Im looking to buy a new cooper rifle. I cant decide on which caliber to get. I currently have a 300 wby and a 7mm rem mag. Im stuck on weather to get another 300 wby or a new 7mm stw. I know one will do what the other will, so which would you choose and why? please don't suggest other calibers because im not interested in them, just which of these 2 you would rather have.
300wby or a 7mmstw?????
- Thread starter quarterman
- Start date
I have owned one 300wby, but I currently own two 7 mm stw rifles, and have owned three others previously. The 7mmstw is more than adequate for big game; and I prefer the lesser recoil, and flatter trajectory, compared to the 300 wby. I actually have a Cooper stainless/synthetic in 7mmstw for sale; as I have a custom 7mmstw being built.
For my local hunting it would be a 7mm STW. They both can easily cover the same species and conditions, but the STW does it with a lot less recoil. There was a time when that was important to me. I also like staying away from the Weatherby free-bore. Besides, hunting in my home province the 7mm has all the power and bullet weight I could want, and the game size and conditions are well known in advance. The situation changes when travelling, as the conditions are to a certain extent unknown and if there isn't some much bigger stuff around I don't have a lot of interest in going there. Then I'll go with a .300. Even at that, the .300 Weatherby will stay home with the STW. In my mind foreign countries are no place for odd-balls when there plain vanilla ways to do the same things.
At the current time I have 3 STWs and 2 .300 Weatherbys. One of the STWs is a Cooper Western Classic. It isn't for sale.
At the current time I have 3 STWs and 2 .300 Weatherbys. One of the STWs is a Cooper Western Classic. It isn't for sale.
7mm STW....because variety is good,you already got the 300wby.
Like dogleg I have a Cooper custom classic 7mm STW & a german 300wby Mark V deluxe...both cartridges are great for hunting.
burnt_servo
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- right in the middle of b.c.
7mm stw .... just because 
btw I've owned both , kept the stw , and fire formed all my 300 brass to 7mm .
btw I've owned both , kept the stw , and fire formed all my 300 brass to 7mm .
International hunting camps seem to be dominated by .300s it seems like when people move from talking to paying and doing, the little cartridge games and hobbyist aspects get shelved and the do it old 300s get the nod. It hasn't escaped my attention that a surpriseingly high percentage of those have been the Weatherby version. It's also surprising how many of the .300 shooters had dozens of rifles, while some only owned one or two. Oddly they mostly end up carrying the same thing.
Purchase both, however I favor the 300 Weatherby by a long shot, pund intended, or should I say I always favored the 30 caliber. IMHO the 308 dia. is the best all around for North American big game hunting, in particular the 300 Weatherby. I own the 300 Weatherby, 300 H&H and the 308 Winchester, it's a go to caliber.
Buying both is sounding like a good idea because I just cant make up my mind.
I own both. As you already have a 300, get the STW. - dan
The 300 wby isn't much easier on barrels than the 7mmstw. My first 7mmstw barrel was replaced at 1500 rounds, you might get a few hundred more with a 300wby
And 1500 rounds will be a a few lifetimes worth of shooting for most hunters. And for those that do shoot that much, I suppose if you can afford all that ammo you can afford to rebarrel every few years.
Some common sense for a change...................it's refreshing, thank you !!!!!
Maybe BUT i doubt it - Wear will be nearly the same ! A 300 WBee will shot a 150 gr-er just as fast as a 7 STW shoots a 140-150 gr-er - so whats the diff ! I have a 7mm-300 WBee and a 300 WBee to compare .
RJ
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
I've delved into the 7mm world a few times with several 7X57s, a 7 mag, and now I have a .280 Ackley build on the go. But somehow I always seem to come back to .30 caliber rifles, as that bore size was ingrained in me from an early age, and for that reason alone the .300 Weatherby would be my choice over the STW. If barrel life was an overwhelming concern, I'd choose a .308. If long range performance was the critical factor, I might choose a seriously overbore .300 Ultra or a .30-378. But when the choice is for a cartridge to chamber in a small bore big game rifle (small being a relative term) a .300 magnum would be hard to beat and the .300 Weatherby is arguably the best (read fastest) of the tribe.
