Best Big Game Rifle

[Cobb73]

I am looking for suggestions on the best all around big game rifle. I usually shot gun hunt for white tails but I am looking to expand my hunting oppertunities. I want a gun that can hunt white tails while still have enough knock down power to handle moose, bear and elk. Any suggestions on calibers that can handle that load. Any body had success in that department, 1 gun taking many species.

[Swamp Scooter]

Lots of guns out there. The old standard 30-06 has a very wide range of loads you can use. Light ones for antelope and all the way up to 220 grain for other stuff. I used one for many years and then added a new gun. A 7mm mag is what I use now. Do not be fooled in to using the lighter 150 grain loads for the deer either, unless you are at long range. It goes too fast and does not give the knock down you want unless you hit bone. I use the 175 grain and have been very happy with it. It took my first bear right down too. There are a lot of other options too. 300 win mag is another but again you have the real fast lighter bullets that are not great for the short range shots. I bought a new gun for my wife to use this year. It is a single shot and uses the new 500 S&W pistol loads! Wow what fun and not much kick either. That will take down the bears at close range too. Cannot wait to see her get her first deer with that. Good out to about 100 yards or so.

The fun part is the shopping then the hard part is the decision on what to buy.

[lawdog]

I'm a big fan of the 30-06 and it will do what you want. The 7mm's are real popular now too and have some slight advantages at very long range over the 30-06. I wouldn't go anything smaller than a 30 caliber if you are talking moose/elk, but I wouldn't go as big as say a .338 or more if you are talking deer too.

I personally bet that 95%+ of the animals shot in the US by rifle could be shot with withr a 30-06 or a 7mm and nothing bigger would be needed.

[Hotspotter]

I really think the 7mm is about as versatile as it gets for a big-game rifle. Plenty for deer/antelope, perfect for elk and bear, and excellent for moose, sheep, and others as well! It's flatter shooting than the 06, with more muzzle velocity and greater downrange energy. The 30-06 is a bit lean for some of the larger game species in my opinion, like moose.

Joel

[Gissert]

I like my .338. With elk, it is nice to have a heavy bullet that will break a shoulder if need be. I use it on whitetails too, just because I can shoot well with this particular gun. No, it does not tear them to shreds, LOL. It is NOT a pleasant gun to shoot for more that 10 rounds, however.

In reality, the -06 and 7mms mentioned are hard to beat also with good quality bullets like Nosler Partitions and Barnes X.

The 300 Win mag is also an excellent round.

The new short mags are enjoying great popularity right now as well.

[slick814]

I'll throw in a vote a a 7MM Mag too. Bought it out in Idaho for my first Elk hunt, have used it for Mulies, Pronghorn, Elk, Whitetails, even a few Coyotes thrown in. No problems with it to this point. I do agree that you need to be careful about the grain of the bullet, when shooting at almost any range, you want the 175, otherwise you may shoot a hole through the deer and have a lot of tracking to do. Something with a bit more knockdown power is best.

One of the reasons I like the gun is that it shoots flat and straight over a long shot like you often end up taking when hunting Pronghorn or Elk, which is a great thing to have. It doesn't kick all that much, and hasn't failed me with the Mulies or Whitetails, either.

[MinnesotaMuskie]

I went to the 7MM three years ago...it is a great choice. I wanted to pick up a .270 as well for my son...but ran across a used .280. It has been a great deer gun...just be sure you have a stock pile of shells...you woudl not want to be in a rural area and try to track down these shells.

[hoggs222]

Weatherby 300 win mag. Big boom. Lots of distance.

[catman71]

i can also vote for the 7mm. That would be the 7mm Rem Mag. Not a 7mm Mauser or 7mmSTW. Just thought i'd add that since i have seen a guy shoot 7mmRemMags in his STW thinking they were interchangeable.

