Been thinking about picking up a .300 Win Mag for a good elk/moose gun. I should be able to hunt moose in about 5-6 years. I will use it for elk along with my .270 until then to get use to it. I have looked at a lot of reviews of a few different brands of rifles for the .300 and they are all great reviews. Cabelas has a great sale on a gun which is perfect for my budget. My questions for those of you that shoot a .300 Win Mag are, would it be a good gun for moose? Is it a decent flat shooting rifle for a .30 cal gun? Is it as accurate as the reviews seem to say it is? Any info would be appreciated. I do not shoot long distances at all. Very rarely do I shoot at 200 yrds. While I am starting to head to the western side of Wyo for hunting, I would like to start shooting out to 400 yrds. I think that would be a good distance for elk in the high country.
.300 Win Mag
- Thread starter birdhunter
- Start date
It would be hard to beat a .300 for what you are looking at hunting. It has plenty of horsepower for moose or elk even out to 400 or more. I've had a .300 winchester and a weatherby. I still have the weatherby and it's my best "all around" rifle. It hammered a good sized boar grizzly with a 180gr. Nosler Partition. I shot him twice but didn't need too.
I wouldn't worry about which .300 you want. They all are close enough to not make a big difference...IMHO.
Get a rifle that you can afford and that fits you well and you'll be happy with it.
I wouldn't worry about which .300 you want. They all are close enough to not make a big difference...IMHO.
Get a rifle that you can afford and that fits you well and you'll be happy with it.
CrossCreeks
Veteran member
I love my A-Bolt .300 for Elk and if I ever draw a Moose Tag in Wyoming that's what I will be using. It will definitely do the job on the ranges you are talking about with plenty to spare.
buckbull
Veteran member
- Jun 20, 2011
- 2,182
- 1,373
My main Elk gun (and moose if I would ever draw) is a .300 WM Tikka T3. There is no need to get something with more recoil.
My questions for those of you that shoot a .300 Win Mag are, would it be a good gun for moose? Not only good, but IMO the best.
Is it a decent flat shooting rifle for a .30 cal gun? Yes!
Is it as accurate as the reviews seem to say it is? Probably more to due with the ammo brand, bullet, and gun combination but in general the .30 cal is regarded as accurate. Doesn't mean that every .30 cal gun is accurate.
My questions for those of you that shoot a .300 Win Mag are, would it be a good gun for moose? Not only good, but IMO the best.
Is it a decent flat shooting rifle for a .30 cal gun? Yes!
Is it as accurate as the reviews seem to say it is? Probably more to due with the ammo brand, bullet, and gun combination but in general the .30 cal is regarded as accurate. Doesn't mean that every .30 cal gun is accurate.
pikemaster
New Member
- Nov 8, 2013
- 8
- 0
I just bought a Browning X Bolt in 300 win mag. So far I love this gun I took a big mule deer at 370yrds with it this year. I did a lot of research on what brand to by it was a toss up between the X bolt or the Tikka T3. I am glad I went with the X bolt. I shot 20 rds first time out and had no problem with the recoil with browning recoil pad.
Umpqua Hunter
Veteran member
All I've hunted with for the past 8 years is a 300 WSM (all species), which is basically the same ballistics as the 300 Win Mag. We've shot elk, antelope, deer and sheep with it. Unless of course its muzzy or archery season 
I went with the 300 WSM over the 300 Win Mag due to it using a short action.
Just got done with the book "American Sniper". Most of his kills were with a 300 Win Mag, so it is clearly considered up to the job for sniper work.
I went with the 300 WSM over the 300 Win Mag due to it using a short action.
Just got done with the book "American Sniper". Most of his kills were with a 300 Win Mag, so it is clearly considered up to the job for sniper work.
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roknHS
Member
I agree with all the good comments on the 300 WM. It is an awsome cartridge for big.....BIG......game animals. I don't think there is anything in the U.S. or Canada that it won't bring down if you put the bullet where it belongs. They do have a pretty good boot to the shoulder. Mostly noticeable when you are target shooting. I have a Ruger 77 in the 300 WM. It is a fine rifle.
