Can you help a new guy?

Gramreaper

Gramreaper

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Red Deer Alberta
I have several firearms, but am into handguns and military style weapons.

I have just begun looking into hunting rifles and am asking all the people I know what to look for in weapon brands as well as cartridges. I would like to ask my brothers in arms for their opinions on what is best and why. I am looking at going for deer and perhaps larger game and am unsure of what to do as a new guy.

Any help you all can give me is much appreciated.
Thanks.
 
The best thing you can do is to try a few on at a gun shop first, just to see what fits best.

Now, we need to know where you plan to hunt, what range and what kind of terrain. Then you need to decide at what range you are comfortable with and the cover and then choose whether you need a scope or not.

A good rule of thumb is a light weight sporter rifle in .308 or .30-06, they will do it all. Of course darn near any cartridge will work and you are about to be flooded with opinions on that. But there are many options. Do you want a bolt, single shot, lever, pump or semi? What kind of money do you want to spend? Do you plan on doing much target shooting? Do you plan on hunting in the crappy weather? Answer these questions as best as you can and then we'll try again.
 
If 40 people reply, you will likely get 40 different answers. Everyone looks for different attributes to accommodate their "best". For example:

1) What are you hunting?
2) Is price a factor?
3) Availability of ammo
4) Weight of equipment
5) Recoil considerations
6) Local laws
7) Shooting distance to target

The list goes on...

I like my Rem 700 mountain in .270Win.

Pros: Very accurate, fast round. Relatively low recoil for big gun, Light weight, nice furniture. Ammo somewhat easy to acquire

Cons: Relatively expensive ammo compared to .303 or .308, not the best round for huge game like moose or bear.
 
Obviously you like either speed or accuracy and all your stuff is magazine fed, so you need a Magazine rifle that is accurate. check out the sako finnlights. you won't be in the least bit disappointed. 1/2 moa accurate at 100M instead of 1/4 moa and very very very well built and magazine fed. Stainless and synthetic so little maintenance. You will be set.
 
I would have to reccomend a 30-06......

Now as to the actual firearm..... I am a little biased..... I absolutly adore Remmy 700's. But that's me. You need to go to a reputable dealer in your area, tell them you want a 30-06 :))) and see what they have for options. You will be well served by a:

Savage with an accu-trigger (after you spend some time & or $$ bedding the stock etc. etc.)
Tikka (of any stripe)
Winchester model 70 (if you can find a used one)
Remington Model 700 (My first choice/reccomendation)

Those are the only models I can think of that will run you less than a grand and still work really well for your purpose.

Cheers!
 
Thanks fellas.
I am Albertan.
I am looking at $1000 to $1500 and have been scoping the Tikka & Sako models. I'm thinking 308 as an all around deer/moose rifle and already have a Bushnell Legend for a scope (whether that is good or not?). I do not know what distance to suggest as I am a virgin to the sport.
Please remember, I am very new and do not come from a background of hunters in my family. I am relying solely on you all to give me some introspect as to what I should be doing before I lay down my paycheck.

Thank you all for your support!
 
Your going to get a lot of different opinions on scopes too.

I like Leupolds, just got a Falcon Menace but haven't had time to use it yet, and I can't afford Zeiss or anything fancy.
 
If you go to the hunting section and look up the site where some guy is trying to make up his mind over two rifles you will get a pretty good idea of what you may have started. That thread is now over 120 replies and the original author still can't make up his mind. Personally there are too many opportunities and possibilies to engage in a discussion for something as personal as a good hunting rifle . . . I took less time selecting my wife than some of my firearms purchases!!!
 
Check out Ruger too mon. Got a stainless 30-06 with lam stock that gave me MOA out of the box and getting better with handloads. I have a 308(Savage 99) and the 30-06 so that pretty much covers BC. CZ makes some very nice stuff too-I have 2 of them and they are all a delight to shoot.
 
Gramreaper said:
Thanks fellas.
I am Albertan.
I am looking at $1000 to $1500 and have been scoping the Tikka & Sako models. I'm thinking 308 as an all around deer/moose rifle and already have a Bushnell Legend for a scope (whether that is good or not?).
Click to expand...

Tikka and Sako are good quality guns that will serve you well. Also considered good quality would be Remington (although there have been mixed reports on late models being spotty in QC) and Winchester. Savage makes workmanlike rifles that are good quality, but a bit rough in fit and finish. They also have a reputation as being very accurate and are a good value, IMO. You will often have a choice between a detachable mag and a hinged floorplate. Both have good/bad points and neither one is really better than the other.

Unless you are really hung up on wood stocks and blued finishes, I would recommend a synthetic stock and stainless action and barrel. I love blued/wood rifles, but they do take a beating in the bush and the synth/SS combo is much more resistant to scratches and dings along with being weather proof.

