I'm taking a 338-06 deer hunting to one of the ABC islands this year. 225 Accubonds at 2720 fps. All shots are short range.
I hope you’ll post the story of your hunt when you get back. I’m hoping to do that myself within the next several years. 👍. I gotta get the big boat up north first then I’ll spend a few years concentrating on the bucket list stuff.
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This has been my experience as well. (Although not on nearly as many deer) My buddy hunts with a .338wm on admiralty and I've seen that tear volleyball sized holes in those little blacktail.
What bullet?
I believe it was a Core-lokt, so admittedly not a great bullet. Either way, it was clearly one designed to break apart upon hitting something hard (the front shoulder) but out of the 338WM it was moving fast enough for some of the shrapnel to exit out the other side. I keep showing him my small exit wounds with the monolithic bullets and I think I'm finally getting his attention.
Swamplord,what is your scope choice and what does your rifle weigh?
mike r
I have a number of long range rifles in cartridges I developed for that purpose Scope I use and prefer is the Nightforce ATACR 5-25x 56mm but I also have Sightron Slll 4-24x scopes, the Burris XTR2 3-15x are on my usual wildcat guns for everyday gen. hunting use from rock throwing distance to 1k as they are all on 20 moa Nightforce rails and super tuned up with handloaded ammo
my factory guns in 7.82 Warbird, 30-378 Wby, 300 RUM, 340 Wby, 8mm Rem Mag, 300 Wby, 300 Win Mag all have the Burris Veracity 3-15x scopes
theres many others ... older stuff I've had for a bit with Burris Signature, Black Diamond scopes and Bushnell Elite 4200 scopes...... all 4-16x and all sit on 20 moa rails for max effective range capabilities , I absolutely abhor going in the field hamstrung and limited to rock throwing, pizzing on the fence ditances
most rifles have 30-32" barrels & weigh 12-16 lbs, except the factory guns which have 26" barrels (24" a few) .. weight varies from 7-12 lbs or so
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Like you, I've had lots of time on the winter trail by dog team and snowshoe, and thousands of miles of river by freighter canoe, to THINK, with rifle in hand.
Now I've tried the one gun thing, didn't even last 8 months.
30 mph winds in open winter country, my rifle had to be short and light. Any longer than 40 inches, it wouldn't fit my dogsled scabbard. Had to be moderate recoil for good practice at extended range. Had to be good for long shots on winter Caribou and have some gusto for spring bear:
338RCM carbine.
On the rivers, i need the big, rut-charged bull moose ANCHORED on dry hround, not seconds later in a swampy oxbow, or dead in the river.
Phil, The ole nine three was in the freighter canoe this season. An original Oberndorf sporting Mauser made in 1922. It was stoked with 300 grain A-frame/60 grains RL 16 handloads .
I’m a 30/06 who*e. And love the 168 ttsx. But if there were things on the menu that want to eat me. I’d be bringing my 9.3 with 286 partitions. The 250 accubonds shoot as flat as 180 out of 06. But with little more authority
All of them do something better than the 30-06, but none of them do everything as well.
I’m a 30/06 who*e. And love the 168 ttsx. But if there were things on the menu that want to eat me. I’d be bringing my 9.3 with 286 partitions. The 250 accubonds shoot as flat as 180 out of 06. But with little more authority
Good point. Also, 270 TSXs out of a 375 H&H shoot as flat as a 180 out of a 30-06.
[quote=mainer_in_ak]Phil, The ole nine three was in the freighter canoe this season. An original Oberndorf sporting Mauser made in 1922. It was stoked with 300 grain A-frame/60 grains RL 16 handloads .
How are you keeping your wood/blue rifles so gorgeous in alaska? i thought it rained 20hrs/7 there, ha?
Jim, I don't mind wood handles on axes or guns. Nor do I give a sht about occasional rust from things getting used. I'm not near a salty environment.
The woodstove is real dry heat, and warms up the steel and wood. A silicone rag on a gun warmed by the woodstove overnight ain't too bad.
Same with axes, dry them near woodstove and wipe them down with linseed on ah cloth. The stove is my only heat source, so might as well warm up bath water and and keep the Dutch oven full o moose n whole taters too.
Guns begin looking rough after 2 or 3 years, but they never stop shooting straight. A new finish isn't too big of a deal.
Axes and hatchets, same thing, need to fit ah new handle every two years.
Chris I have a Stihl hatchet that was gifted to me. I’ve become very fond of it. It takes a nice edge, handy, fits easily in a pack, cuts nicely, and fits an Estwing axe sheath. It’s no Grunsfors, but not a bazillion dollars either.
If you take the time it takes, it takes less time. --Pat Parelli
American by birth; Alaskan by choice. --ironbender
Iron, Spot on! That 600 gram Stihl hatchet is a good one. It was forged by prandi of Italy, and fitted with an ash handle. I believe it is c45 steel. I run one as well for knocking spruce bows off trees on the trail. I've even hewed out a replacement stanchion for the dog sled after an accident that broke the sled. A little thin in kerf for splitting spruce but dmn good for hand work, hewing out tools or sled parts. It NEVER chips in the below zero and holds an edge.
Cwh2, The Stihl line up is a good one. Above the Stihl branded prandi hatchet, it's all Ochsenskopf German steel. Some are fitted with ash handles, and the pro stuff fitted with hickory.
I only like the steel collars on the splitting axes, to protect the handle. So I usually get the Stihl branded splitting axes. They have a stout top plate system too, that uses a long torx screw and a roll pin. I split all my wood by hand, and the head never loosens.
The steel collars and top plate are not needed on the forestry axes, and add too much weight. Also difficult to choke up on them for detailed work with that steel collar.
For that reason, I just bypass the Stihl branded stuff and go right to Ochsenskopf for the hickory handle, minus the steel collar for the forestry axes. I like the 1250 gram one for pounding felling wedges and general camp use.
I am hestitant to answer this thread because I only lived in AK for a few years, and it's looking less likely I'll move back. But what the [bleep]. I think one key factor is that a resident hunter may have the opportunity for multiple species on a given hunt, whereas a non-resident is probably hunting only one species and perhaps has a guide for DLP. I think a two-gun battery is perfect. First, a lightweight mountain rifle for sheep and goat, but with which you're willing to shoot a grizzly. For me, that's 30-06, but others may be OK with 308, 270, 257wea, or one of the newer fast 6.5s. Second, a moose/'bou/bear gun in 300WM, 338WM, or 375Rug.
Oh yeah, nice axes, I should keep an eye out for a Stihl or an OxHead.
Bender, that looks like a handy little hatchet - I'll have to grab one of those. AIH carries them now, so it is nice to be able to check them out in the flesh.
Mainer, agreed on the collars and that's the reason I don't have one of their full-size axes. Appreciate the Ochsenskopf link.
I've been using a "woodcutter universal forestry axe" for a bit now. (https://www.stihlusa.com/products/hand-tools/axes/woodforestaxe/) It falls squarely into the "neither fish nor fowl" category, but has been pretty handy trapping, knocking off limbs, driving tent stakes, etc. They try to make the handle as difficult to choke up on as possible, but it is simple enough to recontour and make it pretty user friendly.
I've been using a couple (gasp!) Fiskars long handled splitting mauls. They are nice in that they are low maintenance, but I'm sure the steel doesn't compare well. They would also suck for driving wedges I'm guessing, but I try not to do that.