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Yeah, I agree, but for me the "perfect hunting rifle battery" is pretty much impossible to limit to four chamberings anyway, and I'm a fan of having mostly "common" calibers in there, with the ol' .375 H&H being a near-universal DGR chambering. Ruger's .375 has grown in popularity in that niche, but it hasn't yet outpaced the H&H in the places where DGRs are actually being used in the field: Alaska & Africa - which again raises the specter of ammo-availability.
The problem with that list is the 300mag and .375 H&H give way too much overlap. First, the .375 can be loaded with all manner of lighter bullets sent fast with less pressure (I've played around reloading 200gn-225gn bullets in my .375 BRNO 602 with great, flat-shooting accuracy). Second, a .30-06, with the right powders, can be loaded pretty close to lower .300 mag velocities anyway. If more power is needed on game, I'd just grab the .375.
So for me the Big 5 chamberings (if including rimfire) would be:
22l.r.;
223/5.56 (heavily invested in rifles, ammo, reloading equipment & components - brass, bullets, powder);
30.06 (again same: heavily invested in it) - although the .308 would be a legit 30-cal substitute if hunting is restricted to the lower 48;
.375H&H (Alaska & Africa);
404 Jeffrey (Africa - admittedly not as "common" as the .458WM, but it's the most classic and 'nostalgic' of the 40-cal African magnums, and it's what I have already ).
Or, if the .22-rimfire is excluded and only centerfire calibers make the list, then those are the Big 4.
I would throw a 30 cal in there for big body deer but yeah.
Yeah, I agree, but for me the "perfect hunting rifle battery" is pretty much impossible to limit to four chamberings anyway, and I'm a fan of having mostly "common" calibers in there, with the ol' .375 H&H being a near-universal DGR chambering. Ruger's .375 has grown in popularity in that niche, but it hasn't yet outpaced the H&H in the places where DGRs are actually being used in the field: Alaska & Africa - which again raises the specter of ammo-availability.
Midway USA came up with a set of rifles raffled off a while back called "The nearly perfect Rifle Battery".
It was a set of model 70 Super Grades in the following cartridges
22-250
.270 win
.300 win mag
.375 HH
If you add a 22LR to that you are set for anything. You can hunt the big 5 in Africa with the .375 HH and 350 gr pills.
The .300 win mag for moose/Brown bear etc.
The .270 for deer /antelope
And a 22-250 for varmints or smallish - small/medium game.
And 22LR for really small game.
The problem with that list is the 300mag and .375 H&H give way too much overlap. First, the .375 can be loaded with all manner of lighter bullets sent fast with less pressure (I've played around reloading 200gn-225gn bullets in my .375 BRNO 602 with great, flat-shooting accuracy). Second, a .30-06, with the right powders, can be loaded pretty close to lower .300 mag velocities anyway. If more power is needed on game, I'd just grab the .375.
So for me the Big 5 chamberings (if including rimfire) would be:
22l.r.;
223/5.56 (heavily invested in rifles, ammo, reloading equipment & components - brass, bullets, powder);
30.06 (again same: heavily invested in it) - although the .308 would be a legit 30-cal substitute if hunting is restricted to the lower 48;
.375H&H (Alaska & Africa);
404 Jeffrey (Africa - admittedly not as "common" as the .458WM, but it's the most classic and 'nostalgic' of the 40-cal African magnums, and it's what I have already ).
Or, if the .22-rimfire is excluded and only centerfire calibers make the list, then those are the Big 4.
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