Hunting & Fishing help me choose caliber/gun

[Wicked K5]

Hello all. New guy here. I found this site through my usual haunt Calguns. I am looking to get my first hunting rifle soon and am open to suggestions from experienced hunters. I don't know if I'm being reasonable as far as what I am looking to get out of this rig but here's what I'm looking to for:

*capable of taking elk, deer, and hogs
*I want to get into long range shooting (not long range hunting), so I would like this cartridge to serve as a segway into LR
*minimal recoil without a brake. I am not recoil sensitive but my wife is not a big fan
*decent factory ammo a plus but not a deal breaker. I'll be reloading
*sub $600 factory rifle in selected chambering
*not a barrel burner
*short action preferred

I have been doing a bit of reading online and *think* I should be looking at 6.5 Creedmoor, 7mm-08, and .308 Experts please provide some guidance

 

[coldboremiracle]

I have been doing a bit of reading online and *think* I should be looking at 6.5 Creedmoor, 7mm-08, and .308 Experts please provide some guidance

Yes, all great choices, add the .260 to that list. A Savage 10 in any of those calibers would suit your needs.

 

[lash]

Yes, all great choices, add the .260 to that list. A Savage 10 in any of those calibers would suit your needs.

I'm certainly no expert, but my shooting partner/friend just picked up a Savage 10 in .260 and it is a shooter! Right out of the box...just add glass. First 5-shot 100 yd group after zero was less than .750". Definitely a lower cost way to get into this sport.

 

[5RWill]

I was going to say .260 as well. If your reloading it's a definite IMO. Creedmoore is limited to Nosler (isn't out yet) and Hornady. Nothing wrong with that i just like variety, Nosler and Lapua are both top notch as well which both make .260 brass. Norma makes .260 as well and if your on a budget remington isn't bad brass. Just a bit softer and requires more prep than the brands previously mentioned. Either way i think 6.5 takes the cake in this scenario, less you could get a 168Gr VLD running decently fast out of a 7mm-08, .260 is a clear choice.

 

[bohem]

I'd put 6.5 CM way way ahead of the rest.

Factory ammo is great and cost effective compared to the 260 factory ammo.

The 6.5 Hornady brass is easy to find, this isn't 2009 anymore. You can also buy factory ammo and fire it, keep the brass and reload it. That's going to cost about $5/box more than just buying components and loading it for the first time.

The Savage would be my first pick for the price range you're talking, they just like to shoot.

The 7-08 has pretty poor match ammo offerings and the factory ammo is VERY expensive for anything above bulk-grade walmart factory ammo. Match grade ammo is essentially non-existent for less than $1.75/round

 

[Graham]

help me choose caliber/gun

First hunting rifle? On a budget? Short action? Elk and hog capable plus intro to long range?

.308

 

[5RWill]

I'd put 6.5 CM way way ahead of the rest.

Factory ammo is great and cost effective compared to the 260 factory ammo.

The 6.5 Hornady brass is easy to find, this isn't 2009 anymore. You can also buy factory ammo and fire it, keep the brass and reload it. That's going to cost about $5/box more than just buying components and loading it for the first time.

The Savage would be my first pick for the price range you're talking, they just like to shoot.

The 7-08 has pretty poor match ammo offerings and the factory ammo is VERY expensive for anything above bulk-grade walmart factory ammo. Match grade ammo is essentially non-existent for less than $1.75/round

While i would agree i don't think he'll end up very dependent on factory ammo. Or that's not what i took from the OP. Savage is a definite. Creedmoore is still a great round though. If he is though i agree the 6.5CM would be easier to find factory ammo for.

First hunting rifle? On a budget? Short action? Elk and hog capable plus intro to long range?

.308

This is another option as well. .308 is also usually extremely easy to load for or at least in my experience. Select your bullet of choice (155-175) 42-44gr of varget and go. You'd have to change for larger loads more than likely. .308 is arguably one of the best calibers to get into long range shooting with as well. Used to love my .260 until i got my .308 and i know the .260 for distance is superior in most every way but i love my .308.