Hey Slick814 have you ever tried a boat tail bullet in the lighter grains? I usually shoot a 139 grain sierra boat tail and get great knockdowns. I stay away from the nossler partions when shooting smaller game(like deer) since they tend to hold together very well and will penetrate further on larger/tougher game but do not expand quick enough for deer. especailly small deer that have a knack for finding me.

[Cobb73]

Has anybody tried the new Browning 325 WSM. It is realtively new to the sceen but it is supposed to shoot like a 300 mag and have the knock down power of a .338.

Thanks for the replies, so far I would say the 7mm is the winner. I was leaning toward the 30-06 just for the popularity of it but I like the advantages of the 7mm.

[shae1986]

I gotta say .22, best all round caliber for the game you are chasing . But seriously i would have to say the .300 Mag. With that you get the distance and the knock down.

[lawdog]

Quote:

---

I was leaning toward the 30-06 just for the popularity of it but I like the advantages of the 7mm.

---

Study the ballistic charts. The "advantages" are minimal. They are almost the same round out to a range that most can't shoot anyway. Don't go gaga over one FPS or one foot/lb either way. You'd never notice a difference in 99.9% of shots.

[shortfatguy]

I just picked up a model 70 winchester in 300 wsm. I really like the rifle and it shoots a really nice group at 100 yards. the short action really is an improvment over the long actions like the 270 and 06. i couldnt believe how much difference the short bolt makes when cycling the action. as for versatility..... I dont think there is a big game animal that this caliber and rifle wouldnt work well on.... thats why i bought one!

[irvingdog]

200 guys. 200 opinions. Once you really know guns, bullets and how they perform, you'll want to own them all.............

[CAJ]

I live in Montana, and have used the 7MM Mag. for all the big game except the Bigger Bears. They are flat shooting and not the recoil of the 300 Win mag. The old saying that 1 good hit with the smaller caliber is better than 5 misses with the big cannons. Highly recomend the 7MM CAJ

[PerchJerker]

I have a .30-06 and love it -- would also love to have a 7mm but it's just too close to the .30-06. So when I got a bigger rifle for out west I went with a .300 Win Mag. If I was to do it again I'd look at the short-action mags, maybe starting with the .300 WSM. Good luck.

[captkev]

I love my .243 for whitetails, but its way to small for larger game, I bought a 308 and love it too but, I wouldn't hunt grizzlys with it, my dad took a minnesota 1800lb bull moose with his 308..., I have shot many white tails with my 7mm mag. but it blows a hole big enough to stick my fist threw them... so much for the shoulder rost. Has anyone compaired the balistics chart of the 7mm mag. to the new 270 win short mag...? If your looking for a gun with a very flat shooting profile and down range energy, I'd do some studying, I haven't seen this years charts, but last year the new short mags were makeing me drool. this might be off a little but not much, but compairing in say a 150 grain. The 30-06 had like a 38" drop at 500 yards. the 7mm mag was like 17" drop at 500 yards and the 270 WSM was only 14" at 500 yards. Talk about reach'n out! Give me a Bi-pod and a 4x12x50mm scope... Clear the bluff, Fresh steaks tonight.

Wait a min... Didn't Fred Bear kill a griz with a long bow.

[slick814]

Catman - no, I haven't tried the boattails in smaller grain. Might be worth a shot, though (pardon the pun). Mine's a Sako, and sometimes I have a hard time finding exactly the ammo I want, but its been getting easier in the last couple years with the 7MM Mag's popularity growing.

Like I said, I can't complain about the gun at all. Used it in Idaho for Mountain Elk at 300 yds, Pronghorn Antelope at about the same distance, Mulies & Whitetails at various ranges, and haven't had one get away yet. I just can't think of a more versitile gun that I've had in my hands.

[almostthere!]

The best Big Game Rifle is the rifle that you feel most comfortable using. In the case of hunting for moose and bear, you are venturing to the dangerous game category and should consider the larger bored rifles. Some people will say a 270 is sufficient, which it is, for these games; I'm just not that brave, yet. When I am faced with a charging bull or grizzly, I would be more comfortable knowing that I will be flinging a powerful, huge, solidly constructed bullet at it.

