{"id":5000,"date":"2019-06-25T06:20:55","date_gmt":"2019-06-25T13:20:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/?p=5000"},"modified":"2021-10-16T16:45:26","modified_gmt":"2021-10-16T23:45:26","slug":"a-tale-of-three-300s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/2019\/06\/25\/a-tale-of-three-300s\/","title":{"rendered":"A Tale of Three 300s"},"content":{"rendered":"

The word “wow” might have been invented in anticipation of the .300 Weatherby Magnum. \u00a0 It’s that impressive.\u00a0 I’ve owned and fired a lot of different cartridges over the years, and the one that I find the most interesting, the most intimidating, and the most coolest ever is the .300 Weatherby.\u00a0 For a lot of years it was the most powerful .308-caliber cartridge on the planet.\u00a0 Roy Weatherby, my personal hero, created the cartridge in 1944 and it’s only been in the last few years that two or three more powerful .30-bore cartridges emerged, but these new .30-caliber cartridges are overkill.\u00a0 In fact, I could make a good argument that the .300 Weatherby is overkill.\u00a0 But I won’t.\u00a0 I love the round and I love the fact that it scares me a little every time I shoot it.<\/p>\n

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A sense of scale. From left to right, it’s the .22 Long Rifle, the .45 ACP, the .223 Remington (essentially, our M-16 round), the .30-30 Winchester (America’s premier deer cartridge), the mighty .30-06, and the last two are .300 Weatherby Magnum cartridges. Every cartridge shown here (with the exception of the .22 Long Rifle) is a reloaded round.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The first rifle I ever bought chambered for the .300 Weatherby, oddly enough, was not a Weatherby.\u00a0 It was a Winchester Model 70 that I bought maybe 35 years ago.\u00a0 It was a limited production item and that might have been a good reason to buy it, but the thing that grabbed my attention on this particular rifle was the walnut.\u00a0 You just don’t see factory Model 70s with fancy walnut, but this one had it in spades.<\/p>\n

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A 1980s Model 70 Winchester in .300 Weatherby Magnum, wearing a Weaver T-10 telescopic sight.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The right side of the .300 Weatherby Model 70.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Ah, that beautiful walnut. It’s not often lumber like this appears on a Winchester.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Both sides, too! When I saw this rifle I was still in my 30s. I really couldn’t afford it, but I couldn’t afford to let it get away, either.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I think I paid just over $400 for that rifle back in the 1980s, which is what they were going for then.\u00a0 I had a Weaver T10 target scope I had used when shooting metallic silhouette and it went on the Model 70.\u00a0 It’s most definitely not the scope for a .300 Weatherby, but it’s what I had at the time.\u00a0 The scope is a collectible item all by itself…it’s steel and it was manufactured when Weaver made their scopes in El Paso.<\/p>\n

So that’s the first rifle in this trio of .300s. \u00a0 The next is one I bought exactly 10 years ago, in 2009, at the height of the Great Recession. \u00a0 I was lucky in 2009…I was working, and lots of folks were selling things to raise cash, including more than a few gun stores. \u00a0 An outfit called Lock, Stock, and Barrel advertised a new-in-the-box Mark V Euromark on Gunbroker, and I was on that in a New York minute.\u00a0 The store was in the upper Midwest somewhere and they stated in their ad they would not sell to California (our state commissars make life difficult in a\u00a0 lot of ways, and more than a few sellers simply won’t ship to California). \u00a0 But I wanted that Euromark something fierce (the Euromark is a Mark V Weatherby with a satin oil finish, rather than the Mark V’s usual high gloss urethane finish).\u00a0 I called the guy, did my “woe is me” routine, and he agreed to ship the rifle to my FFL-holder here in the Peoples’ Republik.<\/p>\n

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Saw it on Gunbroker, saw the wood, and I couldn’t say no.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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It was nice on both sides, too. Rosewood accents, beautiful walnut, and the mighty .300 Weatherby Magnum in a Mark V. What’s not to like?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I bought a new Weaver 4×16 scope, put it on the rifle, and then I put the Mark V in the safe.\u00a0 It stayed there for 10 years. \u00a0 I fired it for the first time this weekend, for this blog.<\/p>\n

