.300 Win Mag Neck Length Problems?

S

Shooter2675

New member
I am looking at buying a new .30 cal (or around .30 cal, such as a .338 or 7mm) and one of the cartridges I am seriously considering is the .300 Winchester Magnum. One of the things I have heard bad about it is its short neck. I read it is 0.264 inches long, whereas something like the .300 Weatherby Magnum has a neck that is 0.330 inches long. I have heard that the short neck makes the cartridge inaccurate, but then some people say it doesn't effect accuracy. I do reload, just so you know. I have also been looking at other calibers such as the .338 Winchester Magnum or the 7mm Remington Magnum, but I think the .300 Wichester Magnum is very versatile. Do you have any opinions on how the short neck would effect accuracy?

Thank you,

John
 
" I have heard that the short neck makes the cartridge inaccurate,"

It's not that "it makes it inaccurate", it's that longer necks TEND to support the bullet better and keep it centered in the rifle's throat. I used a 300 Win mag bull barrel target rifle that was extremely accurate.
 
.300 Win Mags have been used to win long range matches and set records for decades. Sierra Bullets uses it testing 30 caliber bullets 190 grains and heavier for accuracy; match bullets shoot about 1/4 MOA in their 200 yard test range.

Enough said.
 
Iv read that the short neck makes the .300WM hard to reload but its never been a problem for me and I reload alot of WM's .
Mine is very accurate .
 
If you'll reload, one of the rimless, non-belted 30 caliber magnum rounds is easier to reload for best accuracy. SAUM, WSM; for example.
 
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The .300 win mag is hard to reload? I've heard that before but hoped it was untrue. Oh well, I can't really find any .30 magnum rifles in a Savage Stainless action besides the .300 win mag. I don't think they chamber RSAUM and I wasn't exactly looking at a WSM cartridge, but I could give it some thought. Another rifle I was looking at was the Savage Alaskan Brush Hunter in either .338 win mag or .375 ruger. Of the three calibers I brought up, I think the .300 win is the most practical with the .338 win mag closely behind. I have a .30-30 so I already have a lighter powered .30 cal rifle, so I might keep looking at the .338 win mag. What do you think?

Thanks,

John
 
The .300 Win mag is no harder to reload than any other BELTED magnum. I do not think belted cartridges are hard to reload, they just require a bit of attention to detail.
 
Ok, thank you. How would the trajectory of a .300 Win Mag differ from that of a .338 win mag? How does their energy compare at different distances?

Thanks,

John
 
Ok, thank you. How would the trajectory of a .300 Win Mag differ from that of a .338 win mag? How does their energy compare at different distances?
Click to expand...

Without going into specific loads...

Trajectory for the 300 win mag will be "flatter" with most loads compared to the 338 win mag. The energy for the 338 win mag will generally be more than the 300 win mag, at least as measured at the muzzle. At different distances eventually the 300 win mag will catch up then surpass the 338 because of bullets having a higher BC and therefore more retained energy.

In terms of "killing power" both are more than adequate for anything in North America.

But, since you are asking these questions, and your location is set to PA, I recommend getting a non-magnum caliber like a 308 Win instead.

Jimro
 
With all you mentioned the 300 WSM sounds like your round. Savage chambers in it, it has a nice long neck and is easy to reload without the issues (real or imagined, I don't like reloading belted either) in reloading. Performance is the same as the 300 WM.
 
Old timers seemed to feel that the case neck needed to be at least one caliber in length, it's just not true in my opinion. Both the 300 Winchester Mag and the 7WSM are wonderfully accurate cartridges who's necks are not a caliber in length.

I've been reloading for belted magnums for more years than I care to remember and the only thing different is that standard sizing dies can't resize the case just ahead of the belt. After repeated firings this causes the brass to become hard or impossible to chamber, or if you do force it in you may find you'll need a cleaning rod to get the fired case out. Innovative Technologies makes a special die for this, it sizes just the portion in front of the belt. It's an added step in the reloading process but I have found it to be well worth the time.

I shot a 300 Win Mag for many years as my primary elk/deer rifle. I eventually sold the rifle though as the recoil just became to much for me to put up with. In a light weight rifle (mine was an A-Bolt) the 300 Winchester punishes from both ends and when something is not fun to shoot you'll find you don't shoot it enough, or at least that's how I felt. A good recoil pad helps but it was not enough for me.
 
