Recommendations for a new hunting long gun

[Hookeye]

Ammo cost and availability is of no concern personally. Im not rich but get what I need well in advance of season.

Zero in and am ready to go.

Shooting is shooting and IMHO practice w different cartridges and platforms does transfer.

Dont need to shoot 200 rounds though my chosen deer rig before season.
Dont need a comparable rig in rimfire for friggin " training " either.

Lots of silliness on the web.

Reg cup n core bullets/ loads seem to work quite well on our non armor plated Bambis.

 

[Hookeye]

Am not against using premium bullets or ammo either. Have some, just not used any yet.

Lungs are a big target and poking a hole through em seems to work well enough.

 

[Kev]

Hi Everyone! I just wanted to say thank you for all of the feedback, advice, opinions, and other great commentary. I will go through each response and then conduct some research of my own to go along with the various recommendations.

I saw a bunch of responses favoring a level action, which originally was not on my radar.. I figured pump or bolt action, but I will add lever to the mix. I appreciate the perspectives.

I think I am good on the actions, and calibers. I need to review more Makes/Models for the rifle and scope.


Thank you again for the response and help thus far!

 

[two70]

LMAO bud has killed his last 2 bucks w a .270 win and both went about 75 yards.

That is the most common result outside of the internet where every animal drops at the shot.

Reg cup n core bullets/ loads seem to work quite well on our non armor plated Bambis.

They work within reasonable limits. When one chooses light for caliber cup and core bullets in light for game cartridges they are asking for trouble eventually.

A friend of mine shot an 8 point antlered poodle in the Hill Country a few years ago with a Hornady deer season load in .243. The 78 lb. buck ran about 15 yards with no exit wound and no hint of a blood trail then dropped on the edge of a nearly impenetrable cedar thicket. Had that buck made it another 30-40 yards, we'd have likely had a long evening of crawling on our hands an knees trying to find the deer before the coyotes. There's no reason in the world I would use that 85 grain cup and core bullet load on a midwestern whitetail.

I'll take premium bullets every time, they are extremely cheap insurance. Better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it.

 

[Hookeye]

Ive only shot one deer e .243 win and that was a 100gr factory load. Double lunged w OK blood trail starting at 50 yards ( after he quit running ). Little hole in and out. Walked another 50 or so and dropped.

I went back to 35 rem and 200s.

 

[DadSmith]

I use 150gr SST bullets for my 308. It hasn't failed me yet. But I usually take head shots upto 100 yards past that I aim for the heart and lungs. Head shots they drop where they stood heart and lung is around what you said 75 yards approximately. Sometimes more Sometimes less.

 

[JEBland]

I use 150gr SST bullets for my 308. It hasn't failed me yet.

Any issues with expansion? I have some for loading up in .308, but some folks (on the internet, so they must be trustworthy) have had poor or inconsistent expansion, others swear it works everytime. I'll probably use my .270 for whitetail, but might load up .308 for an eventual elk hunt if I can manage it. Probably shouldn't use SST on elk/moose, but for the cost of an out of state elk license, I'd probably spend a little money to make a meat target to test on. My .270 with a ballistic tip put into the vitals has been a pretty good stopper on WV whitetail - about 10yd after a heart shot last November.

 

[DadSmith]

Any issues with expansion? I have some for loading up in .308, but some folks (on the internet, so they must be trustworthy) have had poor or inconsistent expansion, others swear it works everytime. I'll probably use my .270 for whitetail, but might load up .308 for an eventual elk hunt if I can manage it. Probably shouldn't use SST on elk/moose, but for the cost of an out of state elk license, I'd probably spend a little money to make a meat target to test on. My .270 with a ballistic tip put into the vitals has been a pretty good stopper on WV whitetail - about 10yd after a heart shot last November.

To be honest I've never recovered a bullet. So that could mean no expansion and it just pushed through. There is enough damage to lungs and heart that drops them. Heart shots they don't run as far as lung shots.
I'm going to speer gold dot or speer hot core 150gr this next season. They say both have excellent accuracy and expansion. I like the sst because my rifle loves then accuracy wise. I'd get a 165-168gr for elk. Maybe Nosler partition or something with controlled expansion.
Check out Speer Gold Dot bullets for 308 caliber. They sound like a good bullet.

