Best all purpose hunting rifle?

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jmcdowall

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I am hoping you guys can educate me a little before I go for my lesson at reliable guns.

I would like to know what is the best all purpose cal. rifle for hunting, from deer, to moose, to cariboo, and what about black bear?

My uncles all swaer by 30-06, and it seems you can buy ammo with a bag of chips at any mom & pop shop. I have yet to shoot one, but have this thing for the rem. 7mm.or .308. I'm told the're overkill for deer hunting, etal.

I am doing my best to test drive my friends rifles, but would like to know which ones have the worst/best recoils.

Thanks.
 
First of all, your uncles arn't wrong about the .30-'06. It will do pretty much whatever you need here in NA. The .308 is pretty much a short action version of the '06, and would be my first choice for a new hunter that doesn't reload. Tons of ammo availible, less recoil than the '06. To be honest, anything from 7mm-08 up through .30-'06 will do the job. I'd be more worried about finding a rilfe that fits you well and feels good, than the round it's chambered for. Make sure you gat the scope mounted low enough to alow a good cheek weld on the comb of the stock. Good stock fit goes a long way toward maximizing your accuracy potential and really helps minimize felt recoil.
 
nothing wrong with a 30-06, but personally, i would look for a 7mm or 300mag. if you reload, or know someone who does, you can start out with "light" loads, or there is a somewhat decent selection of reduced recoil loads available. i have a 300 weatherby that will kick the crap out of my shoulder with my hunting loads, but my target(reduced) loads i can shoot comfortably all day. the great thing with the magnum is that you can safely load it down to non mag levels, then step it up when your experience, and confidence, grows over time.
my advice would be to pick the rifle you are most comfortable with, fit feel etc, put a good scope on it and enjoy!!
 
get a 30-06 in whatever type of rifle feels good to you, and put a decent 3-9x40 scope on it. Shoot some decent 165 grain ammo and go hunting, you'll be fine for anything in BC
 
jmcdowall said:
I am hoping you guys can educate me a little before I go for my lesson at reliable guns.

I would like to know what is the best all purpose cal. rifle for hunting, from deer, to moose, to cariboo, and what about black bear?

My uncles all swaer by 30-06, and it seems you can buy ammo with a bag of chips at any mom & pop shop. I have yet to shoot one, but have this thing for the rem. 7mm.or .308. I'm told the're overkill for deer hunting, etal.

I am doing my best to test drive my friends rifles, but would like to know which ones have the worst/best recoils.

Thanks.
Click to expand...


If it's a first rifle ,then I would say try the .308.
Ammo can be found everywhere and it has enough power for moose and black bears.
 
I would get a 30-06, then put a good 1 or 1½ to 4 or 5 scope on it. That way you would have the best sight made for bush shooting and high enough magnicication for any type of big game hunting. That type of scope is so much neater and easier to carry, than any of the big variables.
The rifle, also, would be good for any type of Canadian big game shooting.
 
30-06

Oh, you're going to open a can of worms here! Which calibre is the best? There are probably 15 or more different calibres that will do anything you could want and more. But, if you have to pick just one, I guess a good 30-06 is as good as any and probably better than most. I would suggest buying a good used rifle and spending the extra money on the best glass you can afford. Just my opinion. Have fun!
 
My step son uses his 300 Ultra Mag for just about everything. He loads 110g v-max's for varmints and 180 to 200 grainers for large game. I say it is way over kill but he thinks it is juuuust right! Most guys can't stand the recoil of them but every time he pulls the trigger he lets out a but laugh and has a smile from ear to ear. So all to your own on what is the "best" one.
 
If you don't reload, flip a coin between 30/06 and .308. As others have said, rifle fit would be the bigger consideration. I agree also with a low power optic. 1.5 - 4, or 2 - 7, good enough for all but the more long range shooting, ie. 300 yards and beyond.

My 0.02$
 
If you had to pick just one caliber to do everything...... well there isn't one clear winner. But your uncles aren't wrong a good 30-06 with a 3-9x40 will kill anything in North America. Or the same goes for the 308 just has a short action instead of a long action.
 
Short actions weigh a few ounces less, and reduce the length of the rifle, assuming equal length barrels. And most of us could never spot the difference, but theoretically, a short action is a bit stiffer, and hence has a bit more accuracy potential.
 
jmcdowall said:
I am hoping you guys can educate me a little before I go for my lesson at reliable guns.

I would like to know what is the best all purpose cal. rifle for hunting, from deer, to moose, to cariboo, and what about black bear?

My uncles all swaer by 30-06, and it seems you can buy ammo with a bag of chips at any mom & pop shop. I have yet to shoot one, but have this thing for the rem. 7mm.or .308. I'm told the're overkill for deer hunting, etal.

I am doing my best to test drive my friends rifles, but would like to know which ones have the worst/best recoils.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

There's lot's of personal opinion around when it comes to cartridge selection. Most of it is good advice but be aware that the 30-06, .308, and the 7mm rem mag are very close performance-wise and you won't be able to tell the ddifference in the field.

Any one of the 3 will work fine for game from deer to moose. I prefer the 30-06, but I wouldn't feel under-gunned carrying a .308 either. Get the one that you want in a rifle you like and don't look back.
 
30-06 is the mid eighties 2wd chevy 1/2ton of the rifle world... sure there are faster, sleeker units out there. but its a good start, parts are cheap, and it most likely will never let you down
 
"All around" cartridges are common, as are "all around" rifles. In my opinion, the rifle is more far important than the chambering. It must fit you, it must be reliable, accurate, and convenient to operate.

I see way too many beginners shooting "extreme" rifles. Long, heavy barrels, high magnification scopes, and super high velocity cartridges may look ###y, and have great paper performance but are specialist tools and fall into the "Extreme" category. Super light short barreled carbines are just as bad. Middle of the road works best, for a good reason. A rifle weighing about 6-3/4 - 7-1/2 lbs (without scope), mounted with a decent 4x or 2-7, or at most a 3-9x scope in your choice of action is about right for "All around" hunting. A good crisp trigger is mandatory for accurate shooting at game. A good trigger is most commonly available on bolt actions, that's one reason they are so popular. 22" -24" barrels are good, shorter is more difficult to hold steady and has more muzzle blast, longer becomes a bit less handy.

Once you find a good rifle, look at what it's chambered in. If it is 6.5x55, 7mm-08, 7x57, 7mmMag, 270, 280, 308, 30-06, most of the 300's or something similar, and as long as your local stores stock ammo you're good to go.
A decent quality, properly low-mounted scope is a big asset. Quick detachable scope mounts and back-up iron sights are not necessary, but I like them if the QD mounts and sights are well built. Extra high see-through mounts are the worst of all, make both the scope and the iron sights harder to use. No reason not to trust modern optics, they are just as rugged and reliable as the old style iron sights.
Buy a case of cheap ammo and practise a lot, and when the practise stuff has taught you how to hold and squeeze, sight in with good hunting ammo and verify how it shoots between 50-250 yards or so. If you do all that, you will be more prepared than most hunters out there this fall.
 
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