Opinion on a swap...

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brent4hire

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I listed a sub 100 round 1984 Winchester M70 in .270 for trade here a week ago, as well as another forum. I received a few interesting offers, and the following, which is a little intriguing:

Weatherby Vanguard in 300Wthby with a Nikon UCC Monrach, and approx 250 rd cound.

I will be using the gun primarily for whitetail and moose hunts here in Quebec. I may be making some trips out to Peace River, Ab over the next year or two for white, mulie, and elk. I shoot a couple cases of 3.5" each fall, and I'm big, solidly built. I do have some shoulder issues, which are being attended to. I'd appreciate feedback on this potential swap (I've never fired a 300wthby, but I've hunted the 300 RUM before).

Thanks,

Brent
 
The ability to handle recoil doesn't depend only on size of the shooter. In fact, it seems [from my somewhat limited experience] a lot of really large people don't handle recoil as well as some smaller guys. I think a lot of it has to do with intertia. A large person has more mass, and so his body resists the movement of the rifle a bit more. The force of the rifle is still there, so more force is enacted upon the shoulder, whereas a smaller person will rock with the recoil more, and feel less of a bruise. This is all conjecture and theory. Really the ability to handle recoil is an individual thing, and, as Yoda said "Size matters not".
The 300 Wby and the 300 RUM are both big in the recoil department, but should feel very similar in identical rifles. When recoil gets that big, the rifle itself will have a lot of bearing on how the recoil feels. Does it fit you, how heavy is it, how's the recoil pad, etc.
No one here could say the 300 Wby will be a good fit for you. But, if it doesn't fit you well, then you won't shoot it much. Add that to the expense of each shot, and you'll find that you don't practice very much. Not practicing very much will cause you to be a worse shot, and a poorly placed shot from a 300 Wby won't kill better than a well placed shot from a .270.

But if you wanna get the rifle, go ahead. Just know that with a big magnum there's a price to pay, and you need to pay it each time you practice if you want to maintain [or improve] your skills.
 
If you are not a reloader the cost of Weatherby ammunition might be a factor to think about. The recoil is a bit stiff but if you can handle the 300 ultramag this is no big deal.
Have you thought about going up in bullet weight for the 270? the heavier bullet should take any of the animals you want with an accurate shot. Unless of course you just want to trade for something else.
regards
 
Personally, I'd keep the .270 as you can actually hunt everything you want to with it. You can buy factory ammo virtually anywhere hunting ammo is sold. The same can't be said about .300 Wby..... You can reload .270 to your hearts content with any .277 premium bullet available if that is your wish, too.

If you are already having some shoulder issues why aggravate it further with a cartridge you don't actually "need" to hunt the game you are after.

Or stick with the trades you wish in your EE ad..... the .30-06 or 7mm.....

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NAA.
 
I would think twice if you have shoulder issues. The .270 Win. will handle every species you listed, and with 1/2 the recoil of a full power .300 Wby load.
 
I'm a bigger guy and I found that my 300 Wby Mag Vanguard fit me well. I don't mind the recoil as I have an 835 Mossy that kicks much harder. Put a limbsaver pad on and you should be good to go. If you load your own shells I could tell you what worked well in my Vanguard as a starting point.
 
I don't and won't be reloading, so the expense is pretty much the only issue. I have two other .270's, so I'm not really hurting in that area. I am also not deluding myself into thinking I need a mag calibre - I actually want a 30-06, but the offer was very intriguing...I think I'll pass on it though - ammo for it isn't easy to find, and what I did find locally was almost $100 per box.:bangHead:

Thanks for the help, guys.
 
If it was a markV I would jump on the trade, but really for what you described you don't need a 300wby. A 270 with 140gr accubonds will do pretty much everything you described. I think it was Remington that offeres 300wby at roughly 65-70 a box from WSS, but you can buy 2 boxes of the exact same ammo in 30-06 for that.

If you actually wanted a magnum the trade sounds fine, but even a 300wsm would be plenty of rifle if you wanted a step up from a 30-06.
 
I doubt I would ever NEED anything other than a .270 or a 30-06. I have definitely decided to pass on the Vanguard - the expense of the ammo and the shelf-life of the barrel in that calibre has me waiting for the 30-06 I wanted originally. If a 300 Win was on the table I would give it some serious consideration, but a Wthby, as interesting as it is, just isn't worth the hastle, from what I'm reading.
 
brent4hire said:
i doubt i would ever need anything other than a .270 or a 30-06. I have definitely decided to pass on the vanguard - the expense of the ammo and the shelf-life of the barrel in that calibre has me waiting for the 30-06 i wanted originally. If a 300 win was on the table i would give it some serious consideration, but a wthby, as interesting as it is, just isn't worth the hastle, from what i'm reading.
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I'm more of a milsurp guy than a hunting rifle guy but FWIW, the new Ruger 77s seem pretty good, on par with the push feed M70 anyway. If you like the cartridge, it seems a fair deal. One factor I myself would be considering is synthetic or wood stocks. I too would have passed on the Vanguard.
 
I like the Ruger rifle more but the .300 Weatherby cal. is a better round, whether you trade or not, you should start reloading, so you can tailor your loads, and get out there and do more shooting/practice by saving money. Once you start, you will see how good a cartridge the .300 Wea. is and it is no more expensive if you reload.
 
Here's the Ruger - it actually appears to be the older one with the tang safety after all, but the condition is like new out of the box. It also comes with rounds, dies, brass - about $150 worth of extras plus the scope against my M70 push-feed with nothing but Weaver bases and rings - I think I'm gonna pull the trigger on this one:

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