I know the debate between 300 Wm and 300 wby for head stamps and am not questioning on that. However I've sparked an interest for a weatherby rifle And feel the need to own a 300 mag again. I personally like savage actions and am quite familiar with them but was wondering if there were any distinct advantages of the wby action over a savage? Know this is where the price and pride will come in but this will be a hunting rifle used very little. Approx 150-200 shots a year. I'd like to try a wby and if I do I'd go 300 wby. If i go savage it will be 300 win. I reload and will be using 200 gr bullets if the rifle spits them true
action vrs action for 300
- Thread starter brybenn
- Start date
BigUglyMan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
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- New Scotland
The Weatherby is very well made and finished (in the Mark V version). The downside is that they are huge and thus heavy and with a 300 Wby you won't get a barrel under 26" (and that's as short as you should go on that case anyway). They are also less likely to have all 9 locking lugs perfectly mated top their recesses. The Savage, on the other hand, isn't as refined nor as well finished. The 300 Weatherby will do everything the 300 WM will do and will handle the heavier bullets just a little better than the Winchester.
I'm not entirely sure why you would want to use 200 grain bullets, particularly given where you are located. 180gr bullets will do the trick quite nicely on most species of North American game, and if you're using monometal bullets you could even step down to 165s with little fear. I believe that this is where the 300WM is better than the 300 Wby...with moderate weight bullets for caliber. With a 165 TSX you're burning a lot more powder in a longer and heavier rifle for not much gain in performance.
That said, there's no reason not to buy a 300 Wby in a Weatherby rifle if that's what you want. But you will be paying double what you would have to give for a Winchester M70 and not getting double the rifle. You could get a Vanguard for way less money but if you're buying a Weatherby then you'll find a Vanguard to be a poor substitute for a Mark V.
I'm not entirely sure why you would want to use 200 grain bullets, particularly given where you are located. 180gr bullets will do the trick quite nicely on most species of North American game, and if you're using monometal bullets you could even step down to 165s with little fear. I believe that this is where the 300WM is better than the 300 Wby...with moderate weight bullets for caliber. With a 165 TSX you're burning a lot more powder in a longer and heavier rifle for not much gain in performance.
That said, there's no reason not to buy a 300 Wby in a Weatherby rifle if that's what you want. But you will be paying double what you would have to give for a Winchester M70 and not getting double the rifle. You could get a Vanguard for way less money but if you're buying a Weatherby then you'll find a Vanguard to be a poor substitute for a Mark V.
BB........the Mk Vs are nice rifles for sure, I've had a couple and have a Miroku made 378 Euromark right now, but as BUM says they are heavier than necessary for cartridges below the 340. You would be much better served in my opinion, buying an old Sako, Remington or if you're a CRF freak, the new mod 70 action and have it barreled up for a 300 Wby. You could even buy one in 300 WM and have it rechambered to 300 Wby and wouldn't require any other work, literally a 100 buck job. For a keepsake rifle I would go with the Sako L61R or A II - IV or the Mod 70 Supergrade, for a working rifle I'd go with a mod 700 with a Brown Precision glass stock. I love the 300 Wby and have taken 100s of game animals with mine, it's an old 700 stainless in a Brown glass stock with a 24" barrel and it has worked all over the world for me. I like the 300 RUM as well but there seems to be a exponential increase in recoil for what one gets in external ballistics and have never needed more than the 300 Wby.
Of late I have used all 200 gn bullets, and started out using 200 NP then delved into the world of homogenous copper bullets, with some success but bad copper fouling. Gone back to 200 ABs for the last few critters and am now going to try some 195 gn Matrix. Every bit as good a bullet, possibly better and available whenever I need more.......unlike 200 gn Parts or ABs.
This old girl is better travelled than 99% of people...........
This is what she looks like..........
And this is what she shoots like......
Of late I have used all 200 gn bullets, and started out using 200 NP then delved into the world of homogenous copper bullets, with some success but bad copper fouling. Gone back to 200 ABs for the last few critters and am now going to try some 195 gn Matrix. Every bit as good a bullet, possibly better and available whenever I need more.......unlike 200 gn Parts or ABs.
This old girl is better travelled than 99% of people...........
This is what she looks like..........
And this is what she shoots like......
Thanks for the replies. As it will be a moose rifle for the odd chance I go the weight doesn't bother me nor the barrel length. I'd had great experience with savage rifles but would like something a little nicer hence the reason I was thinking wby.
