Buying First Hunting Rifle: Mossberg or Savage Arms?

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jstare

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Hey everyone I am new to the forum and to shooting. I am going to do my first hunting next season and I want some advice on a first gun. I have never hunted before but I will be going with people that have. I don't want to break the bank on my first gun in case I don't end up hunting a lot but will probably do a bit of target shooting as well.

The 2 guns I am looking at are Savage Edge or Mossberg 100ATR. I will be looking at either .270 win. or .30-06 calibers. I would also consider going to .308 but probably not likely. Any input would be awesome so I can get my gun and go out shooting and get in some practice before next season.
 
jstare said:
Hey everyone I am new to the forum and to shooting. I am going to do my first hunting next season and I want some advice on a first gun. I have never hunted before but I will be going with people that have. I don't want to break the bank on my first gun in case I don't end up hunting a lot but will probably do a bit of target shooting as well.

The 2 guns I am looking at are Savage Edge or Mossberg 100ATR. I will be looking at either .270 win. or .30-06 calibers. I would also consider going to .308 but probably not likely. Any input would be awesome so I can get my gun and go out shooting and get in some practice before next season.
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Add a Stevens 200 to your list also. I am not in a position to comment on the other two.
 
one of my hunting partners used a mossy 100 in 308 this year. he hates it. Most of this comes because his old rifle was a Remington and his coyote gun is a Savage 12fv. Real good rifles to contend with.

anyway the mossy was tuff to find a good ammo match with. ended up with some winchester 150gn bullets. The action feels rough and the trigger pull is heavy. but on the + its a light gun. Really tho it was just a bad luck gun. every time he brought it out no deer would show up.

The good thing about savage is there bolt. With the free floating bolt face your bullet is lined up in the chamber perfect every shot. and that accutrigger is great. Im a fan.

You should look at the Remington 700 later down the road if not now as well. They are famous for a reason. You will want to upgrade the trigger however. there heavy. My self I shoot a 700 5R in 308 and its a sub moa gun. Little heavy in the bush but I use it anyway. dropped a doe and a nice buck with it this year. Its good to have the confidence knowing the bullet is gona hit were ur aiming.
 
jstare said:
I don't want to break the bank on my first gun in case I don't end up hunting a lot but will probably do a bit of target shooting as well.

The 2 guns I am looking at are Savage Edge or Mossberg 100ATR. I will be looking at either .270 win. or .30-06 calibers. I would also consider going to .308
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I honestly dont know anything of the models of rifles you mention, but do like Savage for their accuracy.... I know a bit about the calibers, so I will try to steer you to the 308 for a few reasons.

Very accurate and cheap ammo = more range/ practice time.

It consumes less powder for the same effect as the other two, in case you ever get into reloading?.

Short action = less weight to carry around all day, not by much but it may make a difference.:)

Just my opinion.:)
 
From a purely "gun" point of view, you might want to go with the .270 as its slightly less recoil than a .308 and a reasonable amount less than a 30-06. Some new shooters can develop abit of a flinch until they are use to shooting so minimizing this would be helpful. Some people find that the 30-06 is abit to stout for them, some do not.

Have you considered buying used as well? Often times you can get a nice rifle with a scope mounted that perhaps has some minor imperfections for a decent packaged price.
 
I personally love the .270 caliber . I have a 30.06 and it is a shoulder shaker, my son loves it. the .270 is probably easier to find ammo for if you are finding yourself short. Much more variety of bullet weights also.
 
I have an Edge and like it. Mine is in 223 so recoil is not an issue. I don't know what it is like in heavier calibers. All in all not too bad a rifle for the cost, but the trigger is a bit heavy. I am going to look into it this winter.
 
iceman2 said:
I have an Edge and like it. Mine is in 223 so recoil is not an issue. I don't know what it is like in heavier calibers. All in all not too bad a rifle for the cost, but the trigger is a bit heavy. I am going to look into it this winter.
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how do you like your savage edge in 223. i just picked one up yesterday in a 223. as to the original op i had the savage 11fcxp3 in a 243 and it is a tack driver. good rifle for the money. as for mossberg i can't chime in as i have not had any experience with them
 
I had the mossberg 4x4 in .270 once upon a time. It was quite accurate and the action was decent, though the trigger was little heavy. Then I replaced it with a marlin XS7 which is a significant upgrade

OP: Look at the marlin XL7 in .270. It has nicer action than either the savage or the mossberg. It has a (much!) nicer trigger than the savage or the mossberg. It is just as, if not more accurate than the savage or the mossberg (My 7mm-08 shoots 1/2 MOA if I do my part). It also has a nicer feeling stock that comes with a real recoil pad!