 

[Hookeye]

Will see what PMC factory 150gr SP does out of.308. Shoots OK

 

[two70]

Ive only shot one deer e .243 win and that was a 100gr factory load. Double lunged w OK blood trail starting at 50 yards ( after he quit running ). Little hole in and out. Walked another 50 or so and dropped.

I went back to 35 rem and 200s.

IIRC, that particular load was an 85 grain bullet. I tried to talk my friend out of buying them but the only better option was a few $ more and he didn't listen. At least he didn't continue using them after that though.

 

[two70]

Any issues with expansion? I have some for loading up in .308, but some folks (on the internet, so they must be trustworthy) have had poor or inconsistent expansion, others swear it works everytime. I'll probably use my .270 for whitetail, but might load up .308 for an eventual elk hunt if I can manage it. Probably shouldn't use SST on elk/moose, but for the cost of an out of state elk license, I'd probably spend a little money to make a meat target to test on. My .270 with a ballistic tip put into the vitals has been a pretty good stopper on WV whitetail - about 10yd after a heart shot last November.

I find it difficult to imagine SSTs not expanding reliably as long as you keep the velocity in the upper 3/4ths of their recommended velocity range. In my limited experience with them in rifles, I had the opposite problem, they were more explosive than I wanted. To be fair I was pushing them at the upper end of their performance range from my .270 WSM though. Now, SSTs out of a muzzleloader were a different story, they never did expand as reliably or as fully as I prefer. There's no chance that I personally would use SSTs on elk but certainly adequate for deer size/tough animals.

I used 150 grain Barnes TTSX bullets out of my .300 WSM in Africa and only one of the elk sized animals(Kudu are roughly bull elk sized while black wildebeest and red hartebeest are cow elk sized) made it more than a few yards after impact. In the exception, it was a case of placement being a bit off and a really tough animal. I over compensated for a steep downward shot on a cull female black wildebeest and the shot broke the on side leg, took out the heart and exited the bottom of the chest on the opposite side, missing the far leg/shoulder. That wildebeest ran more than 100 yards with a ruined heart, a broken, pinwheeling leg, and left a blood trail over a foot wide.

 

[JEBland]

I find it difficult to imagine SSTs not expanding reliably as long as you keep the velocity in the upper 3/4ths of their recommended velocity range. In my limited experience with them in rifles, I had the opposite problem, they were more explosive than I wanted. To be fair I was pushing them at the upper end of their performance range from my .270 WSM though. Now, SSTs out of a muzzleloader were a different story, they never did expand as reliably or as fully as I prefer. There's no chance that I personally would use SSTs on elk but certainly adequate for deer size/tough animals.

Hmm. I'd have to invest in a chrono to determine that. I'm a total newb on reloading (have supplies, need to setup). I'll probably just buy other bullets for hunting and keep the SSTs for fun.

I used 150 grain Barnes TTSX bullets out of my .300 WSM in Africa and only one of the elk sized animals(Kudu are roughly bull elk sized while black wildebeest and red hartebeest are cow elk sized) made it more than a few yards after impact. In the exception, it was a case of placement being a bit off and a really tough animal. I over compensated for a steep downward shot on a cull female black wildebeest and the shot broke the on side leg, took out the heart and exited the bottom of the chest on the opposite side, missing the far leg/shoulder. That wildebeest ran more than 100 yards with a ruined heart, a broken, pinwheeling leg, and left a blood trail over a foot wide.

That's rough. Luckily there was a decent trail. I'll have to look into .270/.308 bullets for elk. Probably will take the .308 should I get the chance to go for elk.

 

[two70]

Hmm. I'd have to invest in a chrono to determine that. I'm a total newb on reloading (have supplies, need to setup). I'll probably just buy other bullets for hunting and keep the SSTs for fun.


That's rough. Luckily there was a decent trail. I'll have to look into .270/.308 bullets for elk. Probably will take the .308 should I get the chance to go for elk.

A chrono is a good thing to have but you'll be fine as long as you are loading full power loads and not shooting bullets on the super heavy end for the chosen caliber, ie. stay away from anything over 180 grains in the .308.

