Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Lowest recoil, lightest weight, "all rounder"??

What would you pick be for a General Purpose rifle for Varmints to the occasional Elk? I want the lightest weight rifle with lowest recoil. I am thinking the .260 as the "one", but 7-08 is a close contender. Either in a Ti or Montana. The examples of each I have seen shooting are all good. I have a Montana in .308 and like the platform alot. It is a shooter too. Just want one with less thump for the wife and kids.(well me too <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />)

Course don't know about any others? .25-284??

I think the 260 does it. If not for the Elk, a .25 something (Souper comes to mind) would be great too but can't match those torpedo-like 140's. or the Oryx 156's. My 6.5x284 shot the 85 and 100 gr Sierras very well for the varmint side of things.

JimF

.250 Savage (preferably AI'd), .257 Roberts (standard or AI), .25-284, .25-06, .260 Remington, or 6.5x55.

Take your pick; any of those five kick VERY little and flatten stuff.

The LIGHTEST might have to be something like a Ti in a McMillan Edge with a LIGHT taper tube done up in something like a .250AI. That'd about work.

If elk were truly on the agenda, a man could be real happy with the 7-08......

First caliber that comes to my mind is the 25-06.

120 NP for that elk and many lighter bullets for deer on down. Very little recoil, flat shooter, my kids cut their teeth on one which accounted for almost all one shot dead things. Come to think of it, it is the caliber I reach for when deer season gets under way, along with the .270WSM.

Several good choices out there......just my clear choice that answer's all of your concerns. As always.....IMHO.

I chose a Remington Ti in 7mm-08, for just such work.
If I did it again, my caliber would be unchanged - but I'd probably go with the Kimber Montana - based on the quality of what I recieved from Remington, and what I've heard about Kimber.

+1

RH

For years I did it all with a 30-06. 110 gr Speerr Varminters for ground squirrels and muskrats, 165's for deer, and 180's or 190's for the big stuff.

I would much rather compromise on the bottom end and be overgunned for the little stuff, than be undergunned for the big critters.

I find that I am now much happier with a collection of rifles for more specialized tasks.

A Kimber Model 84M in 308 Win. or 7mm-08 sounds like your huckleberry to me, with a strong personal preference for the 308 Win.

I wouldn't try to shoot any kind of mature elk, anywhere, with a 260 Rem.............

AD

Weatherby Ultra Light in 257 Wby. 500 yards on varmints, 500 yards on mule deer, elk at long range with Barnes 115 X. Besides, its way cool to boot.

I'm not an elk hunter but the 257 Roberts comes to mind.

I agree with Idaho Shooter, 30-06 if you handload. My 12 year old son does quite well with reduced loads on all manner of critters and targets. If you do not handload though, then the 7mm-08 would get my vote.

Reguards, Rob

I wouldn't try to shoot any kind of mature elk, anywhere, with a 260 Rem.............

AD [/quote]

But you would with a 7-08??

Is there something that we all should know about 140 gr. 6.5MM bullets?? Like the NP, TSX, Fail Safe, A Frame, TBBC, or the 156 gr. Norma Oryx??

I humbly bow to your experience and all that, but I wonder if maybe the Scandahoovians ought to double check all those "dead" Moose shot with 6.5x55's.

JimF

6.5x55 swede or a 7x57 in a remington mountain rifle would work.

They want a .270cal minimum for elk here... I just bought a Kimber 7-08 to scratch the same itch you speak of.

For the cost of Elk hunting I'd buy two rifles.

One for light stuff, and one for Heavy duty smack down on elk.

I've got a 7-08 for deer and love it, no kick at all.

For elk it's the 300Wizzer or the 358 loaded hot and heavy.

Spot

7mm-08 in something light like a 700 Mountain Rifle.

110-gr HP oads at 2,800 fps for practice and varmints.

120-gr Ballistic Tips loaded at 2,650 fps for mild deer loads good to 250 yards.

120-gr bullets at 3,000 fps for small deer and antelope at long range.

140 and 145-gr bullets at 2,800 fps as the normal loads for deer, bear, hogs, sheep and goats.

154-gr RN for big game (or any game) inside 200 yards.
154-gr SST, Interbond or BTSP for an accurate load with penetration when you might take a longer shot at big game.

But, as said, a 7mm Rem Mag, .30-06 or .444 offers no compromise when stalking big game.

.260 gets my vote for deer or less. Have you tried factory reduced recoil loads in your .308?

pepaw

7-08 of some kind.

It would be hard to beat a LSS Mnt rifle in 7mm-08. Go up to a TI or Kimber if funds permit.