300 H&H is not difficult to obtain ammo or brass. Compared to 300 Weatherby, the H&H is a bargain. Compared to 300 W/M in a quality grade ammo, not much difference. The difference is in bargain ammo from Can. Tire or Wally-World, available in 300 W/M but there isn't any in 300 H&H. I picked up some Remington ammo a couple of years back from Lever Arms for $26 a box. That was a deal as it is a bit more expensive.
The 300 H&H is the parent case for almost all the 30 cal belted magnums of the day. 300 Weatherby is nothing more than a blown out 300 H&H case. Roy Weatherby reamed out the 300 H&H chamber and fireformed his 300 Weatherby magnum.
To enable Winchester to re-design the M70, for post 1964, the designers had to come up with an equivilent to the 300 H&H to allow for a shorter reveiver in the new push feed contraption. Of course they had to invent a reason for folks to dump the old and purchase the new. So marketing stradegy was to down play the 300 H&H and bragg up the new shorter 300 W/M. Subsequent to this, the upgrade loadings for the 300 H&H did not receive the benefit of the 300 W/B or the 300 W/M. The 300 H&H was left behind to help promote the 300 W/M. Winchester portrayed it to be a slightly more powerful round than the 300 H&H. Worked well because the consumer bought the new and sales were maintained for awhile.
The truth of the matter is this; the 300 H&H is more powder efficient than just about all of the other belted and non-belted magnums. That long tapered case not only slides through the action like a hot knife through butter but, delivers more fps. velocity per gr. of powder than the other over touted magnums. As well, the 300 H&H works considerably better with short light bullets than the others because of the long case neck. It stablizes the bullet better than the most of the others. The way they helped to keep the myth prolonged was conviently not bringing the 300 H&H loadings up to the other magnums as progress in powder evolved. The latest gimmick has been the extra short magnums touted as being a lighter firearm for us old boys to pack around. Again requiring even more powder to obtain equal velocity.
Here's a prime example with
Craig Boddington's 300 H&H loading that's under the maximum industry pressure measured in "cup".
- 300 H&H, 74 gr. 4350 pushing a 150 gr. bullet at 3400 fps.
Here's another example from Speers 1988 loading manual;
- 300 H&H - 68 gr. 4350 pushing a 180 gr. bullet at 3086 fps.
- 300 W/B - 84 gr. MRP pushing 180 gr. bullet at 3064 fps.
- 300 W/B - 79 gr. 4831 pushing 180 gr. bullet at 3064 fps.
- 300 W/M - 72 gr. 7828 pushing 180 gr. bullet at 3049 fps.
- 300 W/M - 73 gr. 4350 pushing 150 gr. bullet at 3173 fps.
Here's another
example from the Nosler manual of 1993
- 300 H&H -65 gr. 4350, 180 gr bullet @ 3010 fps, 84% max. case load
- 300 W/M -68 gr 4350, 180 gr bullet @ 3060 fps, 93% max case load
- 300 W/B - 76 gr 4350, 180 gr bullet @ 3090 fps, 88% max case load
The one advantage of the 300 W/M is all that cheap ammo at C/T and W/W, but compared to premium ammo, not much difference in price and for a reloader, no advantage at all. .
