CK5
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rifle question

The henry Golden Boy is a classic repro on a truly classic rifle. I have a Marlin 1895 in 45-70, another classic caliber. A shoulder buster for sure. I also have an old Savage 99 in 30-30. I love the old style of the lever rifles. I think one in .357 or .44 mag would be killer. And I'd love to have one of the Winchester or Marlin .410 levers, those seem like a really fun rifle.

Oh yeah, Mud390, go for 30-06 if your looking for an all-around rifle. I read a lot of the shooting rags, and am on a few online groups, and from what I hear and read a Savage 110 is an excellent value, and I believe they even come with a decent scope to boot!
 
/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif the 44 mag is a great shooting lever action rifle, I have the Puma model 92
pum51011.jpg
and it evens cycles smoothe. I had a Rossi version except it was a 24" barrel and it was very light weight, kicked like a mule! A friend of mine has the Winchester octagon barrel 45-70, one of the original made inearly 1870's and it shoots even sweeter.
 
30-06 is a good round, but for all-around use a .270 would be a great choice. You can use super light bullets and go varmiting, or heavier ones and kill the snot out of deer.

j
 
jek, I thought the master all around shot was the 30-06?
Are you referring to the 270 winchester , or the 270 win mag?

Also, in either of those, I couldnt find a light load... Lighest load I was able to find from Federal was 130gr, with like a 3000fps muzzle, and like 2600ft lbs... Same for the 30-06. Very similiar balistics-

So now im very confused. /forums/images/graemlins/rotfl.gif
 
30-06 IS the best all-around caliber. Sure the .270 will kill the snot out of deer, but when yer talkin' all-around, you can use the -06 on elk, caribou and moose. Although there are better choices for the BIG deer, an -06 will suffice with 180-200 grain bullets. I think it ws famed gunwriter Elmer Kieth who SWORE by the .270 on elk, but shot placement becomes more critical. With the .270, I think 150 grains is as heavy as they get. My speer hanloaders guide lists loads using bullets al light as 100 grain with the 30-06, and I believe you can still buy "accelerator" sabots on ebay for the 30-06. These allow you to shoot a .22 caliber bullet in a .308 caliber cartridge, at CRAZY velocities. Not sure about this tho'. The .270 will shot faster and flatter, while the .30-06 will hit harder. Alo, ANY gun store in America, and in the rest of the WORLD for that matter will have ammo for the 30-06. If you want aa bigger selection of oads, and you can also tailor a load to YOUR rifle, start reloading. After the initial cost outlay, every round you shoot costs a fraction of a factory round, and you can wring that last tidbit of accuracy out of whatever rifle you choose. I guess if you dont plan on shooting anything bigger than whitetail or mulies, go for the .270.

Still confused?

Probably....

My vote goes to the 30-06 hands down
 
mud390 said:
Also, the rifle has to be left handed as I shoot southpaw.

Kris

I had a .308 until my parents house burned. Unfortunately it was in it. I bought a .300 Win. mag to replace it b/c I plan to do a small amount of big game hunting. Mostly I hunt white tail and I can tell you the .308 is a much better cartridge. The .300 mag is just overkill. You won't eat any part of the deer that is even remotely close to bullet entry. I hunted with my .308 for many years and never had a problem. I also am left handed. I bought a Remington .300 Win mag bolt action w/ detachable magazine. That same gun in .308 w/ a Leupold 3.5x10 would be a sweet package
 
Love my 270, Remington 700BDL, especially reloading 90 grain hollow points to dispose of those whistle pigs with. Then I use 130 grain to deer hunt with. I've had a few whitetails run some, but never one got away. If only going to deer hunt with, I'd seriously consider 308. I've been thinking about selling the 270 to buy a 308 to deer hunt and a 223 to hawg hunt with. Think I just answered my own question, it will take 2 rifles to replace my 270. Wow!
 
I'm a real big .308 fan. You can get alot of different ammo, but the best thing is if you're just looking to blow thru some rounds, you can always buy military surplus stuff for cheap.
 
I am also a Big fan of the .308. I would take it any day over a 30- 06. They really are not that much diferent, pretty similar ballistics. Factory load 308 is a bit slower and doesn't hit quite as hard as 30-06. But I just like 308 because they are a real sweet shooting gun. I like the the light recoil and at least in my hands, The .308 is a far more accurate rifle at Long distance (300yds+) than a 06.

I have Killed Large Mule deer, Elk, and Antelope at distances over 400 yards with my Remmington 308. It is by far and away my favorite hunting rifle. Like the 30-06 Ammo is cheap and can get on sale most anywhere.
I also have a 7mm Mag and 7.62X39 Rugers. I have owned a couple of 30-06s but sold them. I really like the 7mm mag you can really reach out and touch someone with that rifle . But it is expensive to shoot. the 7.62 x39 Mini 30 Auto is fun to shoot espicially with 30 round clips. I have even killed deer with it. But it is basicly a short range gun to have fun with.

Whatever cal you decide on Spend some money and get a good scope. Without good optics even the best gun in the world would be a big dissapointment.
 
i guess it depends on your definition of "all around"... I wouldn't shoot a groundhog with a 30-06 unless my goal was to vaporize him...

j
 
If you want a lever action, the only way to go with 30-30... if you want a bolt, you have a plethora of choices in 30-06 from new to classic WW2 rifles and even older than that. I'm actually in the market right now for a few russian bolt actions from WW2, but for the life of me, as I type this, I can't think of the name... maybe later. The majority of "Deer Rifles" in the woods today are not 30-06 as you'd expect, they are bolt action 30-30s because they are very reliable, and extremely accurate.

