....with every post seem to lean more toward race cars to use an analogy. Not down in the dirt sprint cars, but more towards Formula racers. Same with scopes.

So lets say all of a sudden you have to live off a rifle on a daily basis or you have to guide for a living. You don't have time for frequent maintenance. You don't sit at the bench and pound out little groups for 40 weeks a year and hunt for the remaining two to eight. You do have to have a dependable rifle that will take the mud, rain and snow as part of its check off sheet. You shoot mainly plus sized animals and not 1in squares. You only have one or two rifles and they must work when you call on them. Sometimes the only choice you have is to wipe off your scope lens with your shirt or handkerchief or your opportunity is lost. Big time Euro or Weaver/Leupold/Bushnell.

Proven factory offering that will sprint or slog to the finish, or unknown test dummy that has no longterm down and dirty track record?

Addition: Most will never fit the mould, so I guess it is a foolish question. If problems occur, we drive back home and pull out another. Not much lost.

Same thing that I sued today, a Highwall, Ballard, Sharps singleshot with iron sights. Which one, doesn't really matter.

I'd feel comfortable with most current Mauser based factory bolt actions being able to take a beating and keeping on ticking.

M70 or Mauser 98.A pre 4 M70 or SS Classic would work for me.....Scope would likely be a 3x,4x or 6x Leupold or equal,but would not scoff at a fixed S&B or similar.

Would I "shirtsleeve" them? If I had to, you bet

I read recently of a CZ carbine, synthetic stock,20" barrel chambered 30/06 or 9.3x62....merits consideration.

One of my stainless SUCKS in a McMillan sporting some flavor of Leupold, likely a 6x42 or 2-7x33.

That's what I miss about Alaska, I carried a rifle damn near daily. Miles upon miles strapped on an ATV, in a skiff, backpack or hands. Lots of coastal crap and 15 feet of rain a year. Fishing, running a trap line, fugging around.

For me it pretty much boils down to the trigger. The trend seems to be more springs and adjustment capability. Simple, functional and reliable would be were I would be placing my bet.

Old Style Ruger 77 Stainless boat paddle stock 30-06 w/open sights Leupold 1.75-6x32 Heavy Duplex

M98, maybe a Savage 99 too, but definitely M98, Keep it simple on optics, durable fixed 4x or 6x.

Ruger M77 may not win any beauty or lightweight contests, but the M77 action with integral scope mounts it is about as bomb-proof a rig as there is out there....

Yep. Ruger 77 Stainless. .30-06 Done deal. Meese to moose.

Like your thinking. I went with the .308 and boat paddle stock.

Sako 75 .338wm, leupold vx3, mcmillan stock, coated metal. Nothing that cant be done.

Mr. Battue,

You did say two so here goes.

Kimber Montana in a WSM chambering other than 270 WSM. That's gay.

A stainless Rem700 with the old trigger, tuned, in a good 'glass stock. Chambering, you ask? Gosh golly....... well, given the existance of the rifle above I guess I'd say .358. If not that, then '06, 7-08, .308, .338 WM, 338-06, .280.....

With a WSM Montana and a .358 I could hunt anything I want to hunt, any weather.

Scope. Hmmm. Going to go Conquests on both as a first choice and just eat the weight.... Leup as a second choice. No need to go any fancier. It has been 10 years since a shirt tail touched a lens of mine-- I literally remember the last time-- and it pains me to remember even now.

Pretty much how my rifles are all already set up. Stainless, synthetic stocks of some flavor, Leup or Conquest scopes. The exception is the Swaro AV on my Kimber. I keep it there just to annoy Bob.

"Shirtsleeve em": I think we should credit Bob with originating a new fire colloquialism. Done it myself more than once and will probably do it again.

As a matter a fact the son of a Bud just recently shot a Doe in Ohio with an older M8 4x that was once mine. It had been "shirtsleeved" many times and still seemed to be able to get the job done.

However, I do try to avoid the buttons. You have to draw a line somewhere.