Glass is a subject all to itself. I like Bushnell 3200 series scopes for being a good value and sound quality. Lots of people like Leupold, but I think they are a touch pricey for what you get. Definitely good quality, though. Your Legend is towards the bottom end of the optics range and may be fine, but you will never regret spending more on optics. The better stuff offers more robust construction (resistance to both recoil and handling damage) and better quality lenses and coatings (better low light performance, clearer view, more forgiving eye relief). Whatever brand you get, a 3-9x40 model will offer the most versatility for everything from plains hunting to heavy bush.

Good luck with the shopping,
Mark
 
Good advice below. Buy a Tikka T3 in .270 or 30-06 scope it with a Bush. 3200 and never look back. All in with good mounts you're under $1200.
 
Gramreaper said:
Thanks fellas.
I am Albertan.
I am looking at $1000 to $1500 and have been scoping the Tikka & Sako models. I'm thinking 308 as an all around deer/moose rifle and already have a Bushnell Legend for a scope (whether that is good or not?). I do not know what distance to suggest as I am a virgin to the sport.
Please remember, I am very new and do not come from a background of hunters in my family. I am relying solely on you all to give me some introspect as to what I should be doing before I lay down my paycheck.

Thank you all for your support!
Click to expand...

Well depending on what part of Alberta your talking about I think it's safe to assume you will shoot more deer then you will moose. (I'm on priority 8 or some damn thing) Do you plan on hunting antelope? Mule deer? Elk?

Can I suggest the .270 Winchester to you? It is one of my favorites and since your new to the bigger rifle scene it will take good care of you. A 130 grain bullet is zippy enough to give you confidence if you want to take a little longer shot on deer or speedgoats, and a 140 or 150 grain bullet especially a good bullet will kill the biggest bull that walks. If your looking at a light rifle like the T3 the heavier the cartridge and bullets the more it's gonna boot you. The Sako is by far heavier but new they are also closer to $2000 not $1500. Both are made by the same people both feel very different and there are alot of good choices between these two rifles that you really owe it to yourself to research. Of course you can choose any rifle or cartridge you want, but when I'm asked to recommend a rifle the questions I asked originally are what tell me what I think would work for you. My opinion will be far different then anyone elses, but given the criteria you provided I would be perfectly happy myself with a .270 Winchester. As for your scope it should do you well, provided it's not one of the super powerful models. That would just be unneccesary. You can upgrade your optics later, and you could consider handloading at that time too. Good luck with your search and have fun.
 
You have to like the look, feel and function of the rifle (not in any specific order as to priority). Surely you have a couple of guys you know who have a rifle or two for hunting. Try them out for starters and go to the local gun shop. Try them out, see which you like best, then look at some reviews of a couple that you like. Most rifles will come in a wide enough selection of calibers that you shouldn't have any trouble with caliber selection.

As for that, well you could be on this forum for a month and not have read all of the caliber and game combination discussions! From what you have asked, deer and moose, I would suggest looking into a caliber between 270 and 30 cal (something) mag. Popular cartridges are popular for a reason, find one that will meet your needs.

As for your needs, you should figure out how you are going to hunt. If you haven't had the opportunity, try and find a couple of guys who can take you along for a hunt. Depending on how you hunt, you may like a small compact and light rifle, or maybe you won't have any trouble carrying a big heavy beast.

My choice would be a tikka laminate stainless in a 7mm rem mag

Reasoning:
- Its a tikka, smooth action, good ergonomics, easy to carry all day.
- Laminate is really tough (almost synthetic tough), looks good and weighs the gun down a bit more, so as to take some of the bite out of a good magnum recoil.
- 7mm rem mag, shoots flat, hits hard, wide bullet selection for different game, easy to find ammo.

With regards to your legend scope, I have one on my 300wsm, works great, and hasn't had any problems. Use yours, and if it doesn't suit your fancy get a different one later.
 
You should consider a Ruger No.1 RSI in .303British, but the same gun in the 1-A or 1-S version would also serve well enough. See here:

http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=412828


However, lots of modern bolt action hunting rifles are available that will do what you want, very well. From the Stevens 200 and Marlin XS7/XL7 typically retailing for <$400 new through Savage, Remington, Ruger, Tikka and Weatherby models that can be had for <$1000, chances are you won't get a bad one. The differences in accuracy inherent in these different designs are probably less than the differences that will come from how a particular rifle fits you. If you can get to gun shops that have the rifles in stock that have features you want, time spent in going to handle them to see what feels like it fits you will be a good investment.

For general purpose big-game hunting, .30-06, .308, and .270 are very good choices because of their common availability in the popular rifles and they work very well and the ammunition is going to be easy to find in a good variety of choices. They are common and popular for good reasons.

