Bush Gun

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recoveringunut

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So in all my postings lately about 270s and switching to 270wsm I am left with one more question stemming from a comment i read.....

I really need help with this one (please):

what does it mean when a browning BLR 270 (kever action) is refferred to as a bush gun?

Does this mean it will be ineffective as a rifle shooting 250 yards?

I understand bolts are more accurate but in contrast would a 270 low end savage bolt be that much more effective than an expensive BLR?

I would think the BLR would be more accurate....
 
A "bush gun" is something that is light and handy in the bush. Think Marlin 30-30. It's really light to carry, easily stowed, and you don't have to baby it. It points well, shoots comfortably, and is "easy in the hand" so to speak.

Compare that to a 26" barrel bolt action that you try to still-hunt with, or take on a pack horse: the bolt gun is long, doesn't point well, gets hung up on things, is heavy, etc etc.

A "bush gun" is just a handy, useful rifle. In my opinion.
 
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In my opinion a bush gun is something you can cart around with you all day in the bush, and effectively defend yourself should you need to. For this it should be light, small, have a quick sighting picture, quick cycling for follow up shot, reliable, and enough punch to put down anything in your area out to 100yards, reliable, and nothing your going to cry over if you get it dirty, scratched or dinged. Personally I like a .30-30 winchester 94 carbine packing 170gr flat nose outfitted with a sling, peep sight and high visibility front sight. Not sure what the barrel length on a BLR is but I'd say any reasonable caliber that you can afford to practice practice practice with, in a 20" or under barrel level action with open or aperture sights (scopes too slow to get a bead on a charging bear) and a sling. I also like having something I can roll a few small game loads for to pack along for "targets of opertunity". A while back I made up some rounds using a lead #0 buckshot run through a .308 sizing die, lubed, put over a couple grains of pistol powder and lee factory crimped. I was looking for something in the 900-1100fps range, would hit on sight at 25yrds and with enough accuracy to pop grouse, squirrel or rabbits. It took some trial and error but I came up with something that will do the job.
 
I got a Marlin 1895GS off another fellow in the EE.
Pretty compact; 37 inches overall.
Weights in at 7 pounds.
Stainless; should help weather the elements.
45-70; should be able to take a Sasquatch.
 
Yup...mine is a Marlin 1895 also. To me a bush gun is a rifle with no scope since your in the bush (usually the thick stuff) and will not be doing any distance shots, and I like a lever due to its quick second shot, and since its a lever, my preference is to keep a lever's nekked without scopes. I find I can more easily track a running deer using iron sights than I can with a scope.

I like the 45/70 because its good for any deer, bear, or Big Foot that may need to be shot :D
 
When I think of "bush gun" I think of this:

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Some of the woods back home. See why I like short barreled rifles and shotguns? :D
 
Try Googling the phrase "brush gun". That's what gunwriters and others have called them for about a hundred years. "Bush gun" the way most of us use it is a misnomer that caught on, kind of like "hex barrel".
Traditionally, brush guns were handy-length rifles for hunting the thick stuff. Generally chambered in what are thought to be "brush-bucking" cartridges, i.e. slower, heavier bullets from the .44-40 or .44 Mag through the .30-30 and .45-70, though the definition isn't hard and fast. A .30-06 Remington autoloader would usually be considered a brush gun, provoided it's the carbine model. Handiness, follow-up shot rapidity and adequate woods-range knockdown power are the general hallmarks of the breed.
The .270 WSM BLR would be considered by many to be a brush gun, not because it lacks open-country range, (it doesn't) but because it is a very handy, quick-to-point repeater. Just because it's a good brush gun doesn't mean it can't be a great rig for longer shots too. I'd just want a scope that goes down to 2X for hunting the thick stuff.
 
when I think of Bush or Brush gun I think open sights, shorter barrel and lighter weight. Something you may be walking with all day. For that I have a Winchester Model 92 in 44.40 which ive used succesfully for Deer. For moose I will walk around with a Husky Bolt gun in 9.3x62 .
 
When I think of "bush gun", I think of a Rem 7600 30/06 Carbine with a Leupold 1.5x5.

Pretty much perfect for the task with enough umph to take on longer shots if needed.


.
 
BLRs are great rifles. Very well rounded. Is a BLR in .270wsm widely considered to be an ideal bush gun? Probably not, but it'll beat the snot out of a "bush" gun for longer shots.
 
