Need a moose/ long range gun

So your looking for a starter/budget rifle ( based on your price range) primarily for long range target work ( in a caliber not well suited to LR for reasons previously stated)
And as a moose hunting rifle....
What is your hunting style/ type? For me platform is by far the most important aspect fora hunting rifle. Dragging a 26" barreled bolt action w 6-24x50 scope with turrets through thickets and timber doesnt make for a great hunting rig, (but will work in farmland situations). Alternatively a 18-20" carbine with LPVO set low on the reciver makes a great hunting rig but leaves much to be desired as a target gun.
Your budget is goint to be your limiting factor all the rifles on your list have potential for accuracy for LR work but do have manufacturing short falls. Huntkng rifles need to be light and nimble, fast to the shoulder and well ballanced for offhand snap shots. Carry easily and become an extension of you. Target rifles should have a bit more weight heavier barrels to keep them cool in multiple shot strings with stocks built to ride bags smoothly scopes will often times be set with eye relief best for prone shooting ect. Your choices( parameters) are already set, none of your rifle choices are perfect for both so you will compromise one way or another. Just pick one and get some!
 
Suther said:
500 yards isn't all that far realistically. I see no reason why a 270 wouldn't be just fine.
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270 will get there but if your looking for a rifle/ caliber to shoot small groups @500 a 270win would not be anyones first choice.. higher than needed recoil, low bc bullets means it will be trickier to shoot in wind than others.... its just not a great caliber choice for LR target work.. its a phenomenal prairie/ mountain hunting caliber ( as it was designed with this in mind) good hunting bullet weight, good velocity for flat shooting out to 300yds. Its never been much of a choice for target work, or more guys would have been using it for that and manufacturers would have supported it as such by their products....
Its not that it cant be made to work....you just have to make compromises and tgete are way better options out there. Both as a moose killer and as a LR target rifle..
Thete does need to be expectations explained though...for instance guys use long barreled 45-70s w peep sights for LR target work....but targets are different than what comes to most mind. If your idea of hitting a 16" plate at 500 yds is LR target work great...if your looking to hit a 5" plate( moa) or less the old 45-70 is not the best choice.
If op just wants to throw lead at a 12" gong and be happy to hit it once in a while at 500yds his choice is fine. On the flip side my 660yd gong is 4" and my 1k is 8" making consistent hits on these size targets means you cant really make big sacrifices in areas that matter...
Expectations do matter...
 
obsessed1b said:
270 will get there but if your looking for a rifle/ caliber to shoot small groups @500 a 270win would not be anyones first choice.. higher than needed recoil, low bc bullets means it will be trickier to shoot in wind than others.... its just not a great caliber choice for LR target work.. its a phenomenal prairie/ mountain hunting caliber ( as it was designed with this in mind) good hunting bullet weight, good velocity for flat shooting out to 300yds. Its never been much of a choice for target work, or more guys would have been using it for that and manufacturers would have supported it as such by their products....
Its not that it cant be made to work....you just have to make compromises and tgete are way better options out there. Both as a moose killer and as a LR target rifle..
Thete does need to be expectations explained though...for instance guys use long barreled 45-70s w peep sights for LR target work....but targets are different than what comes to most mind. If your idea of hitting a 16" plate at 500 yds is LR target work great...if your looking to hit a 5" plate( moa) or less the old 45-70 is not the best choice.
If op just wants to throw lead at a 12" gong and be happy to hit it once in a while at 500yds his choice is fine. On the flip side my 660yd gong is 4" and my 1k is 8" making consistent hits on these size targets means you cant really make big sacrifices in areas that matter...
Expectations do matter...
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Have you looked at the BCs for 150gr Nosler Accubond LR, or 150gr bergers? They're not stupid high like a 175+gr 7mm bullet, but I recon they're plenty high enough for reliable 500yd shots and they're *supposed* to be shootable in a 1:10 twist. (although I've heard of people having issues with the 150ablr, it seems to be gun-dependent on that bullet.)

Although you bring up a good point - it also depends on the accuracy he wants. A 4" gong at 500yds is a small target for most rifles that are light enough to be carried afield regularly, so he will certainly be making some compromises.
 
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I have a BRAND NEW 300 remington ultramag.
With a BRAND NEW 3x9x40mm Leupold scope with Duplex reticle.
PORTED ALL SS STEEL all stainless steel;
AND I HAVE 2 BOXES OF CARTRIDGES
SAVAGE MODEL 311 WEATHER WARRIOR
 
Suther said:
Have you looked at the BCs for 150gr Nosler Accubond LR, or 150gr bergers? They're not stupid high like a 175+gr 7mm bullet, but I recon they're plenty high enough for reliable 500yd shots and they're *supposed* to be shootable in a 1:10 twist. (although I've heard of people having issues with the 150ablr, it seems to be gun-dependent on that bullet.)

