I want a new bolt gun!

[adaman04]

Hey guys, I am more of a lurker around here since I do most of my posting in the Mini-14 forum, but I am getting the itch for a new bolt gun. I have a Remington 700 in .270 and it does very nicely for deer, which is what I bought it for. Lately I have been thinking about future hunts for elk maybe moose, heck maybe bear. There are a lot of maybe's and I am thinking maybe I should get something with a little more power behind it. I have always been a fan of the .300 Win. Mag. although I have never owned one. I know others are partial to the 7mm Mag. What are some other ass kicking rounds that are common that I may not be considering? I have thought of looking in to WSSM rounds, but I am afraid they might just be a fad and don't want to have to worry about finding ammo? Thanks for any input and help.

Adam

[gundoc]

Hi Adam! It's really hard to go wrong with the old .30-06 and a good shooting rifle like the Howa 1500. The variety of commercial loads for the '06 make it a viable varmint load all the way up to the game you've listed. Some will say the .30-06 isn't big enough for elk and bear, but I live in Montana and see plenty of trucks full of game that must not have known they were hit with a marginal bullet. The .300 Mag and 7mm Mag are also good choices, as you already know.

[adaman04]

:lol: How ya been, Doc? Yeah, you have to love the '06 in fact it was my first deer rifle. Still have it. That's been a great tool in the deer woods as well. Ahhh, decisions. If I could just win the lottery, it would be a lot less decision making. Actually, it probably wouldn't, it might just make the problem worse!

[2rangers]

Hey Adam-
30-06 is a great cartridge, and I would think it would be suitable for all the game you mentioned. As a note, I recently read an article by Craig Boddington in one of the gun rags about 7x57mm mauser, and how he used it to great effect on african game. To me, it seems that many of the magnums, esp. the really short magnums, are a solution to a problem that has been answered by gun, cartridge, and wildcat makers many years ago. Just my .02$ :sniper:

[farmerjohn]

Hey adaman, im lookin into the .325 wsm, ive read its as strong as the 338 up to 300 yards, but kicks less than the 300 win mag. i heard guys were dropping elk from 200 yards consistantly. The wsm isn't just any new bullcrap though, winchester says the powder surface area is increased which causes more velocity better accuracy, and just better performance. this caliber is only available in winchester and browning guns though.

[adaman04]

Hmmm. Never thought of the powder surface area. Makes sense though.

[slaphappy]

300 WSM is a little faster than 300 WM according to the charts. However, the width of the case only allows some guns to have two cartridges in the magazine. Now, you probably don't "need" to have more than two extras, but it's something to think about.

[mikr]

Adaman04,
If you would happen to be a lefty I am selling a Rem 700 LH chambered in 7mm Rem Mag!

I personally like 30-06, 7mm, 300 WBY mag as well as the 50--if it were up to me, 300 is a good medium to big game round.

[adaman04]

Sorry Mikr, I'm not backwards! :lol: I'm right handed. I do have a lefty buddy though, I will ask him if he is looking for a new rifle and may get back with ya.

Adam

[Flak 2]

I looked at the WSM in 300. I ended up going 300 Ultra Mag. Mostly because a local shop had a used Savage real cheap. I'm no big game hunter and use these rifles ( 2 now and soon to be 3) for paper and groundhogs.

Both are Savage 116 stainless models in laminate stocks (not accutrigger). One has a brake and the other without. Weaver K6 on one and a T.C 3X9 on the other. I have'nt done alot of load development yet, but both shoot very well. I've used RL22 and 25 also H1000 with real light 110 gr. H.P Sierrra's and Speer's 125 gr. TNT's. The 125's with H1000 shot a little over an inch for 3 shot string off a bench with a Weaver K6 scope. The barrels get real hot quick so I shoot 3 shot groups with these rifles.

I'll get around to loading some proper heavy 175-220 gr. loads this year to stretch things out and take advantage of the big case and high BC bullets. All in all I enjoy busting chuck's :D with these rifles and light bullets once in awhile.

The 3 rd. should be here this week. Buds Gun Shop on Gun Broker is selling them buy now for $378.00. Came to $403.39 shipped, stainless laminate no brake 116. I'll have SSS do a 28" heavy barrel with brake this fall.

[Killians]

I like the 375 h&h. there is some knock down power for ya.

But the only bolt action i have now is a ruger 7mm and i love it.

Prolly not much help, but its my 2 cents.

[kravman4]

Awww, isn't anybody gonna root for the .308 Win.??? :o

:lol:

I figure the .308 Win. is the smallest you'd want to go for Elk/bear sized game, but I'm sure it would work with the right loads.

Also, if you're into handloading, you'd be better off with a beltless magnum. A friend of mine has a 300 WM... the case life for the the 300 WM is about 1/4 that of the .308 Win. Happy hunting! B)

[Killians]

actually that what i really wanted when i bought my 7mm. But all the local gun shops didnt have a .308

so i went with a 7mm. wich i am happy with. but i really love the .308

[scruffy]

Well, I'll toss in my two cents. Since you already have a .270 (27-06) and you want more power I'd go to a magnum or a big bore, depending on what terrain you're hunting. The .308, 30-06, etc aren't a huge step up from a .270. A .270 can take elk and black bears with ease with the proper 150 grain bullet and good shot placement and does it with a flat trajectory and very tollerable recoil. To move up to the bigger bears and such in open country I'd go 300 win mag or possibly the 338.

