First off, what meat damage are you referring too? If you hit the animal in the boiler room, or broadsided heart shot, there should be be very minimal meat damage. Unless you keep that brisket meat from teh chest to the ribs. I just don't get this whole meat damage thing. I shot a deer last year with a 300RUM just to see what it would do, and I got every bit of meat off that deer that I do with my 308. I don't shoot them i the hinds. Thats for sure. But I get all the meat I want off the shoulder. The rest is tough and full of grissle. If its a doe, I take the neck meat, but if its a buck, usally by the time I shoot it, its all swollen, and tastes rough.

I have asked this question I bet a dozen times on this forum, and yet to get a honest answer unless the guys are making shoulder shots or plain ole bad shots. Usually some guys say, "My butcher said alot of bloodshot meat", but where, or they never butchered an animal to know the different parts and what is edible, what is tough, or what is good for what purpose. They see that thin strip of meat covering the red all red and assume there is 10lbs of meat sitting there.

Second, a 300Win, is a great gun, good deer gun, little on the overkill side, great everything else gun. But I shoot some big guns, and none of them ever put my shoulders black and blue. That includes a 300RUM, and 338RUM. People that have this issue usually needs to work on thier posture and basic fitting of the scope and gun. Its worthwhile to pay someone to teach you basic shooting form, breathing. Only thing that turns my shoulder black is my 870 pump shooting 3" federal premium sabots. I have just been too lazy to change the hard junk recoil pad to a decent Simms. That would cure that problem.