With that said and the games you will be hunting, I would recommend a rifle in either 7mm magnum or 300 Win Magnum (short or regular for both). I would also recommend buying a good bullet, Barne's X-bullets (sorry guys, I've gone "Green" with my bullet selections). It is not only the size of the bullets that makes the kill, it is also the construction of the bullet that makes the kill.

All you need now is the rifle itself. I would recommend a Tikka or a Browning A-Bolt II unless you are rich then I would recommend a Weatherby or a Sako.

Happy hunting.

[Gissert]

I like Barnes bullets because they flat out perform. Here is a bullet that hit a white tail buck chest on at 40 yards. It is a 210 grain boat tail from a .338 win mag. It took out part of the heart, a lung, ran along the ribcage and then under the skin, exited, and entered and lodged in a hind leg just above the knee joint. This went through a lot of organ and bone.

This bullet still weighed 210 grains on my powder scale.

I have another just like it from my wife's .338/06 that went through both shoulder blades of a buck and lodged under the skin.

[SUNNYD]

My thoughts...

I currently have a 7MM Browning Stainless Stalker with Zeiss 3-10 scope that I purchased last year and after an extensive sight in process this year I can now group 3-4 shots at 100 yards in a circle the size of a quarter.

I am not going to go out on a limb and say its the most accurate weapon I have ever owned but it lends itself to versatility. My Ruger M77 .270 has a 1.5-4.5 power scope on it that hasn't needed adjustment in over 7 years and on the range this year I put 3 shells through it and you could fit all 3 inside a nickle.

The .270 may be a better choice for deer, but the 7mm lends itself to w much wider array of wild game in my opinion, but that is just what it is...an opinion.

Lots of load choices in both and can be found almost anywhere.

Take care!

[captkev]

This isn't the picture I was looking for, but close.

The one I was thinking of Fred was drawn back on a huge Griz, he was on one side of a rock the bear on the other.

For those who didn't know, this is Fred Bear.

The point is, Know your limitations and make your first shot the last shot.

[FOOT]

Captkev, your post says it all..

"The point is, Know your limitations and make your first shot the last shot"

Cobb73, I would take a trip to a dealer like Ahlman's in Morristown MN and try both a 30.06 and a 7mm Magnum. Both have the power you want and the versatility of various loads. I've shot both and wouldn't be hesitant with either.

Just make sure you are confortable with whatever caliber and rifle you purchase. If it's kick is too great or the stock doesn't fit well you do a disservice to you and the animal.

[GoBIG]

My vote is for the 30.06. I have shot this gun for a couple years now and very impressed. More than enough knockdown for whitetails. I have the Remington 700, with the stainless barrel and a scope. Very ACCURATE.

[TUMBLEWEED]

A question. Do you handload?? If so, the 300 Winny could

be the gun for you. There are tons and tons of loads

for these things. Everything from woodchucks to brown bear.

They are flat shooting and hard-hitting rifles. Without the aid of a muzzle brake or suppressor, they run about 20%

more recoil than a standard 30.06. Barrel length runs from 24-26 inch for most models,so they are a little bigger and heavier than some other calibers. Also if you shoot a lot

(other than hunting)ie; varmiting or benchrest target,

the barrel life is longer than say, a 7MM Mag. The 300 winny is also available in most rifle companie's line-ups without the added cost of some of the other calibers mentioned so far. The Weatherbys,Remington Ultras, and Winchester short Magnums will put a little bigger dent in your wallet come feeding time too.

One step below in the recoil and energy department, would be the 300 Winny's little brother, the 30.06. Also tons and tons of proven handloads out there, as well as a large selection of factory loads to boot. Less recoil,very flat shooting make this gun a good all round choice. I would

probably stop short of the really big bears like grizzly and browns.Another good thing about the 30.06, is that it comes in carbine styled,20 inch barrels that are great in the thick stuff.