.300 Win Mag and whitetails ??'s

B

BangFlop

Member
I am in the process of getting a 300 and plan on using it for whitetails, I know that it is probably more than is needed, however, our whitetails get pretty big here in WI and I would like some opinions on what factory ammo to try, and what style and weight I should use? I am kind of torn between hitting them with a big 180 (Ballistic Tip, SST, or the like) or should I hit them with a smaller 150 (Partition, Fail Safe, or Barnes X)? I like to anchor my deer where they stand, so I am also thinking about the exact opposite of above and shooting a 150 gr. SST or the like instead?

Please help, I am unfamiliar with this cartridge so any and all information will be of a big help.

Thanks

Steve
 
I to live in wisconsin and i use a .300. For whitetials I personaly would not use ballistic tips but thats me. I would go with a 150gr or larger soft point of some kind. The barnes tripple shocks look really good, i plan on loading some of them for my elk hunt next fall.
 
In my rifles I prefer a faster, flatter bullet for rapid expansion and extensive hydrostatic shock to the lungs.... drops them in the dirt right there all the time. With your caliber, I would shoot 150 grain to start with.
 
I have been using the .300 Win Mag for whitetails successfully for many years. I certainly don't consider it overkill at all. I too like putting them down with no tracking to worry about. I like to place my shots either in the lungs or neck with very little meat damage. The Remington Core Lokt have done a great job for us 50 feet up to 250-300 yards. If I knew there were longer shots the Fail Safe or comperable nosler would be good.
 
Wow, a 243 drops'em like a lead piano. You did mean whitetail deer right? Not whitetailed rhinos? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused1.gif

Well anyways...a 150 will do the trick nicely.
 
I too would stay away from the BT type bullets. I have not used them on deer size critters but have several close friends that have had less than good results on both deer and antelope. I have killed a bunch of yotes with them and some are bang-flop and some not, just depends on bullet placement. I believe that bang-flop is as much, if not more, a factor of bullet placement as any other factor. Bullet placement is the key to a clean kill.

I used my 300 win mag loaded with a 185 grain Nosiler Partition bullet on a small whitetail (100 pounds) this year (149 yard shot) and she ran about 30 yards and jumped a fence before hitting the ground.

Depending on which load/bullet shoots best in your rifle, pick a 165 or 185 and practice shooting before hitting the field.
 
Hi i shoot a 300 wby with a 125gr BT and you shoot one in the shoulder and he will drop. I have killed them out to 400 yds with this load. But i am going to get a box of 130gr Barnes TSX and try them out. The 150gr SST or BT will work good. My friend shoots the heavy barrel Savage model 10 in a 300 win mag with CT Ballistic Silvertips 150gr. VM
 
Thanks guys, I am not saying that a 300 is required, I have killed 90% of my whitetails with a 7mm-08, however, I got a 300 WM with a break in a trade (encore). If it kicks to hard that I don't shoot it very accurately then I will get another 7mm-08 barrel and put this off to the side for a "rainy day". But I just wanted some opinions on bullet weight and style before I go out and buy $30 boxes of ammo.

Thanks,

Steve
 
BangFlop,

FWIW my Rem 700 ADL in .300 WM shoots almost everything bullet well for my handloads meaning 1" or less at 100. So I tried the Remington 150 gr PSP's from Academy 19.99 a box.... I got 4 consecutive 5 shot groups of less than .675" at 100 yards. Core Lokt bullets do a good job of putting down game as long as you do your part.

And I do like the Barnes TSX, Nos Partitions and Sierra's as well for Handloads.

Like other's have said with with Nosler BT's, your asking for potential serious meat damage unless you can guarantee a clean double lung shot, especially if the deer is under 100 yds - the .300 WM has a lot of speed and can make a real mess with the wrong bullet. Heck my .257 Robts with a mild load (2850 fps) with a 100gr Nosler BT ruined an entire roast at 200 yards in the shoulder - the shot placement was all my fault (trying for just behind the shoulder).
 
Quote:
Wow, a 243 drops'em like a lead piano. You did mean whitetail deer right? Not whitetailed rhinos? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused1.gif

Well anyways...a 150 will do the trick nicely.



lol iv shot 6 whitetailed deer with a 243 and droped 4 of them /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif. and the rest of them went from 40 to 70 yards.the shots were 50 feet to 150 yards or so. im usind the win ballistic tips 95 gr out of a browning a-bolt. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Well I am also from WI and have used the .300 win mag for several years.

