18" Bartein MTU barrel in 300 Win Mag

[Clayton811]

Hi guys im wanting to learn how to shoot better and farther. I have bought a rifle built off a Rem 700 action in 300 Win Mag and has a 18" Bartlein MTU spiral fluted barrel. I was wanting to know would this be a practical 800 yard gun or not. ALL OPINIONS WILL BE APPRECIATED. THANKS any load data suggestions as well please

 

[4xforfun]

That is an awfull short bbl, but, you have what you have. Do you know what twist rate the BBL has?? That would be a big factor in the answers you get.

 

[Clayton811]

Sorry,twist rate is 1:10

 

[FNA3G]

Practical? Will it make it to 800yds, yes very easily. Is an 18" 300 win mag practical? No, not in my opinion, I consider a 24" barrel maybe a 22" to be the minimum for a 300 win mag. You will find lots of articles about short 300 win mags but 18" defeats the purpose of the 300 to me. If i am going to use a large magnum then i am going to get the most out of it possible.

300 Winchester Magnum: How Does Barrel Length Change Velocity- A 16″ 300 Win Mag? | Rifleshooter.com

 

[Clayton811]

Thanks for the reply,AWESOME ARTICLE, would a faster burning powder be able to achieve more fps without to much psi?

 

[yorke-1]

You'll do just fine. Your 18" barrel 300 will get well beyond 800 yards as a long range plinker and should work well as an 800 yard hunting gun. I run 18-19" barrels on my specialty pistols and they perform well out to the limits of their supersonic range.

You should be able to get 200 gr bullets up to about 2700 fps from that barrel which would probably get you to almost 1500 yards before the bullet goes subsonic.

 

[FNA3G]

Thanks for the reply,AWESOME ARTICLE, would a faster burning powder be able to achieve more fps without to much psi?

Depending on which faster powder you could gain a little velocity but i would stick with the proven performers in the 300 with heavier bullets. The velocity gain would be minimal and not worth it to me. I like H1000 and i have had very good luck with that and the 300 win mag.

 

[WildRose]

That's an incredibly short barrel for a .300wm. It is so short in fact you're going to have a hard time getting any sort of decent velocity out of it and it will throw fire like a flame thrower.

Shooting it in low light will definitely be quite an experience for sure!

Will it work for 800yds? If you can get it to shoot sub MOA at 100 then yes it probably will but I would not count on being able to do so.

Developing a load for it is going to be a real challenge and I wish you all the luck in the world.

 

[ohiohunter]

Is there any reason you couldn't run slightly hotter 30-06 loads behind a lighter bullet. For example some Varget, H4350, or h4831 under a 168gr pill or lighter?

The air space in the case from a 308 (which was a consideration) load might be an issue, how does the volume of an 06 compare to the 300?

No way would I want to run heavies through this, like mentioned it would be one hell of a fireball and if you were to speed up the powder you're looking at potential pressure spikes.

 

[TXAoudadKlr]

While you may not be getting the most out of that chambering, it will fit what you're wanting to do.

 

[86alaskan]

Here's a little perspective... I have a Savage striker pistol with a 16.5" 30-06 barrel. Using Hornady 150gr SP and H414 I was getting 3850fps with no pressure signs. So if you used lighter match bullets in that 18" 300WM, you could definitely get enough speed to reach out. Maybe a berger 155 or 168?

 

[4xforfun]

Here's a little perspective... I have a Savage striker pistol with a 16.5" 30-06 barrel. Using Hornady 150gr SP and H414 I was getting 3850fps with no pressure signs. So if you used lighter match bullets in that 18" 300WM, you could definitely get enough speed to reach out. Maybe a berger 155 or 168?

No, you didn't!! 3850 out of a 30-06 with a 150 and a 16.5 tube???? With NO pressure signs????

 

[86alaskan]

Magnetospeed didn't lie, I had 20 rds and my numbers were all in the same area. the loads are from Hodgdon for a 16" barrel encore.I was at a low of 2825 and high of 2850. I never went any higher than the published max load. Sorry it was H380 with those loads, 59gr book max, I'm using H414 with 165gr now. I was the same with the numbers, but I assure you that they were accurate and repeatable. The barrel is just a cut down savage sporter with a brake.

 

[TXAoudadKlr]

To be clear you're saying 2850 and not 3850 correct? 3850 with a 150 would be more inline with a 30cal 338 Lapua based wildcat.