New Shooter/Hunting Rifle Advice Needed

A

Aiko

New member
Hello all

Background-been shooting pistols for 17/18 years. Took up rifles via AR15 about 2 years ago, I have no hunting background.

I am planning on buying my first bolt action rifle. Use-Range: 70% and 30%large hog hunting (on friends propery).

I will probably spend more more time on the range, I try to shoot one a week. I care @ ammo prices but will not let them dictate my rifle choice.

What I have come up with so far whic is the easy part I think:

First
.270
.308
30-06

I am leaning towards the .308 and .270.


Question, does a gunsmith need to install a muzzelbreak if I want one? Would my 14 year old be able to shoot these rounds?

Second

I am initially liking the Savage rifiles with Accutrigger. Is there any major issue with a magazine loaded bolt rifle or not?


Thanks allowing a newbie to ask questions.
 
Get a bolt action that fits your budget in .308 and a Leupold scope. Savage is an excellent budget rifle. I find no issues with my magazine loaded Sako A7 in .308.
 
Those are some really good choices. I personally am a huge fan of smaller caliber rifles but alot of people are not. The 30 06 would be a fine choice. However have you ever concidered a 7mm rem. It beats a 308 hands down as ballistics go. I do not own one myself and went with a fn spr with 20 inch barrel ( 308 ) and that is my large rifle used for longer distance. I rarely take it hunting as i find it to be over kill..but to each his own :)

Oh and dont worry. people who know alot more than i do will probably be here shortly bud :)
 
If you're only going to have one hunting rifle then .30-06 is a bit more versatile. With lighter bullets there's not a nickel's difference in any of these caliber rounds, with heavy bullets, hunting bigger game like a bear, moose or elk, the heavier bullets are better and the '06 can handle bigger bullets better than the others.
Depends on the 14 year old, if they can shoot a 12 ga shotgun then they can easily handle a bolt action in any of the posted calibers.
 
Welcome to the rifle world!!!!!!!

First, IMHO, you don't need a muzzle break for any of the calibers you listed.

Their recoil is least to worst in the order you listed them so if you are really concerned about recoil go with the .270. If the .270 recoil bothers you, consider the .243 which is even less and still more than adequate for the hogs you mentioned.

Your 14 year old should also be able to handle the .270 and .308 recoil.

Personally, I am NOT an accutrigger fan. I have always used standard triggers and to me the accutrigger feels "creepy". But as someone new to rifles, you may love it. Before you buy, go to a "real" gunshop which will let you feel the trigger break before you buy. Most of the big box gun stores (Bass Pro and I think Cabelas) have those trigger lock things installed which don't allow you to feel the trigger break or feel the true "length of pull" on the rifle you are handling.

One final thought is a good .22 for you and your offspring to start shooting a rifle. The ammo is cheap and there is zero felt recoil. I wouldn't try to use it on a hog but it is a great paper punching tool and a great small game getter.

Again, welcome to rifles and have fun shooting them.......:)
 
First, let me say I'm not a fan of the .270.
If you intend to do most of your shooting at targets, I'd go with the .308. Throughout my youth, I was an absolute 30/06 addict and nothing else was worth carrying. Maturity has opened my mind and I own and use several .308 rifles. The 30/06 is still superior with 180 grain and heavier bullets.
Regarding the muzzlebrake, you'll need to have the muzzle threaded unless you buy one of the prethreaded Savage rifles. I've used rifles with muzzlebrakes and they are much louder than those w/o. Here again, Savage makes or used to make a rifle with a switchable on/off muzzlebrake.
The only issue I see with a separate magazine is the possibility of losing or forgetting the mag at some point.
 
If pigs and targets will be the only targets, 243Win would be my vote.

As far as the rifle goes, lots of good options out there. I would try the accu-trigger first though before you buy. I don't care for it myself.

But check out Remington, Savage, Ruger, Wheatherby, Browning, CZ, ... lots of options.
 
The .308 Win. is the best choice for your interests. Easy availability and low cost whether you reload or not, plus versatility and manageable recoil with great accuracy.