 

[nnn66]

Years ago, I was at the same place as OP, looking for a rifle that would be a good all-around hunting gun and also allow me to experiment with long range. The caliber I chose was .308 and it has not disappointed. Since then, I have expanded my collection to include numerous other calibers and much more expensive guns, but that .308 is still my go to rifle for most hunting situations. In fact, I'm sitting between some round bales in a hay patch with that .308 right now (things are a little slow at the moment, so I started reading hide posts). The treeline is right at 300 yards in every direction from where I'm sitting and I'm absolutely confident that this .308 will make an easy shot of any buck that shows himself out here this evening. I now have other rifles that are far better suited to shooting at 1000 and beyond, but for a great hunting caliber that will give you lots of training opportunity as you work up to longer distances, I don't see how you could go wrong with .308. Now, having said all that, one of my buddies recently bought a Savage Model 12 in 6.5CM and that is one sweet shooting rifle!
If your main focus is hunting deer, hog and elk and learning about long range shooting with an inexpensive rifle, I would recommend .308. Lots of factory ammo options and easy to reload super accurate hunting and target loads. Even though I own a variety of rifles that could get the job done, I still use my 308 for most hunting as I've become very confident in it over the years.

 

[Infinity]

First hunting rifle? On a budget? Short action? Elk and hog capable plus intro to long range?

.308

This is good advice. I've had a lot of different rifles in a lot of different calibers and I just had my first custom hunting rifle built in .308.

 

[Cinch]

I'd be in short barreled 308 mode as well...

 

[deadly_punk]

Have you looked @ Savage's factory threaded models? Adding a moderately priced muzzle brake to a pre-threaded barrel might be a good way to reduce recoil for the wife - and you won't mind it either - without adding much of cost. I'm thinking Savage 10 P-SR or 11 Hog Hunter w/ a new stock would fit your needs pretty well. Just a thought.

 

[45.308]

First hunting rifle? On a budget? Short action? Elk and hog capable plus intro to long range?

.308

I will buy this for a dollar. On caliber selection, 308 can be found in darn near every shop in the USA. Plus, surplus, range loads, good loads and premium loads, not many other calibers can make that claim other than 556. Reloading the 308 is forgiving that still maintains accuracy. Buy less costly ammo and practice and then practice some more.

With the bullet placed in the engine room, the average game animal will tip over at normal hunting ranges.

While I am no marksmen in the fashionable term, my 308s will get to 1100 until running out of horsepower.

I would buy Remington SPS tactical or similar variant. Easy to gucci, short profile, semi light...jack of all trades rifle.

good luck

 

[565fitter]

I think the cm or .260 should be all your looking at. yes the .308 is a great, but I started with a .308 and a few months later picked up a 6.5CM which made the game much easier. where at 500yrd I was hitting my target pretty well until the wind picked up I struggled. now with the CM the wind can pick up and I can still hit the paper and see how I need to adjust my dope. with the 308 I may not have even hit the target to see what I needed to do. then it became a guessing game until I got back on paper.
now that i'm building knowledge and experience I can take my 308 out and know how to read the wind and put the first round on paper and adjust from there.

so I vote 6.5CM learn the easier one first then step up to a .308 I know this goes against everything you read on this site but I don't understand why everyone says to start with the harder of the 2.

 

[Graham]

I don't understand why everyone says to start with the harder of the 2.

Because the .308 isn't 'harder'.

BTW, have a look at the stated criteria for the rifle in the very first post on this Thread.

 

[Quinc]

6.5CM if you are not reloading. Since it has great cheap factory ammo.
Savage makes a great 6.5 CM out of the box too.
Savage Arms

If you are reloading and want something much more effective at both hunting and long range look into the 7SAUM.

 

[565fitter]

Because the .308 isn't 'harder'.