Beleive it or not I use the winchester cheap old silver box 150 grain pointed soft points and have had excellent success.

They may not be that accurate, but they are a great inexpensive round that has proven themselves for me.
I do agree that the new federal fusion is probobly the way to go.

Good luck and don't stop shooting till they stop moving!
 
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I like heavy-for-caliber bullets, and especially in the 300 Magnum, I wouldn't use less than a 180 grain bullet. But that's just me. Obviously a 150 grain bullet out of your 300 mag will kill a whitetail just fine. But that much speed is just not necessary. The 180 will shoot just as flat, or maybe just slightly less flat, but not enough that you would notice it. I will say the 150 will have the advantge of kicking you quite a bit less than a 180 will. If you do go with a 150, you may be better off with a "premium" bullet such as the Nosler Partition or Barnes TSX. Definitely don't use a 150 Ballistic Tip, too much chance of ruining more meat than necessary.
 
I shoot an 30-06 and 300 RUM and have not seen anything drop a deer quicker with Remington 180g orelocts. Ive tried my reloads in 180g Balistic tips and Accubonds and 150 Seirra gamekings. Scirroccos in a 180g work awsome out of the 300 RUM but for the money pick up some core locts and you'll never go wrong.
 
I would go with a lighter bullet in the 300 win mag and get your velocity up there to cause tramatic shock to the deer on impact. Im talkin about a 150 grain or less in excess of over 3200-300fps. Nothing kills like velocity when using a gun of such caliber.

This is one of the main reason I like my 25-06 for WT deer. I can shoot a 90 grain LRP J36 (.479 BC) at close to 3500fps and it will absolutely demolish a deers insides while still exiting. The ultra high velocity imparts massive spinning torque and forward momentum to shock the deer like lightening.
 
I have killed many a deer in my day, with calibers ranging from .22 to .50. In my experience, much more shock is visibly imparted by larger, slower moving bullets than by ones moving so fast they zip right through the deer and it runs 70yds before it expires. Bangflop, since you already know that the .300 is not necessary, we won't get into that debate. Some plain old Winchester power points will do just fine. Nosler partitions will do better but cost more. Stay away from the ballistic tips unless you really like wasting meat and making a mess. I'm from Michigan and it isn't much different from Wisconsin( the 2 best deer huntin' states of all, by the way!) Take care---2MG
 
I have hunted with a .300 win mag for ten years now and taken roughly 20 deer with the gun. If I shot a yearling with it I don't remember it... I wait for older bucks and shoot big does for meat. I started out with 150 grain Remington core locks and shortly after tried the 180's and never looked back. More bang flop and less meat damage with the heavier bullets. If you hunting Wisconsin I would assume most shos will be less than 200 Yards and I would recommend the 180's.

I was going to try some Federal 200 grains this year, but I didn't have time to try out a new load. The 180 grains slammed my best rifle buck yet in his tracks this year.
 
I use the 300 win mag here in Georgia on 100 to 150 pound (average) whitetails. My shots average somewhere between 65 and 70 yards, but usually closer to 70. I started using the remington 150 grn corlokt and got nothing but bang flops with no exit. I picked up a box of the Remington Corlokt Ultra 180 grn. Less meat damage, always get a good, small exit wound a couple inches in diameter, massive damage inside.

I shoot the 300 just because it is the only rifle I own that allways shoots straight. Rifle seemed t like everthing I fed it, the remington ammo is not too expensive. No sense paying an extra $10 per box to get the other premium bullets when the remington Corlokt ultra shot so well.
 
I shoot the 180 grain Barnes Triple Shocks out of my .300 Win Mag and have had only bang flops from them. My largest animal being an 850 lb blue wildebeest.
 
Whitetails do not require premium bullets. They are just not tough enough. Use whatever shoots in your gun, the cheaper the better. If you reload, download the .300 to adjust the level of recoil you are willing to tolerate. I would stay away from light and fast only because the tissue damage becomes meat damage if you hit it somewhere other than the heart/lungs or neck. I wouldn't shoot anything lighter than a 165 in a .300. They seem to be balanced better with a 180 or 200. The deer won't know the difference, but it you ever decide to kill something bigger, you already have the load work done.

Fast Ed
 
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