I see different threads on choosing a rifle cartridge, and wonder how anyone online could ever be of any help to another in such a choice.
It occurred to me that a thread on how different guys make their choices and what the priorities are might be useful
What things do you consider when you've found a rifle that you like, and are making the cartridge decision?
These days my advice would be simple. Get a 223 in a rifle that fits you well. It's the only thing you can get brass for at a reasonable price and they make some pretty good bullets in that caliber. Just kidding....kinda.
Well, a bunch of hog hunters are proving that with the Barnes TSX bullets and similar, the 223 is capable of doing a lot more than many of us gave it credit for all these years. It is going hunting in places and for game that used to be the realm of a 30/06 or a 270 and similar.
My first serious big game rifle when I was 13 was a 30/06. And the only game I hunted for was 120lb Blacktailed deer. No way would I saddle a kid with something so large these days for a first deer rifle, unless larger game was on the near agenda or available where we lived.
As to this thread, Fotis put my thoughts with just one word. Performance. Efficiency, barrel life etc. count for very little for me. Give me mach V speeds with the bullet that is needed to get the job done.
