What happened to the UM?

DaRoosta

November 03, 2004 22:04

I used to be a fairly active member of the board here at GunBroker. Over the past year or so, I have unfortunately found myself with less and less time to dedicate to the discussion of my outdoor passions. Fortunately, I have still found the time to participate in the hunting sports I love so much.

I bought a Sako 300 UltraMag at the beginning of 2001. It has been a great rifle and I couldn't speak more highly of anything else I have in my safe. I have been getting ready to go elk hunting this past week or so and have been putting together all my "stuff". I recently moved into a new house, and figured I had more ammo ready to go than I did. Anyway, I was out looking for more factory ammo tonight. When I first bought my rifle, I figured out what kind of ammo it liked and bought 6 or 8 boxes. I guess I went through almost all of the Federal Premium Safari 180-gr Trophy Bonded Bear Claw's I had bought from the same lot number since I bought the rifle. I couldn't find any ammo at any of my local shops. I went just about everywhere.

So, my question is, what gives? I admit I've been out of the loop for the past year or so. And I realize the WSM has all but replaced the Ultra Mag, but I haven't heard of anything that would completely make the 300 UM cartridge extinct.

Any and all information would be appreciated. I'm basically starting from scratch again here.

Thanks in advance.

Jeremy

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  kimberkid

  November 04, 2004 02:23

  Their have been a number of "new and improved" calibrs in the last few years ... lack of customers to purchase it is often the reason for extinction of a product ... you might want to look into having your rifle re-chambered into a more common calibur ... or at least the current flavor of the month [xx(]
  
  
  BTW - any of you in the know, how's the 17 doing?
  All the rage for a few months but haven't heard anything about it for close to a year ... is it also turning into a "flash in the pan"?
  

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  If you really want to do something, you'll find a way ...
  ... If you don't, you'll find any excuse.

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  nononsense

  November 04, 2004 11:40

  Jeremy,
  
  Nothing bad has happened to the Remington Ultra Mags at all. They are certainly not extinct! They are all alive and well and you certainly don't have to have your rifle re-barreled or re-chambered for another cartridge.
  
  The internet has happened and most small, local stores are only carrying ammunition that they can sell with some immediacy rather that having it sit of the shelf. If your area doesn't support quite a few RUM owners then the shops aren't going to carry the ammunition. Besides, with the prices that the major manufacturers charge for a box of cartridges, bunches of folks have gotten involved in reloading in order to save money. This is especially true of the big cartridges like the RUMs while not true of ones like the 7.62x39 imports. There are several large ammunition sellers on the internet that will gladly take your money and ship you ammunition right to your door.
  
  kimberkid,
  
  You just aren't reading in the right places. The 17 HMR is still riding a tall wave of approval from the shooters that own one. The price of ammunition has continued to come down which has fueled its popularity. Now there is the 17 HM2(Hornady) and the 17 Aguila, both based on the 22 Long Rifle.
  
  Best.

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