Winchester Super Short Magnums?

[therifleman556]

Anybody out there been using one of the super short mags? I see Midway has Winchester or Hornady brass available for the 243. Seems like it'd be a fun little rifle to play with, and they can just about be had for a song. From what I can tell, it's got it's own little niche for people wanting more horsepower out of the standard AR-15 sized platform. If one were going to get a bolt gun, is Browning the way to go? I've read reports that the Winchester's experienced feeding issues more so than their buckmark counterparts.

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

yup... I've got a win coyote in 25 wssm that will not feed a full mag to save its life... it'll eat either 1 or 2 from the mag just fine though... I'd do something else at this point unless you plan on buying enough brass to last the barrel's life. The cartridges are pretty much a dead horse...

 

[nmbarta]

I blew up a .243 wssm in an ar-15 platform.
I was actually told by the manufacturer that it didn't "blow up"
The barrel extension failed and blew shrapnel through the side of the upper and slammed the charging handle into my front teeth/upper lip, bent the bolt, lodged it into the side of the upper, and blew the remaining rounds through the bottom of the magazine, but it absolutely did not "blow up". It was determined after sending in the rifle and spent brass that it was not my fault and they replaced the upper for the most part, I haven't pulled the trigger on it since.
Might be fun in a bolt action!
I wouldn't even sell this thing, it's a jack handle to me.

 

[tbrice23]

I blew up a .243 wssm in an ar-15 platform.
I was actually told by the manufacturer that it didn't "blow up"
The barrel extension failed and blew shrapnel through the side of the upper and slammed the charging handle into my front teeth/upper lip, bent the bolt, lodged it into the side of the upper, and blew the remaining rounds through the bottom of the magazine, but it absolutely did not "blow up". It was determined after sending in the rifle and spent brass that it was not my fault and they replaced the upper for the most part, I haven't pulled the trigger on it since.
Might be fun in a bolt action!
I wouldn't even sell this thing, it's a jack handle to me.

Wow.
So it didn't blow up... it exploded!
That is funny but I'm not going to laugh.

 

[LongBomber]

Personally I would build something else off the action. Maybe a 458 cal with an oal that feeds and functions in the ssm action. Somewhere around a 16" barrel and you would have a light short thumper.

My winchester is picky on OAL, some lengths just won't feed. The right length and I have no issues. Right now I use 53gr tsx from my 223wssm. The 36gr varmint grenades did a number on gophers as wssm speeds.

 

[Zman99]

I have a 223 wssm and really like it. It's killed whitetail, hogs, and a pile of coyotes and prairie dogs. I've never had any feeding issues with mine and it's a win 70. It is by far the most accurate factory rifle I own. But if I had to do it over again I would do a 22-250. My barrel will burn out and I will be stuck with a wssm action plus brass is very hard to come by.

 

[tbrice23]

Like my .358 Grant .
Feeds perfect.

 

[elkaholic]

Like my .358 Grant .
Feeds perfect. View attachment 95809

What's the parent?

 

[tbrice23]

I used 300wsm

 

[tbrice23]

358 Grant on left. 300wsm on right

 

[therifleman556]

That's cool right there. And that will fit in the wssm magazine? At least that leaves an option if the barrel does take a dump. I don't generally shoot often enough to worry about barrel life, 100 rounds a year out of any rifle would be a lot.

 

[TwoMore]

I Have a 223 wssm Browning A-Bolt that is wicked on whitetail, and have built a couple of 25 wssms. never have had a problem with feeding. One thing though is the neck thickness of the case is pretty thick and I have to anneal often to keep the necks from splitting. I am going to build a custom 223 wssm and I will turn necks on it. I want to shoot the 84 grain Hammer that they are coming out with. I will build it on a short action tho.
https://www.longrangehunting.com/threads/223-wssm-and-my-son.199777/

 

[J E Custom]

Having built many short mags and super short mags they have all had one thing in common, feeding problems. Some don't but the majority do.

The short, fat design doesn't lend itself to trouble free feeding like the longer body cartridges and can benefit from alternative forms of feed systems.

Single stack feeding, resolves these problems and doing away with stagger feeding is always a cure for these type of cartridges. The single stack/feed system holds the cartridge centered and can be adjusted to control the loaded round until the bullet has entered the chamber, making feeding very dependable and trouble free. I will give up the extra capacity of one more cartridge for dependable, trouble free feeding.

The ARs are very finicky feeders normally and it doesn't surprise me that they don't do well with short mags. (I have not built a short mag on an AR platform) but if I did I would go with a single feed type system. Also, the Improved designs Like the 40o shoulder don't lend themselves to good feeding in an AR normally without modifying the feed system.

The short mags and the super short mags are great cartridges for there purpose and uses, and can be very accurate if set up correctly. They offer a lot of power in a compact cartridge.

I have three of them and would not take for any of them. One is a 223 WSSM One is a 7 WSM and one is a 338 RCM. (I Think I am covered in the short mags categorys).

Just my opinion
J E CUSTOM

 

[MudRunner2005]

Feeding problems and impossible-to-find brass make the WSSM's very non-appealing, and have plagued the WSSM cartridges from the VERY beginning. Other than that, I see no real issue with the cartridges themselves.

Recently someone "rebooted" the popularity using WSM brass for the parent case, and you can buy their pre-formed WSSM brass (from WSM cases) straight from them for about a $1.30 each.

https://www.hillbillybrass.com/reformed-wssm-brass