Besides the Savage, I've heard good things about the new Mossberg 4x4 rifles, though have never handled one myself. Howa makes a very nice rifle for the money as well.
 
if you are hunting hogs get a semi auto and a scope that lets in a lot of light for night hunting. i use a remington 7400 .270 with a 4-16 x50 truglo with illuminated reticle and laser genetics mounted on it. I like the remington but if i had to do it again I would get a browning BAR from CDNN investments for $699. if you are shooting hogs get a gun that shoots .308, it is is the cheapest game caliber to shoot and it lays hogs out. you can shoot more expensive more powerful cartridges but at hog ranges it isnt necessary.
 
Here's one that does like the Accutrigger, and I do like my Savage 116. Very accurate rifle. Of the 3 calibers mentioned by the OP, I agree on the .308. Also agree he should look at smaller bores in that family, but you won't find the cheap ammo. Can his 14 year old shoot the .308? Depends. A couple recent threads complained about hard-kicking 30-06's, and the .308 won't be much different. A .243 or 7mm/08 will certainly do the job. Maybe find a friend or instructor and let the young man try a few with a .308 or similar.
 
For hunting deer?

What bolt action rifle?

One you can afford to practice with.

The best values are on the consignment racks after Christmas and before April 15th...... you can often pick up a good bolt gun with decent glass on it for less than $400 ........ it may not be the "Newest in New", but I'll bet dollars to doughnuts it shoots better than you can hold in field positions....

If you handload (and I don't understand why everyone does not), caliber is nearly irrelevant..... nearly any modern centerfire bolt gun with a servicable scope will put a bullet in a deer's boiler room at anything under 300 yards, if the shooter does his part.

If you don't handload, then you need to pick something that makes practice ammo affordable: a common caliber such as .243, .308, .270, 30-06........ unless you are made of money, in which case get Jeeves to load you up some practice ammo!
 
alexander arms 6.5 grendel its an ar-15 style rifle. its capable of 1000 yd shots.

*EDIT* i forgot you said bolt action *facepalm* *EDIT*
 
Would my 14 year old be able to shoot these rounds?
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I took three grandsons out this weekend to let them shoot the deer rifles. I had a Savage bolt and a Remington bolt, both in .308. Plus a single shot .30-30. The grandsons are 9, 11, and 12. All handled the .308 easily. They've been shooting rimfire rifles for years, but wanted to step up and hunt deer this year.

All three kids were initially leery of the supposed recoil, but after firing a couple of shots each they weren't concerned about it. Indeed, they clamored for more. I believe that they would have fired my entire ammo supply if I had let them.

The .308 is a fairly mild hunting round and is found in a variety of platforms. I don't think that a 14 year old boy should have any trouble at all handling that cartridge if he's properly schooled in what to expect before it happens. I'd get the kids set up on the bench, then spend a few minutes familiarizing them with the rifle, showing how to operate the bolt, getting them stable on the bench and letting them look through the scope. We dry-fired the rifle a couple of times to let them learn the trigger, then handed them a cartridge and let them squeeze off a shot. Bingo! Instant exuberance.

Question, does a gunsmith need to install a muzzelbreak if I want one?
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If the barrel is not already threaded for a brake, then yeah, a gunsmith should install it. I don't think that you'll want a brake on your rifle after you put a half-dozen shots through it. None of the rounds you mentioned has enough recoil to require a brake. I have seen guys shooting smaller calibers with brakes, but that was simply a personal choice for them. If you want one, then have a gunsmith install it.
 
The 308 or 270 will have a bit less recoil than a 30-06. Inexpensive ammo is readily available for all 3.

A muzzle break is not necessary. There are low-recoil factory loads available from Federal and Remington if needed.

A good recoil pad helps a lot. The pads on new synthetic stocks are a lot better than the hard things they used to put on buttstocks. Wearing a jacket or heavy shirt while shooting makes a lot of difference compared to wearing a t-shirt.

