As others have said, the sales of the WSMs are acctually doing quite well in sales in my part of the world. I sell guns for a living, along with working on and setting up bows. The 270 WSM is acctually gaining momentum, the 300 WSM has been a steady good seller since it came out. The 7mm WSM was in my opinion the second best WSM developed (second the 300), but it has sadly not caught on very well.

As to the recoil: If you have ever shot a 270 and a 30-06 in the same rifle, that is about the difference in the 300 WSM and the 300 WM as well as the 325 and the 338. Its not much, though it is noticable.

Personally, I think the 330 Dakota absolutely trumps both of them in on target performance. There really isn't anything on this earth I wouldn't hunt with a 330 Dakota were it legal in certain areas on certain game. Recoil wise, though the blast is more substantial, the recoil in my opinion was no more than a 300 WSM, and really not as much as some 300 WMs I have shot. This of course is depenant entirely on the rifle. The 97 Long Range Dakota I had for a while was very easy on the shoulder, though they are certainly more expensive than most rifles chambered in 338 or 325.