Lots of you guys are saying Lever guns because of the quick second shot. But what about a good ol' pump rifle?
308 Police never hurt anything less than a 30-30
 
The caliber was another consideration for a good bush gun where I grew up. People's designated bush guns were in calibers that where loaded with round nose bullets (bullets that would'nt deflect if they hit a twig). The most common being 30-30's and 303's. They were also cheaper rifles with fast actions.

I also know guys who did'nt have a designated bush gun and would use there 8lb bolt action 270's in the bush and get just as much game as anyone else.
 
Ok, i appreciate the variety of answers to this...

Point 1, I do great in bush with the scope i got on my bolt 270...however i understand about the scope not being the fastest response and the bolt and the length (although it is light cuz its a synthetic stock).

This new BLR is a short action lever it is a compact gun with decent length barrel but think it is shorter than my bolt. I am gonna see if I can get scope mounts that will allow me to use the iron sights on the gun....I do need a scope though but I would like the option.

Now Barktwid....is it fact that the 30 30 wont deflect off grass and twigs like the 270? I have had it happen and gawd it sucks....but guys at gun store say it makes no difference they all do.....but I thought that was kind of bs...i mean i am not "aiming" for the twigs lol....it has happened ....its the only thing i could guess happened as there was grass when i shot at a wolf that was sneaking into the lick.....
 
A pump action would be a great brush gun. For some reason that I'm not sure of, pumps never seemed to get popular out west. I tend to forget they exist at times lol!
 
I'll stir the pot a bit and suggest a scout rifle set up.
I dumped my long guns in favour of a Ruger Frontier (.358) with a forward mounted Burris 2.75x scout scope. Its an extremely handy rig with lightening fast target acquisition.
(fyi..you can forward mount a scout scope on many a lever action too)
 
recovering,

Stay away from "see-thru" scope mounts. They aren't worth a crap. Optics aren't as bad as some guys make them out to be on a bush gun. Just get a nice lightweight fixed power leupold.

Plus, once you come out of the bush, and you see your whitetail buck 300 yards out on the edge of a clearcut, it's kinda nice to have the option to take that shot. Your 270 will do that no problem.

(Yeah yeah, I know some of you guys shoot 300 yards with open sights. I can't, unless it's off a bench and I'm really lucky.)

Oh and yes, if you shoot at twigs, they will deflect your bullet regardless of caliber. It's simple physics. Just think of a car running into different sized trees: they will all wreck (deflect) the car, regardless of tree size.
 
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recoveringunut said:
I understand bolts are more accurate but in contrast would a 270 low end savage bolt be that much more effective than an expensive BLR?

I would think the BLR would be more accurate....
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Expense has nothing to do with accuracy. A Savage is cheaper becasue it takes way less time to build one, and has less moving parts. If you where to take 30 Savage rifles in 30-06 and 30 BLR's in 30-06 and shoot them for accuracy with Federal GM loads, the Savages would very likely hand the BLR's their butt on a platter.
Saying that, if you are hunting 1 1/2" at 100yds 3 rounds if fantastic and will do the job day in and out, and BLR's are very capable.
Here is a kicker for you. Holland & Holland rifles only gives a 3moa guarantee on their rifles, which usually start in the 10000USD range. Very expensive, very nice, not accurate compared to a 3000USD NULA.

recoveringunut said:
This new BLR is a short action lever it is a compact gun with decent length barrel but think it is shorter than my bolt. I am gonna see if I can get scope mounts that will allow me to use the iron sights on the gun....I do need a scope though but I would like the option.
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Don't do that to the gun, the rings are hideous and they don't allow a consistent cheek weld. Just scope the rifle with a 2-7 or 1.75-6 power scope and you'll have short range magnification and long range magnification.

recoveringunut said:
Now Barktwid....is it fact that the 30 30 wont deflect off grass and twigs like the 270? I have had it happen and gawd it sucks....but guys at gun store say it makes no difference they all do.....but I thought that was kind of bs...i mean i am not "aiming" for the twigs lol....it has happened ....its the only thing i could guess happened as there was grass when i shot at a wolf that was sneaking into the lick.....
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Any and all bullets deflect when they encounter foliage. A dozen gunwriters (and other folks) have preformed a dozen tests a dozen times, and come to the conclusion that a 30-30 vs a 30-06 vs a 257 Weatherby vs a 45-70 all deflect nearly the same given the same circumstances. Just shoot what you want is really the answer.
 
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