Ya got me there, Sorry i didn't get the name and address of the reps as they walked in and out of the store. Didn't care to either. I know what i know. If you believed the hype put out by winchester i feel for you. There is a lot that goes on in sporting arms that doesn't make it to the public. I'm not writing a book so I didn't feel the need to collect a names and most the articles i've read I passed on to customers so they could be informed. Couldn't tell you one name of one rep but I know what we talked about. I've spent several hours in clases about firearms and ammo. My problem is if it's a bunch of crap i wouldn't pass it on to the public just to make a sale. If you own a short mag in any gun other than a compact sorry bout your luck. I hope it shoots well. You couldn't give me one

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Dso66-have you ACTUALLY shot some of these rifles YOURSELF? I have and I havn't seen a bad shooting one yet. In fact,I've personally built 3 rifles chambered for the wsm cartridges myself and they shot great. I'm talking from actual firsthand experience as a gunsmith/custom rifle builder-not what somebody else says secondhand. If I didn't have firsthand experience with them,I would not be qualified to give a opinion.

300 Win mag!! hands down. 300 WSM does not have the variance of available loads. Only up to 180 grains. Would be great for dear. For Moose, elk, bearetc. I would stick with the 300 win mag.

see links!
http://www.gunsandammomag.com/techside/myth_0903/

http://www.eabco.com/WSM01.htm

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Yes when at cabelas we had many shooting days where we shot the heck out of many rifles. I was not talking custom gun either

yep, I have been quite impressed myself. The few I have played with, I had difficulty finding a bad load for it.

I built up a 4831sc load, and I had trouble picking the best load, cause they were all good for a 300WSM

but I blow away a WSM performance with a 300win mag. I have yet to see anyone get 3100fps with a 180gr load with a WSM. And i am shooting a 24" barrel on my 300Win.

What is your application? Elk, deer, bear target? Why Auto?

My friend has two BARs 30-06 w/ boss, and 300 WM. I have hunted with him for 25 years and he has taken a lot of mule deer and several elk. His go to is the WM. It is fairly accurate, ~ 2", not near what you can get from a bolt action, but in a hunting situation, with everything else to consider its fine. He has had two failures. Once, hunting in wet conditions, the wooden stock swelled up and prevented the spent cartridge from ejecting cleanly. A pocket knife trimmed about 1/8" of wood and it was fine. The other was your traditional auto-jam that happens once in a while. Neither of which prevented him from a successful hunt.

Me, I spent 6 months researching, shooting and talking to different people. I went with a 300WSM and never looked back. The chatter about them being inaccurate is a bunch of dribble. If this were the case, the better gun manufactures, and the customs would not guarantee 1/2" accuracy. Dont listen to a cashier behind a gun counter, they seldom know anything and are usually pissed off at the world because of there job. Talk to a rep, or even email tech support of the brand you want to buy. I shoot 1/2" all day from the bench with factory ammo.

Josh - get the 300 WSM. Sorry Dso but I don't know where you got your mis-information. The 300WSM is by far inherently more accurate than the 300 Win Mag - I've had both and since sold my 300 Win Mag. Now the Win Mag is a great cartridge don't get me wrong. But if you want a 300, the WSM is your best bet. Ammo is readidy available - even at Walmart if you don't reload. The recoil of both is comparable provided the rifles are the same weight. The WSM 'seems' to whallop you more because most times it is in a shorter, lighter rifle. My Browning Micro Hunter in 325WSM really gets your attention too. But this rifle/scope combo only weighs in at just a tad over 7 lbs.
My frend has used the 300 WSM for a multiple of critters including Mt. Goat, Dall and Stone Sheep and even Brown bear. All were taken cleanly with a 180 gr bullet shot out of his Browning Titanium 300 WSM.

I own two 300wsm's. My cousin owns two 300winmags. I've shot his rifles, he's shot mine. I see hardly any difference in the two. If I do see a difference it is in my newer 300wsm rifles. They seem to be alittle more accurate on paper in the Winchester Supreme BST loads. We rest our rifles on sand bags and even gun vises and the 300 wsm is alittle more accurate imho. As far as recoil, they are the same. Like stated earlier, it all depends on which rifle you are firing them in. some rifles are just made lighter and felt recoil changes because of this. Most articles I read say the same things.