West German .300 wby mag

[Brodyhowarth]

I’m looking at buying a west German made .300 mag that is stamped “Southgate”, it has a high gloss wood stock that looks very similar to a deluxe model, however the barrel is 24” and it has open sights, what model of rifle am i looking at? And is it worth picking up for around 700$

[224KING]

It's a Deluxe.Back then there were more made with 24 inch barrels than 26" barrels.At $700 I'm surprised you are even asking if it's a good deal.

[txaggie]

good deal is relative to condition of the rifle in general is it a good deal for that amount - it should be. Be mindful prices are falling as inventory is building in the used gun market. Make sure stock, bluing are in decent enough shape and with 300 be mindful of the barrel being shot out. If it looks like limited use, prob ok there.

If your buying it to actually use and not as investment and all those boxes half assed - buy it;

[danno50]

    Welcome to the Nation. Well, you've had a couple of days to mull it over, any more feedback you want to share? I'll just say, if it's an out of town purchase, the rifle goes to your FFL dealer and theres usually a 3 day inspection and return policy. If you've seen pictures and a description of the rifle and its advertised "As Is", once you take possession of it, theres usually no recourse.
     If that high gloss wood stock is in close to original vintage condition, I'll bet the bluing is probably in acceptable condition and the rifle hasn't been abused.
(a borescope could tell for sure) JMO Good luck

[CarlosCruz]

TXaggie had a good point, I just purchased a 1960 MKV Deluxe 270 WBY and brought is home put a borescope in it and the throat appears to be at the end of life. If you can get a 300 MKV Deluxe for $700.00 + Tax and new barrel $570.00 not a bad deal if you can get it. 

[Brodyhowarth]

UPDATE!
I purchased the rifle, and I have good and bad news, the good news being all the steel on the rifle is beautiful, the bluing is still almost perfect, with exeption to a few high wear areas, there’s not a speck of rust on the gun and the action is smoother than a newborns bum. The bad news starts when we look at the stock, the rifle has definitely been dropped, there is some bad cracks down the action area of the stock, im currently looking for a good gunsmith to send the stock to for repair, I want to keep the stock it came with as it’s stamped with the serial number and the grain of the wood is gorgeous. If anyone here has any recommendations of gunsmiths in North America that do really good stock work please feel free to send me a message

[224KING]

Western Hunter Classics. Google it

[txaggie]

Ya if your set on the stock refinish as a fine piece I'd check them out, tom knows his stocks;

I definitely have some that take good pictures with dead animals because the camera isn't zoomed in! I have a blonde LH 270 that shoots lights out pretty from afar, up close its a used gun but she still goes and hangs out in the woods with me from time to time! If your going to use it, might look past all of that and just roll with it.

I have a lazermark stock that is spider webbed might look them up and see about refinishing that one, it's a beautiful piece of wood no dings just the ole webbing issue;

[224wby]

 I live pretty close to Jim at western hunter classics, he has done three stocks for me. His work is awesome, probably the best there is in my opinion.

[Brodyhowarth]

Ya if your set on the stock refinish as a fine piece I'd check them out, tom knows his stocks;

I definitely have some that take good pictures with dead animals because the camera isn't zoomed in! I have a blonde LH 270 that shoots lights out pretty from afar, up close its a used gun but she still goes and hangs out in the woods with me from time to time! If your going to use it, might look past all of that and just roll with it.

I have a lazermark stock that is spider webbed might look them up and see about refinishing that one, it's a beautiful piece of wood no dings just the ole webbing issue;

I’m torn between making it an heirloom quality rifle and making it a user rifle, it’s my first Weatherby so I would like to get it out and take some game with it but I also want to keep it in good shape and have it around for decades to come. I’m thinking I’ll wind up buying a newer Mk.V in the coming months maybe something I won’t feel bad lugging through brush.

I sent an email to Jim and he quoted me just shy of $1000 usd, that includes repair of the cracks, refinishing and cutting the checkering, refinishing the stock, and shipping

 I emailed Weatherby directly and they told me they could only replace it with a #2 contour deluxe stock for $750 usd. It being a stamped, numbers matching stock, and in my opinion one of the most beautiful pieces of wood I have ever seen I think I’ll shell out the extra $250 usd and keep it around for years to come

[danno50]

I like the way you think! Be sure and take some before and after pictures for posterity.

[txaggie]

yep - been my experience if you thought enough about wby to go that route on a purchase it wont be your last! I have more than i care to admit, for me i started a collection model to pass down to my sons mainly, daughters if they wish one cares one could care less and that's ok. Some of the boys have already started getting some to use and they react all the same - that's to nice to shoot! LOL - they haven't seen the nice ones yet!

Just something to remember dad by and now that I have a bunch, it's occured to me that passing them down is cool, but gets cooler with the dad used this for this hunt story. 300 weatherby is one heck of a round, not much it wont do or overdue, recommend if it's taking game use premium ammo that will stand up to the velocities wby generates (that's a standing rule for me for all wby calibers) the little extra you will pay will pay off in dead animals not all shot up because bullets came apart. 300 probably offers the most diverse factory ammo options.

Congrats again on your purchase - we love pictures by the way - would love to see this diamond in the rough;