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I'm nearing 60 and still hunt with the same rifles (270, 6mm Rem, and 358 Win) that I've had for 40+ years. The 270 is a Ruger tanger and the stock feels kind of 'clunky' compared to some others so it sees less time in the woods than it used to. But it still snaps to the shoulder and the target is right there in the scope.

Then there's my 88 year old dad, he still hunts with the same Savage 99 (in 300 Savage) that he's had since about 1960 or so.

Dale

I love owning and hunting with different rifles. I do not like to be stomped upon for the purpose of killing game animals. In my Area of Operation, game animals up to the size of elk and black bear can legally be taken with the 270 WCF and larger. My favorite hunting cartridge is the 7mm/08. I have no doubt that it will cover the above application. That said, I have killed a fair amount of whitetail deer with the 243 WCF and the 6mm Rem. I Have used the 6.5 Grendel and the 257 Roberts. My favorite pig hunting cartridge is the 338 Federal, but if I had to build myself a rifle for my old age, it would be something closely resembling a Remington 700 Mountain Rifle chambered in 7mm/08. It would be threaded, so I could attach a suppressor, and other than that, I know how to keep my knife sharp.

I turned 77 a week ago. Have had a Savage Axis in .243 for a couple of years, with an old 3-9 x 32 Bushnell. A lot lighter and handier than any of my older rifles.Really like the magazine for in and out of the vehicle. With some old semi-point nosler 100 gr partitions at 3150+ with 46.5 RL26 should handle any deer, bear,coyote I will run into. Don't do much scattergun any more but my only shotgun is an 870 express 12ga. The forend looks like a chunk of 4x4 that was fitted and sanded a bit before the finish was applied. Sure miss the old corncob pattern. I think a nice trim 20 ga is in my future.

I'm 60 and I recently bought a 416 for the next africa trip. My last deer was shot with a 9.3mm. I'm saving the 6.5 m-s carbine for my 90s. Something must be wrong with me.

I approve this message! memtb

Guess i am a sucker for punishment, I still shoot them all from 450 Howell to 45-70 #1 405 Win. just not as much as I used to, mostly because I can't find an excuse to hunt with my bigger guns more than a couple of times each season, and I have been messing around with the 6.5 PRC and 6.5 Creed, But when I boil it all down to what is a handy, every day all round jeep gun it's my ar-15 .223 or one of my .243 A.I. for anything but pigs I lean heavy on my .243 A.I. I haven't found anything that will out shoot my .243 A.I. for me, but you never know what will come up in the future I am only 82. Rio7

Yeah, but, uh, that's all they had back then.

(That is truly a beautiful rifle.)

Tom

I’ll be 69 in a few days. I haven’t started hunting with a .223 yet but my .300 Win Mag is shooting 155 gr Scenars or A-max at 308 velocity instead of 180 Partitions. This may be just as much because of a torn rotator cuff as age. Waiting until after hunting season to get it repaired.

I'm 78 and believe some rifles handle recoil better than others. My 9.3x62 is a real pleasure,but I just shot a 308 that I just finished and I'm impressed. First 308 that I've owned. Anymore I don't need anything bigger, but I have them.

Good grief there's a lot of Old Farts on this board!!

And to think that at the tender young age of 59 I chose the moniker "Gun Geezer"!! I suppose I was just ahead of my time.

I'm down to a 300H&H for my "big gun" and I have it loaded down a bit. After that it down goes to a couple 308s, 280, 275Rigby, 257Rob, 6CM and a couple 22 CFs.

I did the med bore thing for 20yrs. A few 375magnums and various 35s made that list. I just got tired of of the recoil, heavy rifles and added expense. I don't live in a place where there are great bears and a moose tag is rare so what I have is more than enough.

Another 67 year old here...must have been a good model year. I got away from the big magnums a couple decades ago but I was shooting them more for the learning experience than hunting though I did kill a deer or two with the real 300 Win. Mag.....way overkill. I never drank the 308 or 30-06 Kool-Aid and doubt I ever will. I'm still hunting with one of the 40 or so cartridges I've been using the last 30 or so years. From my 45-90 Shiloh Sharps down to a 1903 Mannlicher/Schoenauer in 6.5 X 54. I have a 7 X 64 Brenneke I like and I have several 8mm, 9mm and a couple 9.3's in various guises, none of which I load remotely close to hot. Most rifles are fed a good cast bullet load ranging from around 1600 fps to 2200 fps for smokeless rounds. BP cartridges run around 1200 fps with heavy for caliber bullets. 360 grs. for my 11.15 X 60R, 410 grs. for my 40-70 and 480 grs. in the 45-90. Sooo...I guess, so far at least, I haven't changed anything. Dad always said variety is the spice of life and I guess the apple didn't fall far from the tree.

I'm 63 and my all time favorite rifle is my push feed Model 70 Featherweight 7x57 I got in 1984 or '85. It has a 1980's vintage Burris 4X scope in 2 piece bases and rings. I find I carry it WAY more than any of my other rifles and it will always be my "go-to" hunting rifle for the rest of my hunting days. Eventually it's going to my son's oldest boy who just turned 7.

As I age, I enjoy my milder rounds more and more. .257 Roberts and 7mm-08 get out of the safe more than the .30-06 and larger rounds

I am coming onto 60 years. I never owned a magnum rifle. My "big gun" is a 30-06 bolt. Then I step down to a Marlin 336a 30-30 and a Marlin 44 mag.

I hunt squirrel (22lr), woodchuck (222 Rem) and whitetail deer ( above rifles) in Maine ( woods hunting). I don't need super-heavy , max-velocity loads.

Don't forget the option of throttling back muzzle velocity, or reducing bullet weight of any mid- bore chambering. My 30-06 bolt is really a 308 Winchester in disguise. As I get older, they may look more like a 300 Savage. No need for me to "caliber down.". I have plenty of options with what I have, for many shooting years to come. That also includes cast bullets, and a .50 caliber flinter. Bring on old age. I will be able to shoot one way or another.

I haven’t reached the point of backing-down in recoil levels .....yet! I’m getting ready to build a load for my Marlin Guide Gun, using a 430 grain cast bullet. The velocity goal is somewhere around 1800 to 1900 FPS. I’ve heard it may recoil a bit! memtb

My hunting rifle for this year is going to be my win 94 30-30.
Hunting in Eastern Washington in pine-covered hills and don’t need more rifle.

Forgot to add, before he downsized to the Mighty -08 I turned his .30-06 into a .308 using Varget and 150 grain Accubonds.




P

Working on a load for the old custom FN .270 I picked up a while back. Have one with 130gr ABs over a mere 58gr of H4831 that'll do, but want to try some 150gr Hornady Interlocks as well. Shooting for about 2700, guestimated, with those, plenty for anything I need to do, and easier on the barrel and brass. The somewhat stylized stock on the FN makes recoil feel pretty soft. Still, one of my 6s or my Grendel, will get the majority of field time simple because they're all a lot lighter. The FN will be nice to look at while I'm sitting on a log.

I’m 69 and CAN still shoot the big stuff but don’t have any need. Can’t run up and down the hill for miles. I haven’t shot more than a 30-06 for 5 years or so