You know, the funny thing is my good buddy Marty saw the Weatherby before I put it in the safe and he decided he needed one, too.\u00a0 He tried calling Lock, Stock, and Barrel a week after I received mine, but they had already gone out of business.\u00a0 The Great Recession was rough.\u00a0 My grabbing that rifle was a lucky break.<\/p>\n

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These photos impart a bit of an orange hue to the Mark V’s stock. It’s really a bit more subdued.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Like the Model 70, this Mark V is pretty on both sides. The stock profile is the classic Weatherby Monte Carlo look, which actually works very well in reducing felt recoil.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Unlike the other Deluxe Mark V rifles, the Euromark has a classic, low-sheen satin finish. It works well with the rosewood accents.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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It was sunny when I was on the range this weekend. I get better photos when it’s overcast, but you get the idea. The 4×16 Weaver on this rifle is a magnificent optic.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The last .300 Weatherby I’m going to talk about today is my Vanguard.\u00a0 It’s one of the original series Weatherby Vanguards, and it has what we tongue-in-cheek refer to as the Tupperware stock.\u00a0 I’ve written about this rifle on the ExNotes blog before<\/a>.\u00a0 I wasn’t looking for a Vanguard when I bought this one, but I saw it at the Gunrunner gun shop in Duarte, the price was right, and, well, you know how these things go.\u00a0 It came home with me.<\/p>\n

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My Series 1 Weatherby Vanguard with the plastic stock. It’s accurate. And it’s hard-hitting (on both ends).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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A view from the port side. You can see the profile similarity between the Vanguard’s composite stock and the Mark V’s walnut stock above.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The Vanguard came from the factory with a Bushnell 3×9 scope. It needs more eye relief. Before I go into the field with this rifle, I’m going to replace the scope.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The deal on the Vanguard rifles is that Weatherby wanted to bring a lower cost rifle to market without cheapening their flagship Mark V, and they contracted with Howa of Japan to build the Vanguards.\u00a0 The principal difference is that the Vanguard has a 90-degree bolt lift compared to the Mark V’s 54-degree bolt lift, and the Mark V sells for about $1400 more than a Vanguard. I’m here to tell you that the Vanguard is an outstanding rifle, every bit as good as the Mark V, and in many cases, more accurate.<\/p>\n

So how do these three puppies shoot?<\/p>\n

Like I said at the beginning of this blog, the .300 Weatherby is intimidating.\u00a0 I like to think I’m not recoil sensitive, but the .300 Weatherby is right on the edge of what I think I can handle shooting from the bench.\u00a0 It’s not an easy rifle to shoot for accuracy.\u00a0 To get the best groups from any rifle, I like to minimize contact with the rifle. \u00a0 I let the rifle lay in the benchrest, lightly hold the fore end with my fingers, barely touch my cheek against the stock, move my head to an appropriate position to get a full image through the scope, and just touch the recoil pad with my shoulder.\u00a0 The idea is that I don’t want to exert any force on the rifle, as that can move the rounds around on the target, and I’m shooting for the tightest group.\u00a0 That works with rifles that have light to moderate recoil, say, up to the .30 06 level. \u00a0 Try that with a .300 Weatherby, though, and you’re going to get popped in the face by the scope when you drop the hammer.\u00a0 Really.\u00a0 Trust me on this; I know. \u00a0Nope, when you shoot the .300 Weatherby from the bench, you need a solid grip on the rifle, and you need to pull it firmly into your shoulder.\u00a0 It’s a little harder to get tight groups doing that. \u00a0 But it’s easier than getting smacked by the scope.<\/p>\n

Before I get into the accuracy results, I’ll share my impressions of the three rifles based on trigger pull, felt recoil, fit, and optics.<\/p>\n

The Mark V has the best trigger. I broke cleanly at about 3 lbs, and it made shooting the rifle easier.\u00a0 I guess that’s to be expected with a rifle that has a price tag like the Mark V (these things ain’t cheap). \u00a0 The Model 70 had a crisp (no creep) trigger, but it was heavy.\u00a0 That made it a little harder to shoot well, especially when shooting it right after I shot the Mark V (I got spoiled; it’s pretty hard to follow the Mark V act).\u00a0 The Vanguard trigger had a bit of creep in it, and it was about as heavy as the Winchester’s trigger, which is to say both the Vanguard and the Winchester triggers were heavier than the Mark V’s trigger.<\/p>\n

