whats your favorite rifle cartridge(s) and why?

The 25-06 is my favorite caliber. It can punch a nice fat hole out the other side of a deer that makes the guys at the weighing scale think you downed it with a 7mm magnum.

Plus made some decent long shots on groundhogs when they were more plentiful. Hit the groundhog anywhere and it aint goin far.
 
Favorite is 22-250, next is 25-06, but then again I love my 300 win mag with the boss.

Why? good question.

The 22-250 is just plain fun to shoot.
The 25-06 is the perfect deer gun. (no tracking required)
The 300 win mag is the most gun in a standard length action.
 
I really love the 7.5x55 Swiss GP 11. For a standard military round it is very impressive and out of my K31 extremely accurate. And it's just a fun cartridge to shoot :)
 
The often under appreciated and under estimated 7mm08. Loaded right there isn't much in the SE USA that you can't do with it.

7mmMag comes close in at 2nd.

30'06 just because it is time tested, available most everywhere and it was my Dad's favorite.
 
Favorite? Hands down, the 22LR. I shoot hundreds of them a month, it is just plain fun to shoot. Favorite hunting cartridge? Still the 22LR. I love hunting small game like rabbits and ground squirrels, and out to 150-ish yds, it is great for dropping them where they stand. Farther than 150 yds, I would say the 223 in a nice little bolt action. Farther than 300 yds, 22-250. If I need to kill a deer or similar size animal, 7X57 does the trick without all the blast and recoil of the larger cartridges.
 
Of the cartridges I've owned or shot I'd have to say .22-250. Being said I've swapped it out for a .243 due to versatility.

I send 10 times more .22lr downrange than all else combined, not out of any particular love for it though. Only cause it's cheap and I don't have to reload. Given deep pockets there's a handful of cartridges I'd take first even for informal can blastin and small game hunting.
 
My favorite would have to be .30-06 because that is what fits in the finest battle implement ever devised, the M1 Garand!! And it has been the family go-to caliber for hunting.

For pure fun the .223 Rem and .30 Carbine are hard to beat and they make good defensive calibers as well. They are cheaper to feed than the .30-06 and mild enough recoil that new shooters can have fun with a center-fire rifle.

If more rifles were chambered for it I would be sorely tempted to choose the 6.5 Swede as my favorite. Fully capable for hunting and yet even recoil shy shooters enjoy it at the range. I have a Swedish Mauser that is not really practical given the sights and all, and I don't want to change it. If I come across a modern rifle in this chambering it might become my new go-to field and woods rifle. I imagine the .257 Roberts is essentially the same in recoil and effectiveness so I can see its popularity, too.
 
.22 LR & .270 WCF. The .22 is my single favorite up to 50-75 yards for plinking / small game, but after that, the .270 gets my undivided attention, as she shoots flat and hits HARD, without ripping into your cheek bone like a left jab from George Foreman. From woodchucks to Moose, a good Bolt action .270 and a decent scope, 130 or 150 grain bullets, it will (and HAS), handle anything in North America. Jack O'Connor gave great advice years ago, and its still solid advice today.
 
My three

7mm RM... .257 Roberts... .222Remington

I have all three and have for almost 40 years... The 7mm RM was a "late" acquisition in 1979... The .257 in 1970 and the .222 in 1968. I tend to be a little "set in my ways"
 
My favorites are:

.22 LR - Lots of bangs for the buck, good for targets, plinking, small game.

.223 Rem - (Have bolt action) Very accurate with handloads, 1/4" groups at 100 yards and barrel heats slowly. It almost always goes to the range when testing other calibers...to shoot while waiting for others to cool.

.22-250 Rem Won many turkey shoots, shot many woodchucks and crows. It's not a barrel-burner with 55 grain bullets at reasonable velocities.

.243 Win My new love child. Had three just in the past two years, gave one to my youngest grandson. I'm very impressed with this cartridge for both long-range varmints and shorter-range deer, which the grandchildren like.

.270 Win - Successor to my long affair with the .30-06. They both get it done, but trajectory of 130 grain bullet pushed at 3,250+/- is really impressive!!!

.30-06 I gave my very nice older Rem 700 to my son and it still shoots under 1" with factory loads...closer to 1/2" with handloads. Fantastic rifle and I still miss it a bit.
 
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In this order:
7.62x51
5.56x45
.22lr

When I go to venture outside of these rifle rounds I can't convince myself what anything else is going to do better for my needs. Semiautos, single shots, and bolts are widely available (normally) in these cartridges and they can do anything that I need/want for the moment.

I also like the 30-06 cartridge but prefer the .308 for the short action.
 
There's a lot of good and favorite cartridges out there,I like flat hard hitting cartridges

For me it will be the 7mm rem mag for its long range flat shooting capabilities,it's also the cartridge I have taken the most game with,from less than 30 yards on out past 500 yards it has always done its job very well.
The 6mm rem and 22-250 rem also hold a favorite spot in my line up and who can deny the 06 and 308 and any of their offspring?
Like I said lots of good favorites out there!
 
My favorite-----.30-30. Why, because it works. My M94 has taken Deer, Hogs and one Elk (Buffalo Bore 190 gr) and it is easy on my shoulder, cheap(was) to shoot and with Leverevolution or Buffalo Bore a pretty good rifle/cartridge combo.
 
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