30/06 vs 300 wm vs 300 wsm

[milkie62]

A buddy and I are going for Elk in 2019. He is a lefty.Right now he is using a Ruger 77 in 30/06,but it's right handed. He was thinking of getting a lefty 300 wm but found a 300 wsm lefty used at a great price. He was concerned that other than getting a left handed gun the 300 wsm is not much better than a 30/06. Should he get it ? I told him at least he might even shoot better at a longer distance if need be since he might be a little more comfortable.

 

[eklarsen]

I would think the WSM in lefty is a solid choice. It has slightly better ballistics then the 30-06, meaning less drop, and the only real trade off is slightly more recoil. I am not sure how comfortable your buddy is shooting righty but just getting it for the correct hand seems like a win.

 

[HARPERC]

Any one of the three with the right bullet will perform well. Find a left hand rifle he likes, and start practicing.

 

[Seymour]

Any one of the three with the right bullet will perform well. Find a left hand rifle he likes, and start practicing.

+1
Shot my first elk with a 300 Saum, not on your list but it did the job just fine at just under 300 yards.

 

[WildRose]

If he's comfortable with what he has he'll be fine with the 06.

If he really wants a lefty then any of the three in LH will do the job.

If it were me and I was buying one at all I'd pick the .300wm just to have the extra horsepower if needed.

All else being equal there's not a substantial increase in recoil going from the 06-300wm, at least not enough to bother me and I'm not all that tough or particularly large.

 

[6fatrat]

IMO hunting Elk and our larger game, bigger is better if you can shoot it well. I would advise your friend to but the 300 WSM it is a step up from the 30/06.
Steve Bair

 

[Hand Skills]

How well can your buddy shoot the '06?

 

[Joefrazell]

All 3 will work great

 

[RockyMtnMT]

Sounds like a good reason/opportunity for your buddy to get himself a new rifle that fits him properly.

As others have said all of these choices will work well.

 

[One Hole]

I hunt with and reload all three of those. My 300 wm and wsm deer elk and bear loads with 180gn bullets are ballistically equivalent but my short action wsm is significantly lighter than the wm and and gets more use. I shoot 150s in my 06 primarily for deer. The mags shoot 180s about the same velocity as the 06 shoots 150s. All of these are good elk calibers pick the rifle that fits you the best and you shoot well. Then practice! Good luck.

 

[MAGA]

I'd personally go with the 300wsm shooting a 190-180gr bullet. You can push 180-190 bullets to 3,000-2,900 fps easily. The rifle will be lighter than anything you could get in a 300 WM and pretty much the same weight of any 30-06 rifle.

 

[Timnterra]

In my experience there is a much larger gain from the 30-06 to 300 wsm than from 300 wsm to 300 win mag. I have had all three calibers and like them all but I don't ever use my 30-06 anymore. I'd rather use a 270 or 6.5 caliber than the 30-06. If I'm going to shoot a .308 caliber I like more horsepower than the 30-06 can offer. I'd say your friend will not go wrong with the 300 wsm it is a very efficient caliber and does well with a wide variety of bullets.

 

[MAGA]

In my experience there is a much larger gain from the 30-06 to 300 wsm than from 300 wsm to 300 win mag. I have had all three calibers and like them all but I don't ever use my 30-06 anymore. I'd rather use a 270 or 6.5 caliber than the 30-06. If I'm going to shoot a .308 caliber I like more horsepower than the 30-06 can offer. I'd say your friend will not go wrong with the 300 wsm it is a very efficient caliber and does well with a wide variety of bullets.

Exactly. And if I were to consider going with a 30-06, why not just get a 308? Less recoil, rifle will be lighter, ammo cheaper, etc. for basically the same ballistics. Wanna step up from the 308 to something with more bang/punch? Take a look at the 300 WSM. Just my 2 c

 

[Buck Buster]

I bought a mounted moose head back in the early 80s for $20. Moved in 95 and didn't have room for it and sold it for $200. The fellow that I bought it from was selling 7 or 8 of them. His grandfather killed over 15 moose he claimed with a 30-30. Must have been a brave man. Good luck hunting and be safe.