I'd go with the 6.5 RM on the Stainless 700 with 3.5-10 Leupold and the .350 RM with 2.5-8 Leupold and hunt it all.

If I had to choose based on what's in my safe now.....Ruger Hawkeye (.338 Federal) or the R700/McMillan MR (.300wsm). If the current .260 Montana was either a .308 or .338 Federal that would win over either of the above.

George

George, how's feeding on that WSM M700?

I know you are with me in wishing Kimber would do a .358! I'd make a wee little poo poo in my pantaloons if I heard they were doing that.....

Feeding if great.....until the last round. Even then, the issue only "exists" at the bench when I'm looking to not throw brass. When a guy is actually in field positions and working it aggressively, everything feeds and chambers just fine.

Yeah a Little Sky in .358, 84L in Whelen or Big Sky in .358wsm would be just fine with me. I'm always watching for donors....

George

I chuckle every time I see Scott write it, but if I had to do it all over again I'd stay 223 and 308. In fact, I talked my dad into that very theory about 5 years ago. We trimmed down to a couple of rifles apiece in said chamberings and stocked up on supplies. It didn't last long.....we couldn't "live" without adding 243's, 260's, 7-08's, etc.

I'd use the same platform for the 223 and 308. They'd both be stainless. In all honesty, I'd have a hard time choosing between Remington and Ruger. IMO, the Ruger is a little more rugged, but it's hard to compete with the feel of a 700 in a McMillian Mountain Rifle Stock -- at least in my hands.

Scope would be VX2 2-7x33.

If Kimber would make a couple of small changes my choice of platform would have Montana written all over it.....

"If I knew then what I know now".....

I picked up the .260 Montana early on because I figured it would serve as a whitetail/coyote rig (several of my winter spots require a long hike in and weight savings is nice) and I wanted something "different" (ie, not the .243).

If I knew Kimber would release the .223 Montana, I would have stuck with the .308. .223 for general/cheap shooting as well as 'yotes and the .308 for everything else that I'm likely to do. It's hard to justify the .223/.260 combo. Hard, but I get by.....

George

The 223/260 combo is about perfect for where I live. The 308 comes into play if/when I decide to chase something bigger than deer. It's still not "too big" for deer though..

The 260 is what split my 223/308 theory. I sold one in the downsizing and regretted it. I decided it was the perfect tweener and added one. Then I thought I needed a 243 between the 223 and 260, then a 7-08 between the 260/308. Lots of overlap here!

Currently, the Ruger SS Hawkeye laminate .308 with a Leupold 4X or 6X scope, probably 4X.

OR, something that hasn't been mentioned but has done it not in theory but in fact for well over a hundred years - a Winchester Model 94 .30-30. Not the fancy-shmancy angle eject with scope mounts and such, but a good old top eject, throw the empty on your head, open sighted .30-30. In an homage to shot placement and loonyism it might wear a good peep sight like an older Redfield or steel Lyman 66 (not the modern plastic crap), or it might not.

It's been doing the job in out of the way places in snow and rain and dust with no fancy maintenance long enough to have proven itself. And I don't think a few million deer, moose, elk, caribou, black and even grizzly bears would suddenly spring back to life if you used one.

The guys mentioning a SS Ruger Synthetic in .308 or 30-06 are not far off. I'd likely go 30-06, make the handle a McMillan in some drab gel-coat color, and top it with a medium-powered Leupold variable, likely a B&C or LRD model.

If I had to snatch up one of my current rifles to go do whatever, not knowing what I might get into or where I might be doing it, I would take this one.



It's an older 700 BDL SS .338WM, cut to 22" and bedded to an LSS handle that I had shortened up in the LOP department. The scope is a 3.5-10x40 VX-III with the B&C reticle. It fits well, shoots well, feeds well, and hits pretty hard.

Yea, I could run a Ruger too, just can't get them quite light enough but they are tough.

They are tough, heavy, and sometimes not the smoothest, kind of like their revolvers. I remember that sturdy looking 30-06AI you did in the sea-foam swirl. I bet the photo weighed 2lbs.....

