.
 
Proof that you can miss a thumbtack and still kill an elk.

Reminds me of the story about my Mini14 which is an inherently inaccurate rifle. I built a load and jump for it and won 100 bucks. Some guy bet me I couldn't blow the head off a thumb tack at 100 yards with it (Hornady 55 grain BTSP's in Federal OFMB.). He lost the bet. One shot equaled a headless tack.

You can get any stick to shoot (so long as the tubs is straight and floated properly). Don't matter, with the exception of an AR or a AK. Clamped tubes don't work so well. I'll put a Ruger No1 in that group as well.
 
There are so many excellent bullets and combinations. 180 and above or lighter but all copper like Barnes.
I've found Berger's are great at certain distances but only on full body profile shots. Controlled expansion IMHO are better suited for overall situations. You may have a quartering shot at 20 yards!
Ultimately penetration kills. I bow hunt also and a properly place arrow always kills.
I took a cow elk with a 454 Casull 345 grn hardcast wide flat meplat. Quartering shot. 45 yards. Got 36" penetration. DRT.
 
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