However, if the places you go bear and moose hunting aren't wide open and you don't need the flat 200 yard trajectory I'd recommend one of the big bores like a 45-70, 450 marlin, etc. If you're hunting in the timber and thicker stuff where 100 to 150 yards and less is your probable range I'd get a good 45-70. It'll bust the brush and make a very good sized hole. As well as being a good "stopper" in the event a close bear charges or in the event you stumble across a bear and her cubs or something along those lines and need something big to bust bone and blow a big hole through.

I'd personally look at Marlins stainless 45-70 guide gun if you're hunting thicker areas and mount a good reddot (3moa dot or smaller) on it.

But if you're hunting wide open areas I'd look hard at a stainless 300 win mag in a synthetic stock. Just my two cents.

I haven't bought anything bigger than my .270 since I can shoot it very accurately, very managible recoil (no flinch), and with the current bullet selection I can drop anything from coyote to elk and black bear in the lower 48. And the old saying, "beware the man that shoots one gun" holds true. My .270 gets used on coyotes year round (although most of my summer hunts are shotgun first, 223 second, the .270 gets pulled out a few times to keep the dust from settling on it. :D ) so when I go out of state for big game hunts I'm very familar with my .270 rig.

(probably the only rifle in the "deer woods" with a velcro patch on the side of the stock for a mouse squeeker coaxer call. :lol: )

later,
scruffy

[adaman04]

Yeah Scruffy you covered it pretty well there. I am considering .300 Win Mag and WSSM mainly thus far. Oh yeah, I went to Bass Pro this weekend and they had Guide Guns for about $439 new. I have wanted one ever since I first saw them. Ass kicker round in a rifle as long as a yard stick! :lol:

[cajungeo]

Originally posted by kravman4@Apr 11 2005, 11:57 PM
Awww, isn't anybody gonna root for the .308 Win.??? :o

:lol:

I figure the .308 Win. is the smallest you'd want to go for Elk/bear sized game, but I'm sure it would work with the right loads.

Also, if you're into handloading, you'd be better off with a beltless magnum. A friend of mine has a 300 WM... the case life for the the 300 WM is about 1/4 that of the .308 Win. Happy hunting! B)
My brother shot an elk with a 30-06 last lear @250 yds. It is probably one of the most versital rounds. He said many people hunt with the .308 win. I'd use nosler partitions. Should be good to 200 yds or so. Also a friend of mine shot a Colorado black bear with a .308. One shot. If I was hunting griz bear, I'd get a bigger rifle. A friend at work goes deer hunting with the .300 win mag. (a little over kill) He said the only thing is it really kicks.

[fishnfst]

Are you recoil sensitive? How many rounds are you going to be shooting a year with it? Is barrel life a concern... I have a 300winmag, 300 weatherby, 30-338 weatherby and a .338 lapua mag. If you really want more firepower the .338 lapua is hard to beat. I've shot it on paper out to 600 yards with .75moa accuracy. Recoil is not too bad given that my rifle weighs 17lbs. If you don't like recoil and you are going to be shooting it out of a hunting weight gun the 30-338 weatherby is surprisingly light on the recoil. I thought it would be worse than the .300 weatherby but it isn't. Seems like less torquing and a snappier recoil....

[elokoman]

A lot of good input has been offered, I don't want to be repetitive, just offer my own perspective on these same issues about which bolt rifle to choose. My brother-in-law moved up to a .338 after he lost an elk he shot with a .30-06, he is a good shot and has been a very successful elk hunter over the years, but he got discouraged when his old '06 didn't anchor the big bull. He says that he doesn't enjoy shooting the .338 though, even after he had a muzzle brake installed, because it pounds his shoulder too hard.

I find that 7mm Rem Magnum is about all I want for recoil without a brake. A .300 Win Mag with a brake is quite tolerable though. Certainly I believe that an '06 or a .270 can drop an elk with a well placed shot and the right bullet, the magnums can expand your range though, since they are still carrying a lot of energy out to 250 and even 325 yards.

If you want to do a lot of shooting, a .30-'06 is a good choice because you can usually find some less expensive ammo for the common military calibers. So many choices, so little time to try them out.

[adaman04]

I've got an '06 already. That was my first deer rifle and has put down some nice bucks for me. I am thinking about something a little bigger maybe. My problem is I want too man new guns! I'm sick!

[Tailgunner]

Well, since you already have 1/2 of a good 2 gun battary, might I suggest a CZ-550 Mag in 416Rigby? If you think the Rigby might be to big a recoil jump for you, than look at the 375H&H in the same rifle. Either of those would complete your 2 gun battary perfectly.
The 375H&H and the 30-06 are 2 of the 3 most versital cartridges in the world, with the 8mmx57 Mauser cartridge being the 3rd (8x57 is the Europian 30-06)

[fishnfst]

Also when you think about the recoil make sure you are shooting offhand or standing with the rifle supported on something. If you shoot off a bench with sandbags while sitting or prone you take all of the recoil in your shoulder.

[gk longrange]

go with the winchester 300 mag, it will do everything the .270 can't

[adaman04]

Good point.