If I didn't have one.........and I wanted one........I'd buy a Browning BAR in the 300 WM. They are IMO as accurate as any bolt rifle and they shoot so sweet. A large amount of the recoil is taken up in the operation of the action. I don't think you can find a nicer 300 to shoot. You can pick up some nice pristine used models on Gun Broker for less than you will pay for a bolt rifle and I think you would be very pleased for many years. If you ever shoot a 300 BAR you will see what I mean. They are sweet.
If I didn't have one.........and I wanted one........I'd buy a Browning BAR in the 300 WM. They are IMO as accurate as any bolt rifle and they shoot so sweet. A large amount of the recoil is taken up in the operation of the action. I don't think you can find a nicer 300 to shoot. You can pick up some nice pristine used models on Gun Broker for less than you will pay for a bolt rifle and I think you would be very pleased for many years. If you ever shoot a 300 BAR you will see what I mean. They are sweet.
It's my personal favorite cartridge (along with 270wsm). Favorite rifle chambered in it for western hunts is a Remington 700 AWR I. I'll use my Brownings in Tx to keep the wear off that AWR and they work just fine for as far as I'm capable of shooting them.
Thanks for the feedback fellas!! You have helped me make up my mind. I am heading to Cabelas tonight or tomorrow after work to pick one up. Hopefully get it sighted in Saturday morning or next weekend. Will probably use my .270 for the remainder of this season just so I don't rush sighting in the new gun. Just got permission from some landowners to shoot some elk on their place. This is huge news since they haven't let anyone hunt or fish on their land EVER!! Game and Fish is putting the squeeze on landowners here to let people on or not get paid for depravation to crops. My dad has been friends with them for years and they bumped us up the list and have been calling to come get an elk!!! Hopefully I can get one or two more elk the with .270.
Timberstalker
Veteran member
woodtick
Veteran member
I've reloaded for several big .30's, I love the RUM, it's a monster with 220gr+ bullets but it does cost a fortune to buy or reload and it's a lot to manage in terms of recoil, the 300 WSM is a sweet little round but I've had some troubles finding the accuracy node in most of them and if I was to start all over with one clear winner the 300 Winny is my top choice, tolerable recoil and very easy to find the node with almost any mixture of powder-bullets.
I killed my bull elk last weekend with a .300 Win Mag in a Savage model 111. Great rifle and great caliber.
That's great news since its the exact gun and model I am going to purchase. I hope it works out for me as good as it has everyone else. Thank you guys so much for your input.
Watch the blog and the Enews that should be coming out Monday and Tuesday. There is a short review to go along with this.
Eberle
Veteran member
Picked up my .300 Win Mag Thursday night. Sighted it in at 50 yards today because I was short on time. Left and Right is right on and it is about 3-4" high. My dad wanted to go hunting so I went with him after we put together some of his new carport. He wanted to go to a place where we have never seen elk. Went there plenty to hunt elk, but have never seen any. I decided to leave the .270 in the truck and take my .300 WM. Since we would only see coyotes, I thought I would try it out and shoot the new gun. Low and behold, 20 minutes into our hunt in a place elk have no place being in (maybe a mountain goat), was a herd of maybe 150 to 200 elk. We got around the cliffs and got behind them about 75 yards and I tagged a cow elk. My new gun, being 3 days old to me shot straight and I got a cow. Never in my wildest dreams would've I thought that would happen today!!!
Team Kabob
Very Active Member
- May 9, 2014
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RICMIC
Veteran member
You have clearly proved that this is your lucky gun. One of the best things about the 300 WM, is that you can find ammo almost anywhere, and usually a lot cheaper than the other 300 variations. I have four friends who have all shot moose here in Minnesota using their 30-06, and all were DRT. So, a 300 WM with a quality bullet certainly will do the job. Congradulations, on the elk and the purchase.