I have a dilema I'm looking at getting a new rifle my only requirement is that it be stainless steel and that is flexible. It will primarily be used for deer. I'm torn between the Savage American Classic Stainless and the Tikka t3 and am wonderring if the Marlin xl7 is available in stainless. I'd like it to be fairly mild in the recoil department so the chamberrings I am looking at are .25-06, .270, and 7mm-08. So I geuss my question is really does the marlin xl7 come in stainless and how do these cartridges stack up as far as recoil goes?
Need some input on rifle selection
- Thread starter JamesM
- Start date
Sorry I don't know anything about Marlin. Does brand matter? Because if not you should take a look at the Mossberg 4x4. For the price you won't find another rifle with as many features, and yes it comes in stainless. They call it Marinecoat.
I'm not familiar with the rifle as such but the calibers you mention are not noted to be heavy on the recoil side in most rifles.Obviously the lighter the rifle the more noticeable the recoil would be,depends on each individual if they are OK with it or not.
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
My usual advice is to buy a used, high quality rifle, from Tradex for about the same price you'd pay for the new commercial pieces priced to attract those on low or fixed incomes. When I was a youngster the logic was to buy a Lee Enfield for $30 or less, and even then, many of them were junk, and I don't wish to inflict that learning curve on anyone. However, lately I have come to modify my opinion, if only slightly, to the extent that there are some budget rifles that have features combined with attractive pricing that makes them worthy of consideration. After visiting WhyNot this past summer, He pointed out some features of the Marlin bolt gun that impressed him, and if its good enough for Ted, who am I to argue. As to the choice of stainless or carbon steel, I doubt it matters. Either will give years of trouble free service if looked after, and both will let you down if ignored and abused.
As to the chambering, I don't think it matters very much either, except to say that a light rifle will be more challenging to control than a heavier one as you climb the power ladder. If for general use, which for most folks means to include moose and bear, I would be content with any cartridge between the 6.5X55 and the .30/06. Of the three cartridges you mentioned, I would rate the .270 as the best, with the 7-08 snapping at its heals. A pal of mine is a real fan of the .25/06 , particularly when loaded with TSXs or Accubonds, but to me the quarter bores don't come with enough bullet weight to recommend them as suitable for general purpose cartridges. FWIW, he now shoots a .280 Remington, and this is another excellent choice that is far too frequently overlooked.
As to the chambering, I don't think it matters very much either, except to say that a light rifle will be more challenging to control than a heavier one as you climb the power ladder. If for general use, which for most folks means to include moose and bear, I would be content with any cartridge between the 6.5X55 and the .30/06. Of the three cartridges you mentioned, I would rate the .270 as the best, with the 7-08 snapping at its heals. A pal of mine is a real fan of the .25/06 , particularly when loaded with TSXs or Accubonds, but to me the quarter bores don't come with enough bullet weight to recommend them as suitable for general purpose cartridges. FWIW, he now shoots a .280 Remington, and this is another excellent choice that is far too frequently overlooked.
nomad 68
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
The .270 will cover your needs well in New Brunswick and yes the marlin comes in stainless.Before you buy,have a look at the weatherby vanguard series 2.It's a very nice and accurate rifle for a very reasonable price.
I agree with buying a quality used rifle, in the brands you mentioned I would pick Tikka, I would add to the list Vanguard, Ruger, Browning, Winchester. I had a Savage in 7mm08. And I loved the caliber not the rifle, noticeably less recoil than a 270 if you are sensitive to it. I would not buy a Mossberg.