We never actually tracked the animal, before I could even begin to contemplate how we were climbing down the bluff we were on the PH indicated we should head back to the vehicle. Although the animal made it out of sight, the country was pretty open and had several ranch roads. We used one of the roads to circle around the direction she headed and found her within 50 yards of the road. Once we got to the animal it was apparent that Ray Charles could have followed the trail though, had we needed to.

 

[JEBland]

A chrono is a good thing to have but you'll be fine as long as you are loading full power loads and not shooting bullets on the super heavy end for the chosen caliber, ie. stay away from anything over 180 grains in the .308.

Thanks for the advice.

We never actually tracked the animal, before I could even begin to contemplate how we were climbing down the bluff we were on the PH indicated we should head back to the vehicle. Although the animal made it out of sight, the country was pretty open and had several ranch roads. We used one of the roads to circle around the direction she headed and found her within 50 yards of the road. Once we got to the animal it was apparent that Ray Charles could have followed the trail though, had we needed to.

Ah, I see. Clever. I'm the young one in the family - I get sent to track and drag the creature to the old (often overgrown) logging roads. African game hunting sounds awesome, but I'm not sure I'll ever get a chance to do it.

 

[two70]

You're welcome.

Don't count Africa out, it is easier and more affordable than many think, at least for South Africa and Namibia. I saved Cabela's Club Points for a few years and used them to pay for a significant part of my trip. You can easily hunt 3-5 or more animals + travel for the cost of a good guided elk hunt. It is also fairly easy to spread the costs over a few years since they typically break down in three parts: airfare, hunt costs(lodging, guide fees, trophy fees) and taxidermy. You can save a huge chunk by minimizing shoulder mounts and doing euro mounts. Also, many places offer cull packages or animals that allow you to do a lot of hunting for non trophy animals for a much lower costs. The hunt is typically the same and you can usually still bring the horns home.

 

[swampdonkey]

Hi Everyone!
I am looking for some advice on my next long gun for hunting whitetail here in Northern Indiana. I currently have a Remington 20 gauge with open iron sites. I wish to upgrade to something with more knockdown power and easily allow a scope attachment.
I typically hunt in a wooded area, so the average distance would be 10-150yrds. I don't need something that would travel large distances, as I doubt I'll ever get out West for Elk/Moose anytime soon.
I am usually stationary in a tree stand.
I am open to prices, always on a budget, but I consider this an investment.
I do not reload, so calibers that are easier to find are appreciated. On calibers/gauges, I am open to suggestion here as well. I figure at my closer range, it may not make that big of a difference.
I am open to shotgun vs. rifle. Just as long as I stay within the DNR regulations for the state. I always hunt on private land.

Some options that I have reviewed thus far:
-H&R 1871 Ultra Slug Hunter, in 12 gauge -- I have used this in the past and like it for what I need, but I can't find them anywhere now. (I know my timing is not the best with this ask)
-Mossberg Patriot Predator, possibly in .308, .270, or even 6.5mm Creed
-Browning AB3 Stalker, possibly in .308, .270, or even 6.5mm Creed
-Open to other suggestions

I am happy to take scope suggestions too! I've noted the Leupold VX-3i 3.5-10x40, but it might be overkill for what I need.

Thank you all for any help and suggestions! I am looking forward to this coming season with a better tool at my side.

I honestly feel you can use about any caliber you like, the biggest factor is your price point! That will dictate what rifle you can choose!

side note if you are a vet, vortex give 40% off MSRP. With the life time warranty I don’t think you can beat the quality for the price.

 

[swampdonkey]

I REALLY like my Ruger GSR. I happen to like the EFR scope, some don't. It is super handy with an Aimpoint micro or clone. You can put on a traditional scope and ditch the rail if you so desire. Mine is sub MOA (3 consecutive 5 shot groups) off a bench with Hornady American Whitetail 150gr spire point ammunition, and said ammo has laid down every deer it has hit within 30 yards. It's light enough to be handy, heavy enough to feel sturdy. The only thing I would change about it is to make mine stainless. (Which are now available)

The 18" barrel is also short enough to not be ridiculously unwieldy with my Silenco Omega attached. Sorry, no deer yet with that combo.

View attachment 147380 View attachment 147381

That’s a very nice set up and great buck! Well done brother!

 

[DadSmith]

Shaw Barrels

Shaw Barrels

www.shawcustombarrels.com

You could have Shaw build you a custom made rifle.