Deer Caliber now!

[fishinjosh98]

I can get my tikka hunter as soon as I choose a caliber, I have waited 3 years for this the sooner the better. I would like your preference on short action caliber and a long action caliber

[Archerysniper]

30.06 for long action .308 for short just to be simple.

[Gordie]

I have both the .308 and a 30-06 I always seem to grab for the .308 and now I'm really leaning towards a 7mm-08 I really like what this round is cable of doing. much like the .308 now on the other hand my 06 is so versitile. I like having it because I could use it for any North american Big game animal and have no worries either

Sorry not much help I think thats why I have a couple of different rifles one is just not enough.. Kinda like chips

[cavalierowner]

If I were buying just 1 rifle, it would be either a .308 or 30-06. I would lean more toward a 30-06 only because it's enough caliber for almost anything in the US if you decide to go for something other than deer and the ammo is available anywhere. Just as an aside, I have a lever .308 for deer that I wouldn't trade for anything; light and very accurate.

[skies]

I have been looking at getting a new rifle. I have my mind made up on a tikka in a 260. It also will be a deer only rifle. It depends on if you are going to hunt any other big game with it.

[fishinjosh98]

well I am liking the 30-06 I just cant wait any longer to get it

[Wes Ellis]

30/06 it a very good round. If I was looking at a short mag i would look at the 325 short mag.

[Fins-n-feathers]

I don't know about a short action but I would get the 06.

[FishGUY]

I would get a .270 or 30-06 for deer, can't go wrong with either.

[Borch]

If this is a dedicated deer gun then it's hard to pass up the short action rounds. I have both the .308 and 7mm-08 that we use for deer in a couple different rifles and they are both accurate and lethal cartridges. Ammo is easy to find for both although there tends to be more selection for the .308.

Long action it's hard to pass up the 30-06 or .270 as they both perform well and come with tins of ammo choices. I have a freind who is in love with the 25-06 cartridge but it's just not a favorite of mine. I picked up the 30-06 in a Tikka T3 two years ago and it's been a very good gun thus far. I had stockpiled a bunch of 30-06 ammo so it was really the only choice for me at the time.

All these calibers will also work for black bear, elk, moose and antelope with the right bullet choices at reasonable ranges.

Good Luck in your choice.

[picksbigwagon]

I really like the functionality/versatility of the .308 in the short action. It is really hard to beat the .270 or 30-06 in long action. I always use the "Petry's Bait and Gas" Scale when assesssing firearms. Is the caliber in question redily available out in the middle of no where? Meaning, can I find a box of my ammo at the small town, local bait shop or mom and pop hardware store.

[paul pachowicz]

So often I see remarks about finding ammo anywhere. Why would someone leave home without the 3 basic requirements for a hunting trip: gun, tag and ammo?

[Gordie]

So often I see remarks about finding ammo anywhere. Why would someone leave home without the 3 basic requirements for a hunting trip: gun, tag and ammo?

+1

But I know someone that forgot a gun once and he'll never live it down.

[fishuhalik]

i love my 25-06 & will probably never buy another caliber for deer. flat shooting, no recoil, & cheap enough ammo when compared to a comparable round it's only about $10 more/box than more standard rounds. sure you can get basic 30-06 or 270 rounds cheap but when i pull the trigger on a deer i wanna be throwing the best bullet i can afford at it. the 260 is an interesting choice too & i'd like to shoot one sometime

[cavalierowner]

So often I see remarks about finding ammo anywhere. Why would someone leave home without the 3 basic requirements for a hunting trip: gun, tag and ammo?

I agree. But forgetting happens too. My nephew keeps his ammo separate from his rifles and managed to forget his ammo one year. This is the nephew that carries my uncle's .300 H & H magnum. Fortunately we had only gone half an hour past Cabellas, which is one of the few places that has it...sometimes. And yes, we remind him of that every chance we get

[picksbigwagon]

So often I see remarks about finding ammo anywhere. Why would someone leave home without the 3 basic requirements for a hunting trip: gun, tag and ammo?

I agree with you Paul, but I tend to be a "what if" kind of guy. My buddy always gives me a hard time about all the "extra's" I always bring along, whether hunting or fishing. He has forgotten stuff so many times, but he still feels he doesn't need to lay his stuff out and pack accordingly or have a check list (which I do both)

[NoWiser]

My 2 cents....

