As for a place to start with the loads for the rifle I've always had the best "all around" performance with 180gr in my stock 300's both Win and Weatherby.

To me, it's worth the extra $2.00 a round to have the extra assurance 500 fps brings

At 400 yards, the differece between my .270 and my .257 wby is about 4.5". Not a lot.

But the energy under thst range makes me a believer.


Not to mention the rifles themselves are bad azz

Practice also happens in the field.

I've launched more bullets at game than I have at paper.

You either can shoot or you can't. Real world experience trumps punching paper from a bench any day of the week imo

That said, you do have to know your weapon. The best shots I know spend very little time if any at the range though

Well we all know that's Anyone can learn, and all of us can improve.

Punching paper is for zeroing the rifle and/ or load development, that's it, punching paper is boring. After that, steel targets or milk jugs full of water are very helpful to PRACTICE shooting. And no, not from a bench. If you hunt from a blind sitting in a chair bring a chair out and shoot from it. If you hunt from the ground and use your pack to help steady yourself, shoot that way on the range. And if all you have is a public range that won't allow you to do all these things, then dry firing sitting in your own home is still very helpful. Anything ks better than leaving the rifle stored in a safe from February to November.

Couldn't agree more. Very well put.

tt85,
I agree about practicing other than from a bench, but disagree about using animals for practice. They deserve practice and proficiency before the hunt.

I shot a lot of turtles, rabbits and other varmints with a .22 growing up. Then started shooting hogs, deer, coyotes, etc

I'm proficient because I learned how to use my gun in the field, not on a bench or off a mat.

You wanna get really good at killing animals, your gonna have to shoot a lot of animals.


Dry fire practice is an excellent tool, but more people need to get off the bench and start letting some lead fly in the field.

Reason for Prairie dog towns!!! Live practice

Did you completely skip over every post after your last one?

I'd be happy to shoot side by side with you, on steel or water jugs in any hunting position you want to come up with. Hell, we can shoot as far as you desire of the side of the truck bed (from in the bed, or standing on the ground) or the cab. We can play horse and the loser buys the beer and bar-b-que.

No one has to only shoot at hide to get good at shooting at hide. That is one of the stupidest philosphies I have ever seen.

I'll take that bet.

Shooter has to use standard hunting rifle and no more than a 12x scope

Everyone use whatever they hunt with and feel like using. You bring that 300 Weatherby. What scope is riding up top that rifle?

I have a .257 wby with a 4x16

Details on the scope?

I won't dial past 12X





I like anything Shiner makes, and prefer brisket to sausage.

Who's gonna pick the venue?

So you get 16X, but I can't? How's that right?


Where are you geographically? My range, or somewhere between us.

No that's what my weatherby has on it.

I'm gonna shoot my .270

.257 wby ammo too hard to get to waste

Shooting to improve skills is never a waste of ammo.

True but I'd rather improve my skills with $30/box .270 shells than $70/box hard to find weatherby ammo

This needs a name

"The under 6' tall rifle match 2015"

Nothing wrong with that.

It's hard for me to believe that Weatherby ever made a .300 with a barrel twist too slow to stabilize a 180 grain bullet and now-a-days with premium bullets that's all you need for any game it is legal to shoot with a .300. And for Texas whitetail all you need is the 150 grain, anyway.

I believe you can push a 150 grain to 3650 fps in the Weatherby with handloads. (Just as an aside, the .300 Win Mag factory load of 3290 fps can be improved to 3500 fps with handloads, so no one needs to feel deprived with one of those instead of a Weatherby, if that is what they can afford).

if I recall correctly the ones made in Germany pre-70's had a real slow twist that would not stabilize the heavier bullets


I know the early .257 wby rifles could not stabilize anything heavier than 100 grains

Agreed 257 Weatherby ammo is a bit pricey compared to 25-06. Why would I want to spend the extra $$ for virtually the same performance? You really need to have at least a 26" barrel to get the advantage that the 257 WM can offer over a standard 24" barreled 25-06. So, IMO a 257 WM in a Vanguard is not what I would do for cost reasons. However a clean used 257 WM in Mark V ? .... now that one is on my bucket list just for grins.

If you want some hunting round sticker shock, price some 378 WM ammo. I own a Mark V in that caliber as well as one in 300 WM. I also own a coulpe dozen other rifles in various calibers. Yes, I reload for the 378. The 378 is a fantastic round. Not quite as good at distance as the 338 lapua but a damn fine round in a great rifle that will kill anything on the planet.

Reloading is the only way to go. I own an accumark mk 5 in 300 wby. It shoots good for a wby but no a fan of the free bore they use to get the velocity. It has never been a go to gun for long range. I am debating doing a barrel job and custom chamber to remove the free bore however if that is done then you just have an expensive 300mw or a slower 300 rum due to pressure issues.