300 RUM Rifle Suggestions

[Elkoholic87]

I will be in the wilderness of Wyoming next year hunting elk on horseback and would like to get some recommendations for 300 RUM rifles. I’m an avid archery elk hunter, so appreciate any recommendations and help. Would like to stay under $1,500.


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[Novahunter]

I don't think there's a ton of rifles made in 300 RUM these days.

I re- built mine a bit ago from a factory BDL, and it's been an on going project for me. Kept the rfile chambered in 300 RUM more for stubborness and sentimental reasons.....

What do you want to do with the 300 RUM? Is $1500 a hard limit? Seekins PH2's are awesome rifles, imo, and they're $1800.

It's an awesome round on paper. Not fun to shoot alot and become proficient with, both for physical and cost reasons.

 

[peaches]

I'll echo the previous reply. It's expensive and not fun unless you like hard/fast recoil. Also you really need a 26 inch barrel which makes a very long gun. The old 06 will do the same thing minus a hundred or so yds.

To answer your question, look for a used Remington 700. It will probably be in good condition and barely shot. My friends BDL was very accurate but not for the unitiated, especially off the bench. It was tough on scopes too.

 

[11boo]

I shot a friends fairly light Remington 300 ultra. He hated the recoil, and so did I. Any .30 magnum is going to hit back hard. If you go that route, be sure it is threaded for a brake.

That ammo has got to be hard to find too and $$$. 300WM comes close to the ultra and ammo is everywhere.

 

[BucksNDucks]

300 RUM user here and very happy with it
I reload 210 Berger, just south of 3200 fps,
27 5/8” Bartlein with MB and really have no issues with recoil but will agree make of gun will dictate a lot of that.
Good luck searching, might be somewhat hard to find
Maybe a REM 700 Sendero, I think they are right around that price point

 

[CAElkhunter]

300 RUM user for 12 years. Great Elk rifle in the big west where you might have 400 yd shots. Overkill for timber. Mine is a stock Remington
Model 700. All standard but has been glass bedded. It shoots sub inch groups with Standard Federal Premium
180 TSX Barnes and 180 Grain Nosler Partition from Nosler Trophy. I don't mind recoil. The Elk hate it.

The drawback of the Sendero is it is a very heavy gun. My standard Remington isn't any heavier than any of
my other rifles.

I love the 300 RUM. It is hard to find ammo for it compared to my 300 Win Mag or 7mm.

 

[KsRancher]

Had mine for 10yrs. Just the plain ol rem 700. I did have a different trigger put in it. Have a 4.5-14×50 leupold on it. Had a brake installed on it. Wished I hadn't. Have to wear muff over plugs to shoot it. Recoil isn't bad now, but the noise/concussion it throws back at your head/face is almost unbearable.

Mine is SUPER finicky on ammo. Tried HSM with bergers and best it would do was 2.5in at 100yds. Hand loaded a lot of different combos and best I did was 1.5in. Seen a box of 180gr Corelokts in our local gun store so I bought them and the first 5 shot group was 5/8in. Went back and bought the last 3 boxes. It only gets a 3 shot group each year before season now.

Shot my first elk with it last year at 408yds. Shot him 3 times. 1 would have been fine but i didn't know it at the time. He kept standing there, so I kept shooting. Could have covered all 3 shots with your hand. Wasn't too impressed with bullet performance, but wasn't the guns fault. No bullets hit anything other than ribs and not one exited. 1 made it to offside skin, other 2 never made it out of chest cavity. Guessing it wouldn't have been good had i hit the shoulder. It absolutely turned his organs to mush. I mean like his whole chest cavity was a big bowl of chili.

All in all, I love the gun. The ammo is a problem. Wish I could get a handload to shoot good. I have a pile of new brass, H1000, magnum primers, lots of different bullets in the 195-230gr range just sitting collecting dust.

 

[jimh406]

First suggestion, shoot one before you buy one if you haven't. Yes, 300 RUM and 300 Weatherby do kick a lot more than a 300 Winchester. The power won't do you any good if you can't accurately shoot it.

Brakes don't solve all of the issues since they make the gun a lot louder. So much so that you and anyone near you probably should be wearing good hearing protection when you shoot even hunting. Fwiw, I put in ear plugs before I shoot at game with my 300 Weatherby with no brake.

I think most 800-1000 rifles will have acceptable accuracy. I would have the action glass bedded if you don't do it yourself.

One more thought, have you tried to find ammo or brass and primers? 300 RUM Isn't very easy to find.

 

[Novahunter]

My 300 RUM was a stock BDL for a long time. Kicked the crap out of me, but I was 18 and dumb so kept shooting it. I developed some really poor shooting fundamentals because of the recoil, but it took me a decade and some embarrassing animal losses to admit that. Finally shelved the RUM for 7 or 8 years, and went to .308 for hunting. Got into PRS shooting with some small 6.5mm's, and had to re-learn all my shooting fundamentals.

The rifle was a gift from my parents, so couldn't sell it. Instead I re-built it. Had the action blue printed/trued. New Kreiger heavy sporter barrel, new stock, re-tapped the action for 8-40 base screws, and added a muzzle brake.

Nearly doubling the weight and adding a muzzle brake has made the rifle orders of magnitude easier to shoot. Even still, it's been a difficult rifle to develop a load. I've gone through many loads with different bullets with so-so accuracy, and currently working on developing a load with the Berger 205's for my upcoming moose hunt.

Definitely agree with others that ear pro is required when hunting with it.

If you end up getting one, I'd recommend you give yourself ample time to shoot the rifle, get comfortable with it, and learn it. And, that may require some patience.

