264 wm or 30/06 or possibly...

It appears that you want the "do everything rifle", does not exist. Each choice you make is a compromise. If the caliber restriction for Southern Ontario is not a issue, then 264 is probably not the ticket for really large animals at long range. Most projectile larger than 140gr for the .264 bore are round nose and not ideally suited for long range. While it is a vanilla/chevrolet choice if you want something similar, with good ballistics, that has many good high BC projectiles for game>>>>>try the caliber that pushed the 264 WM into obscurity, the 7mm RM.

Personally if you want a high volume accurate semi custom, target rifle in a large game capable caliber there is one obvious choice. Dogleg has the caliber pegged, 300 WM. The rifle itself is a compromise in that it is a bit heavy for walking and not as tricked up as most dedicated target rigs. How about the Rem Sendero in 300 WM. Bed it and do load development and they shoot very well.They are through the EE fairly commonly.

The 264 WM is the upper limit of where much more powder is required to gain a few hundred ft.sec. Beyond this level in the .264 bore, you get much more blast, recoil, powder usage, and here today gone tomorrow barrel life. It had a reputation for being a barrel burner, i am not sure if some of the more modern slow burning powders have helped. Conventional wisdom puts barrel "life" at 1000-1500; however, i know a guy who used a 264 exclusively and replaced his barrel at 4000. It depends also on what you consider "shot out"....is it 1/4moa going to 1/2, or is a 1moa rifle a ok hunting rig? Again a compromise, as a conventional 308 Win would give you accuracy, a great selection of rifles, and barrel life; it just does not check all your game needs boxes.
 
I'd resist the urge to build a big heavy rifle for what amounts to short range shooting. The same features that are great on a 1000 yard range toy, specialty long range hunting rifle, or target rifle can make for a clumsy piece of crap under hunting situations that resemble normal and needs to be shot from all positions. On the other hand it is very hard to take a bolt action sporter in suitable caliber and screw it up so bad that it wont still be a 350 yard moose gun.

I agree with you but I like the look and feel of this type of rifle but don't need a 338 lapua. I was extremely close to buying a weatherby so chambered just a couple weeks ago from Gobles but I just don't need to burn that much powder and for hunting I won't usually shoot past 400 yards unless it's coyote or groundhog. With a smaller bore I won't have to worry about hunting with a braked rifle.
I will do a fair bit of range shooting when and where I can stretch the range out but I'm by no means a long range shooter.
I prefer to get as close as possible but sometimes that just doesn't work out. I love my 45/70 and 458 to much to leave them at home
Anyone can buy a savage rifle and call it a day. I like to be different and have rifles for different settings I guess


After using a 300wm I've never seriously considered a 7 mm to be honest
Hits like a 30/06 with the Speed of a 270
 
If i could keep a 5" group at 400 yards I'd be happy.
I just found out i maybe getting a 270 wby so I'll scrap the idea of the 264 for now.

That narrows down my list to mostly 30 cals now
 
If i could keep a 5" group at 400 yards I'd be happy.
I just found out i maybe getting a 270 wby so I'll scrap the idea of the 264 for now.

That narrows down my list to mostly 30 cals now

Any factory, off the shelf T3, Vanguard, Sako, Cooper or similar should be able to do that. My friend was easily shooting 5" groups at 500 yards with his T3 Lite in .300 WM using 200gr Partitions.
 
The question isn't the rifle. It is me. I'm pretty good but I'm no f class champ. Unpredictable winds ruin my groups. Add in adrenaline and I can get 5" groups at 400 yards pretty easily with a rifle that should group half that lol
 
If this thing is really going to weigh 12 lbs. and up, then get one of the weatherby cartridges from the upper end of the scale; .300, .340, or perhaps even .378. A 12 lb. rifle shouldn't need a brake. But I think a normal, sporter weight rifle in .300 mag. would do everything you want and be a lot nicer to pack around.
 
The question isn't the rifle. It is me. I'm pretty good but I'm no f class champ. Unpredictable winds ruin my groups. Add in adrenaline and I can get 5" groups at 400 yards pretty easily with a rifle that should group half that lol

Those factors will be the same in a 12 lb rifle as in an 8 lb rifle. My humble opinion is, if the basics are ok (i.e. you can shoot good groups at 100), to get out to cutblocks in the off season and practice (make sure you have a rangefinder) on targets at various ranges. You will be surprised how doing this ramps up your confidence.
 
If this thing is really going to weigh 12 lbs. and up, then get one of the weatherby cartridges from the upper end of the scale; .300, .340, or perhaps even .378. A 12 lb. rifle shouldn't need a brake. But I think a normal, sporter weight rifle in .300 mag. would do everything you want and be a lot nicer to pack around.


My original plan was 300 wby but the more I thought about it the 300 wm seemed all I'd need. That got me wondering about the benefits of the 30/06. Both can be used for hunting out to 400 yards and for long range plinking and I can stock pile loaded ammo and not have to refinance my house buying brass lol. Normaly I bring more than enough gun but I want something different for the purpose of shots on game between 225 and 400 yards of which I believe both will do thus the tough decision
 
The law goes by caliber name. The 270 win is perfectly legal in South West Ontario. A 275 Rigby is also legal if stamped as a 275 Rigby even though it's a 284

I've narrowed it own to 30/06 or 300 wm though
 
After discussing it with Mystic precision I've decided to go 300 wm 26" varmint contour. Once the years hunting trips are over I will start acquiring all the components. Thanks for all the insights and comments
 
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