A word of warning. If someone offers you a Remington 710 or 770, used or new, privately or in a gun shop, whatever they tell you, the real and sole reason they think you should buy it is that they have it and want to get rid of it. Do not rely upon them for any more advice or guidance. (They may say things like it is based on the Remington 700, which is the industry benchmark of a modern mass-manufactured hunting rifle, but it isn't. It was designed by Remington to be cheap to make and cheap to sell to people who didn't know or care a lot about their guns. Many owners are content with their 710s and 770s, but for the money, there are much better guns available, and if you want a Remington, the extra cost for their model 700 in many versions is well worth it.)
 
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If it were me I would get a T3 in 30-06, put a Leupold 3x9x40 on it, go buy some plain -jane Winchester SuperX ammo, sight it in, learn to shoot it well and go hunting.


You CANNOT go wrong with this combo.

-The T3's are consistently accurate enough there is a very, very, good chance you can buy any ammo and it will shoot well. This saves going through the frustrations of trying different ammo and farting around only to find you need some specialty load. I can guarantee you that one day you will be busy with life and suddenly realize it is hunting season and you are not ready. No problem go down to C Tire and get your ammo.

-The T3's come ready to go out of the box. The triggers are good the bedding good, they are put together really constantly , very few turds out there.

-Leupold scopes are easily available have a life time warranty THAT IS EASY TO ACCESS. If you break it send it to Okotoks Alberta to get it fixed. You will pay nothing and have it back in a few weeks. You buy those scopes for life.

-30-06 works for everything every time with standard ammo. You can get fancy bullets if you want but it is not necessary even for Moose.





This will keep you from spending time farting with equipment and more time leaning to hunt. The equipment part is easy, learning to Hunt with it is the hard part.
 
Terrain in Ab varies so much, I'll offer you what I use for where:

Elk in the mtn's 300winmag (lot's of guys prefer a 7mm for less recoil)

Moose up N iron sights 450 marlin(wife carries 30-30, son 30-06) Just bought the wife a 375win as an upgrade from her 30-30

Deer in the sandhills iron sights 30-06(son "liberated" my 270), or my .54 cal percussion

Deer/antelope on the flats (son's 270 if he's not using it, otherwise my 300)

If I could only have one htg rifle the smart move would be a 30-06 as you can load it from 100gr to 220gr(which I've used well on moose).
My choice for one would be my 300wimnag, which while it is waaaay overkill for deer/antelope but it covers everything the best of what I've got.
Hope this helps.
My best advice would be to spend some time learning the draw system, look through draw results over the last 3 yrs or so, and see what you will actually be hunting in the next 3-5 yrs.
Just search "my wild alberta", go to hunting draws, on the upper left side you'll see "2009 draw results"; from there you can access draw results over about the last 10 years. In June, make sure to put in for everything you "think" you may want to hunt 10 yrs from now, 999 what you don't want now to get you're priority started. Our draw system is second to none; to get the most out of htg opportunities you need to plan ahead.
Best of luck.
 
7mm-08 in a Ruger Hawkeye SS/Lam is what I would get if I were you.

Rugers are tough utility rifles, and the 7mm-08 is all you'll ever need for hunting in AB, with the added benefit of not giving you a headache after a dozen shots off the bench.
 
Gramreaper said:
Thanks fellas.
I am Albertan.
I am looking at $1000 to $1500 and have been scoping the Tikka & Sako models. I'm thinking 308 as an all around deer/moose rifle and already have a Bushnell Legend for a scope (whether that is good or not?). I do not know what distance to suggest as I am a virgin to the sport.
Please remember, I am very new and do not come from a background of hunters in my family. I am relying solely on you all to give me some introspect as to what I should be doing before I lay down my paycheck.

Thank you all for your support!
Click to expand...

Where in AB are you?

I'm north of Edmonton about 130 km's. If you're not too far away, you'd be more than welcome to take a trip to the range with me this summer. You can run a few .308's through my Savage 99 lever action and see how you like it.

I favor either the .308 or 30-06 for hunting. There's nothing you can't hunt with them.

I use 165 grain bullets in my .308 and I've killed elk, moose and deer with it.

For what it's worth, I have a 3x9 - 40 mm Tasco 'World Class' scope on my main hunting rifle and a Bushnell Banner 3x9 - 40 mm on my backup. Both are under $200.00 I leave them set on 4 and never change them.

I don't need an expensive scope with all kinds of geegaws and doodads on it. I know my guns, I know my scopes, I spend a lot of time at the range in the summer, and I'm a darn good shot. I killed a cow elk with it at 500 yards last year so there's no doubt they work as good for me as the most expensive scope ever could. There are those who will say a more expensive scope is better but I believe if you're a good shot, you don't need a $2,000.00 scope to hit a deer/moose/elk at 200 yards.

I sight my rifles to be dead on at 230 yards and for anything from 100 to 300 yards I don't really even have to think about ballistics, I just put the crosshairs where I want the bullet to go.
 
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