The Mark V is a clear winner from a felt recoil perspective. \u00a0 There are several reasons for this.\u00a0 One is that it is the heaviest of the three rifles, with its dense walnut stock and 26-inch barrel.\u00a0 Another is the Weatherby stock profile. \u00a0 Folks make fun of it, but it works.\u00a0 When the gun recoils, it draws away from your cheek, and the perception is that it has less recoil.\u00a0 Another factor is Mark V’s recoil pad.\u00a0 And the last one is the Weaver 4×16 scope’s eye relief.\u00a0 Head position isn’t critical, and you’re far enough back from the scope that it doesn’t hit you in recoil.\u00a0 Don’t get me wrong:\u00a0 The Mark V still packs a wallop.\u00a0 It’s just easier to shoot than the other two. \u00a0 The Winchester Model 70 was a close second, most likely because it also has a real stock (read: walnut), but it’s thinner recoil pad made it slightly more punishing than the Mark V. \u00a0 Third place from the felt recoil perspective was the Vanguard. It has a big recoil pad like the Mark V, but the plastic stock and 24-inch barrel make the gun lighter, and like we say in the engineering biz, f still equals ma.\u00a0 Also, the Vanguard’s low end Bushnell Banner scope does not have generous eye relief, and I got smacked a couple of times.\u00a0 Not enough to draw blood, but enough to get my attention.<\/p>\n

I’ve already started talking about scopes, so let me continue that discussion.\u00a0 The Weaver 4×16 I purchased for the Mark V is a killer scope.\u00a0 It’s incredibly bright, crisp, and clear.\u00a0 In fact, it’s so good I didn’t realize I had it turned down to 4X for the first couple of groups I fired. \u00a0 Eye relief on this scope is generous enough for a bucking bronc like the .300 Weatherby.\u00a0 It’s the clear winner.<\/p>\n

The Weaver T-10 on the Model 70 was out of its element.\u00a0 It’s a target scope. Eye relief was good enough, but alignment and distance were hypercritical; move just a little too far forward or backward, or left or right, and you’ve lost the image.\u00a0 I like the scope (I’ve owned it for over 40 years), but it’s in the wrong place on a hunting rifle.<\/p>\n

The Vanguard’s Bushnell Banner…what can I say? \u00a0 Maybe this:\u00a0 Halitosis is better than no breath at all.\u00a0 I played around with the focus adjustment, but the Bushnell just isn’t as clear or crisp as either of the Weavers.\u00a0 That said, it’s considerably less expensive than the other two scopes.\u00a0 When I bought the Vanguard, it was essentially in as new condition, and the Bushnell was part of a factory package (it came with the rifle). \u00a0 If I was do it over, I’d get the Weaver 4×16, or maybe a Leupold, for this rifle.\u00a0 I may do that anyway.\u00a0 I know this is heresy, but I actually think the Weaver has a crisper image than a Leupold scope.<\/p>\n

Of the three rifles, the Mark V fits me best, with the Vanguard a close second.\u00a0 I like the Weatherby profile.\u00a0 It just works for me.\u00a0 If I had to choose one of these three rifles for a hunting trip in the mountains (and I do, as I’m chasing deer with good buddy J later this year in Idaho), it would definitely be the Vanguard.\u00a0 It’s lighter, and that counts on a hunt like the one I’m headed into.\u00a0 Yeah, I know…a .300 Weatherby is a bit much for deer. You take what you want when you hunt.\u00a0 I’m taking my .300.<\/p>\n

Okay, so the big question emerges:\u00a0 How about accuracy?<\/p>\n

I almost didn’t include this.\u00a0 I did a bit of accuracy testing, but my advice is to take my results with a grain of salt.\u00a0 A big grain. Maybe a barrel of salt.\u00a0 I hadn’t been on the rifle range in a month or two, and firing 50 or 60 rounds of .300 Weatherby Magnum ammo in one sitting is not the best way to do this kind of shooting. \u00a0 Stated differently, I was not really giving these rifles a fair shake in this test.\u00a0 The first few groups you see below are me getting settled in, and the last few groups you see below are more likely than not me deteriorating after getting smacked around all morning.\u00a0 These rifles are better than what the results below indicate.<\/p>\n