2506 is a perfect deer round. Its capable of taking moose and black as well. Easier in recoil department then the 270. I sold my 270 and kept my 2506. Savage axis comes in 2506 and stainless. Its ugly but damn they shoot good. I'm a fan of savage rifles and have never really liked tikkas and I've tried to. The vangaurd series are nice rifles as well. I use my 2506 with 75gr vmax bullets at 3500fps for groundhogs jackrabbits and coyotes. 117gr interlocks at 3150fps for deer and black bear. If I used it for moose I'd step up to a 120gr partition. Even with 117gr bullets the recoil is very mild and easily bench friendly. No game has ever needed a 2nd shot. The only disadvantage is with the smaller bullets and higher velocities meat damage can be significant if you're a fan of the shoulder shot. Go with what feels right. All 3 cals will work
I shoot a Browning X-bolt in .280 and my wife shoots a Savage synthetic stock stainless 25-06. The 25-06 shoots so softly it's beautiful. With little recoil it's easy to be very accurate even from freehand. I also really love my .280 as it doesn't have tons of recoil. It's more than the 25-06 but not up to some 30-06's I've shot before. Myself as a new shooter I was able to learn to handle the recoil very quickly. The benefit of the .280 over the 25-06 in my opinion is that I can take bigger game a little more comfortably. If you are really recoil sensitive I would get the 25-06 but if you can handle a little bit more I would recommend the .280 over a 7mm-08 or 270
Mystic Precision
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Summerland, BC
Of the rifles you listed, I would go Tikka. I am a huge Savage fan and with a bit of TLC, great. for out of the box, the tikka's I have played with have impressed me to no end.
6.5 Swede is about as nice a fit as can be.
I just picked up a Ruger American and for the money, wow.
Savage Axis is my new walkabout hunting rifle and it is great too.
I don't care about fancy looks on my hunting rigs as they will get dirty, wet and knocked about. I am ok with plastic fantastic as long as they run well and have good triggers. Both the Savage and Ruger fit that bill.
The Tikka raises this with some really nice fit finish and cycling.
Jerry
6.5 Swede is about as nice a fit as can be.
I just picked up a Ruger American and for the money, wow.
Savage Axis is my new walkabout hunting rifle and it is great too.
I don't care about fancy looks on my hunting rigs as they will get dirty, wet and knocked about. I am ok with plastic fantastic as long as they run well and have good triggers. Both the Savage and Ruger fit that bill.
The Tikka raises this with some really nice fit finish and cycling.
Jerry
Superglide
Regular
- Location
- somewhere with a lot of standoff
I have a marlin xs7 in 308 win and it is a great rifle that I would encourage anyone to buy if they are looking for a good new yet inexpensive hunting rifle, it is well built and a great shooter, with federal fusion 165gr it will do 1 1/4 moa at 100m all day and I have not tried any other ammo as that is accurate enough for a hunting rifle. I have other rifles as well ranging from Mosin Nagants to a Winchester Model 70 just so you now what I am basing my opinions on. For another 100 dollars put the xs7 in a boyds laminate wood stock and you will have a rifle that will turn some heads. Buy it you won't regret it. And they do come in stainless in the calibers you mentioned.
Just out of curiosity's sake, why would you not buy a Mossberg? I bought my Mossberg and loved it ( and the features it comes with ) so much so that I got rid if my Savage 110 that served me well for the last decade. The new Mossberg was enough to make me switch from tried and true to the new kid on block!
So I'm curious why did you say that you wouldn't buy a Mossberg??? It's easy to discredit something, but it seems to be a little more difficult to actually provide sound reasons to avoid a particular firearm .
I've fouind the mossberg rifles I've shot to have a weird balance and the stock dimensions on the 4x4s doesn't fit me at all. None of them could match a savage or tikka or wthby in out of box accuracy with a variety of factory ammo. I am a huge fan of mossberg pump shotguns but I will not own a centerfire rifle from their current line up. I have an old chukster 22mag that I love however
I found my 4x4 to be extremely accurate out of the box. My groupings were much tighter than they were with my Savage 110. That being said though, my Savage was from the late 60's. As for the fit, I must have short arms because the stocks fits me nicely.
I do respect people's opinions, and it does seem to true that next to nobody buys a Mossberg. Out of all my buddies I am the only guy with one. However, it's been good to me so far!
