Well, I actually started this thread so... I had to make my call early! After reading some of what you guys have or wish you had, it's more confusing than ever.
I said my M700 in 30-06, with a 2.5x8 VX-III, shooting the 165-gn TSX. Mine was formerly a Mountain Rifle but I had it rebarreled by PacNor to a 22" sporter profile barrel, but I kept the MR stock and just widened out the barrel channel a little.
However. I just bought, which means we are in the honeymoon period, a Kimber 8400 Montana in .325 WSM that is just a spectacular rifle. 300 WSM would probably be the more logical choice, but whadaya gonna do; I like oddball calibers! Ammo availability aside, it's a great rifle and would do anything I need to do, and then some.
But in truth I am a gun nut and have a number (ahem) of different rifles for different situations. My main deer rifle, since I hunt blacktail in the PNW jungle, is a Model 7 rebarreled to .358 Win. Killer rifle, literally. Just seriously puts deer down. And I have a .338 WM that is my primary BOLT elk rifle, or was until I bought the Kimber. I also have a .325 WSM Browning BLR that I carried all season for elk and my idea is to get set up with ONE LOAD for the two WSM's and then retire the .338 for a while, and use the two 325's for all types of elk hunting.
I'm very tolerant of recoil and love my .338 and .325's. I chose the 30-06 because in my original post on this thread, I mentioned that someday, as I age, I might not be able to tolerate the recoil of the .338 and in truth, the '06 (or your .308) will kill anything the .338 will.
-jeff
Last edited by Jeff_Olsen; 11/20/07.
