Some of you boys are overthinking this stuff too much.
At the reload bench, I can make a lot of different calibers fill a lot of different 'gaps' I might perceive, when in reality, its all in our heads.
It's more that just 'some' people who overthink things here. If you were to line up every modern cartridge and eliminate 80% of them, reloading would easily fill the gaps. What that means is, there really aren't any gaps, just a misconception of need. Some of the blame for this falls squarely in the laps of ad men.
But there is more. Sluggishness and lack of knowledge. There are people here who, despite considering themselves to be 'rifle loonies', have never bothered to learn much about the firearms, cartridges and equipment they own. One of the biggest is how to load up or down as required, or changing bullet types - cast, copper, cup and core. That said, fewer people these days want to reload. They don't have the time, or don't see a need. That's a shame. Are they really loonies then?
Still, for the people who do not reload, and have a legitimate reason for not doing so, a 30-06 will do 95% of their work. These folks will find a number of different factory loads available to suit most of their needs.
Then there are the people that own magnum rifles, thinking that they will use them enough to justify the cost, but they just sit in their gun safes, slowly rusting away. That cost often includes the huge cost of factory ammunition.
I think most of the guys on the Campfire have too many guns and not enough opportunity to use them all.
I agree, and many have fallen under the spell of the ad men. Hunters and shooters are targeted, like every consumer, to buy. They cannot do without a Super Short or Compact Magnum, copper or bonded bullets. Everyone knows your odds of success increase substantially using these more expensive bullets or powerful cartridges. Premium bullets have their place, but hunters and shooters should put more thought into their purchases. Do not accept as gospel, the latest Cabelas or Barnes ad.
On the flip side, I got to sit down at a campfire once with a now deceased gunsmith, with some notable fame, Chick Donnely... Chick was one of the last of the guys that trained under P.O. Ackley.
I asked Chick, as a man that could have any firearm caliber he wanted for hunting Elk, deer etc, what were his favorite calibers and choices. His response was from a man of long ago simpler times...
He pulled out his Remington 721.... and as his story went " I bought this rifle at the PX in Japan, when I was shipping home after the Korean War ended in 1953....this is pretty much the only rifle I've used for all of my hunting.... as a gunsmith. I can't tell ya how many barrels have been on this old 721.. but I can tell ya this.. every darn one of them was a 30/06..."
Chick was a smart man. Perhaps a few of the people that read this thread will clue in. This would be the perfect opportunity to quote,
"Beware the man who only has one gun. He probably knows how to use it!".
But I won't.
A post like this is a golden opportunity to remind everyone that they should learn more about the equipment in their gun room. Pick one thing, read about it, and move on to the next topic.
![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](https://i.imgur.com/AP39Jhm.jpg)
