Elk Load for 300 WSM

NYDAN

Handloader
Sep 17, 2013
1,864
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I had a Douglas xx barrel installed on a LH M70 300 WSM. Some early results with old brass and 180 gr. BT bullets were posted earlier: https://forum.nosler.com/threads/300-wsm-180-bt-rl-16.46863/. Those results were very encouraging.

I went on to neck turn some new Norma brass, and fire form them to my minimum spec. chamber. During the fireforming, I confirmed that the loads with the new brass did not reproduce the results I had with the other older multiple fired brass. No surprise there. However, I did have some very encouraging groups with RL-16 and 180 gr. BT bullets, RL-16 and 180 gr. AB bullets, and StaBALL 6.5 and Sierra SBT bullets. Here is an example with StaBALL 6.5 and 180 gr. Sierra SBT:

300WSM-6.JPG

In the above group I was using some VERY OLD CCI 250 primers that had been given to me. Looking at the extreme spread, I think it might have been even better with a different primer.

In general, I found that Nosler BT bullets seemed to like a jump of about 0.050" and the Sierra SBT bullets seemed to like jumps of about 0.030".

Once I had fired 50 pieces of neck turned brass, I annealed the cases using the molten lead method, bumped the shoulders back about 0.001" - 0.002". Sizing the annealed brass produced more consistent results than I ever had resizing before.

Then I switched back to Reloder 16 (of which I have a good supply) and changed up to my preferred elk bullet, the 180 gr. AB.

While reloading for other rifles, I had found that some of them liked a bullet jump of about 0.100" with the AB bullet.

I had some decent results when I shot a ladder test in 0.3 gr. powder increments with a 0.100" bullet jump. My best group was with 61.3 gr. RL-16.

300WSM-3.JPG

I shot groups with a 0.090" jump and a 0.110" jump, and the group sizes both measured greater than 1". Thinking, I could improve on that I shots groups with bullet jumps of 0.050", 0.060", 0.070", and 0.080". A bit to my surprise my best results were with a 0.050" jump - similar to what the 180 gr. BT seemed to like in this rifle.

300WSM-4.JPG

That target was the first shots though a dirty barrel that had been sitting for a week. I was pleased to see the first "cold barrel" shot was in the group.

I cleaned the rifle and loaded four more rounds. However, since the lot of Reloder 16 I had been using was running low, I switched to a different lot of powder. Then I shot this target through a clean bore.

300WSM-5.JPG

I was pleased that the first shot though the clean barrel was "in the group".

I am happy with that. After I use the last of six once-fired brass to zero at 200 yards, I will have only enough AB bullets (of the same lot) and powder (of the same lot) left to load up 40-50 rounds. So, I am calling load development good enough. I will anneal, size, and brass prep the 50 cases and load for hunting.

I am happy with the relatively low velocity of this load for three reasons:
  • The trajectory at this muzzle velocity closely matches the trajectory of the Boone and Crocket reticule in my scope.
  • It is easy on the brass.
  • It is about all the recoil I want to subject myself to.
The last issue comes to light when I load up 12 or 16 rounds for a ladder test. I find myself asking myself if I really want to go out and shoot 16 rounds in one session. I don't ask myself those questions when I am shooting the 7mm RM, or the 7mm WSM, or any other of the smaller cartridges that I load for. Only with the 300 WM and 300 WSM with 180 gr. bullets. At 73 years old I think the 300 magnums are my limit for recoil tolerance.
 
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That is some great info, and some excellent shooting - doubt I could match those groups. 180 grains at ~2900 fps is nothing to sneeze at and should result in very efficient killing of elk at and well past your 200 zero.
 
Good looking groups Dan. I would say you are good to go for the season.
Never had or shot a 300WSM but do have a 300WM and have found that you can load it up or down and still have a very accurate and humane killing cartridge. Some calibers just don't open up well at lower velocities but you can find a .30 caliber bullet that will work at almost any speed.
 
Very informative write up Dan. I've had pretty good results with RL17 and H4831SC with my Browning 300 WSM. Have you experimented with either of those powders?
 
I had not considered RL 16 in my 300HH. Given that the 300 WSM and the 300 HH have the same capacity it might be worth a look as I have some 16 on hand.
I would be very happy with your group and 2900 + with the AccuBond.
With these reloads I am getting about 98% to 100% fill ratios, depending on C.O.A.L. So, it might be worth a try.
 
Very informative write up Dan. I've had pretty good results with RL17 and H4831SC with my Browning 300 WSM. Have you experimented with either of those powders?
Thank you. I tried some RL-17 in another 300 WSM that I had but did not get better accuracy than I had with RL-16. Since RL-16 was advertised as more temperature stable that RL-17, I stayed with RL-16 at that time and now I have a supply of RL-16 to work with.

