If you were buying your first hunting rifle.....

Bksrt8

Bksrt8

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Just curious what calibre you'd be looking at as someone who has never actually hunted ANYTHING before.
I'm interested in medium to large sized deer mostly for eating not a trophy hunter in any way, and up to moose....Im looking at hunting in the Timmins area as that's where I'd like to purchase some property.
My thought is something in 308/300winmag or 30-06 because of ammo availability as I have no real desire (yet) or equipment to reload....that may change later.
The 6.5 family is intriguing as well but seemingly less ammo availability.
Any thoughts? Thanks for your time!
 
30-06.

The only reason to ever pick 308 over 30-06 is if you want a Savage 99.

The 300 Win Mag will have the least ammo availability of the 3, kick the most and in factory loads has considerable overlap with the 30-06.
 
In terms of ammo availability, would 7mm rem be a consideration to my list or stick with 30 cal?

Also in regards to quality vs price, is there anything to consider aside from a Remington 700 action and barrel?
 
You'd have to prowl your local stores but around here, 7mm RM and 270 are both easy to find.

If you're buying a new rifle, see about buying a case (10 boxes) of ammo at the same time.
 
So…I’ve been helping folks get set up up with their first that and that’s for hunting for a few years now. I predominantly suggest .308s and it’s family based cartridges.

For someone in light deer category and down to varmints, the .243 is a sounds choice. Will punch above its weight class when called upon and won’t overdo anything. This cartridge is ideal for sub 400y light to medium game.

For you, my most popular suggestion fits the bill, the mighty 7-08. It’s probably my favourite cartridge to date. Will do everything aside from largest bears and arguably bison. Easy to find ammo for, maybe not next to the .308… but outperforms it hands down.

I recently started tinkering with a 6.5 Grendel as a replacement for my long running 308. It’s been amazing and would definitely do the jobs you are asking. Keep the moose to under 350y, and let er fly. No recoil, low report, light rifles, but hard to find ammo for locally. Simple online.

I am starting to suggest this cartridge in many scenarios.
 
Any reason to shoot milsurp calibres when hunting such as 7.62 variants? Aside from the availability of ammo would I be better of with a calibre that is more designed with hunting in mind? I am not a good shot to begin with and need some practice as that's going to make a bigger difference between success or not than calibre ever will. But trying to give myself every advantage I can within reason....I dont want to go hunting with something as a new shooter and hunter that is going to be uncomfortable to shoot right off the bat...my priority is killing an animal with as little suffering to the animal as possible as im sure is the case with most hunters, I do apologize for my newbieness!
 
I was in the same situation.

Got a Ruger American Predator in 308 for $500 from here and a $300 Leupold 3-9 atop. No regrets. 2 deer and a bear in 2 years.

A step up in price from that would be the T3x in 308 (I have one on the way and will comment afterwards).

Another step up would be some sort of R700 with stock. I'd rather you spend less on the gun and buy 6 boxes of ammo. Shoot until you can hit MOA 3 shot groups off a bench, then practice offhand and supported to less than 4". Then youre ready to be aiming at live game.

Lots of anecdotal stories and feelings on here,but look at what your local store stocks. Everywhere I go, I can find 308. Can't say that for 30-06, 30-30, or any metric round. AFAIK a 7mm-08 is just a 308 with a smaller dia bullet, and therefore another step of difficulty in finding in stock.

Find a .22 (even a $200 cooey) and shoot with that until your eyes go blurry. There's a reason I was the only person to pass the Mapleseed course here, and it's probably because I shot ~400rds a month at 50-100y leading up to it.
 
If you are new to rifles - keep your recoil down. It will develop a twitch if you are not careful which is a real problem
We start our young folks on 350 Legend. Drops them in their tracks under 200yds
243 for over 200yds.
You don't need a cannon for deer. Don't belive a word from people who say so.
48 years and o####ing using 243 for whitetails and Mulies.
You msut develop accuracy first. You do that by lowering your caliber size and recoil energy
350 Legend will easly drop black bears under 200yds. We have done it many times the last 3 years.
 
I agree 100%^^^
Learning to shoot better would be the first step....I do have a Renegade in 223wylde [although I've yet to fire it :( ] and fired the c7and c8 during my time in cadets, so not a totally new shooter but totally new at shooting game. Is the 223 a good place to start to not develope a flinch? And then move up to 308 or 30-06 after a few hundred rounds...I suppose resistance to developing a flinch depends on the individual
 
Were I buying my first Deer and Moose Rifle today and didn't reload I would strongly consider a new, modern rifle in 8x57, in real life I have taken from Coyote to Elk with it. Ammo is available in 2 power levers; "American" brands at 30-30 level and "European" brands at 30-06 level. Unleaded ammo is also available from Hornady and Lapua.

A more conventional answer may be to get a 243 with a 24 inch barrel for deer and forget about moose in the short term as such a large animal is not ideal for newbies.
 
You really don't need anything with magnum in the name. It's going to hurt your shoulder and wallet more than necessary. I would steer you towards a 308 in a tikka t3. It's a platform and chambering that has been proven reliable and accurate. I've used mine for elk, moose, deer, bear and others. It's never left me wanting for a larger rifle you'd also be well served by a 270, 30-06, 7mm08 or even a 6.5 creed would be fine even though guys love to hate it. If you do go with tikka a limbsaver recoil pad is a money well spent.
 
I live in that area currently. For ammo availability and a do-it-all cartridge, 308 Winchester. For a rifle, a Tikka T3x lite stainless. That combo would serve you will up here.
 
MiG25 said:
IMO, someone concerned about recoil should avoid anything "lite".
Click to expand...

What about someone more concerned with carrying their rifle for 3hrs in the woods? It's only 12oz lighter then my "non-lite" rifle. Its probably more to justify the price and market to people, it still is gonna be 6+lbs with your optic mounted. Lite for me sounds more like 4.5lbs or less.

Why would you be so concerned to shoot once with a 308 at your quarry?
 
The relationship between recoil and rifle weight is well understood.

I had a woman start crying from 1 shot from a 308 and it wasnt even a "lite" one. So yeah, it is beyond the recoil/blast tolerance of some.
 
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