Reloading .300 wby mag

[AJ]

I have been loading for the .300 Wby for 13 years now. I shot some mild loads with a 190 gr Hornady BTSP bullet going almost 3000 fps. It kept the damage down but still shot very flat. That load used IMR 7828, which is what some say Weatherby uses in the factory ammo. Weatherby uses, or at least used, Hornady bullets in their ammo. They also offer Nosler and Barnes bullets.

After I built my custom gun, I planned to use just the 165 gr bullet and make this a long range gun. I cut the throat short just for my handloads. This gun shot ok but didn't really do much until I opened the throat slightly and stepped up to 180 gr bullets. I have shot the Hornady flat base spire point, boat tail spire point, Nosler Ballistic Tip (never again in the Wby), and then tied the Scirocco. Wow, the gun will average 1/2 MOA for 5 different 5 shot groups at 100 yards. Bullet blow up is not near as bad as the regular Hornady bullets, or even close to the Nosler BT. I would recommend the Hornady Interbond, Nosler Accubond, or the Swift Scirocco bullet for the Wby.

I have had good success with Reloader 22, Reloader 25, IMR 4350, IMR 7828, but my favorite powder right now is the Vihtavuori N165. Once I saw the groups and velocity with that powder, I bought an 8 pound jug of it.

I use Remington brass since I bought a big box of the stuff when I started loading for the big 300. I have a lot of nickel plated Rem brass also. As long as you have your dies set properly and do not keep pushing the shoulder back excessively when you resize, you should get 5-7 loads per casing. I toss them after that. I do a full match prep on my brass. I neck turn my brass to 90% cleanup, uniform the primer pocket, chamfer the flash hole, square and chamfer the mouth. My brass typically will weigh in +- 3 grains.

I use Federal 215 Gold Medal Match primers in my Wby. They do cost a bit more, but a few dollars over a 1000 rounds is not that bad.

Yeah, I get a little excentric in my loading for this gun, but its my baby. It has done everything I have asked it to.

[iron buck]

Re: Reloading .300 wby mag

SWVASTALKER

I here you about the cost of factory WBY ammo!! This past Christmas Santa brought me an RCBS reloading kit. I picked up dies for my 22-250 (the rifle I use the most w/ groundhog hunting in the summer), 35 whelen (because Remington no long lists the 250 grain roundnose) and 300WBY. ........ Because it costs so much to shoot factory stuff!

I picked up some 180 grain/ .308 Nosler Balistic tips & reloader22 powder. I have yet to make anything because I am still reading up on how to do it LOL.

AJ

You said you did not like the Nosler BTs. Was it because of velocity/ groups or performance on game? I figured they would be a good long range deer bullet. I was also thinking of using them on my winter Caribou hunt in November 2005. Would you suggest I use something else?

In addition to that be loading 200 grain Nosler partitions. These will be my elk rounds should I decide to put my bow down for 2005 & chase them with a rifle instead.

My 300 WBY is a factory MArk V with beautiful wood ......but a 24" barrel. So I know I will not get the top velocity that the 300wby is capable of. But more than fast enough to suit my needs I am sure. I am also excited about getting into reloading. Once I figure out what I am doing I will pick up some more dies. Starting with a 300 savage set. I like the idea of putting together some 165 grain/ .308 noslers to work through my pair of Savage 99s.

[AJ]

Re: Reloading .300 wby mag

Yep, in my opinion, the Nosler Ballistic Tip is useless in the Wby mag. It is a good long range deer load, but unless you are planning to pack another gun for close range shots (out to 200-250 yards or so) its going to do a whole lot of damage. NBT bullets shoot great for hunting bullets, and are great performers in the moderate velocity cartridges like the .308 and .30-06. When you add another 200-300 fps and shoot a deer at 40-50 yards, its has a HUGE hole in it. I would not suggest your load for caribou. I would go for a tougher bullet. Granted caribou are not huge thick skinned animals, but they are bigger than most deer, I would use standard bullets (Hornady, Sierra, Speer, etc) over the Ballistic Tip. If you want to shoot a reduced load, you can get good performance with the NBT. I don't know too many Wby owners that will shoot a reduced load. It kind of defeats the purpose, now doesn't it?

Your gun must be an old one. They have not offered the 24" barrel in a long time. My first Wby was a Vanguard and it had a 24" barrel. It does reduce the performance a bit. My current one has a 28" barrel. It will match the .300 Rem Ultra Mag numbers.

Might I suggest Redding dies. They are a step up from RCBS and Lyman. Cost difference is a dollar or so. I have never had a bad die from Redding.