Jimro, I already have a .30-30 so I do not want to buy a .308. I would not likely hunting with the rifles in PA too much, but if I did, obviously both calibers I mentioned would be more than enough. I want to get a magnum just so I have one going forward and for longer range target shooting. Since I reload, the cost difference between then .308 and .300 win mag should not be too much, at most $0.15 cents more for the extra powder. I buy once fired brass or reload brass I have already shot, so the brass should be fairly cheap for both.

Thanks,

John
 
With the best accuracy attainable in both the .308 and .300 Win Mag cartridges, the .308 will last about 3000 rounds and the .300 Win Mag about 1200. In equal wind conditions, top ranked shooters have often produced better scores with the .308 than with the .300 Win Mag; it's got less recoil while the bullet goes through the barrel so the point of aim at time of fire is moved less from where you wanted it to be. The more recoil there is while the bullet's in the barrel, the more the bore axis moves off from where it pointed when the primer first started burning the powder.

The above's why long range bullseye shooters switched from 30 caliber magnums to the 6.5x.284; accuracy and wind bucking is equal but much easier to shoot accurate with its much less recoil during barrel time. The compromise is its 800 round barrel life.

What compromises are you willing to make?
 
Whoever told you a short neck affects accuracy is confused. The .300 Win Mag is a sniper/long range(1,000 yd./m.) target shooter cartridge. Knew a guy who regularly won 1,000 yard sniper matches with a 17.5 pound custom .300 Mag. Used 190 match bullets.
 
Thank you for your help. I think the general consensus is that the short neck does not effect accuracy, an I correct? Also, as far as caliber, I am really stuck between the .300 win mag (likely top of my list, though), the 7mm Remington Magnum, and the .338 Win Mag

So far, I have compiled a list of pros and cons of each caliber, please weigh in with your opinions:

.300 Winchester Magnum

PROS
- Flat shooting
- More power than .308 and .30-06
- Can more effectivelt use heavier bullets than .30-06 or .308 (?)
- Cheaper ammo compared to .338 WM and 7mm Rem Mag

CONS
- More expensive ammo then other thirty caliber rifles
- More recoil than other THIRTY caliber rifles

7mm Remington Magnum

PROS
- Very flat shooting
- Good for very long distances

CONS
- Not as heavy bullets available as the .30 caliber
- Not adequate enough (?) for grizzly and other large game (not about this one)

.338 Winchester Magnum

PROS
- It has the most energy of all three calibers
- Bigger bullets for bigger game

CONS
- Heavy recoil
- More expensive ammo
- Not as good for whitetail as it could destroy a lot of meat

Right now I must say I am leaning towards a .300 Win Mag, as I think it would complement my .30 cal brush gun (a Henry .30-30 lever action) nicely. I am likely still three months or more away from getting the funding to buy this gun, but I would like to get a lot of things sorted out before hand.

Thank you,

John
 
Just realized I got two 33 caliber mags mixed up. It's the Win instead of the Lap. Got to redo my ballistics to compare them.
 
The only REAL con to the 300 win mag is that it can eat up a lot powder filing those cases. I've frequently found boxes of federal ammo in 300 win mag at wally world for around $24--occasionally even under $20.

I've never had any issues reloading for it--certainly no issues at all in regards to neck depth. It headspaces off of the belt. so what. IMO one of the best values in longer range shooting rifle (the only problem for me living in the east I can't find anywhere to really stretch out to those ranges).
 
I think the 7mm Rem Mag is an adequate grizzly round. Certainly it's not as good as the other two you're looking at, but it is still adequate.

Also, in my experience bullet type and speed have more to do with meat destruction than size. A .338 Win is bigger, but it is moving slower and when used in conjunction with a good controlled expansion bullet it'll cause less damage than say a 150 grain 30 caliber explosive one.
 
Thank you. I think for practicality sakes, a .30 caliber would be the best. Now I have to decide a .30-06 or .300 win mag. My brother owns a .30-06 and it is very pleasant to shoot (a Remington 700), but I was thinking that for only a small increase in ammo cost, I would have a gun with 1,000 extra ft-lbs of energy. But a .30-06 would be nice becuase of the cheaper cost. My thinking, however, is that if I only want to buy one .30 cal bolt gun, why not get it in a more versatile caliber (the .300 win mag), especially since I reload. All opinions are welcome.

Thank you,

John
 
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