Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 400 yard truck rifle?

Since you mentioned old school, how about something in a .264? The intent of what I guess you could now call a classic round was to reach deer/antelope way the heck out there. Even better with newer powders and bullets.

The driver.

I can't help but think that on a gun short enough to be a truck gun the muzzle blast would be truly memorable.

A bud has an old browning s/s in 7mag. he's had in a leather overhead scabbard for over 20 yrs I think, He's deadly w/ that rifle, never seen him miss. small sandbag on floor board for his mirror and its on.
Deer, coyotes, beaver have all bit the dust from 20 to over 400 yds IIRC.
175 partitions for all.

Muzzle blast isn't important if you keep the muzzle outside the
truck window when you fire.
Good luck!

Get a 257 Roy and cut the barrel to 16 1/4" .It will slip out the window very easy.

Yup. And a truck gun can have a 24 inch barrel if you're a little bit careful.

And rupture your ear drums at the same time...what a deal!

...............My ear drums and hearing is still in perfect condition after several hundred 300 WSM rounds thru my Ruger Frontier, and roughly the same amount thru my 20" barreled 375 Ruger Alaskan. Not to mention another 60 rounds so far thru my new 338-378 Wby Accumark w/brake, plus another several thousand more in the past from over 40+ years of hunting and shooting.

I know it is difficult for a few to understand, but when firing a shorter barreled rifle, just wear some very good hearing protection (range and field) and the ear drums will be fine. Consistently choose not to with ANY centerfire cartridge, even with longer barrels, you`re asking for some ear problems.

Sam, just cruised around Barnes website for first time in awhile. Seems they have .270 Win. data with 85 gr. TSX FB now: 3,900 FPS.

That oughta do it.

Gotta try some in my ol' Mountain Rifle! Of course a long shot around here is 100 yards.

An 85 grain in a 270 is just not right....(grin)

for the longest time i carried my remington 243 varminter h.b. stoked with 70 gr. b tips as my truck gun.
the 87 toyota dash and glove compartment made for a perfect rack. open the glove box, and put the buttstock in, and lay the forearm over the steering column. i also carried a piece of pipe insulation, slit length wise it fit over the window. it makes a great recoil cushion. the easiest way to shoot out the driver's side was to turn the truck to where needed and just grab the side mirror, and fold it in to where needed.
back before "s" series bipods, i had a 9 to 13 incher always on it with the left leg slightly longer to compensate for the slop of the hood, so i could shoot off the hood to the passenger side.

many a memory was made in that truck and with that rifle.
still have the rifle.... and just recently sold the toyota after about 24 years of owning it.

but a 243 with 70 gr bt's gets my vote.

tough to argue with a .243 for a truck gun... even with that, be careful not to crawl the scope, which a lot of guys are prone to do when shooting from the truck...
or so i heard...

and the 25-06 with 100 BTs is bad-azz medicine if your wanting one load for coyotes and deers...

i've yet to run them, but i'm gonna try the .257 90 sierra hpbt as well...
the old 85 bthp was as good as it got in my old .243...

i had my 25-06 built last year, and i'm busted out proud of it...
my 14 yr old, who don't even particularly like it, busted a 520 yd chuck with it this summer... that was with the 75 vmax... it was a 2 shot affair as his first went low...

788, 243 stoked with 85TSX for killin and 70's BT's for play.. Decent handle, Leupold with Dotz and 3 extra magazines..

does yours put the 2 bullets into the same POI at some range???

I have a 22 inch 25-06. It still blows 115 TSX out faster than the book says, not at max either. Not appreciably noisier than my 24 inch 25-06. RL 22 is your friend in 25-06.

Been musing over this thread a bit and admit most of it is lost on me. We seldom see long range shots from roads here in the south and so far as I know taking a whack at something from a vehicle or right of way is almost universally illegal. In Florida it is a felony. Out west probably, down here a .25 Loudenboomer seems a little bit of an odd pick to me, and I am a serious 1/4 bore slut.

That said, I admit to having a truck gun. Standard cab PUs with a bench seat offer a good place to hang a scabbard. The single tupperware stocked stainless rifle in my possession is a 77/44 with a Millett SP1 on the roof. It lived there in my leaky Chebby C10 come rain or shine with a dose of 300 grain paper patch loads good for sub MOA groupage off a rest at 100 yards. Probably good for 200 yards in my hands but unlikely to ever see that test. Cheap, light, small and durable...not caring about wet either 'cause the truck leaked buckets. If anyone had been making a S/S levergun back when I bought this one I'd have probably done that instead.

Odds of me running into a pig back then was greater off the swing shift at a 7-11 than on the interstate, but there were some tigers and other big cats in the neighborhood. Giraffes too...and a rhino.

Sam , find one of those black shadow Winchesters in any of the WSSM cartridges......they will do what you want .

those rifles , new or used are the definition of "cheap" . you can beat hell out of it and no one will care .

due to the super short action , they are shorter with a 22 inch barrel than some carbines....they handle nicely in a pickup cab .

Sam,

If you haven't "solved" this dilemma yet - you simply must have 25-06............

I just happen to have the perfect rifle for you - and its for sale!!!!

On a serious note, I have Rem 600 in 243 with a 20" barrel (maybe 18 - can't remember). If there is a better truck gun, I've never seen it. Do a search on the Rem 600 Mohawk - they were the cheaper version of the 660 and can be had for $500 or less. I see them in 223, 243, and 308 in the east quite regular. I could look at the local big gunshow this weekend if you'd like. I've had mine since Christmas 1974. It has seen a few rounds and killed a few critters

AI the 243, 22" barrel; put a straight 6x or a 2.5x8 on it & you'll be very happy.

Lots of mid=priced 243's around but I'd pick a 700 or a Vanguard.

MM