Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Ever wanted a new rifle but couldn't put the old one down?

I'm never without the urge to buy something new, but

I have a pile of hunting rifles, all common standard and magnum calibers, but want something new, different.

My 3 first picks when I head to the stand are my A Bolt Ti in 300WSM, Sako 75 walnut stainless in 30/06 or A Bolt SS in 270 win, but 97% of the time I catch the 300 wsm.

I want a Christensen Mesa in 6.5 PRC but I am addicted to 30 cal.

Thought about going the Nosler route in 26 or 28 but I shoot quite a bit and the barrel life would be an issue for me.

I've spent more time dwelling on this than if I were buying a vehicle, piece of land or equipment.

It's been my experience that If I have an itch that needs scratching, it will eventually get scratched.

I have built rifles in .350 Rem Mag, 340 Weatherby amongst others on Winchester 70 classic stainless actions on order to satisfy those desires.

That being said, as I get older I am more circumspect when it comes to new builds. I more carefully weigh the benefits vs the costs and will no longer build on a whim, but only after careful deliberation.

Scratch your itch, but If you're like many of us gun nuts I would be surprised if your new toy is in the safe in a year or two.

My .340 Wby Accumark is, and may always be, my main go-to rifle, but I'm picking up a new .6.5-300 Wby in about 50 minutes. Just wanted one for a while, and found a deal.

Wanting something new to play with may or may not be logical, but it is normal. Only time and use will determine if it lived up to the hope you have for it before hand... worst that happens in most cases is it sits in the safe for a while until you sell if for a small (or large) loss and move along. The itch is satisfied either way and you start looking for your next itch. Moving through life doing the same thing with the same tools is safe but boring for most of us- especially when we read on these pages how much fun everyone is having with XYZ cartridge, shooting every critter we ever dreamed of, and seeing pictures of said critters we would love to be shooting also... somebody has to keep all these gunsmiths in business, right?

Bob

Seen a lot of old boys leave a good gal for some old barfly that wouldn’t hold a candle to the one they left. But wimmins ain’t rifles, and that one you been with a while won’t hold it against you if you dally with a new squeeze for a bit. In such cases, variety is the spice of life.

I have a couple of trustys.
Bought three others, have sold one and may the other two.
They're all neat, but I keep going back to the same ones.

Need to quit messing w the gear and put more effort into new places to use what I have.

Very very true. The time and expense of getting a new rifle setup and tuned in; I can buy a decent deer hunt in a Midwest state.

My name is Chad, and I am a gun looney.

And an enabler. BUY IT!

The "IT" is totally up to you, scratch the itch.

Maybe the new rifle will become part of the go to crowd...or end up down the road.

Today I bought a Savage model 114 walnut in 300 Win Mag. I traded an AR-15 for it

Trying to talk myself out of buying a t3 30-06
Hoping it sells before Monday or I’ll probably have to pick it up

Stainless/laminate

Have owned many since I bought my BDL 6mm in '07.

Only other rifle I can remember picking up besides it was an old tombstone safety BDL 243. Hell of a difference!!

I have used a bunch of other chamberings and rifles before the 6mm but I just keep packing it these days.

I have wanted?
But I own a Savage 99

Wanted to buy a Kimber Montana but cant give up blue wood rifles My go to is a 1972 Win 70 Supergrade or my Rem 760

Very well put old wise graywolf..

There was a time when I'd shot so damn much .223 I couldn't stand it no more and passed it on down the road saying "no more".

15 years later I'm now spec'ing a 22CM build 'cause I just gotta have one...

I'm 180 from that. Love the idea if a nice wood/blue but cant give up my Montana

Nope, I always started with something that had the potential to become even better and rebuilt what I already had. I’d gunned a lot of deer with lots of different rifles that I borrowed from a gun guy friend of my dads and honestly I couldn’t tell any difference in how they all dropped over. In fact my first .30-30 deer fell over way better than a bunch that I’d shot with .300 WM, 7mm RM. or a .30-06.

That’s happened over 50 times to me.

I've used my 1989 Rem model 700 mtn 7mm-08 since I got it in '90. Got an armload of other rifles but here in SE Missouri, or NW Colorado, or dead center Michigan, when I go after medium game I always grab it first. Bolt silver and muzzle as gray as mine. Found a early '90's model 70 classic featherweight in the same caliber because I wanted something new. We will see. Ended up deer hunting this year here in Missouri with my old Win 770 in 30-06 I haven't used since the early '80's because the model 70 turned out to be new/never fired and I'm afraid to scratch it. We are a peculiar lot,guess it's why I drive my wife so nuts. She always asks when I get a new gun if now I'm going to be content. I'm only 60. Content with the guns I have? What in hell does that mean?😉

My problem is the opposite anymore. I don't hunt with the same thing at all from hunt to hunt, in rifle, cartridge, or even ammo. I go out of my way to take the most obscure stuff hunting. Thing is, most would call it handicapping, but I keep finding that animals keep dying.