I used Leupold to earn my livelihood for 15 years...not a lot more to be said really.

Since I don't trust scopes anymore;
My win94ae 30-30; (today's shot.)


My Eddystone US model of 1917, 30-06; (my shot from 4 days ago.)


Those 2 rifles I feel most confident with presently; they've never let me down.

A Model 700 Remington in .30-06 unless large bears were in play and then I'd get a .375H&H too. Scopes would be Leupold VX-2 3-9X40s or Zeiss Conquest 3-9X40s in Tallet LWs.

I could and do like the 2-7x33 I have, if I could turn the dang power ring quickly without using a pipe wrench; especially in winter when it really gets stiff. Been putting off sending it back. Leupold said they will loosen it up.

Yea I could see how you would miss that. Hell, I miss reading about it.

If I could take only one?

700 stainless 375 H&H in a McM, and put a 3.5-10x40 with turrets up top.

A Ruger #1 with no glass.

1--Pre '64 M70, .30-06

2--Sako 75 .260 Rem.

1)m700, 30-06, McMillan, talley LWs, leupy 6x36
2) m70, 375 H&H, McMillan, open sights

If no big bears swap out the 375 for

M700, 25-06, McMillan, talley lws, leupy 6x36

This would work wonders in NA me-thinks

I'd just use my GFY rifles. Haven't found anything wrong with them yet.


Travis

My exact sentiments, except I'd pick a good 3-9x40...Any of my rifles would suffice....

and I could borrow your lovely 9.3 x 62 bsa.....

Cheers
Gus

If you lived closer, I'd let you borrow any of my rifles......

A good winter evening question...

In all honesty my Model 70 SS Classic in 338wm. It wears a Macmillan stock and a NXS 2.5-10x32. The whole package is accurate and bombproof. That rifle and I have been through swamps, over mountains, hill and dale, stuck in muskeg on my quad, rain, snow, many miles of trail and forest, etc - you name it. I wipe it off and it always shoots true.

The back up would be my 59 FN Browning Safari in 3006. It wears a Macmillan stock, fresh bluing, a 2.5-8x35 VX3, and it still has it's original iron sights(which shoot very well too). This one took a little while to dial in after the refit but it has turned into an accurate and bombproof rig as well.

new I could rely on you mate...........

Gus

Neat "what if" scenario.

The one that'd be on the shoulder constantly would be a twenty-five caliber, with a Leupy of some sort. I'd have 75-grain V-Max's in one pocket, 80-grain TTSX's in another, and 120-grain Partitions in the rifle. Probably a .25-06, and more than likely a G33/40 Mauser '98.

The "could be somethin' BIG over the hill" rifle would be a Ruger #1, chambered in 375 H&H, with open sights, Savage 116, in 338 Win Mag, with open sights gotta think about the second one; big power, long range, or both??????

This one:
Cast bullets for edible small game, JHP pistol ammo for sheer destructiveness on non-edible game & plinking. 150 gr SPs for hog sized critters, 180-200 gr SP for deer, and 220-250 gr for big stuff.
Old school...., 35 Remington



DMc

My old Ruger 77 RS Whelen in one of Mark's stocks. It goes 7 1/2# which isn't too bad and just works pushing the 225 gr TSX.

Many interesting responses and Ruger seems to have a fine reputation for being a no nonsense dependable rifle one can count on. Also seems more than a few think they would be stuck somewhere out West or in a place like Alaska and didn't consider having the local being further East.

When I threw the question out I didn't think all that much re my own answer, and after sleeping on it, this came to me this AM. Omitting the guiding avocation, and just making a living off of two rifles, my choice would be a well built rifle in a .22Hornet or even a .22Mag-I think CZ makes those-especially If I was roaming East of the Mississippi. Stuff your pocket full of shells and you are good to go; from small game to Deer at reasonable ranges. Lots of ammo and little carrying weight.

My big rifle would be a solid Winchester pre 64 Model 70 or a Ruger, both in .308W. More than enough cartridge for most everything and if you reload your own has a smaller appetite for powder, with the resulting less cost per round, more rounds per pound and less weight to carry around.

battue I don't see my choices as being much different from what I use now or what I've used for general hunting the past 40 years or so.

