Can't select good hunting rifle/cartridge

Why not put the money into your 308 SPR build and hunt with that? I hate splitting money to get similar guns. A 308 SPR with an 18 or 20" barrel and a 2-8 BDC scope would be great in the field.....heck, I might build one!.....oh wait, I did, but in 5.56.
 
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You will not ever find your self in 99% of hunting scenarios in America where you will not have enough rifle with a .30-06 loaded with the right bullet for the game you intend to hunt.

You will always find ammunition available, and the handloading versatility of the .30-06 is unmatched.

As a long range cartridge, the .30-06 in a suitable rifle, with bullets that are suitably constructed to reliably expand at the anticipated velocity, and in the hands of a capable marksman is an effective medium, medium/large game killer well beyond 900 yards.

There are flatter shooting, harder hitting cartridges, but there are none more versatile than the .30-06.

With all of the flame throwing that is sure to follow, here is a quote from someone who does such things professionally, and has studied the effects on game at long range with the .30-06. I will include the link to his page for informational purposes, and so as not to take credit for his work.

"The 178 grain A-Max is a hard hitting bullet and can be employed for all-round work on game weighing up to 150kg or so, again, with an understanding towards limitations and shot placement at close ranges on larger animals. On game weighing less than 90kg, the A-Max can be used at woods ranges without fuss regarding penetration. The strengths of this bullet do of course occur at long range and the 178 grain A-Max fragments in a reliable manner, right down to 1400fps (900 yards). The sound barrier and potential associated bullet yaw occurs at around 1200 yards from an MV of 2800fps. BC is .495."

http://www.ballisticstudies.com/Knowledgebase/.30-06+Springfield.html
 
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i was just looking a 3006 factory volicity in a gun magizine from the early 60, and the new .308 is not a 100 fps faster, its the other way around. as i reload i can tell you the .308 will lock up the action if you try to get the same or greater speed out of a .308 than the .3006. if any thing the .308 rifle will recoil more than a .3006 due the the lighter weight with the same weight bullet at the same speed. i have both and load and shoot them for hunting and match. and as good as both are, i use a .260 rem and a 7mm08 more and more out to 300yds, they offer better ballistics with the same weight and speed bullets. i think it will come down to personal choice between rifles other than calibers. eastbank.
 
gman3 said:
You will not ever find your self in 99% of hunting scenarios in America where you will not have enough rifle with a .30-06 loaded with the right bullet for the game you intend to hunt.

You will always find ammunition available, and the handloading versatility of the .30-06 is unmatched.

As a long range cartridge, the .30-06 in a suitable rifle, with bullets that are suitably constructed to reliably expand at the anticipated velocity, and in the hands of a capable marksman is an effective medium, medium/large game killer well beyond 900 yards.

There are flatter shooting, harder hitting cartridges, but there are none more versatile than the .30-06.
Click to expand...

Hard to argue with this logic. In a 26" tube with a 10-20 gr lighter bullet, the 308 is it's equal......I'd be willing to give up some in a 18-20" AR the 2nd shot capability!
 
.270 Winchester

.25-06 (need to select bullets carefully for elk)

7mm-08

.280 Remington

.270 Winchester Short Magnum

7mm Remington Magnum

.270 Weatherby Magnum

If I had to pick two possible choices on that list to narrow it down, it would be .270 Winchester and 7mm Remington Magnum.
 
30-06 is a fine caliber. My father and grandfather hunted all over eastern and central Colorado growing up with an 03a3 and a Mosin Nagant. They took quite a few Mulies and prong horn.

My go to has always been my .270 Win. with 130 grainers there is very little drop at 300 yards and I can dead hold out to 250. I feel like I'm lobbing them a little more with my .308 win.
 
That is a ton of useful info. I really appreciate it. Ive been leaning more towards the .308 as of late because of cost and weight savings. Since i dont reload yet, i think i can not worry too much about the benefits of the 30-06 for reloading.

The .308 seems to be in the lead, both on contiguous ammo for my collection and recoil. Honestly, this is my first hunting rifle so weight it a big selector for me, that and the fact that I have never gone hunting before.
 
Yeah the 308 is a fine round. I still rather have my 358. The extra knock down power and lesser recoil then the magnums is a big plus too. Ammo can be tricky to find but its out there. Very limited models for this caliber, I have a converted Ruger to 358 w/ match grade barrel. I plan on doing handloading though down the road so im not too worried about ammo. That being said you can still buy it at just about any gun shop. Havent seen it at walmart though.
 
I'm a fan of the .308-based cartridges because they do what I need them to do (target/hunting) here (NC).

But if I were limited to a single caliber in a hunting rifle, especially if I were out west and moose/elk were on the menu, the .30-06 would get the clear nod. The .30-06 has the ammo availability of the .308, but it's got more boiler room to push bigger .30 cal bullets faster & farther than the .308.
 