That said, here we go.\u00a0 All groups you see in the chart below were 3-shot groups at 100 yards from the bench. There was no wind, it was a bit warm, and conditions were about ideal.<\/p>\n

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The loads. Don’t take my word for this stuff; get thee to a load manual, study it, and do your own testing. Start low and work up.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I knew from past dealings that IMR 7828 propellant is good stuff in the big magnums, and I think that my 76.5 grain load with the 180-grain Remington jacketed softpoint bullet is a great load. \u00a0 I was a bit off on the first group I fired with this load (two shots were touching; the third was a flyer most likely induced by me) and then the other two groups with this load were at minute of angle.\u00a0 I could do better if I shot this rifle more (yeah, that’s another factor; this was the first time I had this rifle out and the barrel is not broken in yet).\u00a0 This is not a max load (I could go hotter) and the group size was smaller with the warmer of the two loads I tried with 7828 and the Remington 180-grain bullets.\u00a0 That suggests an even warmer charge of 7828 under this bullet is where greater accuracy lives, but I just don’t feel a need to go there. \u00a0 No animal on the planet would be able to tell the difference from an energy-on-target perspective and minute-of-angle accuracy is close enough for government work (especially for the game I plan to hunt).\u00a0 Dead is dead.\u00a0 There’s no sense getting beat up by more recoil to make an animal more dead.<\/p>\n

The 80 grains of 7828 with the 165-grain Hornady bullet I show in the table above is near a max load, and I think it’s obvious I was losing my edge toward the end of this range session.\u00a0 I shot a 0.507-inch group at 100 yards with that same load in the Vanguard a couple of years ago; I just couldn’t duplicate it near the end of my range session this past weekend.<\/p>\n

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Yeah, this dog will hunt.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The difference between a cup of coffee and my advice is you might have asked for a cup of coffee, but I’ll give you my advice anyway.\u00a0 If I was going to get one rifle in .300 Weatherby, I’d get the basic model Vanguard with a walnut stock, and I’d put either a Weaver 4×16 or a Leupold scope on it. \u00a0 You’d be getting the Vanguard’s accuracy, with the walnut stock you’d get a little added weight to soak up the recoil, and you’d save a cool $1400 over the Mark V.\u00a0 I think the Weatherby Vanguard is the best rifle value on the market today.\u00a0 Shop around on Gunbroker.com for a bit and you can find new walnut Vanguards for about $600. \u00a0 That’s a phenomenal deal and owning a Weatherby will make you thinner, taller, and better looking.\u00a0 It will make you a better man.\u00a0 Trust me on this.<\/p>\n

One last comment:\u00a0 The results you see above regarding different loads are my loads in my rifles. \u00a0 Your mileage may vary.\u00a0 Consult a load manual, and always work up your own loads starting at the low end of the manual’s recommended propellant charges.<\/p>\n

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More Tales of the Gun? \u00a0 No problem. \u00a0 Click here<\/a>, and enjoy!<\/p>\n

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More Weatherby articles are here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Never miss an ExNotes blog…sign up and rest easy!<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The word “wow” might have been invented in anticipation of the .300 Weatherby Magnum. \u00a0 It’s that impressive.\u00a0 I’ve owned and fired a lot of different cartridges over the years, and the one that I find the most interesting, the most intimidating, and the most coolest ever is the .300 Weatherby.\u00a0 For a lot of … Continue reading “A Tale of Three 300s”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10974,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[235,392,84],"tags":[762,764,767,765,648,766],"class_list":["post-5000","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-amazon","category-back-in-the-day","category-guns","tag-300-weatherby-magnum","tag-accuracy-loads","tag-fancy-walnut","tag-weatherby-mark-v","tag-weatherby-vanguard","tag-winchester-model-70"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/3-300s-900-1.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5000","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5000"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5000\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14894,"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5000\/revisions\/14894"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10974"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5000"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5000"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5000"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}