300 Wby or 338 RUM? Or maybe 7mm Wby...

[dwhunts]

So I've got this Weatherby Vanguard in 300 Wby, I think the action is great. The barrel is not so great. If I'm going to have it re barreled tho', I'm thinking I might change the caliber. Don't get me wrong, I like 300 Wby (hell, that's why I bought the rifle), but there are things about it I don't like. Such as my **** bullets getting boogerd up in the magazine under recoil. That is why I'm thinking of 338 RUM, the case length. Of course these heavy recoiling rounds may always booger up bullets, no matter how much room they have in the magazine. However, without quoting a bunch of ballistics let me just say this. The way I figure it, and what I require of a round. I can easily call the 300 Wby a 1000 yard cartridge, the 338 RUM pushes out to right at 1500 yards. I let energy dictate, I try to hit an animal with 1000 ft lbs or more.

 

[fisherman983]

Re: 300 Wby or 338 RUM?

i personally would go 300 wthby, as i have one as well but mine is the mark V action...rebarrel and have a muzzle break installed. i had one of hollands radial baffle breakes installed on my rifle and recoil is non existent...and im sure an APS painkiller break would be just as good, i went with holland because his shop is only 3 hrs from where i live...just my 2 cents

 

[dwhunts]

Re: 300 Wby or 338 RUM?

Wait a minute, I think I have a better third option. 7mm Wby. I mic'ed the magazine on my rifle, it was 3.589''. So I can load to 3.58'' and be happy. Well, the CTL for 7mm Wby is 2.539'', that gives me 1.041'' of room in the mag. for bullet. That is way better than 300 Wby or 338 RUM, which have .765'' and .83'' respectively. In 7mm Wby 3100 fps is no problem with a 180gr Berger VLD, BC .684. Then we're talking about 1600 fps, and 1000+ ft lbs @ 1200 yards. Hmmm... Looks pretty good to me. What do you guys think?

 

[dwhunts]

Re: 300 Wby or 338 RUM?

i personally would go 300 wthby, as i have one as well but mine is the mark V action...rebarrel and have a muzzle break installed. i had one of hollands radial baffle breakes installed on my rifle and recoil is non existent...and im sure an APS painkiller break would be just as good, i went with holland because his shop is only 3 hrs from where i live...just my 2 cents

I don't know if a break would stop the bullets from slamming the front of the magazine. I've never been recoil sensitive, so the recoil doesn't bother me. It sure messes up my bullets tho'. Even the plastic tipped ones. I just don't like it messing up my BC's.

How do you like the Mark V? I thought about getting one when I got this rifle, but after 9 years in the military cleaning AR's I learned to hate all those locking lugs...

 

[hammertyme]

Personally: Having shot belted Mags for many decades but currently I am enjoying my single shot RUM cartridges.

If I were still wildcatting I would really like to see what the 30 and 338's do off the 375 Ruger case.

Might run with the Weatherby's in a shorter more efficient case. I know they will with a Nitrided barrel.

Neal

 

[fisherman983]

Re: 300 Wby or 338 RUM?

How do you like the Mark V? I thought about getting one when I got this rifle, but after 9 years in the military cleaning AR's I learned to hate all those locking lugs...[/QUOTE]


i love my mark v....it can be a pain to clean at times but comparing a vanguard to a mark v is like comparing a volkswagen to a bmw

 

[dwhunts]

Personally: Having shot belted Mags for many decades but currently I am enjoying my single shot RUM cartridges.

If I were still wildcatting I would really like to see what the 30 and 338's do off the 375 Ruger case.

Might run with the Weatherby's in a shorter more efficient case. I know they will with a Nitrided barrel.

Neal

That is an interesting idea. I have no desire to mess with a wildcat, but if I knew where I could get cases I would definitely try it. I would like to get away from the belted case as well. As much as I would like to defend it for nostalgias sake, it is old technology.

 

[dwhunts]

Re: 300 Wby or 338 RUM?

How do you like the Mark V? I thought about getting one when I got this rifle, but after 9 years in the military cleaning AR's I learned to hate all those locking lugs...

i love my mark v....it can be a pain to clean at times but comparing a vanguard to a mark v is like comparing a volkswagen to a bmw[/QUOTE]

More like comparing Cadillac to Honda, considering Howa is made in Japan.

 

[backwoods83]

Well 2 things there is absolutely nothing wrong with a Howa 1500 action, they are a lot better than most these days, second call belted magnums old school if you will but 300wm's dominate 95% of medium and long range competition and they are belted. Now for your ? If you reload, and you want to rebarrel have a 7mm wby or 300wby match chambered barrel,(short throat .060"- .090" freebore instead of standard wby .361") and have them finished at a minimum of 26" and do not use factory ammo, then with a good stock and trigger you will have a nice rig.

 

[dwhunts]

Well 2 things there is absolutely nothing wrong with a Howa 1500 action, they are a lot better than most these days, second call belted magnums old school if you will but 300wm's dominate 95% of medium and long range competition and they are belted. Now for your ?

Thank you bw83, I was trying to keep my cool with that guy. You know, to each his own, some people think if it costs more it's better. He doesn't realize it just costs more to manufacture that mark V, that doesn't make it a superior action. Yeah, I'm a fan of the Howa, and I am not alone. Also I'm a fan of a lot of belted mag's, but if you don't need it. Why have it? No one head spaces on the belt anymore, so why is it there? It has become vestigial.