The lot of H4831SC that I had produced very low velocities in my 270 Win. So, I never tried it in my previous 300 WSM or this 300 WSM.
 
I used to see a noticeable difference between how the early Accubonds and Ballistic Tips grouped.I know Nosler made internal jacket changes to Ballistic Tips some time after the introduction of the AccuBond.From what I can tell and it would make sense in a manufacturing aspect that the difference between the AccuBond and Ballistic Tip is,the AccuBond is bonded and the Ballistic Tip is not,but both bullet weights use the same jacket.The hardnest of the lead core could be different,I don't know.In the 180gr 30cal bullets,they group the same in my rifles.In the 200gr .338 cal bullets,they also group the same in my rifles.This is from Nosler's FAQ located on their page.

What is the difference between the Ballistic Tip® and the AccuBond®?​

Externally, they look the same except for the tip colors, Ballistic Tip® bullets are color-coded by caliber while all AccuBond® bullets have white tips. Internally the Ballistic Tip® is not bonded and is designed for controlled expansion on medium game with approximately 50-60% weight retention. Conversely, the lead alloy core of the AccuBond® is bonded to the jacket. This bonding increases weight retention (65-70%) and slows expansion resulting in deeper penetration and enhanced bone-breaking potential in larger animals.
 
You have an excellent load there, congrats. I have said it before that the 300 WSM is one of the best 30 cal cartridges out there. Pretty easy to load it like a 308 for mild recoil or all the way up to full power loads. By far my favorite 30 cal cartridge.
 
Some very good groups there given Accubonds can be very finicky. It would be my first bullet choice in the 300 WSM.

I've loaded for 7 different 300 WSM's going back to 2001. I always used H4350 and various 180's. in general, 64.0 grains gets 2,980 fps. I switched to 64.5 gr's RL17 and got 3,030 fps and equally excellent accuracy. I never tried RL16.

The 300 WSM and 308 Win are the two easiest rounds to load for I've ever used, and the 300 WSM definitely dotes on 180's. I shot a number of elk with it, and all but one was taken with a 180 Partition. The other was a 180 Fail Safe.

I consider it to be an absolutely "ideal" elk round. My problem is I don't like recoil anymore so it's not ideal for me lol. But if it's not bothering you more power to you (quite literally)! It definitely helps to load it down to 2,900 fps.

Have you run 180's up around 3,000 fps?
 
Some very good groups there given Accubonds can be very finicky. It would be my first bullet choice in the 300 WSM.

I've loaded for 7 different 300 WSM's going back to 2001. I always used H4350 and various 180's. in general, 64.0 grains gets 2,980 fps. I switched to 64.5 gr's RL17 and got 3,030 fps and equally excellent accuracy. I never tried RL16.

The 300 WSM and 308 Win are the two easiest rounds to load for I've ever used, and the 300 WSM definitely dotes on 180's. I shot a number of elk with it, and all but one was taken with a 180 Partition. The other was a 180 Fail Safe.

I consider it to be an absolutely "ideal" elk round. My problem is I don't like recoil anymore so it's not ideal for me lol. But if it's not bothering you more power to you (quite literally)! It definitely helps to load it down to 2,900 fps.

Have you run 180's up around 3,000 fps?
Brad, no I don't think I have run many 180 gr. bullets up to 3,000 fps. I am sure I must have some time, but not as a norm. However, I do tend to run the 165 gr. bullets up around 3,100 fps.

After this fall's hunting season, I will probably try some different loads and see if I can come up with a lead-free load for the 300 WSM. I do have some H4350 I can try in it - as well as some StaBALL 6.5.

I also want to go back to the 300 WM and develop a 200 gr. AB load for that.

Between now and fall I will play around some more with the 7mm WSM for deer hunting purposes.
 
Brad, no I don't think I have run many 180 gr. bullets up to 3,000 fps. I am sure I must have some time, but not as a norm. However, I do tend to run the 165 gr. bullets up around 3,100 fps.

After this fall's hunting season, I will probably try some different loads and see if I can come up with a lead-free load for the 300 WSM. I do have some H4350 I can try in it - as well as some StaBALL 6.5.

I also want to go back to the 300 WM and develop a 200 gr. AB load for that.

Between now and fall I will play around some more with the 7mm WSM for deer hunting purposes.
I had a recipe for Ramshot Hunter and the 200 grain norma oryx. Hunter works well with the 300WSM if you can get it.
 
This is an awesome write up. Thank you for posting. I just got my 300wsm and starting load development with 180’s. I have RL-16 and H4350. I have a nice supply of both. Glad I found this post. It has given me a good starting point.
 
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