Although you bring up a good point - it also depends on the accuracy he wants. A 4" gong at 500yds is a small target for most rifles that are light enough to be carried afield regularly, so he will certainly be making some compromises.
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Yes i have looked at them and they are still behind a dozen or so chamberings/ calibers in every way imaginable for LR target work. Like i said you can make them work, you just make compromises.
 
the answer is..... step up to a 7mm rem mag with a 9 1/2 twist and bump that bullet up to a 160gr ablr and now you have some fantastic moose medicine and with the right optic you are smacking the hell out of that 500 yard 4" gong and will find the 800 yard is more fun LOL
I've shot my ruger m77 mkII 7mm rem mag to 500 on paper many times and once on watermelons at 1000 (175gr ABLR)..... longest kill shot so far is 295yards dead drop with a 160gr partition.
I think the 7mm rem mag is kind of the finest example of a long range caliber that serves equally well on big game. What rifle is kind of up to you and I'm not really familiar with any on the OPs list other than the rem 700.
 
I shot a ton of game including moose with the 270 in my, lets call them formative years. Most of that was with decidedly ordinary bullets; we used to joke that it was hard to find a bad bullet for a 270, since it was practically the only game in town in the .277 diameter. Used within it's not inconsiderable point blank range plus a bit more its still a good option.

Trouble is, in the decades that passed my shooting changed as well. Those flat-based Hornadys and Sierras that I loved so much at 0-300 will make you want to sit down and cry at 600. My luck with heavier higher BC bullets has been about zero
 
To answer the ops question, absolutely nothing wrong with a 27 cal, I've shot 15 shot groups at 500 yds that were 2.3", 4.5" 5 shot groups at 1km, and at 300yds it will keep up the the best 6br.
27 is just a number, haters will hate.
 
marshman said:
To answer the ops question, absolutely nothing wrong with a 27 cal, I've shot 15 shot groups at 500 yds that were 2.3", 4.5" 5 shot groups at 1km, and at 300yds it will keep up the the best 6br.
27 is just a number, haters will hate.
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What bullets were you using for those 500 and 1k groups?
 
marshman said:
To answer the ops question, absolutely nothing wrong with a 27 cal, I've shot 15 shot groups at 500 yds that were 2.3", 4.5" 5 shot groups at 1km, and at 300yds it will keep up the the best 6br.
27 is just a number, haters will hate.
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once you get into precision shooting however, there are far better options, case capacity being one.
a 270win sized case will beat you up pretty good over an extended period of a match dependiing on weight restrictions, shootiing postitions, etc..
For informaal target shooting however, I suppose it would be okay.
Cat
 
iron cat said:
once you get into precision shooting however, there are far better options, case capacity being one.
a 270win sized case will beat you up pretty good over an extended period of a match dependiing on weight restrictions, shootiing postitions, etc..
For informaal target shooting however, I suppose it would be okay.
Cat
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Tell that to everyone buying 6.5prc's...
 
I've got an old .308 Norma mag that I would like to dial in for moose. I think it would do the trick nicely... not that I've had any issues tipping over swamp donkeys with the trusty 30.06 ... but the .308 would reach out a little farther.
 
Well, my real-world experience tells me the 270 can dance. Few big bucks down without a fuss, and although I reach for my 30-06 for moose, the 270 is quite the capable cartridge.

my 145 eld-x at 3000fps in my 270 sure dances along with the 6.5 PRC 143eld-x at 2960fps out to reasonable hunting distances.... by the time both have run out of energy we are talking a few clicks on the scope...

at 800m the PRC is dialling 5.5mils, the WIN is dialling 5.7mills. not bad for a 100-year-old cartridge.

If you can tolerate the recoil of a 30-06 why not go that route for a moose gun? It's the same story 270 vs 30-06... at longer ranges we are talking a few clicks on the scope difference. especially inside the distances i have access to shoot (800m) and comfort in the field hunting ranges (300m and if i have a solid rest maybe 500m max).

Above all, get a rifle that fits you and get a reliable, reputable, quality scope with adjustable turrets for it. Run ammunition suitable to the task and record data for future engagements. Target bullets often make lousy hunting bullets in my experience, especially on large thick-skinned animals. I use the eld-x for target shooting and a 129LRX solid copper for hunting, not much into feeding my family and friends lead.

At the end of the day, any modern bottleneck cartridge suitable for moose is likely capable of shooting to distances 800m and beyond. The limiting factor is going to be the scope and how well you shoot the rifle.

Have fun and all the best in your hunting and shooting endeavours with your new rifle.
 
iron cat said:
once you get into precision shooting however, there are far better options, case capacity being one.
a 270win sized case will beat you up pretty good over an extended period of a match dependiing on weight restrictions, shootiing postitions, etc..
For informaal target shooting however, I suppose it would be okay.

Cat
Click to expand...
I shoot it in F-class, those groups were in matches. It’s small by comparison to the hot 284s
 
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