Need Some Advice-.270wsm, .300wsm, 7mmRUM

Shooter97

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Mar 3, 2010
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Long time Hunter, planning on buying a new rifle this weekend and need some advice on these 3 calibers. Also open to suggestions on other calibers.

Ill be using the gun only for hunting and will be hunting mainly mule deer, antelope, an occasional elk or two, and desert bighorn when I draw the tag.

Also, I don't reload so I'll be using factory loads.

I have been told by a few people to avoid the 7mmRUM unless you reload, because the caliber will likely be phased out due to its unpopularity.

With this new rifle, my main concern is getting something that is capable and best suited for possible shots between 300-500 yds. Hunting out west in the big, open country often presents shots of this nature. The areas I hunt year in and year out shots are often not closer than 200 yards.

I looked at some different guns last weekend, in particular the Remington 700 SPS Stainless and the Tikka Lite Stainless. I have been reading a lot and both brands seem to get good reviews. When I picked up the Tikka my initial thought was that it was kind of "cheap" feeling. I know it's probably not fair to judge a book by it's cover. I own a few Remingtons, and am kind of leaning that way at the moment.

This will be my first Synthetic in a larger "big game" caliber. I like the idea of having something a little lighter for those long days on foot.

Any thoughts, advice, or ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Justin
 
All the calibers you mentioned will work fine for what you want to do. If it was me I would just go with the 7mm rem mag. Its not on your list but everyone makes factory ammo for it. Especially since your not going to reload. As far as rifles I own a couple tikkas and they are great rifles. The stock does seem kinda cheap but its pretty stiff and they are both really accurate right out of the box. Remington is good also other than I have heard that their quality has went down here lately but everyone I know who has one loves it. Good Luck!
 
Your probably gonna get lots of comments on all three calibers, so heres mine;
.270 wsm is a great cartrige that will get you the distance you need and deliver the energy you want, BUT, I would honestly go with the 300wsm. For 3 main reasons,
1. you stated you dont hand load, so Quality ammo availibility is crucial
2. you have a WIDE range of bullet wt.'s to choose for what your hunting. A 300wsm is a great all round cal. and has more bullets to choose from than either of the other two
3. Its not a barrel burner.
Nothing against the RUM, theyre great cartriges. But handloading is the only way you can afford to shoot one.
Annyway JMO. Let us know what you decide
 
There's no sense in getting the 7 RUM if you're not reloading for several reasons beside the one you mentioned. Ammo is scarce and expensive and a very limited selection. And you dont need a 7 RUM if you're not going to reload because you wont be able to shoot far enough with factory ammo to make it worth it. The only reason I have a 300 RUM is to bable to shoot to 1K plus. If I didn't want to be able to shoot that far, I would stick with a 300 WSM.

Either the 300 WSM or 270 WSM would be a good choice. For a go to rifle, my choice would be the 300, especially if elk will be hunted. For any WSM, I highly recommend a Sub MOA Vanguard. IMO, a much better rifle than the average Remmington.

Good shooting and hunting, and welcome to LRH.

-Mark
 
Lots of good advice. I would look at the 7mm Rem Mag, 300 WM, or 300 WSM. I don't buy factory ammo but seems I've heard factory WSM stuff is kind of pricey too. All of these may be more than you need right now, but will be up to the task as your range increases.
 
Appreciate all the advice.

I'm by no means a ballistics guru. So if I'm just shooting factory loads, does the 300wsm simply offer a little more down range energy over the 270wsm? With the velocity edge going to the .270wsm?

Another thing, I don't forsee ever needing to utilize a 180gr bullet.

Just some additonal thoughts.

Thanks,

Justin
 
Ooops, sorry, I guess I didn't see that you are not a handloader. Since you are one of the only people on here who buys factory, I'll tell you something that I discovered. I have shot a lot of ammo across my chono and I found that of the factory ammo I tested, only the Federal ammo lived up to its claimed velocity. Rem and Win were both 100fps slower than claimed. I also tested some of a friends Sellier and Bellot ammo and found that it was 200fps slower than claimed with the brass being brittle also.

Good luck and good shooting. I guess I'd go with the 300WSM also. save your brass, you may not handload now but you will.

Tom
 
Of the three you listed, go with the 300wsm if you don't handload (even if you did from those 3 choices I would go with the 300wsm). But for what you want to do, I would look hard at the .260 Remington. Great for antelope and deer, and with some well constructed bullets elk within 500yards (or further) are in range. 7-08 or just a .308win wouldn't be bad either. I just think a .260 would be ideal for what you want to do with factory loads.

Just my .02

Oliver
 
I think the 270 WSM is an awesome cartridge, however I agree that you should look into the 7 Rem Mag. The Tikka is a fine rifle but in my opinion if you get a Rem 700 you can build onto it and customize it better as you go.
 
My .02 worth is,, go with the 300wsm, lots of good ammo available and as far as rifles don't overlook the savage line. I have 3 and all shot sub-moa right out of the box with factory ammo.
They are also very user friendly to customize down the road if you wish and the accu-trigger is nice too.
 
I would go with a 7mm Rem Mag. Been around forever and large selection of factory ammo that will make it easier to find ammo your gun will shoot well. If you decide to hanload down the road it is even better. For factory ammo you need to go with a cartride that is popular. Look online and on tje shelf in stores and research which offers the best selection that is readily available. There is no guarantee a factory rifle will shoot the ammo you pick well so the larger selection the better to insure you can find somethng that will shoot. Savage and Howa/Weatherby Vanguard are my two favorites for a factory rifle that will shoot right out of the box.Remington used to be my number one but now has moved slightly below savage and Howa/Weatherby Vanguard for out of the box accuracy. All three offer excellent paths to customize down the road. I also like the 7mm Rem Mag over the short mags in a factory gun is the long action mag bolt face offers the ability to rebarrel to many more options than a short action which still gives you the option to rebarrel to a shortmag down the road if you decide to. Chances are you will decide later to handload so leave your options open. If not then you will have the best Factory gun/ammo combination. Thats my 2 cents.
Dan
 
Appreciate all the advice.

I'm by no means a ballistics guru. So if I'm just shooting factory loads, does the 300wsm simply offer a little more down range energy over the 270wsm? With the velocity edge going to the .270wsm?

Another thing, I don't forsee ever needing to utilize a 180gr bullet.

Just some additonal thoughts.

Thanks,

Justin

For years I hunted with a 7 RM and when I burned the barrel out and went looking for another rifle, I decide to go bigger, not smaller. The 7 RM worked very well for me but I wanted a little more killing power for insurance, especially where elk was concerned. the 270 WSM should make a good hunting rifle. The 300 WSM will be a little better killer.

Winchester shows the 270 WSM 130 E-Tip @ 3275 fps and the 300 WSM 180 E-Tip @ 3010 fps, which are going to be fairly accurate velocities. The 180 E-Tip will maintain a 400 ftlb of energy advantage over the 130 E-Tip out to 600 yds.

If you get the 270 WSM, I'm sure you'll like, but someday you might have wished you got the 300. Just giving you my experience and opinion.

Most important is the rifle you choose. I really, really recommend the Weatherby Vanguard Sub MOA. Did I mention that I recommended the Sub MOA Vanuard? The Savage guys like their Savages and that would probably work too, but I like the Vanguard action a little better and they have a quality pillar bedded stock.

Give hand loading some thought too.

-Mark
 
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