Originally Posted by
DougE
Impossible.Powder is still around 20 bucks a pound and a 300 wsm uses on average about 8-10 gr more than a 30-06.
Yep, unless you're really getting taken on the price of powder in Canada. I just bought a pound of IMR-7828SSC and the price was $24. Feeding my 257 Wby Mag at 73 grains/shot I'll get roughly 95 shots out of the pound. That's about 25 cents/shot, or $5/box for powder.
The question is not so much if handloading is cheaper per box (because it almost always is), but rather if you'll load enough to justify the up-front expense of the tools to get started.
To address the OP, I'd shoot whatever expanding bullet that's 150 grains or greater that groups well and suits your budget. The 300WSM has ample power to kill whitetails. Pick a bullet that shoots well and then just make sure you put it where it needs to go and the 300WSM will not let you down I think.
Mike