One Caliber fits all?

What caliber do you suggest?

  • .270

    Votes: 36 15.2%

  • .300 WSM

    Votes: 16 6.8%

  • .30-06

    Votes: 157 66.2%

  • .300 Ultra Mag

    Votes: 6 2.5%

  • 12 GA Shot Gun

    Votes: 22 9.3%
  • Total voters
    237
  • Poll closed .
Cartridge is largely unimportant, they all work. Since you are pretty new, I'd not look at a "magnum" Take the .300WSM and especially the .300RUM off your list.

Anything from 7-08 to about 30-06 fits your criteria.

If you have caliber restrictions, then a .270 WInchester is a great option. It will do everything a 30-06 will. So will the .280, .308 etc.

I also agree that a quality used rifle is a better option than buying a cheap new rifle.
 
Get a milsurp mosin nagant 91/30 for $150 accurate and powerful, what cant you take down with a 7.62x54r?
 
Like agilent_one the 30-06 is low on my list of preferred cartridges (although 303 is close to the top......blasphemy, ao!!).
But in Nth America if you can't buy '06 ammo you're likely lost in a telephone box!
And no other cal, with the possible exception of 8x57, has the same thump on bigger game without magnum power.
Used guns are readily available as are inexpensive and economical new ones like the Stevens 200.
The 12g is a useful thing but you asked for a rifle cartridge so '06 it is.
 
30-06 from tradeEx

I got a 30-06 m96 from tradeEx (one of the sponsors) and it's quite a nice rifle. I had similar criterias as you (cheap, available ammo, etc), but I also wanted a wooden stock (no cheap plastic for me thankyouverymuch).

350$ + shipping + tx
It came with weaver mounts.
Sights aren't that great though, but I didn't really mind since I'm scoping it.

I didn't tell my father-in-law (my hunting buddy), but I find the action smoother than his 300 win mag.

http://picasaweb.google.ca/dpoisson/MySwedishM96?authkey=Gv1sRgCP6KtaGHoLSkSg

Fish
 
I guess it depends on what you plan on hunting. The 12G has a major attraction as previously pointed out if your hunting around southern Ontario, plus waterfowl benefits. If you want a rifle based on your stipulations (and sought after game) I would go with the 30-06 as the all purpose round.

I totally understand your situation with wanting one rifle (been there before). However do consider life circumstances change in the future and you may find yourself wanting a second rifle (possible more). I ran into this when I got a .308 Rem 700 BDL when I was first starting out and still in school. It was a great all-around gun/calibre. Took one moose and seven deer and I'm not complaining in any way shape or form.

However now my situation in life has changed and now I'm looking at additional rifles. Now I need a flat long shooting rifle for hunting antelope this fall, and also need a heavier caliber for an up coming elk hunt (not to mention my normal deer & moose hunts). I’ve already sprung for a 257 Wby and trying to decide right now between a 300 win mag, 300 wby or 340 wby. Obviously this is quite different circumstance then your in right now, but if you asked me this 4 yrs ago I would have been in the same boat as you.

I guess my point is if I had have gone with the 270 win to start out with I would only be looking at one other rifle and have all the basis covered. Now I’m into three rifles….not that I’m “really” complaining.

Anyways it’s just food for thought and totally depends on what you want to do now and consider in the future. Definitely check out the EE forums
 
I shoot a 30.06 Brno and have taken moose,grizz,elk ,whities and mulies with it,no problem.Two years ago I bought a 243 BLR cause I love that rifle for deer but the .06 is all you could ask for in terms of performance,and you can get ammo in the middle of bum f%ck anytown.
 
If you can't make up your mind/afford what you do decide on, get a SKS and a crate of ammo which will run you between $350 and $400. You can take anything deer sized or smaller with it and ammo is cheap. Elk, moose and bear are off limits for this year (unless you want to bayonet them I guess) but it gives you some meat in the freezer and another year to save up for something more suited to an all around solution.
 
Me, I like the 300WSM but the 30-06 would be a great choice. 165-180gr Accubonds for bullets. As mentioned look in the EE for a used rifle. For new, a Tikka T3 would be my first choice for rifle for the $$$$, next would be REmington or Savage.

Another caliber would be the 270WSM-with 140gr Accubonds, even over the 30-06. Oh and btw, I just seen a 270WSM in the EE for sale by bone collector for good price.
 
Personally, I'd go with a new Marlin XL7 in .30-06. It's a much nicer rifle than the Savage/Stevens.

