Need opinions from those who use 325WSM

NorthernPF

NorthernPF

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Hey Everyone,

Might be looking at a 325WSM and I was wondering who on the boards here use one, what kind of rifle they have, how they like it and what do they hunt with it?

Any input will be greatly appreciated.

Eric:sniper:
 
Don't own one but have shot one a fair bit. Nothing you couldn't hunt with one in North America. Think of it as a .338 in a short case....... Nothing revolutionary about the cartridge but it is a good solid performer. I shot it in a Model 70....the rifle impressed me.
 
I personally have never shot the 325, but I own a 300 wsm in a Tikka T3 Lite. Great calibre IMO. Shot my first moose with that gun at 362 yards, he didn't run if you know what I mean?!

Out of all the new short mags, I found the 300 to be the most versatile for what I need it to do. What do you plan on hunting with the 325?
 
I found that the .325 is'nt .325 at all, but an 8mm....and the performance of the .323 is awfully close to the .308 used in the 300.....IMO the .325WSM is just a marketing ploy that gives nothing over the 300 except hard-to-find components and a higher $$.

Why Winchester won't bring out a .338 or 350 WSM is beyond me. I would personally buy a factory chambering in 350 in a heartbeat.
 
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hey

Well I was actually talking to a gentleman in the local gun store here and that's what he was telling me. He said that the 325WSM is actually a 8mm which is .323 but the americans who developed the cartridge didn't want to market 8mm because it isn't all that succesfull in the states because that's what the Germans used to kill the US soldiers during the war.

And yes I plan on using this gun to Hunt moose but I'd also like to try Caribou and Elk hunting eventually with it.
 
NorthernPF said:
Well I was actually talking to a gentleman in the local gun store here and that's what he was telling me. He said that the 325WSM is actually a 8mm which is .323 but the americans who developed the cartridge didn't want to market 8mm because it isn't all that succesfull in the states because that's what the Germans used to kill the US soldiers during the war.

And yes I plan on using this gun to Hunt moose but I'd also like to try Caribou and Elk hunting eventually with it.
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The 8mm bore has never sold well in the US, but that is true of anything labelled in metric, besides the 7mm Rem Mag. I don't think the previous usage of the metric bore sizes in military rifles is as big of a factor as is the European origin with a "funny" way of designating the caliber. The US is still sticking to inches and feet, while the rest of the world has gone metric.

I was considering this myself when I was looking for more thump than a .30-06 for hunting moose and elk, particularly where big bears were also present (which means most of BC). I originally wanted a .338 Win Mag, but looked at the .325 WSM as well. From all that I was able to find, the .325 kicked slightly less and was shorter, otherwise, the .338 is superior. The .338 has a better bullet selection, including heavier weights, more muzzle and downrange energy, and is available in more factory loads that are more available due to its longer history. The .325 is also loaded pretty hot from the factory, and is reputed to be difficult to even match factory velocities, let alone exceed them, which is true of the short mag series in general. The .338 on the other hand is easy to match factory velocities, and in some cases exceed them by up to 150 fps, with safe pressures.

The reason that has been kicked about as to why it was made as an 8mm, rather than a .338 WSM, is that the factory was not able to get close enough to .338 Win mag velocities with safe pressures, and they felt this would hurt the selling potential of the round.

This is not to say the .325 is not a good chambering, and should suit your intended usage well.
 
I just took arival of my new Browning Stainless X-bolt in 325wsm and can't wait to take it out and let a few rounds loose. Does anyone have any good info on hand loading..Im not finding a whole lot of info on them as far as re loading.

RyanB
 
I have one of the first Browning A-Bolts in this caliber that where brought into Canada [it was ordered direct from the factory for me]. It shoots real well with Barnes TSX and Speer bullets. Good for anything in North America and most things in Africa.
 
Try the website www.load data.com , it has reload info for every gun out there, a complete combination of all reloads from hornady, nosler, speer, etc. with all combinations of bullets and powders. I do believe its $30.00 per year for membership but its well worth every cent
 
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