Would like some opinions onto a good 500yd rifle?

[bthomasb1]

I would rather see you not go with the 300 wsm or the sako,why,my boss got on a 300 wsm kick this summer and wanted a light weight gun,so he bought a rem model 7,then a sako finnlight and finally to a custom rifle,I shot over 500 rounds thru those 3 guns and none of the 3 could produce 1/2 moa groups with factory or handloads with 180 grain bullets at 3000 fps or above,the sako was the only one that didnt have feeding problems,a friend of mine has a winchester and it has feeding problems.The 300 win mag long version will do anything you want it to if you can handel the recoil.They also produce higher velocities i have seen several go 3150 with 180 grain bullets and 30 cal bullet selection is excellent.Also if you dont reload or something happens to your ammo,ammo can be found almost anywhere and they make some very goods factory loads for it.Do what you want and good luck with it,this is just my personal experience.

 

[Buano]

I would rather see you not go with the 300 wsm or the sako,why,my boss got on a 300 wsm kick this summer and wanted a light weight gun,so he bought a rem model 7,then a sako finnlight and finally to a custom rifle,I shot over 500 rounds thru those 3 guns and none of the 3 could produce 1/2 moa groups with factory or handloads with 180 grain bullets at 3000 fps or above,the sako was the only one that didnt have feeding problems,a friend of mine has a winchester and it has feeding problems.The 300 win mag long version will do anything you want it to if you can handel the recoil.They also produce higher velocities i have seen several go 3150 with 180 grain bullets and 30 cal bullet selection is excellent.Also if you dont reload or something happens to your ammo,ammo can be found almost anywhere and they make some very goods factory loads for it.Do what you want and good luck with it,this is just my personal experience.

With a 500 yard limit on his shooting I see no reason he needs a rifle that will shoot 1/2 moa groups. Sure, I WANT all my rifles to shoot that well, but not all do. If he can consistently hold 1.5 moa groups he's talking dead elk to, and past, 500 yards.

 

[bthomasb1]

With a 500 yard limit on his shooting I see no reason he needs a rifle that will shoot 1/2 moa groups. Sure, I WANT all my rifles to shoot that well, but not all do. If he can consistently hold 1.5 moa groups he's talking dead elk to, and past, 500 yards.

Really,1.5 moa at 500 yards =7.5" not including shooter error,wind drift and missed calculations, to me that =POOR SHOT PLACEMENT AND WOUNDED ANIMALS
And then what happens when he want to shoot farther,which will probally happen.really,why not go with a gun that will do it better,now im not saying the 300wsm cant be accurate but the 300 wm can and will do it faster with more room to seat a big bullet and more choices for factory ammo.

 

[Cooky]

300RUM sendaro is a good out of the box performer

 

[4bycamper]

Really,1.5 moa at 500 yards =7.5" not including shooter error,wind drift and missed calculations, to me that =POOR SHOT PLACEMENT AND WOUNDED ANIMALS.

Maybe not so much.
The elk that I hunt have a 16" heart lung target.

Seems to me that shooting 10" at 500 yards consistently is good enough to put elk on your table when you bring enough gun. Many of the 7mm mags will do the job.

The 30 cal mags will do the job faster. As in less tracking.

JMHO

 

[FEENIX]

This is kinda advocating lowering the standard from <1 MOA to 1 elk MOA ... yeah it's good enough for elk ... they're a big target ...

As SBruce's sig line says. "AIM SMALL = MISS SMALL" and we all know what it's required to achieve that.

 

[farout]

I own a 7mm and a 300 WSM. Have shot the 7mm for 25 years and killed a few elk and several mule deer with it. The 7mm does good with 160 gn bullets but starts to loose steam with 175 gn bullets. I like the 300 WSM because it throws the 180 gn bullets very well. The 300 WSM does have drawbacks though, they can have feeding issues due to the short fat case and steep shoulder. As a matter of fact, some people recommend NOT using a 300 WSM for grizzly and such. Also, most rifles hold fewer rounds in 300 WSM.

I have a Savage 12 VLP DBM in 300 WSM. Could not get it to shoot ANY factory ammo well. The thing was like 2 MOA, very discouraging. Then started reloading it with Norma brass, Federal 210m primers, H4350, and 180 accubonds set .005 of the lands and now it is 1/2 MOA! I have 200 rounds thru the Savage and have had absolutely no feeding issues. Only issue I have is that the removable magazine only holds two rounds.

As far as the Sako 300 WSM goes. I have heard that they do not shoot 180 gn bullets very well sometimes because they only have a 11 twist rate. Most standard 300 WSM rifles use a 10 twist rate which allows them to shoot the lighter and heaver bullets. If you search this site and the web you will find the Sako twist rate issue discussed a lot.

Only bad thing I can say about the 300 WM is that belted magnum cases can be a little more difficult to deal with when reloading. Most people don't get as many reloads from a case due to various issues with the belt. This is why I love my 300 WSM. The 300 WSM is belt-less and does not have these issues

I would look into the Sako twist rate issue a little closer, if I was going to get one. Love the look and feel of them and would be a much better carry gun than my Savage.

Everyone is right about the weight. The Savage 12, like the Sendero, is about 12 lbs. dressed out. I would try to get something more like 8.5 to 9 lb. dressed out, if hiking with it.

For recoil. I feel that is not enough difference between the 7mm, 300 WSM, and 300 WM to really worry about. If you can shoot one you can shoot the others. I would try not to make a decision based on recoil, but would not get some super light weight mountain rifle in any of them.

 

[WildRose]

This just my preference ...

If I have choose between the .300 WSM vs 7MM Mag, I'd pick the the 7MM Mag.

However, if it's between the .300 Win Mag and 7MM Mag, I'd pick the .300 Win Mag.

That said, I highly recommend the .300 Win Mag.

Good luck!

At sub 800yds ranges there's just nothing you can't do very well with the 300wm and 7mm mag.

This coming from a guy who currently owns 2 300RUM's, 3 300wm's, and 2 7mmSTW's along with 1ea 264wm and one 260 Rem.

Out to 500yds there's nothing you can't do with authority and complete confidence with either the 7mm mag or 300wm.

 

[ccrooks]

Thanks for everyone's information and opinions, I think I am going to look more into the 7mag Sendero and see how things go. Thanks again.

 

[FEENIX]

At sub 800yds ranges there's just nothing you can't do very well with the 300wm and 7mm mag.

This coming from a guy who currently owns 2 300RUM's, 3 300wm's, and 2 7mmSTW's along with 1ea 264wm and one 260 Rem.

Out to 500yds there's nothing you can't do with authority and complete confidence with either the 7mm mag or 300wm.

I totally agree but as noted in my original response, my personal preference is the .300 WM -- my "go to" gun/caliber for the last 30+ years.

 

[RockyMtnMT]

I personally like the way the 30 cal performs on game better than the 7mm. There are lots of bullet choices for both, but as a general rule I am not a fan of 7mm on game performance.

Not looking for a fight, just felt like I should give my opinion.

Steve