I do like Reynolds357 Logic

A Ruger Hawkeye or model 77 in 30/06 with a Leupold scope will give a lifetime of hunting pleasure, the 30/06 will take any of the larger game animals out to 300+ yds which would be about as far as most people can shoot accurately. I have two of these rifle plus three model 70 Winchesters, you cannot go wrong with a claw extractor!! I can recommend either one, either will do it's part if you do yours!! Good luck hunting!!

If I had to pick between a 308 or 30/06 it's 30/06 hands down, BTW I do not own a 308, however, I own several 30/06's and like everyone of them..

I disagree with Nathan, when comparing a 308 to a 30/06 do so with both rifles having a 22" barrel, my favorite combination is an 30/06 with a 165gr bullet being pushed with 50grs of IMR4064, accurate and a big game getter. A 308 is a good round, it is not as good as or better than the 30/06, don't go there!! William
 
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There is no difference in the .30-06 and the .308 Win? There is substantial difference. At some point in time the logic of no difference has to fall apart. The .308 "is the same as" the .30-06 which is "for all practical purposes" the same as the .300 Win, which "will do anything the .300 WBY will do", which is "practically the same as" the .300 Rum, Which is "almost ballistically identical" to the .30-378."
So, the .308Winchester and the .30-378 are "practically the same.
 
I think part of the equality myth is based upon the performance of the M1 Garand vs the M14. With ammo tuned for those rifles, they are a lot more equal.
For large, heavy, and perhaps dangerous game, you can get 220 grain factory ammo for the 30-'06. You could reload the 308 with 220 grain bullets, but with a slower twist and lower velocity I can't help but wonder if accuracy and bullet performance would be effected negatively with perhaps unacceptable results.
For an all around hunting rifle, the 30-'06 is just more versatile.
The 308 is a little better than the 300 Savage.
 
I've owned 3 Savage .308s with Accu-triggers and they all shot great out of the box. The first one shot so accurately that my son bought two (in different calibers) and 4 range buddies bought another 5. All shot great out of the box.

I still have two of my .308s - one with and one without the Accu-stock - and they both still shoot great. The original Savage shot over 6000 rounds and it finally started to lose accuracy. That was the rifle that I learned to hand load for. I did lots of experimentation with it so it got lots of rounds with different bullets and different powders down the barrel.

With a Savage package deal with scope (make sure you get a Savage with an Accu-tigger not an Axis) you can find a good shooting rifle for a reasonable price. None of my .308 Savages cost more than $800 but none came with a scope.

I also have a Remington 700 but that took a new trigger and a new stock to get into the same accuracy environment as the Savages.

If you aren't into tuning a rifle, I would stick to a Savage or a CZ.
My two CZs also shot great right out of the box but they were slightly more expensive than the Savages.

My CZ 550 in .30-06 cost about $ 900.
 
I've killed many deer with both the .30-06 and .270 Win (and a few other cartridges). The 30-06 was my first hunting cartridge and it served me pretty well for both varmints and deer, when it was my only CF rifle, but after buying a .270 Win, I gave my '06 to my son and haven't looked back.

The .270 (130 grain bullet) is a great cartridge for deer out to nearly 500 yards. What it lacks in bullet weight, it make up in trajectory, especially when sighted in for Point-Blank range (+/- 3") out to just over 300 yards.

That said, you need to buy a rifle with confidence in the cartridge. If you're more confident with a 30-06, that's the one to buy!!!
 
I've had very good luck with Remington slide action rifles. The older model 760 is just as accurate as the current model 7600. The gun shop in our town has 10 for sale on the new & used rack. Most are in 30-06.

MUSSERS Outdoors 717 738 4800​

I mounted a Simmons Aetac scope on my rifle with Millett mounts. The scope has very bright optics and power range is 2.8X - 10X.

Jack
 
I'm in your state; I used to have your issue.
I use a winchester M70 (ted williams) with a 22" barrel in 30-06 for elk and mule deer. I bought a savage 11 in 260 remington with a 22" barrel for antelope, but that was an indulgence.
I think that 30-06 or .308 would both serve you well.
My first 30-06 had a set 4x scope and worked fine for me. My latest has a burris 2x-7x. I love it; it's never failed me.
Given all your requirements, however, I'd say "buy a .308 Savage with a 22" barrel and 3-9x scope."
My reasoning points:
-recoil is less.
-ammo is a bit cheaper which allows for more practice
-the performance difference isn't enough to NOT kill an elk or moose at hunting ranges; just hit your target in the right place
-Short action and short barrel makes for lighter and easier humping up/down hill for 6 hours on a hunting day.
-3x-9x magnification on your scope is good enough for any shot taken within the effective range of a .308.
-the accu-trigger on the savage is lovely.

Good hunting; please don't kill my elk this fall!~
:)
 
I will strongly disagree that a 7mm kicks just a bit more than a 30-06

I have been shooing 06 a lot, shot the 7mm before I sold it, I remembered why I never shot it more than I needed to sight it in.

I have shot 338 WM, 375 HH and the 7mm is by far the worst.

Not that its not a good caliber, just not a fun one to shoot much.

Frankly I would be split between 308, 270 and the 30-06 with a bias to the 30-06 just because its such a great cartridge with wide capability.
 
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