I need to invest my tax return on something for myself and next year I'm going after a swamp donkey in an area that has a lot of new clear cuts
I need to invest my tax return on something for myself and next year I'm going after a swamp donkey in an area that has a lot of new clear cuts
The Vanguards offered better accuracy, and they were better balanced.They did this for less than half the price of a Mark V. I just don't see any extra value in the Mark V , even though it costs more than twice as much. Why do you suppose that the Vanguards all come with a MOA accuracy guarantee, and the standard Mark V models only come with a 1-1/2MOA accuracy guarantee. Obviously even Weatherby is aware that the Vanguard generally offers more accuracy potential.
You are referring to the Lazerguard, which is only available through Cabellas. The wood and mirror metal finish is every bit the equal of the Mark V. The Vanguard deluxe is the same thing but with more conventional checkering.
The Vanguards are lighter, and from what I've seen always seem to make their accuracy guarantee. Very few rifles feed as smoothly, and the Vanguard has a better extractor than the Mark V. Downsides are the lack of 26" barrels and I'd prefer a higher quality bottom metal assembly. That may seem like splitting hairs.
There is two grades of "wood stocked" Vanguard II's.
I just picked up a Vanguard II Sporter. It has a Turkish Walnut stock in a matte finish and the checkering is of decent quality/feel good in hand. The wood is of better quality/grain/appearance than most of the 1000 buck Rem's that sat on the shelf beside it.
The Sporter does sell for about 150 bucks over the "typical" price of the plastic stocked versions - so somewhere in the 800-900 buck range depending on who has it in stock.
The next step up is the Vanguard II Deluxe. It is stocked with Claro Walnut and has a high gloss finish. Those will run you a couple more hundred over the Sporter - so pretty much on par with a 2015 model Rem 700 CDL - $1100-1200 depending on who has them in stock.
(yes, my prices are for NEW 2015 stock, not stuff that has been sitting around for a year or two)
In comparison, a MK5 with a deluxe grade wood stock will generally have a ticket price in the $2300-2500 range.
Final note, Weatherby "guarantees" the Vanguard II's will shoot sub-moa with either Wby or Premium ammunition (I own two VG's and can tell you I have not had to send them to Wby because the guarantee failed).
They DO NOT give the same guarantee with the Mark 5's - go figure....
I just picked up a Vanguard II Sporter. It has a Turkish Walnut stock in a matte finish and the checkering is of decent quality/feel good in hand. The wood is of better quality/grain/appearance than most of the 1000 buck Rem's that sat on the shelf beside it.
The Sporter does sell for about 150 bucks over the "typical" price of the plastic stocked versions - so somewhere in the 800-900 buck range depending on who has it in stock.
The next step up is the Vanguard II Deluxe. It is stocked with Claro Walnut and has a high gloss finish. Those will run you a couple more hundred over the Sporter - so pretty much on par with a 2015 model Rem 700 CDL - $1100-1200 depending on who has them in stock.
(yes, my prices are for NEW 2015 stock, not stuff that has been sitting around for a year or two)
In comparison, a MK5 with a deluxe grade wood stock will generally have a ticket price in the $2300-2500 range.
Final note, Weatherby "guarantees" the Vanguard II's will shoot sub-moa with either Wby or Premium ammunition (I own two VG's and can tell you I have not had to send them to Wby because the guarantee failed).
They DO NOT give the same guarantee with the Mark 5's - go figure....
I don't even own a MarkV anymore...although I still have a couple of Vanguards. The Vanguards just always seem to outshoot the "real" Weatherby's, and the Deluxe and Laserguard versions are quite lovely. I bought a Deluxe a year or so back, and I actually went with the .300WinMag largely because of the 24-inch barrel, as well as the fact that I am all set up for that chambering. Dogleg is right about the barrel length and the bottom metal being slight disadvantages, but they are slight ones indeed. Look at the price differential!
That said, I am hankering to own another MarkV, but only because...it's a MarkV! I sold a .340 Euromark that was, hands-down and without question, the finest, most versatile North American hunting rifle in existence...and I hate absolutes!
But that's really the only way to justify the purchase of a MarkV, because by any rational measure of performance or value, the Vanguards are the way to go.
That said, I am hankering to own another MarkV, but only because...it's a MarkV! I sold a .340 Euromark that was, hands-down and without question, the finest, most versatile North American hunting rifle in existence...and I hate absolutes!
But that's really the only way to justify the purchase of a MarkV, because by any rational measure of performance or value, the Vanguards are the way to go.
