1 Hunting Gun

The good thing about your choice for your one and only rifle is your picking from two really good quality hunting rifles. The only thing I can say about the CZ 550 since I own one is most of them are floor plate and only calibers like .308 have a detachable magazine. Also on that note, the floor plates and the magazine followers on those rifles are made of plastic. They have metal replacement parts if you want it but that's the only thing plastic on the gun. I thought about ordering the metal replacement parts but it started to not bother me anymore.

My CZ is my only hunting rifle and its chambered in .270 Winchester. I see absolutely no reason in buying another hunting rifle but if I do get another hunting rifle, it will be another CZ 550 but in FS in 9.3x62. Oh yes, something else, it also takes a very long time to break in the bolt on those rifles. The bolt will feel rough for a very long time but once its broken in, its a typical smooth Mauser action.
 
Living in Ontario why not buy a caliber you can use year around. The 270 will fit your needs quite nicely. As far as rifles in your price range I'd look at Bergara, Legendary Arms Works and Steyr to name a few. Just remember there are cheaper rifles out there that will fit the bill, Tikka and Weatherby come to mind. Realize now, that this will NOT be your last rifle purchase and you'll start off on the right foot.
 
Another vote for the Scout....


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kuntao said:
Living in Ontario why not buy a caliber you can use year around. The 270 will fit your needs quite nicely. As far as rifles in your price range I'd look at Bergara, Legendary Arms Works and Steyr to name a few. Just remember there are cheaper rifles out there that will fit the bill, Tikka and Weatherby come to mind. Realize now, that this will NOT be your last rifle purchase and you'll start off on the right foot.
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Because only a small portion of Ontario has this rule in effect.... Southwestern tip.....
 
30-06.....

The 30-06 is undeniably the most versatile "1 Hunting Gun" cartridge ever produced. 110gr to 220gr bullets.

As for the make and model of a rifle?,...well,...everybody has their tastes and preferences,....but IMO the Browning X-Bolt is a very good choice,..they are very accurate, alot more accurate than most shooters are, especially in a hunting environment,..glass bedded,..very good adjustable trigger,..short 60 degree bolt lift,..very smooth action,..detachable rotary magazine that is made of tough polymer that, IMO, for a couple reasons, is better than a steel magazine,..one of the reasons I like the polymer mag is the cartridges slide like butter when chambering,..they won't rust,..the feed lips won't spread over time,..and they won't bend.
Not sure what weather you will hunt in but the Stainless Stalker X-Bolt is very weather resistant and the grippy/rubbery "Duratouch Armour Coat" on the stock is excellent in all weather conditions.
I have a SS X-Bolt in 30-06... it is very well balanced and nice to carry, and only weighs 6.5lbs,...I bought it to use when the weather was bad but I like it enough that I carry/use it more than any of my rifles no matter what the weather is.
 
WOW......these threads are sure a lot more subdued when the OP throws out a budget of 2K. It would seem most of you are a lot less opinionated about expensive rifles than you are cheap ones, or possibly it is just that most of you have little experience with rifles over 1K and therefore have no basis for opinions on 2K rifles...........
OP....this budget puts you into some nice firearms, but if you have never owned a rifle before, or done any hunting, you really have nothing to base you wants on and will end up with what someone else thinks is a great rifle for 2K........If I may I'd like to suggest a course of action for you before you spend 2-3K on a rifle and optics. Go to the EE and buy a nice rifle with scope for 6-800 bucks in 30-06, 270, 308, 7-08, (a nice wood and blued Vanguard come to mind, or a Tradex Husqvarna) then go out and shoot and hunt and see how you like it. Get some experience, get a feel for a rifle, how it carries, how it shoulders, how the stock fits your shoulder and face. Do as much shooting as your funds and free time will allow and in doing so you will meet other like minded people who will let you handle and shoot their rifles. Get enough experience to form an opinion of what you like and what fits your personality and hunting situations and THEN go buy yourself your heirloom quality rifle. You may wish to keep your starter rifle for the memories or as a loaner or you can sell it for likely more than you paid for it 3 or 4 years.
 
GundamZero said:
I have a questions for you guys. I am looking for 1 hunting gun, due to limited space and funds. My game will be mostly bear and deer.

What would be a good caliber for me? Couple friends recommended .308 and .270, but I want to know what you guys think?

Also any recommendations on a rifle. Detachable mag and iron sights would be a huge plus.

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Edit: Budget would be around $1k to $2k for just the rifle. Glass I have a separate budget for. I am looking for a good all rounder and I don't mind spending a little bit for a rifle, I will have for along time.

I am really liking some of the Cz's and Steyrs any canadian shops carry them?
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CZ is a good choice; you could do worse than a 550 in .270. But before we get too far ahead of ourselves, how much shooting experience do you have? What I'm getting at here is that recommendations are frequently made for rifles or cartridges that are appropriate for an accomplished marksman, but may prove too much of a good thing for a novice rifleman, who is not in a position to modify his ammunition through handloading.

