Good hunting rifle and caliber?

[Striker777]

Go out and find yourself a nice pawn shop heavy barrel 700 Remington or Ruger M77 chambered in .243 (no Elk)

 

[Deadcoyote]

Go out and find yourself a nice pawn shop heavy barrel 700 Remington or Ruger M77 chambered in .243 (no Elk)

I will say I am ambivalent on heavy barrel. I used a medium heavy savage .308 in 20” configuration for years and once I realized it weighed the same as my Aero M5 I didn’t see the purpose of it anymore.

Also, if you reload (I don’t because I’m lazy) there are usually some good opportunities out there in weird calibers. Recently saw a really nice old weatherby hunting rifle for cheap because it was in 300 H&H mag.

 

[JoeBronco]

Want to become a great hunter?
Learn to stock
Learn to use wind
Learn to use thermals for scent
Learn to be quiet
Learn to listen - to everything

Ive been successful on more than my fair share of hunts. Your gun and ability to shoot is a VERY small (and important) part of being a successful hunter. Just use what you feel comfortable with.

 

[Striker777]

Joe the man needs a gun LOL.
A tool he must have 1st and master and get to know that gun in and out through practice. then People like you need to teach, that's how I got my strips learning and schooled by knowledgeable people as you most likely were also taught.

 

[JoeBronco]

Joe the man needs a gun LOL.
A tool he must have 1st and master and get to know that gun in and out through practice. then People like you need to teach, that's how I got my strips learning and schooled by knowledgeable people as you most likely were also taught.

That's why I first posted a suggestion (post 60). Generally it's all in what you feel comfortable shooting. I agree - know what your shooting first.

 

[Striker777]

1st lesson of a pig hunter

1. Do you want to follow the blood trail.
2. If not and you can get the shot shoot them in the ear. (you won't chase anything EVER.)
the same would apply to Does, Bucks on the other hand in my opinion you may want to mount it so this does not apply.

77 grain Sierra matchkings in .223 it's done with deer all the time shot placement matters what ever caliber you are using, tell me you can't hunt dear with that caliber .223/556 your'e nuts People have been using .222 remington for years.

I still to this day load this round

Bullet: 77 GR. SIERRA HPBT Matchking
18.9gns Imr 3031

Diameter: 0.224"

Case: Winchester

Primer: Magtech 7 1/2 SR

 

[Deadcoyote]

I was really pleased this morning that my son and I had a similar discussion to strikers post above.

My son somehow transformed from a 16 year old into a 71 year old dairy man while eating a bowl of Raisin Bran and said he thinks it’s funny his two friends who use 6.5 creedmore and 300 wsm were trying to convince him to get rid of his .243. His observation was “one of them’s never shot nothing but ducks, and the other one shot and lost a deer. Anything I’ve shot died immediately and we didn’t lose it. You do your part and use a decent bullet and that other stuff isn’t so important.”

 

[Eldoman]

I have a Ruger Ulta-light rifle in .308 that is great for deer and pigs and would be fine for elk as long as they aren't too far out there. It has a 16-1/2" barrel, so it does give up a bit of velocity. I also have a Weatherby in 30-06 that is a tad more accurate, I've used it for deer and elk. I've had both of these rifles for at least 30 years and I don't see a need to get anything else. If I were to buy a new hunting rifle today, for deer and pigs I'd look at .270 or 7mm-08. For hunting I'd definitely go with a bolt action. I'd check out different brands but I'd probably end up with a Tikka. I'm not a fan of the AR platform for hunting. You'll be doing a lot kmore carrying than shooting. The shape, with a pistol grip and magazine will hang up on bushes and branches plus the additional weight make it a no-go for me. I've killed somewhere around 10 deer and 1 elk and I've never lost an animal because I couldn't get a fast enough folloe up shot. In the couple of occasions that I needed follow up shots I've been amazed at how fast I could work the bolt and get back on target.

