Best Black Bear/ Moose Rifle

Evan Zinn,
a 300WSM will be more then you need but a very nice caliber for you for bears and moose in ontario. They are a nice short action caliber. Also, in northern ontario the most popular is the 30-06 and will do everything the 300WSM will do. and if you don't reload and like to shoot the 30-06 is a better way to go because the ammo is easier to get and a lot cheaper. if you like short action rifles go with the 308. you can get hornady light magnum ammo that will give you 20fps shy of the 30-06 if you need the speed. also, in northern ontario you can get opportunities to shoot as far as you can see so if you plan on going long range the 300 will give you a little more jam way out there but once again the 309/30-06 will give you enough jam out as far as you should ethically be shooting.
 
I think the .300 WSM is a great choice. Anyone who says Ontario is short range country hasn't seen much of the province or hasn't hunted it much. For some Ontario hunters, hunting has become a long-range proposition. People routinely take positions to cover swamps, sloughs and cutlines where shots of 400+ yards are a reality. That's further than I personally want to shoot at game, but that's the way a lot of hunters here are doing it....I prefer up-close shots. I like the .280 Remington and don't feel the need for anything bigger than, say, a .308, a .280, maybe an '06 or a .338 Federal. I also prefer lower recoil levels. The .300 WSM may not be for me....but it well could be for you if you think you can shoot it well. That's the real acid test anyway.
 
Like a few other guys have already said, it would be hard to go wrong with the plain old boring 30-06. Anything in that power range... 270 and up would certainly work. Your choice of 300 WSM is also good, but depending on how much experience you have shooting, there may be better choices. Magnums usually aren't the best choice for newer shooters because of their additional recoil.
 
My 30-06 really p&&%s me off. Every time I think I want to buy another rifle, I take out the ballistics charts and ponder them for a while. I keep coming back to the conclusion that the 30-06 in it's various guises can fill the bill in 98.6% of the cases.

Very frustrating.
 
What is the "best" rifle for moose and black bears, is really a silly question.
OK, there are no silly questions, so lets say it is extremely ambiguous.
Any calibre from 30-30 and higher, is adequate for killing moose and black bear. Question answered.
 
Heck do what i do when im going moose hunting and take more then one rifle. I take the 7mm RUM for long open shoots in the swamps and i take a 30-06 for the closer shots but it will easily strech for the open country. Get a 30-06 with a 22 inch barrel so its easy to carry and put a good scope on it. Load her with 200gr noslers and go hunting. And sheels are cheaper to get and can be bought anywhere.
 
Last edited:
If you do not reload 30-06 all the way with a good 180 grain bullet and fire up the grill. If you do reload 35 Whelen has a comparable trajectory with 250 grain spitzer bullets to the 180 grain 30-06 out to about 300 yards.
 
You're .300 WSM is a good choice, i think a .30 caliber or bigger for bear and moose is a minimum (my opinion) i hunt moose and bear with a .338 RUM and the effect on game is terrefic and i would not mind using something bigger like the .340 WBY or a .375 of some sorts. And remember you can't overkill, there's no such thing as being too dead!
 
Evan Zinn said:
Just getting into the rifle hunting game, trying to find the right gun. I am in Ontario and looking at what rifle will handle my bear and moose hunting. I am thinking something around the 300. WSM cartridge or something along those lines. I would rather have a little too much calibre, but I know its all where that bullet hits. What does everyone think.

EZ
Click to expand...

You should think about a .300 WBY. MAG. the shells are alot of $$$ but the WBY MAG has the most energy out of the .300 class
 
sebastien leroux said:
You're .300 WSM is a good choice, i think a .30 caliber or bigger for bear and moose is a minimum (my opinion) i hunt moose and bear with a .338 RUM and the effect on game is terrefic and i would not mind using something bigger like the .340 WBY or a .375 of some sorts. And remember you can't overkill, there's no such thing as being too dead!
Click to expand...

I'm not trying to start any arguments, but moose and black bear aren't hard to kill. A properly placed bullet from any appropriate round will kill either animal, as long as it is put in the vitals. It sounds like the original poster is a new shooter, so recommending a 340 Weatherby or larger probably isn't the best idea. You are right that there is no such thing as being too dead, but you can't kill what you can't hit, and a new shooter is surely only going to develop the mother of all flinches starting out with such a powerful rifle.
 
For me, a big part of the enjoyment of hunting is the rifle and caliber that I'm using. Hunting with an old Winchester 45-70 or 38-55 just doesn't get better. I'd recommend you take your time and look at different rifles and cartridges and see if there is something out there that really turns your crank. I like cartridges that are a little off the beaten path, but you may have something that really gets you going. For Moose and Bear in Ontario, you shots aren't likely to be over 100 yards, so you may want to consider the 45-70. I've hunted with this cartridge for about 15 years and have owned 5 different 45-70 rifles, with 2 of them currently in the fold. I shoot a 405 grain bullet at 1,400 fps and practice out to 200 yards with iron sights. Of course, there's nothing wrong with a scope if you want one. You will have to hunt within the limits of the cartridge. You can make accurate 300 yard shots, but you'd better use a rangefinder to make sure of the range, and you'd better practice. Hunting shots with a 45-70 beyond 300 yards get very difficult unless you have precise knowledge of the trajectory at every distance. That being said, it would be my caliber of choice for Bear or Moose.
 
bisonhd said:
I think pretty much every moose that could have been taken with a 270, 308 or 30-06 is long since dead. Only something over 30 cal with the word 'magnum' in the title with sufice in this day of overly resilant game animals. "Ultra", even better! and of course only Barnes TSX's for guaranteed 'Bang Flops'.
Click to expand...

I'm with him. You NEED to have the Ultra Compact Super Short Magnum, and the Barnes. Those damned animals are becoming more resistant. Just like the new fangled flu viruses. :cool:
 
i have a lot of differnt calibers and now i just carry a 338 win mag 300 win is also one of my favorites ,i hunt in ontario and sometimes you do get a long shot ,across a marsh or clearing,or down a logging trail sometimes on clear cuts you will be gald you had either gun,they are also pretty acurate i used the 338 to take off grouses heads ,the 3006 you can find ammo anywhere if you get stuck and loose yours,had afellow show up with a 348,went to sight in his gun,left the ammo on his truck and drove away,he used a shotgun all week.
 
If you're new to hunting, just be sure to get something that you can shoot comfortably and afford to shoot lots. I've been teaching the Hunter Ed courses in BC for over 30 years, and been hunting longer than that. All I've ever used is a 30-06, 180 grain. Shot lots of bears, moose, deer up to 450 yards. I've seen way too many guys go for maximum horsepower. Ammo is expensive, and it hurts every time they pull the trigger. Accuracy is way more important than power. Also, higher power destroys a lot of meat. Your rifle needs to become a part of you, practice lots at all ranges.
 
shoshin said:
My 30-06 really p&&%s me off. Every time I think I want to buy another rifle, I take out the ballistics charts and ponder them for a while. I keep coming back to the conclusion that the 30-06 in it's various guises can fill the bill in 98.6% of the cases.

Very frustrating.
Click to expand...

Shoshin:

I have the very same problem. I'm starting to think that the justification can come from the characteristics of the rifle, not the cartridge.

If your .30-06 is a bolt action, then of course you need something else to carry that can give a quick 1-2 when you're pushing through some thick cedar stand, right?

It may not be the best justification, but I hope it might help you to solve your little problem. As for me, this reasonging has led me to needing a Savage '99 in .358. Now I need to get some money together...

RG
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom