if you read this site much you will see that i shoot a .300 winchester a lot. i've aquired several over the years, from an old pre'64 model 70 to a new stainless/synthetic ruger. all have 26" barrels. one has a muzzlebreak. it's a newer "pre '64" style model 70. i shoot nothing but one load with 165 gr hornady boat tails out of all of them. they all shoot great. the most accurate of them is the newer model 70 with the muzzlebreak. to me, the .300 win is about perfect for elk and the like. not a bad mule deer rifle either. little big maybe. have to pick your shots a little more if you're fond of eating deer. there are so many .300's out now that it would be hard to decide on one. the short mags are sorta interesting, but i wonder how long they are gonna be around. 10 years from now if you're out of town on a high dollar elk hunt and have a need for ammo, is the local store in the little town you are near going to have some shells for it? the ultra mags are useless to me. if i'm going to go bigger, then i'm gonna go all the way and get a warbird or a .30/.378. not that the ultramag isn't good, just don't see any reason to stop part way. you want something that literally screams, get a warbird. it's phenomonal. and a box of 20 rounds is $100. so is the .30/.378. they have basically the same ballistic potential. one is belted and the other isn't and is a little shorter. both hold about identical powder loads. the way it is, the short mag won't do quite what the .300 win. will. the .300 weatherby is a little hotter than the .300 win. the ultramag is a little hotter than the weatherby and the warbird and .30/.378 leave everything in the dust. i've made shots in excess of 500 yds with my .300. wouldn't be afraid to try it every day. my son shot a bull elk at over 600 with it. sorta lucky, but he killed it. to me, if you figure in everything, cost of ammo or components (.30/.378 brass is about $50 for 20), avialability of ammo, longevity of the marketing, recoil, cost of the rifle, weight of the rifle (warbirds and the big weatherby are over 10 lbs. without a scope) etc, etc. i'd go for the winchester. but i'm also a cartridge bigot.