Like many a young man, I did not fully appreciate how smart my Dad was. A couple of years before we moved to Alaska Dad bought a new old Mod. 70 Westerner in .264 Win. Mag. with the slender 26 inch barrel. He used it for mule deer and antelope in Montana and Wyoming and on fox during the Iowa winters.
When we came to Alaska in 1965 he brought his .264 and a pre 64 in .375 H&H, a .300 Savage Mod. 99 and a fixed up Springfield 03A3 ought six. I used the ought six and Dad stuck with the .264 Winny and 140 grain Partitions driven by a case full of surplus H4831. Dad had complete faith in the rifle and load and that was that. He could see no use for any thing bigger. But, he did say even though he knew he could take a big bear with the .264 the ought six or .375 were better suited for the task at close quarters.
Where does it end and begin with the .264. the .270. the 280, the .284, etc. That's with out all the different case dimensions to factor in. Ya got me, and with the right bullet in the right place at the right impact velocity and depending on whether the critter is inhaling or exhaling and how tough that individual critter is compared to others of it's species, only the critter knows!
If one runs into the "Chuck Norris" of a critter species then all bets are off, I mean why else do we carry extra ammo, ain't because we ever miss or get poor shot placement!