A heavier rifle will have less felt recoil. That doesn't mean you need a heavy barrel. With most synthetic stocks, it is easy to remove the recoil pad to add weight to the stock. The Howa rifle with the Hogue stock might be the heaviest standard-weight rifle you'd find, and the recoil pad is probably pretty good.
 
I would recommend the 270 myself.


Question, does a gunsmith need to install a muzzelbreak if I want one?
I would venture a guess and say yes you need a gunsmith to do it.

Would my 14 year old be able to shoot these rounds?
I would say that if you got him used to shooting a 223, a jump up to 270 would not be a terrible concept. he may flinch at first but it'll be a lot less than if he started with the larger caliber.

Second

I am initially liking the Savage rifiles with Accutrigger. Is there any major issue with a magazine loaded bolt rifle or not?
not to my knowledge, semi autos have used box mags for years and though it's more of a complaint since there is always tension on a semi bolt and there is not on a bolt. if you have a fail to feed on a semi there is a spring that forces the bullet against the front of the receiver and wont let the round drop or rise to where it lines up with the chamber. with a bolt gun if that happens all of the tension is controlled by your hand so you can loosen up just a little and allow that round to rest in it's naturally straight position and continue feeding. any gun can malfunction but a bolt is the easiest to troubleshoot feeding issues with.

Thanks allowing a newbie to ask questions.
your welcome
 
Guys

Thanks very much for taking the time for your thoughts. Leaning towards the .308, just need to handle a few to see what feels good within the recommended brands here. I have a 10/22 and a couple of AR's that my son shoots just fine, was not sure how much more the recoil would be for him over the .223/5.56. Just green as can be with bolt actions.

Scope

I have a Redfield Revolution 4-12x40 on one of my AR's and really like it, has a pretty long eye relief and allows be to get some pretty tight groups with decent ammo @ 150 yds. Another one of those do the trick for group shooting @ 200 (and maybe some 300 yds) along with the hog hunting? The other scopes I have heard good things about in the $200-$300 range are the Nikon scopes. Any specific suggestions?

Thanks again
 
There are some good deals on scopes right now. Guess there usually are if you look around.
Bushnell 4200 3-9 at Cabela's, Nitrex TR1 at Natchezss. These are both discontinued, discounted models. Nothing against the Redfield, but either of these should be a step up.
 
I also love the AccuTrigger. And Marlin is making rifles with what is essentially an AccuTrigger now too but I don't know if they have put them on centerfires or not. I liked their trigger better on a .22 I tried. But Savage makes excellent rifles. IMO they are very hard to beat compared to any production rifle. Others are about as good but they generally cost more.

I also love the single set trigger used by CZ, Sako and others. You can get an 8 oz. pull without changing anything except adjusting the trigger on a CZ. Savage sells triggers that will go down to 6 oz. but I have one and the sear block kicks in every time I close the bolt. Realistically 12 oz. is about the best it will do and still work. But that rifle is very accurate as are most Savages. So are a lot of rifles really but I just think there's no reason to not get a really good trigger these days. IMO the single set trigger is the best I've seen from the factory but there are better triggers around. You just have to buy them separately. I've been shooting for 48 years and in the past decade triggers have been much improved over my first 4 decades of shooting. But there are rifles that still use old designs and they still work the way the old designs work. I'd get a new design if I were you. They do make a difference.

Your son might well be able to handle any of the calibers you mentioned. It really depends on him. I know adults that won't shoot a 30.06. But I was 6 foot tall and weighed 160 lbs. when I was 14. That's about the age I shot my first 30.06 too. It didn't bother me at all.
 
I have a 10/22 and a couple of AR's that my son shoots just fine, was not sure how much more the recoil would be for him over the .223/5.56. Just green as can be with bolt actions.
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Those rifles have virtually zero recoil. If you get a light, bolt rifle in 308Win, it's gonna kick like a mack truck "comparatively".

But with a good recoil pad and proper technique, it shouldn't be a problem.

I still say 243Win though.
 
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