Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles All around rifle to suggest?

+1

Jordan I think you gave me the exact advice in a prior thread - I have to agree after taking your advice. i ended up with a Superlite and loaded up both 129gr Interlocks & 127gr LRX. Both handily shot sun MOA and with both using a load of Hunter powder allows me to simplify components.

Yeah this would be an excellent set-up but good luck finding it.....Hb

They are there, you just have to look hard & be patient, same for Rem 700 Ti's.

MM

Stainless Tikka T3X in 308, 270 Win, or 30-06.

They're getting tougher to find , but they're out there. I just acquired a 7-08 Classic Select a few months ago on GI.

For the rifle, I would find a gently used M700 ADL vintage 1980’s. For chambering I would get a 270 Win. Glass bed the recoil lug area don’t bother with pillar. Float the barrel channel. Have trigger adjusted. Prefer a bolt locking safety model.

Scope mounts Weaver rings and bases but find rings with four screws. Weaver alloy bases or Leupold rifleman bases. No substitutes. Install should include lapping.

Scope Burris Fullfield II with ballistic plex reticle.

Under $1000.

To see any gain will need to spend $3500++ and even then there won’t be much improvement.

Tikka Superlite is other great choice. Same scope but Talley LW mounts.

Lots of good choices in both rifle and caliber. The only think I can add is if you go with a Tikka, I believe they are ALL a long action, so selecting something like a .308 over a .30-06 doesn’t save you anything. Might as well have the ‘06 in that case. Same for the 7/08 vs .280 and on down the line. Verify this first as it might have changed since I last looked at Tikkas.

Sure, it does. It saves you ~10 gr of powder per shot and some recoil.

I thought about a 7mm-08 seriously enough to place one on order. The order got changed to a 308 Win instead and later I came across a 280 Mountain rifle. I'd pick a 280 over a 7-08 any day of the week. Felt recoil will be virtually indistinguishable. Seriously doubt you'll be able to feel 10grs.

I've owned and shot both quite a bit. The difference isn't monumental, but it is noticeable.

A rifle to me is a tool. It functions, or it goes down the road. I do not have rifles for the purpose of stroking them and posting pics.

That being said, it is hard to beat a Tikka for over-the-counter functionality and accuracy. If you think that you want a pretty little wall hanger, then maybe not.

The scope would be the Night Force SHV for sure, or one of many other quality optics, depending on availability.

The cartridge would be a strictly personal choice, as there are plenty within each caliber series. I would give credence to cartridges that are readily available over the counter-if not a reloader. Any popular cartridge will kill more than well enough for the average person-based on ammo/bullet selection. If you look at elk and moose on a regular basis, then I would tend to lean toward the cartridges that handle a bit heavier bullets well.

My choice for the every day hunter would be the 6.5 Creed, .308, 7-08 and then the long action .270 and 30-06.

For the occasional elk and moose, my one-rifle choice would be the 30-06. I have owned and shot the 7 mag for years and it also works well, but magnums are rarely necessary and I am leaning away from the expense and recoil involved in shooting them with regularity.

There is no singular right answer to these discussions. It depends on what you think works best, how much you want to spend on ammo/components and how well you can shoot whatever cartridge that you pick. There are many that will work interchangeably well.

I have gone pretty much to the .260 and 6.5 Creed for my personal choice. They kill above their pay grade, are easy to load for and shoot, and are not real expensive to reload for.

I think a .280 recoils more than a 7mm08. I have both and there is a noticeable increase in recoil when shooting the .280 vs the 7mm08. That's to be expected, since a .280 shoots the same weight bullets around 150 fps faster than a 7mm08.

But neither rifle is a hard kicker, so the difference is not that significant, at least to me.

Pretty solid blueprint. I’d have to go for a Stainless Classic Featherweight but about the same stuff.

OP stated:

Fully agree platform first, then caliber as others have stated.

BUT, many of the calibers mentioned are marginally (or not very) suitable for moose. Heavier bullets are typically required to get the job done at 300 yards or more, so sub .30 cal may not accomplish an ethical harvest. If, and it's a bit IF, they are guaranteed short shot distances, then even a .243 with proper placement gets the job done.


Exactly my setup (less trigger), but I shoot a 7mm Rem Mag. The heaviest bullets at 175-180gr are typically the starting point for 300+ yards shots. I'm agnostic on monolithic copper for moose, but hoping to find out this fall

Flame away.

300 win mag although not necessary. A 30.06 would work along with a bunch of other cartridges. Sako S20 looks good.

Bullet choice matters a whole bunch more than caliber, here.

A stainless chambered for 30-06.

Tikka T3x Superlite in 30-06
Mtn Tac bottom metal
2x extra magazines
NF SHV 3-10x42 or similar

I am really liking the Barnes 175 LRX as a do-everything bullet. Pushed by H4350 in Lapua brass.


Really a “One and done” situation… Go forth and fill arks!

For a single all-around North America cartridge, I’d look at the 280 AI if you reload, the 7 mm Rem Mag if you don’t. If you don’t want the bigger recoil, look at the 30.06. For rifles, like so many have said, the Tikka line is fool proof. If not Tikka, the Bergara is good also. I have a Christensen Arms Mesa that’s very dependable also.

338-06. From 160 gr to 250 gr. Plenty of deer, a caribou, a moose, a brown bear, a zebra, a sable, a bush pig, a bushbuck, a antelope, a waterbuck, many feral hogs etc.
This rifle is pre 64 Fwt '06 bored out original fwt barrel to 338-06.
Bring it on! It flat covers a lot of ground if I do my part!