Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters If you could Start ALL over - and ONLY own 1 Rifle + Scope ???

Right Now*: NULA 30/06, SWFA SS 3-9X42. If forced to go production, I'd choose a Remington 700 30/06 in a Ti stock with the same scope.
Pretty boring.
*subject to change without notice.

M-70 classic stainless syn in 375 H&H mag, 2.5-10x24 Nightforce in a set of Talley QD rings firing 270 gr TSX's at 2800 fps with 300 gr Woody solids for any one/thing else.

Gunner

That is a hard one but if I could just have one rifle it would be a custom rifle:
-Ruger action (left hand)
-MPI stock
-ER Shaw Helical Fluted Barrel

Chamber in 350 Remington Magnum wearing a Luepold VX 6 1-6 scope

My New Haven SS Model 70 in 270 WSM in it's Bansner stock w/ Zeiss Conquest 3-9x40 works flawlessly for the type of open country hunting I prefer but my Kimber 84L Select 30-06 w/ Leupold VX3 3.5-10x40 CDS might be more versatile for a do everything gun. Glad I don't have to choose.

It MIGHT be this gun...



LH Winchester M70, custom contour Brux barrel, Legend EDGE stock, metal work by Mark Penrod. Chambered in long throated 7 Rem Mag with long magazine to match. It covers the range from open country antelope to elk in the timber.

But were it my only gun, it would have a sleek, trim wood stock to wear on sunny days.

Tac Ops Tango-51 in 300WM with a Schmidt & Bender 3-12x50 w/ P3 mil-dot

One is impossible... but if I had to pick one that I'm currently enamored with, it would be the new Wby Vanguard Series 2 Back Country in 30-06 (although I'd happily roll with .257 Wby Mag)with a Leupold VX-3 and Talley lows.

a Forbes 24B 30/06 in stainless when they come out.A Zeiss in 3X9X40-42.

I have that combo but not in stainless. Great choice!

Blaser 95 in .308 with Zeiss 3x9. Would extra barrels count against the one rifle?? If not a 22 centerfire and medium bore would round it out.

A Sako Finnlight or Tikka T3 lite, stainless,in .308. The barrel trimmed to 20"s.

Topped with a 2.5-10 Nightforce, in Talley lightweight rings.

I own the T3 version of this and don't know if a Finnlight would be able to touch it,accuracy wise, but I'd give it a solid test to find out.

I know the 20" Tikka and 165 grain Sierra hollow point Game Kings are deadly on elk and deer.

The one I'm going to build.

Stiller Predator
Stiller mounts
#2 fluted barrel, 22in 308 of course
Mickey Edge
Stiller DBM

And since you said one rifle, and didn't say anything about multiple barrels, I have a 24in 7/08 barrel as well, and a Bansner stock (ADL)

Scope(s) would be a 1-4x Super Sniper and a 6x36 with LRD and a target elevation turret.

One I built that I should have kept.

Surgeon RSR in 308 with a palma 95 chamber
Krieger light palma contour @ 20 " threaded for suppressor
Timney trigger
BDL bottom metal
Mcmillan stock in GAP camo
3x9 Leupold MRT with a 168 Drop cam

What a gorgeous rifle, OO! I can see why you like it, and why it fits so well. And the caliber...what can one say? Please know that you never ever have to worry about finding a good home for it should you decide you don't need it anymore. How much does that beauty weigh?

ULA or NULA with a slightly heavy barrel, 20 inches, Talley LWs, Leupy w/ turrets, 7mm 08 or 284 win. Oh, and left hand!

Since I shoot a lot of prairie dogs and also hunt big game, I'm not sure I would/could limit myself to one. Two would probably be a .223 or .22-250 and then probably my Tikka T-3 Lite in .300 mag.

WHEN could I start all over? When I was a boy, and trade my .22 LR Stevens Mod. Favorite with irons I used to plunk woodchucks, for the Rem SA 700 in 250AI with the big scope I now have?? Darn right I would.
Otherwise, I now have 45 startovers, by count.

I've got a Husqvarna built on a FN commercial Mauser action in 30-06. The barrel is between 21 and 22 inches and it is in a Basner stock. It wears a 4.75x Weaver Grand Slam in Talley Lightweights and comes in at a little less than 7 pounds, I think 6.10 the last time I weighed it on the postal scales in my old office. It shoots everything in to nice inch to inch and a half groups...not spectacular by Campfire standards, but good enough. It is hard to imagine that rifle not being able to do just about anything that needed to be done.

Edit, on second thought I think the 6.10 was without a scope. It should weigh about 7.5lbs.

Pre-64 M70, 30-06. McMillan stock.

I get a kick out of the guys in this thread who say "The next rifle I build will be THE ONE!"

I think many of us have gone down that road before. Either we are still searching, or realize we would have been just as well off with something simple a long time ago.