BTW, have a look at the stated criteria for the rifle in the very first post on this Thread.

it sure isn't easier to shoot in wind than the cm. I don't see anything in the op that would change my thought.
the cm is a great round to hunt with. I just shot a doe yesterday at 480yrd and it took 3 steps and died. the recoil is lower than my 308 and it's quieter too. factory ammo while not cheaper in bulk the cost is pretty much the same when you get into match ammo. neither are barrel burners, and both are short action.

 

[bassani]

not sure who is using it based off of your post
you or your wife
.270 if your wife
30-06 if its you

These 2 calibers are the most common and you will not have a hard time finding bullets anywhere you look.
You can specialize but you will have trouble getting ammo in a pinch (if you have never forgot to pack your ammo, it will happen at some point and time and you will be screwed in a po dunk town if you go with a specialized caliber)

 

[bschneiderheinze]

308 and and don't look back I don't think your going to get the full advantage of a 260 or 6.5 creedmor without reloading. I owned a 260 for a month and found it to be finicky and a brass burner even with Lapua brass. I currently am running a custom 308 and ballistically I don't think the 260 is that much better than the 308. The versatility and affordability of the 308 makes it an obvious choice. Go to Dicks tomorrow get the ADL special sell the stock and scope buy a bell and carlson and you will be under $600 with I rifle that will probably shoot .75 moa easily. Just my 2 cents

 

[Wicked K5]

I appreciate all the feedback so far. Just to clarify some things: 1) this rifle will be a hunting rig chambered for a cartridge that would be a test bed to get me into long range using a different rifle {consolidating calibers}. 2) it will be used primarily by me but if it doesn't scare the mrs., that's an added bonus. 3) I will be reloading so finding factory ammo isn't a deal breaker. And I'm pretty OCD when it comes to packing my gear so I don't think I'll need to hit the local podunk shop in an emergency to find ammo. Keep the info coming. In the meantime I think I need to get some trigger time on some different calibers to see what I like


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[Graham]

Keep the info coming. In the meantime I think I need to get some trigger time on some different calibers to see what I like

This is the smartest thing I've read on this site in a month.

 

[45.308]

I appreciate all the feedback so far. Just to clarify some things: 1) this rifle will be a hunting rig chambered for a cartridge that would be a test bed to get me into long range using a different rifle {consolidating calibers}. 2) it will be used primarily by me but if it doesn't scare the mrs., that's an added bonus. 3) I will be reloading so finding factory ammo isn't a deal breaker. And I'm pretty OCD when it comes to packing my gear so I don't think I'll need to hit the local podunk shop in an emergency to find ammo. Keep the info coming. In the meantime I think I need to get some trigger time on some different calibers to see what I like


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Hand rolled and exotic lost ammo for hunters in Alaska happens every year without fail for cheechakos and sourdoughs. Just saying. How many times I heard, ammo was confiscated, left at home, wrong caliber for the rifle I brought, wrong load, dropped in the silt, etc. I pulled my favorite pop gun out one time packed up and forgot my bolt laying on the table at home. Very few check list and pack like I do but it can happen.

Plus, I know not to the podunk but powder and primers around here are still in short supply with high demand and unless you have it hoarded it may limit your trigger time and at times for training, store bought 308/762 at $12-$15 a box is on the shelf everyday now, where powder is not. Thinking time on the trigger can be constant.

I still say 308win as the starting point . From there, its 7.08, 260, 338 etc for your test bed into long range different rifle. If it were just for me, I would go with 338.06 since you reload but never shot one past 400. While I say 308, I am really not a fan of that diameter for efficiency, I prefer 338 and 284 that in my experience fly better and drive deeper than the 30.06, 308 and 300wby but was just for hunting.

good luck

 

[Smcarroll]

308 Winchester. It will kill anything with hooves and is plentiful.

 

[steve123]

I'm going to have to agree with Bohem on this one.

A simple perusing of wind drift in comparing the dinosaur to it's smaller caliber and highly evolved spawn should make your decision easy.