 

[Atomic Soldier]

Primarily, you need a caliber you can readily find lead free ammo for. 30.06, 308, 12 ga. All ammo that can be easily found across the nation and specifically lead free rounds in the state. Take a look through the ammo selection in a couple local shops. I might add, I have a Ruger American 30.06 for a good price listed on here.

 

[Atomic Soldier]

Hunting any four legged game one is limited to a 5 round capacity rifle, with birds it is 3 is what I remember.
I stopped long ago, dressing them was just a nasty thing.

In the ca hunting handbook, there is nothing about a magazine limit in a rifle. I called fish and game to confirm this. Certain areas may have limits. Shotgun yes

 

[Striker777]

In the ca hunting handbook, there is nothing about a magazine limit in a rifle. I called fish and game to confirm this. Certain areas may have limits. Shotgun yes

You know, I found that very interesting. Also, another note there is no definition of legal yardage While shooting There is no yardage definition from House or business when hunting. It just says whatever is safe for the longest time people have been telling people it’s 150 yards from any place or Business,Rd., Trail, etc.. In which I also thought was true

 

[Radman64]

In the ca hunting handbook, there is nothing about a magazine limit in a rifle. I called fish and game to confirm this. Certain areas may have limits. Shotgun yes

Might be now but back in the 70's-80's it was different is what I remember but back then very few people had magazine fed rifles, I distinctly recall my brothers buddy who used a scoped M1 Garand and had 5 round enbloc's for it deer hunting.

 

[NapalmCheese]

People make up a lot of hunting rules that don't exist, particularly in CA.

 

[Drivedabizness]

Looking to get into hunting, would likely be dear/boar. Possibly elk but that’s looking like a bit of a stretch. Any recommendations on a good hunting rifle/scope? I’ve built an ar, but it doesn’t seem like people build out their hunting rifles, they just buy them outright.

Something in the middle price wise, kind of like a bcm. Not cheap but not gucci, but a good rifle.

Thanks

You're a new member, so I'll be gentle. Gun/Ammo questions NEVER end well. They ALWAYS end up in a pissing match because all the calculus is SUBJECTIVE - even though you've told us likely use cases. If you are looking for ONE rifle to cover them all - there are multiple choices out there you can make. And I GUARANTEE you can find a rifle/scope combo that can outshoot your capabilities, in those hunting applications, for under $1500.

 

[NapalmCheese]

As many options as there are, there's always one (of many) right options.

A .30-06 Ruger American Rifle topped with 3-9x40 Vortex Diamondback with a duplex reticle set in DNZ rings/mount shooting Federal Premium Trophy Copper 165s carried with a Claw strap/sling will hunt any common game animal (anywhere and anytime a rifle can be used) in North America for a person's lifetime (the strap notwithstanding, it'll still carry the rifle, but the rubber will deteriorate after a while).

It's not what I use (I have a different rifle, different scope, different sling, and load my own ammo with a different bullet, but I do use DNZ mounts), but it's a good combo. Buying everything at MSRP would set someone back about $1000 bucks (tax notwithstanding). With $1500 bucks you could buy that whole set up and a lifetime worth of hunting ammo and never need another rifle.

But where's the fun in that?

Has Sandman not bought a rifle since September of last year?

 

[BigBossman]

There was never a 5 round limit for rifles in CA.

People make up a lot of hunting rules that don't exist, particularly in CA.

 

[Cartridge Calls]

Get a .300 winmag and never look back. Add a brake to it for less recoil. You will never need another rifle and it will take down anything in north America. With lead free rounds the bigger the better.

 

[Malibu]

@OP - where are you located? A rem 700 in 30.06 will kill anything in the west. Just depends on your style.

Brush hunting - 30.30
Ambush pigs - 300blk AR
400+ yd shots - 308
Best all around - 30.06

A R700 in .30-06 served me very well over the years for a variety of game.
After that I got into the scout rifle concept and never looked back.
There are so many ways to go with this one…