I personally hunt with an SKS, and I've been repeatedly told that the 7.62x39mm cartridge doesn't have enough knockdown power to take a deer cleanly and humanely... but I've yet to see a deer run more than 100 yards when shot by me. I love the action of the SKS, the semi auto has almost no kick due to the size of the rifle, and as a bonus, I can put a tennis ball on the end of it and shoot it 200 yards like a grenade.

If I were buying another rifle for all around accuracy, I'd be looking at a Mosin Nagant 91/30 (which is the one i couldn't think of before) 30-06 bolt action with a bent handle for attaching a sniper scope. The straight handle version cannot accomodate a scope because of the travel of the bolt. Not only are they super high quality, but they can be modified to no end, and they are superbly accurate if you get an original "sniper" version of the rifle. The bolt tells the story about whether it is standard issue or "accurized" for sniper use, you can find more info on them at hk94.com, just look through the Mosin Nagant forum... yeah, it has it's own. =)
 
If I was in the market for a new rifle, it would be this cartridge in stainless/synthetic, with a shortish barrel.

I'm a traditionalist, but the fact is, ALL the old rounds (30-06, 30-30 and so on) are limited in performance due to the specifications SAAMI has for them. The newer rounds are loaded hotter because the manufacturers can trust that the guns and ammo made for it can handle it.

That article isn't a GLOWING recommendation of the 300WSM, but it shows numbers, which are important. That cartridge will do everything a 30-06 (and probably a bit larger) will do in a shorter, lighter overall package. Kind of like a 308 vs 30-06. Same caliber, smaller round, almost equal performance.

Just like anything else, caliber is hotly contested, its all subjective and prone to favoritism. But throwing all sentimentilism out the window, I think it's obvious the newer rounds can do what older ones can, typically better, and if buying a NEW gun, there is no reason to go with an antiquated caliber.

BTW, the Mosin-Nagants are 7.62x54R and are nothing like a 30-06, just like the 7.62x39 is nothing like a .308 win/7.62x51 NATO.
 
BTW, the Mosin-Nagants are 7.62x54R and are nothing like a 30-06, just like the 7.62x39 is nothing like a .308 win/7.62x51 NATO.

I didn't compare the 7.62x39 to a .308, I compared it to nithing in fact... if I had to compare it to something, i would compare it to the 150 grain 30-30 round, since the rounds I'm puting through my SKS are 154 grain, but slightly less powder charge. They still pack a wallop and are quite accurate. As a "brush gun" in the oak forests of Wisconsin, I can think of nothing I'd rahter be holding than an SKS or Lever Action 30-30... well, maybe a 357 mag, but that's a topic for another thread.


My apologies for the slip on saying Mosins were 30-06... I was so relieved I had remembered the name of the damn thing, i was just typing and not thinking. You are absolutely correct in saying that they are not even close to the same round, but I'll put my nuts on the line and say that with a properly sighted in 30-06 and Mosin 91/30 side by side, you'd be hard pressed to see differences in shooting patterns, accuracy, or effective range.
 
Wasn't intending to imply that you were confusing the 7.62x39 and 7.62x51, just that they commonly are "confused", and I was just pointing out that neither of the russian rounds are "related" to their western counterparts. :)
 
Indeed... not at all. =)

Most of the russian ammo available sucks monkey balls... but I've found the winner, Wolf Soft Point and FMJ for target shooting are quite accurate, and they have non-corrosive casings, which means less cleaning for me.
 
A .270 is a great round... really its just a necked-down 30.06... So its faster... A .300 mag is alot of gun for deer... Although that deer isnt going to care whether you kill him with a 30-30 or a 700 nitro-express... You can't go wrong with a 30.06, probably the most available round out there, and you can find it in just about any weight you could ever need, I've bought 30.06 150 grain rounds at a gas station in the middle of nowhere, and he had 180 grain too... I guess it depends on what type of deer hunting you do... It's not unusual to take a 200+ yard shot here out west... 300, or 400 yards aren't unheard of... So a flat shooter is a must... 7mm rem mag is my choice, but a .270 can really shoot flat too.... 30.06 with a lighter bullet can really reach out there too... There are several great hunting rounds out there...
 
I love my .270 WSM. It's a left handed Browning Microhunter. With the .270 bullet and the short magnum shell if you load your own you can have anything from a 90gr long range varmint round, to a 160gr still long range elk round. The ballistics are similiar to a 7mm Rem Mag, but the verstility if you load your own is much greater. BTW, anyone know if he already bought a rifle, I noticed this post started back in August.
 
Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I've been busy with work and everything else that happens in life. I'm just now getting back to my blazer for the first time in about a year. Its good to be back. Anyway. As far as the rifle goes, I've picked up a couple of SKS's to plink with and a Glock 17 (9mm) but no hunting rifle as of yet. I haven't really found any good deals here. I keep my eyes open though. I've been looking around for either .270, 30-06, or a .308. Thats pretty much what I've narrowed it down to.

Kris
 

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