 

[JakeSCH]

For $1620 it is tough to beat this

Christensen Arms Ridgeline .300 RUM Black W/Gray Webbing Rifle CA10299-115411

Christensen Arms Ridgeline .300 RUM Black W/Gray Webbing Rifle CA10299-115411 | Only at EuroOptic.com!

www.eurooptic.com

If $1500 is a hard limit, I would skip the 300 RUM and get a 300 WM. An elk will not know the difference.

 

[Mojave]

You could get a Bergara in some fashion in 300 PRC.

Nearly the same ballistics.

You could also get a 300 Weatherby in a Weatherby Vanguard for $600-1200 depending on how fancy it is.

Or a Regular Weatherby Mark V in 300 Weatherby for $1100-2500.

I wouldn't buy a RUM as the 300 PRC is more set up for long range. With a faster twist barrel.

That and the Bergaras shoot. There are other options.

Go to ammoseek and put in 300 PRC rifles and 300 RUM rifles and see what your options are available.

 

[Indian Summer]

I’m in love with my .300 RUM. When I first got it it did kick like my saddle mule. But I put a muzzle brake on and now it’s fine. By the end of October I will have killed 2 dozen elk with that gun. I had to follow one about 100 yards. My fault. Running shot. The rest hit the ground where they stood. 200 grain Nosler Accubond bullets fly beautifully from it.

So yes you’ll need a brake and if you are using this gun for it’s intended purpose, why else would you invest in it, you’ll need an appropriate scope of at least 20 power. I just switched from a 6.5-20 to a 7-35.

Just buy a Remington model 700. With a magnum caliber like that you’re not looking for a featherweight gun. You need some weight for accuracy and to suck up some recoil.

My next one will either be a Remington Sendero or a heavy barreled custom in the exact same caliber. It is THE tool for the job.

 

[cohunter14]

I also have a 300 RUM and love it, but if I had to do it all over again, I'd get the 300 Win Mag. Ammo is less expensive, whether you buy it or reload, and the recoil is significantly less. It will also kill an elk at 1,000+ yards, which is more than I care to shoot at, so no need for the extra velocity from the RUM. Regardless of whether you reload or not, ammo is significantly more expensive, but you'll want to reload if you shoot the RUM as finding ammo is not easy.

With that being said, if I were to get another 300 RUM, I'd buy a new one in a Remington 700 platform, preferably the SPS since it's less expensive. Throw a Bell & Carlson Alaskan stock on it, bed it and float it, and throw a Timney trigger in there and you should have a shooter. I say buy new because the barrel life isn't that long on a 300 RUM, so unless you are getting something that has minimal rounds in it, I'd go that route.

If you reload, I can highly recommend the 230 grain Berger Hybrids. They have performed unbelievably for me through the years at a variety of distances and on a variety of animals.

 

[Elkoholic87]

Thanks for all of the feedback. It's a lot to digest and this is great information. I can't get my mind off of being in the Thorofare next year.

 

[Indian Summer]

Have you defined your purpose for the gun. The above post about.300 Win ammo being easier to get is definitely true. And while that gun can kill elk to 1000 yards if your goal is 800 plus go with the Ultra Mag. Compare the trajectories using a 200 grain bullet in the RUM and you’ll see that range estimation won’t be as critical with it. That’s important. Not to mention energy retention hence the flatter trajectory. But you better be prepared to reload. It’s a must for shooting long bombs and besides you’d have to refinance your house to keep buying.300 RUM factory ammo.

 

[mooretitan]

I would go 300wm. I have both and man the recoil of the Rum will get you. Both shoot great but just overall easier to just go with the win Mag. I will keep my Rum but don’t feel the need to shoot it much. The win Mag I can shoot a box and still enjoy it and look forward to shooting it again a week later

 

[BAKPAKR]

I have had three Remington 700s in 300 RUM. They have all shot MOA or less (sometimes much less) with the right ammo. There are several on Gunbroker right now.

 

[SavageSurveyor]

I shoot a 300RUM Rem 700 BDL with a muzzle brake. Gun is great. Looks great but I'm tempted to ditch it and rebarrel to a 300 PRC. Better bullet seat position and more efficient case makes a slight difference at long range. The bullet will stabilize slightly farther and hit harder past 800 yards depending on what bullets your comparing and it does it with 10 to 12 grains less powder. So less recoil, less anticipation, easier to find brass and ammo (thanks to Honady market push), and lest cost to reload, and mathematicaly has the advantage at long range. Just my two cents but if I was gonna buy a new gun I'd skip the RUM and go to the PRC.

 

[pacoalcracker]

elkoholic, i can set you up with a nice Winchester 70 Stainless Classic in 300 RUM if you are interested. There are darn few of these left that were not bought up and used to rebarrel to 404 Jefferies since they are CRF actions and no action work is necessary for proper feeding from the magazine. Its new and very nice with a 26" barrel and just the right weight to make for more comfortable shooting...but a lot nicer rifle than a Remmy 700 for sure. I can even hook you up with nickle plated brass and reloading dies if needed. I have a new Leupold scope on it but have not fired it yet and w/o looking cant remember offhand the type but think its a 4.5x14x42 30mm with side focus and either duplex or B&C reticle in matte black finish...its quite a nice set-up. PM me if you want to discuss it. BTW, the key to any 300 mag is the proper weight for the recoil you can manage comfortably...but realistically outside of bench shooting you carry it way more than you shoot it and when you pull that trigger on an elk you wont feel that recoil one bit.

 

[Sgtusmc14]

Old Remington 700 Sendero! 26" fluted barrel, HS Stock and an old Remington Trigger that can be tuned to a nice 2 lbs.