Mostly, this has been a Model 70(pre 64 or Classic)or Mauser 98,dropped in a good synthetic,with a 22" barrel for standard calibers (270,280,or 30/06);or a 24" barrel for magnum cartridges.They have all been built "light"(relatively for what they were),with an eye toward durability.Sometimes SS and sometimes CM.

So chamberings have varied over the years and there are lots of good choices but the general utlity of a 30/06 or 375H&H can't be denied.

In the east,I found out years back that I was not terribly handicapped in the brush for fast shooting with a light bolt action.The same rifles have been used east and west,because I hate things that are complicated,and my experience has been that only about 100-200 yards seperates the game I have killed in the west, from the longest distances I have dealt with in the east.Might be where and how I hunt but has been true for me nonetheless.

I have yet to have a snafu that I could blame on my equipment.

Bob, I think all have given responses that would work and we all have our favorites that have served us well over time. You are correct in that for the most part not getting it done rests with us and not solid equipment made by any manufacturer.

Now, the sun is out, the cold snap has broke, the Grouse should be out enjoying the day while refilling their crop, it should be a magnificent day to be roaming and I'm going to try and find a Grouse for dinner. I need one in light of the fact that after cleaning the last one, I left it on the countertop while I disposed of the carcass and Toby thought he deserved it more than me. He's right, so I can't be all that putout.

battue,

a very interesting topic. I only have two centerfire rifles, both left handed Ruger Hawkeyes, both wearing McMillan stocks.

Unfortunately, left-handed stainless wasn't available when I got my Ruger hawkeyes. So guess I'd have to get them cherakoted coated then?

Anyways, ones a 308win with Leupold FXII 6x42 while the other is 223rem with Leupold VXIII 3.5-10x40mm.

I picked those calibers because I can use Varget powder to reload both cartridges thus simplifying things.

In 223rem, I can load either 60gr v-max for my varmnit/predator hunting then load 60gr nosler partition (or 62gr tsx) to push its use on whitetail deer here in western pennsylvania.

For 308win, I can load cheap cup n core 150gr hornady interlocks for practice and/or deer hunting, or just load 150gr nosler partition as a good overall hunting load, or perhap a 150gr barnex tsx/ttsx for whatever the partition/cup n core couldn't handle.

Leo

The Rugers just aren't accurate enough to be interesting.

Nor are your opinions.

Not my opinion. Well known fact and has been for years.

This is the one I own that would probably meet the criteria you mentioned.

Ruger Hawkeye All-Weather, Mickey Sako classic, Leupold VX-2, Leupold Rings. 308 Winchester.

...says the man with a Winchester logo under his name and probably hasn't owned two Ruger rifles in his entire life...

It's OK. Some people just can't shoot.

That's about as sensible as it gets! Now all's you need is a bucket full of tags. I plan on setting up my kids similarly. It should cover all their bases. Specialization will be up to them.

Light done right,will never be trumped for Utility...if only because,less IS more.

To date,the best OEM Killing Rifle on the Planet,is the Montucky 7 Whizzum. I hear they can take a lick,hear they shoot well,hear they manage felt recoil nicely and hear they pack a purty good punch.

Which is the sorta things I like to hear.

Model 7 SS 7mm RSAUM
McM Classic handle
Walker death tricker
talleys/gretan
VX/FX3 6X42 or 3.5-10X40 either with a M1 up button

Or cut to the damn chase and buy a Montana in your liking.

Owned a pile of Rugers and own some now. In fact I just bought and sold a brand new M77 a few months ago because it wouldn't shoot close to MOA. If a rifle won't shoot under MOA with some form of commerical ammo I won't keep it. Ruger still hasn't figured it out. The #1s are even worse. Maybe accuracy doesn't matter to you or you can't shoot sub-MOA with any rifle.

