Everyone talks about long range ballistic potential, but usually, the people who ask such questions don't actually have much experience shooting at really long range.
I don't consider myself to be a real long range expert by any means, though I was fortunate enough to be allowed to compete in the World Long Range Rifle Championships held in Ottawa in 2007.
Personally, I think the 180-grain Nosler Accubond is one of the best options for a true long range bullet in the .300 Winchester Magnum. I launch that bullet out of my Sako hunting rifle at about 3,050 over the chronograph, and I can hit the V-bull on a TR target at 600 metres, just by holding slightly above the third mildot.
600 metres is WAY out there, and I doubt I'd ever shoot at game at that range unless it was a necessary situation. But, man, does that Accubond fly flat and hit hard!
If you plan to shoot inside 350 yards (which should be almost everyone's reasonable maximum), any decent hunting bullet of 180 grains will fly flat enough and hit hard enough at .300 Win. Mag. velocities to kill any game animal in North America.
Actually, there is no magic in being able to make hits on long range. The key is to have enough experience to know how high to hold, and, more importantly, how to read the wind and make the corrections necessary. Here is an example:
Last fall, when I was out hunting, I started goofing around with an old military Mauser .30-06 one afternoon. I had loaded it with plain old Hornady 180 SP bullets at 2,640 fps. I was astonished to see that I could make hits on a rock at 667 yards, as lasered. My group could be covered with my hand, as my buddy confirmed as he watched through a spotting scope. There was no magic here. I just shaded up the crosshairs at what I estimated to be 18 minutes high, which is what my gut told me I would need with this bullet and velocity, based upon my experience as a long range competitor with a .308 using a 155-grain bullet. The mirage told me that there was no wind to worry about, so I simply held high and pulled the trigger. It worked.
A few minutes before, I had tried shooting a rock at 450 yards and the results were similar: hits that would have been in a deer's shoulder, if that is what I was aiming at. In that case, I had to hold just under 6 minutes high. It was easy because the distance between the centre crosshair and the bottom post at 9 power on the ancient Redfield scope I put on that old beater rifle subtends exactly three minutes of angle...
This rock-shooting experience proved to me that even ordinary bullets will go where you want them to at longer ranges, as long as you know what to do under the conditions.
Therefore, my advice would be to choose a decent hunting bullet that is accurate in your rifle then shoot a lot with it, especially at longer ranges, under field conditions.
I don't consider myself to be a real long range expert by any means, though I was fortunate enough to be allowed to compete in the World Long Range Rifle Championships held in Ottawa in 2007.
Personally, I think the 180-grain Nosler Accubond is one of the best options for a true long range bullet in the .300 Winchester Magnum. I launch that bullet out of my Sako hunting rifle at about 3,050 over the chronograph, and I can hit the V-bull on a TR target at 600 metres, just by holding slightly above the third mildot.
600 metres is WAY out there, and I doubt I'd ever shoot at game at that range unless it was a necessary situation. But, man, does that Accubond fly flat and hit hard!
If you plan to shoot inside 350 yards (which should be almost everyone's reasonable maximum), any decent hunting bullet of 180 grains will fly flat enough and hit hard enough at .300 Win. Mag. velocities to kill any game animal in North America.
Actually, there is no magic in being able to make hits on long range. The key is to have enough experience to know how high to hold, and, more importantly, how to read the wind and make the corrections necessary. Here is an example:
Last fall, when I was out hunting, I started goofing around with an old military Mauser .30-06 one afternoon. I had loaded it with plain old Hornady 180 SP bullets at 2,640 fps. I was astonished to see that I could make hits on a rock at 667 yards, as lasered. My group could be covered with my hand, as my buddy confirmed as he watched through a spotting scope. There was no magic here. I just shaded up the crosshairs at what I estimated to be 18 minutes high, which is what my gut told me I would need with this bullet and velocity, based upon my experience as a long range competitor with a .308 using a 155-grain bullet. The mirage told me that there was no wind to worry about, so I simply held high and pulled the trigger. It worked.
A few minutes before, I had tried shooting a rock at 450 yards and the results were similar: hits that would have been in a deer's shoulder, if that is what I was aiming at. In that case, I had to hold just under 6 minutes high. It was easy because the distance between the centre crosshair and the bottom post at 9 power on the ancient Redfield scope I put on that old beater rifle subtends exactly three minutes of angle...
This rock-shooting experience proved to me that even ordinary bullets will go where you want them to at longer ranges, as long as you know what to do under the conditions.
Therefore, my advice would be to choose a decent hunting bullet that is accurate in your rifle then shoot a lot with it, especially at longer ranges, under field conditions.