In a long action I would go with a .270 or a 30-06, with the nod going to a .270 if you would ever consider hunting mule deer or antelope out west, and the 30-06 if you plan to stay in Minnesota or possibly hunt moose. If everyone you hunt with shoots one or the other, you may want to go that route, too.

As far as a short action goes, I think (and correct me if I'm wrong) all Tikkas are built on a long action, so you will not get a lighter, more compact rifle by going to the short action like you would with many other rifle manufacturers. That said, I own a Tikka in .270 WSM and love it. For the short action I'd personally probably look at 7mm-08 if I was strictly hunting MN, and would maybe bump up to .270 WSM if you think you might head out west some day. The recoil on my .270 WSM is pretty substantial, though, and most days I'd prefer to not have the magnum.

If you are prone to forgetting things I would go with the 270 or 06 since finding ammo will be easy. I don't worry about that as I'm an obsessive list maker before a trip. I have them all saved on Excel, and won't leave the house until everything is checked off of my list.

[klecker]

My 2 cents....

In a long action I would go with a .270 or a 30-06, with the nod going to a .270 if you would ever consider hunting mule deer or antelope out west, and the 30-06 if you plan to stay in Minnesota or possibly hunt moose. If everyone you hunt with shoots one or the other, you may want to go that route, too.

As far as a short action goes, I think (and correct me if I'm wrong) all Tikkas are built on a long action, so you will not get a lighter, more compact rifle by going to the short action like you would with many other rifle manufacturers. That said, I own a Tikka in .270 WSM and love it. For the short action I'd personally probably look at 7mm-08 if I was strictly hunting MN, and would maybe bump up to .270 WSM if you think you might head out west some day. The recoil on my .270 WSM is pretty substantial, though, and most days I'd prefer to not have the magnum.

If you are prone to forgetting things I would go with the 270 or 06 since finding ammo will be easy. I don't worry about that as I'm an obsessive list maker before a trip. I have them all saved on Excel, and won't leave the house until everything is checked off of my list.

A 270wsm is a short action.

[swamptiger]

Nothing wrong with any of the calibers suggested, but if I was buying a new Tikka, I would get it in .260 Remington, and stock up on shells and never look back...

Here's an old post from 2005 on a shooters forum:

Quote:

Last year, I purchased a Ruger M77, Mark 2 chambered for the .260 Remington (for $100 less than a Remington). I did a lot of research on the cartridge and posted several boards about this round. I was looking to purchase a .243 at the time and had never heard of the .260 Rem cartridge before that time. During my research, I found that the ballistics very closely matched the .243 (6mm) and the 7mm-08......out to 300 yds. After that mark, the .260, ballistically was superior to both other rounds in fps and ft/lbs of energy. The sectional density of the .260 (6.5mm) round is very comparable to the .30 caliber (7.62mm) round. In fact it is almost the same.

After further investigating, I found that the .260 can be loaded with bullets ranging from 85 gns to 160 gns. The heaviest bullet for the .243 was 100 gns. You can load larger bullets for the 7mm-08, however, from what I found, the choice of bullets is limited to varmint type bullets below 130gns. The ballistics for the .260 Rem are very comparable to the long-lived .308, but with more gusto and speed. Now, this cartridge mostly lends itself to the reloader (as does the 7mm-08) because most factory ammo is loaded in either 120 or 140 gns, but their is a large selection of bullet weights for this round. (To recount my findings, you can get 85, 100, 120, 129, 140, and 160 gn bullets in many styles and components). The .308 round is available in a multitude of bullet weights as well, but at a loss of speed due to the larger bullet.