If you are a brand new novice to centerfire rifles, consider the CZ 527 Carbine in 7.62X39. This rifle provides you with all of the elements you want in your rifle, with the advantage of mild blast and recoil, in a rifle you can take pride on owning for years to come, and have access to inexpensive factory ammunition with which to develop and hone your skills. If you have some centerfire rifle experience, but haven't shot often, then perhaps a CZ 557 Lux in 6.5X55 is a good choice, you have iron sights, although a hinged floorplate rather than a detachable magazine, and a more capable cartridge which still exhibits mild manners. If you're an old hand, who can shoot most anything you're handed, simply choose the model and chambering that floats your boat. The CZ 550 FS comes in .308, has a detachable magazine, iron sights, and is a rifle that will provide pride of ownership throughout your life. The same rifle is available in a few standard length cartridge options, but comes with a hinged floorplate, rather than detachable magazine.
 
hoytcanon said:
X2... with your budget and a "one rifle for life" concept... the best choice (IMO) is a Win 70 Super Grade in .30/06.
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I was waiting for your comment lol.

I would still only have one rifle a 30-06 fwt. But I seen a supergrade it was in 7mm-08 not my first choice but it is a looker so had to have it.
 
With a budget of $2k, you have a lot of options. Pick a calibre (.270, .308, .30-06 are easiest to feed), and find a rifle you like. You can probably find what you want for a lot less, and use some of your budget for a .22 for cheap practice.

I would not recommend a 7.62x39 as being either versatile or a good choice for a novice.
 
9.3mauser said:
With a budget of $2k, you have a lot of options. Pick a calibre (.270, .308, .30-06 are easiest to feed), and find a rifle you like. You can probably find what you want for a lot less, and use some of your budget for a .22 for cheap practice.

I would not recommend a 7.62x39 as being either versatile or a good choice for a novice.
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The 7.62X39 isn't particularly versatile, but when loaded with an expanding bullet between 125 and 150 grs, its more than enough for deer or blackies out to 200 yards, which is the game the OP intends to hunt. While I don't suggest that a 7.62X39 rifle should be chosen as a dedicated moose rifle (although I know a fellow who used his Ruger 77 in that very capacity with complete satisfaction) or as a jack of all trades rig like a .270, a 7 mag, or an '06, as a rifle for medium sized big game at moderate ranges, with the capacity to take varmints, and small game for the pot without blowing them up, all with factory ammo, that casts a pretty wide net. Have you ever seen what a full power 130 gr .270 does to a body shot rabbit? You won't find factory ammo for the larger capacity rounds, that can be had as inexpensively as the 7.62X39, and what a novice needs more than anything else is lots and lots of trigger time. Trigger time with a quality rifle, one with which he can fire thousands of rounds during long range sessions, without the debilitating fatigue of shooting a harder recoiling rifle. If he could spend a month in the field with that rifle during the summer, learning field positions, and shooting 50-100 rounds everyday, come hunting season he would be both competent and confident. A 6.5X55 is a wonderful game cartridge, much more versatile than the X39, and has mild manners to boot, but the factory ammo I've seen is pricey. Should the novice begin handloading at the same time as he begins shooting a centerfire rifle, he can load his ammo to moderate levels, then any cartridge up to the big case .375s can be soft loaded, but if we use .30/06 factory ammo as an example, a six and a half pound rifle with a long length of pull typical of factory rifles, fitted with a hard plastic butt plate, would go along way to convincing a novice that rifle shooting is beyond him.
 
The game you are after can be taken reasonably with a 30-30.

The cartridges available above that capability will add range, and accuracy.

But with the $ you have to spend, maybe you should consider entering the custom rifle field. A rifle fitted to you will likely hunt better, feel better and be more accurate than an off the shelf option.

I note your Toronto location, and one could presume you hunt Ontario. But that may not be so. Even if it is, depending on where you hunt in the province, the ranges you encounter game at could vary wildly.

Then there is the handloading issue. Do you? That can open a whole new area.

Do you have magnumitise? Lots of folks here do, nothing wrong with it, if your wallet, and shoulder can tolerate it.

I used to own some high end stuff in years past, I just found I didn't need it for my style of hunting, and those rifles didn't much like my style of hunting anyway. Scratching up a $2000 rifle is harder to take than a $1000 rifle.

The above was just to get you thinking about your hunting conditions, what and where you might hunt some day in the future, and how much you are prepared to take in the wallet.

My hunting rifles are well used, I'm not afraid to scratch them, to get it wet, to push through a tag alder swamp with it, slide down a rock face on my ass with it. etc. They work.
 
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