I don't buy "commercial" ammo. I load everything that goes down the tube -- that's because accuracy "doesn't matter" to me. I've probably owned 25-30 Ruger rifles in the last 10-15 years and I'll admit I had one that wouldn't shoot. It was a 6mm Remington in a 77MKII. It went down the road....

Ruger still makes a nice rifle. Their new hammer forged barrels are as good as any production rifle maker puts out.

Slamming Ruger while throwing props for Winchester and Remington just doesn't make any sense to me. It does tell me something about your knowledge and ability.

You need to sell off some of those Remington's, Winchesters and Rugers......and go buy a Cooper. Then you'll have a platform for accuracy that few can dispute.....I'm not guessing. I've been there too.

Got that right.

I'd be carrying one in 280 All Weather backed up by my 1885 in 300 WSM.

The question was not about interesting accuracy.

More than a little fond of Nula and Kimber. For long term down and dirty I'd take the Kimber.

Don't tell My wife, but i could make do just fine with my kimber 300wsm, rem 721 .270 and custom 700 257wby, Leupold or Zeissglass. Ttsx our accubonds but ssssshhhhhhhh.....

laughing

I would run a ruger MKII stainless. Install a timney trigger, once adjusted Red loctite the adjustments. Install a stainless ruger barrel band front sight. Have it cerakoted black. Bed it in Devcon in a McMillan MKII classic. Sight it in with a NECG peep and a FXII 6x36 with dotz. Put the peep in my pack

Seems like #2 washtub sized groups are acceptable for most. If that's the case then a Ruger just may fit the bill.

Swampy, just because you can't shoot them doesn't mean they aren't accurate. I've got many that shoot lights out...Plus, they feed and extract the way a rifle is susposed to as well....

Well...he just changed his avatar from Ruger to Winchester, after it was remington for awhile. Fickle bish....

Yea it's odd that I can shoot sub-MOA groups with any brand other than a Ruger. Even Marlin 336s and NEF HandiRifles will shoot sub-MOA for me......what gives?

Simple....you are not 'careful' with the truth....

I don't know brother, maybe you had too much fresca that day...

I've never been a Ruger rifle fan, because of their molded metal parts. But I won't believe that they can't shoot MOA when properly setup.

Yeah - I'd trust this old sporterized Enfield if I had to live off of 1:

A few million Canadians can't be wrong. The .303 has filled a few pots.

My old .300 with either a 3-9 or 4-12 Leupld..it has been shooting for 42 years, never a hitch, been from Alaska to Tex., from East coast fo Left coast, and Africa..Never failed..

And you've smoked a bowl or 2 haven't you swampy....

Well... right here on the pages of the 'fire', the Cans EXPLICITLY told ME, "the 303B = the 308W.


SHEESH!!!!

That's exactly the question that most of us are asking since you've posted pics of your "MOA" (if you ignore some of the shots) groups.

I suppose, in your case, that MOA likely stands for "minute of azz" where deer are concerned.

My Hawkeye does just fine in my hands as well as others who have shot it. In your hands.....not so much.

George

Yea right.....laffin...

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1. My CZ 550 American 6.5x55 with a Zeiss Conquest 3x9x40. German #4 reticle.

2. My Remington 700 ADL synthetic stocked .270 with iron sights. It carries a Bushnell Elite 4200 3x9x40. It has a trigger job - 3lb pull. The least expensive centerfire rifle I own yet shoots sub-moa with Remington Core-Lokt 130 grains.

Easy - My Kevlar stocked Remington 700 stainless 06' with a 3X9 Leupold. It weighs a little over 6 lbs and it can be beat on all day and well it's a 30-06... Simplicity. And it shoots about any ammo well.

Remington 700 .30-06 Leupold 3-9x40.

Out of what I got right now:


Ruger MKII stainless boatpaddle, VXII 3-9x40 in 270


I keep telling myself I 'want' at M70 Classic in 30-06, but for my hunting 'needs' haven't found what the 270 Winchester won't do.

I would be just as happy with my 20 year old 338-06 too. Battin' 1000 with it.

Dad always sd, if it ain't broke....nice hunts!