I really don't understand how some can recommend the 12 gauge at all for moose! It isn't even allowed in Quebec and wonder which other provinces actually do allow it? It's the poorest long arm anyone would ever want to choose for hunting big game with rainbow-like trajectory and extremely expensive sabotted ammo costing three to five times the price of standard ammo like .308, .30-06, and .270. (You cannot find inexpenive reloading components either.) Overall, a 12 gauge is an extemely poor choice for the criteria set out up front.

In any case, it would be interesting to hear what you finally chose.
 
Woodsman said:
I really don't understand how some can recommend the 12 gauge at all for moose!
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I am assuming they allow bow hunting for Moose in Quebec? And yet a 12 gauge with slugs would be inadequate?

Lets look at his initial critera:

novega said:
Hunters,

I'm broke as a joke but I want to hunt this fall. I can afford one rifle and talking to the guys at the gun store has gotten me nowhere.

So here's my criteria:
- Under $1,000 (The cheaper the better)
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He is broke, and Shotguns can be had relatively cheap, even with 2 barrels, a smooth bore and a rifle sighted rifled slug barrel

novega said:
- Preferably a caliber that will allow me to hunt anything from deer to moose.
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Yep, check. With the added bonus of being able to do some small game hunting as well.

novega said:
- Ammo needs to be available at any hunting store. (I hate having to track down oddball calibers)
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Not a lot of ammo stores that wouldn't have a decent selection of slug and shot

novega said:
- Doesn't need to be purdy, she just needs to work
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Check.

novega said:
- Maybe something with iron sights? Then i can add a scope later on this fall if money allows.
Click to expand...

Check. Easy to install a scope on most popular models of pump shotguns.


novega said:
Suggestions? Recommendations?
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He asked for suggestions, and I think the shotgun is a viable option. With a rifle sighted fully rifled barrel, using sabotted slugs, Moose should be pretty easy out to 150 yards.
 
7.62mm said:
I am assuming they allow bow hunting for Moose in Quebec? And yet a 12 gauge with slugs would be inadequate?

Lets look at his initial critera:




He is broke, and Shotguns can be had relatively cheap, even with 2 barrels, a smooth bore and a rifle sighted rifled slug barrel



Yep, check. With the added bonus of being able to do some small game hunting as well.



Not a lot of ammo stores that wouldn't have a decent selection of slug and shot



Check.



Check. Easy to install a scope on most popular models of pump shotguns.




He asked for suggestions, and I think the shotgun is a viable option. With a rifle sighted fully rifled barrel, using sabotted slugs, Moose should be pretty easy out to 150 yards.
Click to expand...

Why would anyone choose a shotgun (or muzzle loader) when you are allowed to use a rifle? Heck buy a crossbow and forget everything else if you have that attitude. ( By the way, I have a bow, crossbow, two muzzleloaders, shotguns of all kinds, and many different rifles. There's a season for almost every weapon, except I will not purposefully handicap myself when a longer range weapon is allowed.)

150 yards with a sabot fired in a rifle barrel will work, no question there. But isn't the objective to save money? At $5.00 a pop he isn't saving much! What kind of practice can he do at that rate? Kind of reminds me of of colour bubblejet printers. They almost give you the darn printers and then give you a good b@tch slapping everytime you go back for the ink cartridges! ;)

Anyhow, I'm not handycapping myself when I don't have too. We're not falling over game here in Quebec. There are more hunters here than there are animals out there! I don't want to look down an opening or valley and see a moose standing there at 300 yards with a 12 gauge and say, chucks maybe next year!
 
And how much money in ammo would you think a newbie would need to spend, to come anywhere near being competent to shoot out to 300 yards in field conditions? More than a box or 2 I would hope, plus you are going to want to have some decent optics, even if you pick up a good used rifle for $400 - $500, scope it, ammo etc., etc.

I am not trying to start an argument, but far to many people over look a shotgun as a viable option, for someone on a budget. There is a lot of hunting opportunities to be had with a shotgun, other than just Deer and Moose, maybe he is not into anything else, and that is fine too. Maybe the better choice is a rifle, but it is only a 2 season/game animal firearm, if it is over .275, and he lives in SW Ontario.
 
Woodsman said:
Why would anyone choose a shotgun (or muzzle loader) when you are allowed to use a rifle? QUOTE]

For some kinds of hunting, I think a slug gun would be great. I took my Winchester 1300 duck gun to my bear blind this year and got my blackie with it. It was at point and shoot ranges, and I felt a lot more confident with the slugs than I did with my SKS or any other rifle at that range.

I know a lot of guys think the slugs are less easily deflected when shooting through brush. I personally like a shotgun because it allows me to take "one gun" for rabbits, dear, and partridge in the fall.
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