Is bullet seating depth an issue with 300 WSM?

sithlord6512 · Dec 31, 2008

I was thinking of getting a Hornady bullet seating depth gauge in order to help me maximize the accuracy of my new (and only) rifle, a .300 WSM. However, I just read an article taken from an older Handloader magazine that states the "rifling starts right in front of the chamber's neck...eliminates any worry about inaccuracy resulting from "bullet jump"". Apparently, the .300 WSM has no throat/leade

Does this mean I should save my money (i.e., playing with bullet seating depth is not an option with my .300 WSM)?

nomosendero · Dec 31, 2008

No throat, never heard that one. The various companies/rifles throat length can & do vary. So do the mag lengths of the "short actions". Check it out before you but. I like the Stoney Point/Horn. tool.

Powerstroke · Dec 31, 2008

Can't exactly say I've heard of that one either. That tool is priceless ! However if you don't foresee more cartridges in the near future, there is another way to go about it.

You can always take a spent case..... you'll probably have to dimple / crimp the neck "very slightly" to hold your bullet of choice. I'd highly recommend the 165 or 180gr A-bond though :grin: Take a marker and color around the bullet when you put it into the case. When you chamber the round the case will etch the marker on the bullet to your lands depth. Obviously do this 6 or 5 times to ensure consistancy. You'll certianly want to back off that measurement......See what the others recommend as well, but fifteen thousands back is a good starting point.

Are you having accuracy issues ?

R Flowers · Jan 1, 2009

I am of the opinion that bullet seating depth is much overrated.

Go ahead and get a bullet seating depth too, I like the one sold by Sinclair.
Some rifles do, indeed prefer certain bullet seating depths, but I am not as sold on this issue as I used to be. I do pay a lot of attention to it for getting that last bit of accuracy from some varmint cartridges, but for 300 magnums and such I do not worry about it much.

I load for two Weatherby cartridges that have a good deal of freebore. I just load as long as I can for the shells to fit in the magazine. They both shoot very small groups for hunting rifles.

I too, shoot a 300 WSM, a Remington 700XCR. I prefer to shoot 180 Nosler Partitions in it, however with the new California laws, I had to find a "no lead" bullet. I switched to the 168 Barnes TSX. I started out 0.05 inches off the lands as Barnes suggests, but found the shells would not then fit in the magazine. I just seated them to fit the magazine and still shot groups close to a half inch.

The real kicker is a Remington 700 BDL that I recently worked on for a friend. It was bought new in 1973 and has been shot a lot! I measured the throat and found that just about any hunting bullet had to jump over a half inch to the lands!! Much to my surprise it shot 160 Barnes TSX bullets into less than a half inch, several times.

sithlord6512 · Jan 1, 2009

Gave in - ordered the stoney point/Hornday gauge. Reason - having read some of the posts, it seems that the ETip is more accurate further off the lands (this is constrast to the accepted wisdom that as close to the lands in the best).

The Barnes TSX, TTSX, and MRX behaves similarly (and probably the other homogeneous bullets that are sure to follow - i.e., Hornady's upcoming GMX).

For those interested, the article that states the .300WSM has no throat/Leade was from handloader Magazine, Aug-Sept, 2002 issue (vol. 37, no. 4). Title of article was "Factors in Accuracy Part II: Handloads" by John Barsness. While you cannot access this directly from the site, you can "google" the article title and author and get "hits" leading to the same article.

Ol` Joe · Jan 1, 2009

sithlord6512":1d87bk9b said:
For those interested, the article that states the .300WSM has no throat/Leade was from handloader Magazine, Aug-Sept, 2002 issue (vol. 37, no. 4). Title of article was "Factors in Accuracy Part II: Handloads" by John Barsness. While you cannot access this directly from the site, you can "google" the article title and author and get "hits" leading to the same article.

This the artical?

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/reloading.html

Guy Miner · Jan 2, 2009

That's a good one. Barsness seems to really know what he's doing - and writes well.

sithlord6512 · Jan 2, 2009

Hi Ol' Joe,

Yes - that is the article I was referring to. The absence of a throat/leade is the reason Mr. Barsness figures .300 WSM is fairly accurate "out of the box". Don't know if this fellow is well-respected (new to handloading), but I figure if he is a featured author in Handloader magazine, he must know what he is talking about.

sithlord6512 · Jan 2, 2009

Hi Powerstroke,

Actually, I haven't even shot a round throught the rifle yet (a Remington Modell 700 XCR RMEF). I sent it in to a Remington factory warranty repair centre to get "fixed" - it was impossible to fit three rounds into the magazine (as advertised). Also having the trigger set to 2.5 lbs and having a scope mounted (Elite 4200 2.5-10X).

Plan on using Tubbs Final Finish to "break-in" the barrel. As this will be my only rifle (at least until my wife give into my whining about needing a new gun for our as-yet unborn son), I want to do everthing I can to maximize the accuracy of the rifle (and me) - not because I need this accuracy - I just think it will be awfully fun to do so (my goal is modest - a MOA rifle is the goal - at least for now).

Guest · Jan 2, 2009

I'd stay away from the Tubbs Final Finish until after you've shot the rifle and determine if you need it or not. I've never needed to use anything that abrasive. Just shoot a bunch, clean a bunch, and see what happens. You can always do it later, you can't put the metal back into the throat area after you scrub it off.