According the the Remington Ballistic Comparison Calculator (.243@100 grn, .260@140 grn, .308@150grn, 7mm@140 grn); At 300 yds:

.260 Rem = 2158 fps and 1448 ft/lbs energy and drops 11.7 inches (Zeroed at 150 yds)

.308 Win = 2009 fps and 1344 ft/lbs energy and drops 14.7 inches (Zeroed at 100 yds)

.243 Win = 2215 fps and 1089 ft/lbs energy and drops 10.4 inches (Zeroed at 150 yds)

7mm-08 = 2189 fps and 1490 ft/lbs energy and drops 11 inches (Zeroed at 150 yds)

This comparison shows that, according to the calculator, at 300yds the .243 is almost 100 fps faster (with a 40 grn smaler bullet), but has almost 400 ft/lbs less energy. It also shows that the .260 is over 100fps faster and 100 ft/lbs energy more than the .308. Now, the .260 is shooting a bullet 10 grns less in weight than the .308, however, in my testing between 120 and 129 grn (6.5mm) bullets, I found no real dicernable difference in fps on the average, (maybe 35 fps). The closest comparison is the 7mm-08, but the .243 out sells this cartridge as well, and their is little real difference between the two (0.5mm).

Ok, I have given a lot of data to digest. I have done this for a reason. Granted, I am slighted towards the .260 Rem cartridge when compared to the above cartridges. But I am because of the information I reviewed and the data I have received by multiple loads and variations I have tested with my rifle.

Why do you think, that the .243 still outsells the .260 Remington day in and day out. Why would Remington stop chambering this cartridge when it was the one who introduced it? They are still chambering the outdated .35 Rem (which I like in my Marlin). I am not knocking the .243 in its effectiveness or reliablility in downing deer sized and smaller animals. I have taken several deer very cleanly with a .243. However, why would one limit themselves to a round that can be loaded with such a limited variations of bullets/weights?

Am I alone in this fight? Am I a lone voice in the myriad of available cartridges? I won't even get into all the new WSSM cartridges available. I already have most of the long action cartridges that have been made almost obsolete with the new shorter, fatter cartridges.........yeah right. I would like to hear from any members who have an opinion on this thread.

Thanks for your responses.

[NoWiser]

A 270wsm is a short action.

Yep, I realize that. I guess what I was trying to say is that while you can get a Tikka chambered to shoot a short action caliber, they only make long action receivers. They just add a block to accomodate the short action calibers. Instead of getting a lighter, more compact rifle (one of the benefits of a short action), you get the same rifle as if it were a long action, just modified for the caliber. For me, the gun was light enough and shouldered good enough that I didn't feel it was a big deal. For many people, if they choose a short action caliber, they want the short action gun to go with it.

If that makes any sense at all...

[surewood]

270, great caliber. That 260 mkght be my next rifle. Was thinking 243, but that may have sold me.

[Bowfin]

I would go with the "06" for a good all around Minnesota big game caliber. Ammo is common and relatively cheap. The "06" will be plenty for deer, plenty if you decide to take on black bear someday and plenty for the occasional "squatch".

[Archerysniper]

So often I see remarks about finding ammo anywhere. Why would someone leave home without the 3 basic requirements for a hunting trip: gun, tag and ammo?

I haven't done it but a few in the deer camp I used to go to guy's grabbed the wrong caliber ammo or the wrong case with a different caliber rifle. I also had a buddy come up to camp with 4 bullets and got 3 shots a a big buck before it disappeared and couldn't believe he missed. So back at camp he took a shot with his last bullet and was a foot off so we had to drive a hour to find some 270 weatherby mag ammo and re-sight it in.

[monstermoose78]

06 for me as well. 270 does shoot slightly flatter then a 06 but that much if the bullets weights are the same. I got the 06 from my parents when i graduated high school. I shoot 180 nosler partitions sighted in at 200 yards I am 1.8 inches high at 100 dead on at 50 yards and 8 inches low at 300 yards. I want try 400 and 500 yards but none of the ranges i have gone to go that far. As people said the 06 is good enough to take all north american game. If I was to go for big brown bears or polar bears I would feel better with a bigger bore rifle.

[cavalierowner]

...I want try 400 and 500 yards but none of the ranges i have gone to go that far. As people said the 06 is good enough to take all north american game. If I was to go for big brown bears or polar bears I would feel better with a bigger bore rifle.

You should check out membership in the Elk River Sportsmans Club. It's "just down the street" from you. Our KD (Known Distance) range goes out to 600 yards. But you have to have special training to shoot at 600 yards and shooting at 600 yards is open ony for club events. Applications for memberships is open the end of every year.