The Marlin will win hands down if you go handle one! And it's in roughly the same price range.
 
Ormachek said:
OP: Look at the marlin XL7 in .270. It has nicer action than either the savage or the mossberg. It has a (much!) nicer trigger than the savage or the mossberg. It is just as, if not more accurate than the savage or the mossberg (My 7mm-08 shoots 1/2 MOA if I do my part). It also has a nicer feeling stock that comes with a real recoil pad!

The Marlin will win hands down if you go handle one! And it's in roughly the same price range.
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Agreed! I have one in 30-06, great rifle for the money, and is more accurate than my more expensive Ruger. Nice crisp adjustable trigger, and a great recoil pad.
 
I have a .30-06 and a .308 in the 100ATR. My wife has a .243 in the Savage 111. Don't even bother buying any of the ATR's WITHOUT the "Lightning Trigger", it gives you an adjustable trigger and I really like it now that I am used to it.
Nope, it cannot compare to a Sako in the same calibres but they have proven accurate and reliable enough to easily be worth the money I paid for them. If you decide to go the Savage route (and I would) make sure that you get the "accu-trigger".
Now then, having carried and shot both the .308 (just this year) and the '06 (for about 10yrs, but the ATR for only 3) I would tell you that whatever people say on here, the .308 will get the job done for everything you may want to hunt in Canada or the US. Ultimately, it does not matter what you buy as long as you dedicate the trigger time to become familiar with the rifle.
Until three years ago, I was never in a position to even consider getting a rifle I wanted. I usually made do with what was available in the range I could afford. I shot a LOT of milsurps before finally being able to afford a "store-bought" rifle and I go the ATR in .30-06 because I had the dies for a Gewher Mauser in .30-06 I had been using for several years. I haven't used in in 3 yrs since the ATR was so much more accurate out of the box. Sure they don't have the nice classic lines and look of a custom job, but they never have failed to put meat on the table.
As I said, if I had to do it again, I would go the Savage route. Just a little better.
 
100 ATR is good if you need an extra paddle, stick with Savage or Stevens good value for the $. They're not pretty but shoot well out of the box, aftermarket trigger helps.
 
Ormachek said:
I had the mossberg 4x4 in .270 once upon a time. It was quite accurate and the action was decent, though the trigger was little heavy. Then I replaced it with a marlin XS7 which is a significant upgrade

OP: Look at the marlin XL7 in .270. It has nicer action than either the savage or the mossberg. It has a (much!) nicer trigger than the savage or the mossberg. It is just as, if not more accurate than the savage or the mossberg (My 7mm-08 shoots 1/2 MOA if I do my part). It also has a nicer feeling stock that comes with a real recoil pad!

The Marlin will win hands down if you go handle one! And it's in roughly the same price range.
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x2!

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first rifle

honestly for the $$$ the stevens 200 is a nicer rifle than the edge
edge stock is real cheesy, hook up with a stevens 200 you wont be sorry,
ex cal all around is 308, it will do it all!!

hope this helps
 
Thanks for all of your replies it gives me something to consider for sure. It sounds like I can count the Mossberg out from what I am hearing. I am going to look at going the used route possibly but the nice thing is I got $140 in gift cards for Wholesale Sports for Christmas so that makes the Savage Edge Package with scope only $300 out of my pocket Not bad for a first rifle.

So most people are saying stay away from the .30-06, especially for the first rifle. The downside is that the Savage doesn't come in .308 but it does come in .270. Of these two which one would be better to go with? I would think the .270 should be plenty accurate enough for what I need. Correct me if I am wrong though
 
for a beginner I would sugest a shotgun, with a rifle you will limit yourself to big game only, which makes for short season, and tons of other problems, start small work your way up, even if you have a mentor
 
jstare said:
So most people are saying stay away from the .30-06, especially for the first rifle.
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I have both a Ruger 308 and a Marlin 30-06, and due to the great recoil pad on the Marlin XL7 it kicks the same if not less than my Ruger.

Your best bet is to try a friends rifle if you can, or maybe even hook up with some local Gunnuts and try out a few calibers. Everyone reacts differently to recoil, and what one persons says is harsh recoil, another person will say is not to bad.
 
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