me and dad were talking about my first hunting rifle

.270 gets my vote. It will kill anything a .308 will. I see no real difference between the 2 as far as taking game is concerned. but you can drop the grain and shoot coyotes with the same rifle and some areas like mine have caliber restrictions for such things. I originally owned a .308 Savage and sold it now I have a stevens 200 in .270, and find no major difference between the 2.
 
There's nothing wrong with a 308. It's a good cartridge that will do for any North American game, although when it comes to Grizzlies and Polar Bears, you should probably go with something a bit bigger. However, it will be just fine for Moose, Black Bear, deer, Elk and Caribou.
 
Another vote for the .308. Short action, maybe lighter, maybe quicker. Less powder if you reload, cheaper at crappy tire if you don't. Plenty of thump for anything in N.A. and won't kill your shoulder. A savage 99f with williams apperature would be my choice for east coast deer\moose\black bear I.M.O
 
Snipers use .223, 308, 300 winmag, 338 lapua and 50Cal, there really is a good 'reason' for it. The rest is personal preference. I don't have the resources militaries the world over do, to determine which is the best cartrige, sometimes it pays to learn from others 'experience'
 
so reading all these posts (dad aswell) we figure i mays well get a remewngton 700 in a 308 calibure....i just need to find one with a wooden stocks and a blues barrell......on a side note...to they make aftermarket wooden stocks for the 700? if not are there other stocks that will fit it?
 
nova_scotian_guy said:
so reading all these posts (dad aswell) we figure i mays well get a remewngton 700 in a 308 calibure....i just need to find one with a wooden stocks and a blues barrell......on a side note...to they make aftermarket wooden stocks for the 700? if not are there other stocks that will fit it?
Click to expand...

You can usually find wood stocks in the equipment exchange here...
 
You can usually find wood stocks in the equipment exchange here...
Click to expand...

There are usually a few for sale,that people have taken off and replaced with synthetic stocks to gain a more consistent point of impact in wet conditions.
 
Will you be reloading or just shooting factory ammo? If you are limited to factory ammo, it would be best to limit your choices to one of the following four cartridges in the interest of availibility:

-.243
-.270
-.308
-.30-06

The 7mm Remington Magnum offers no meaningful performance advantage over the .308 Winchester at any range at which you have any business shooting at game animals combined with a higher cost for ammunition and greater recoil.
 
The 308 is definitely the way to go .
I'm looking for a hunting rifle in this caliber myself . ( I already own one for target )

Above the fact that it is cheap to shoot , has a highly manageable recoil and that ammunitions are available everywhere , this caliber is inherently accurate. The 308 guns are using short actions that helps accuracy and help to maintain the rifle lenght as short as possible.They don't need the 24" or 26 " barrels of the magnums too.

For a walking hunter ,a must would be a lightweight and compact rifle like : Winchester Featherweight , Browning Micro-Hunter , Ruger Light Weight or Compact , Tikka T3 Lite or Synthetic , Sako A7 ,Stevens 200...or Kimber 84M Montana for a 5 pder ?

I own a .270 and a 7mm Rem Mag that are large and heavy.So i'm looking the other way now.

I'm not a fan of synthetic but it helps with weight.
Stainless barrels are not recommended for sub-zero temperature but last fall we had 15 days of rain while moose hunting. :-(

The Featherweight worth a good look with those awesome characteristics.

Just my 2 cents.
 
A .308 is a good all around gun for most people. If you decide to go for moose, use a premium bullet,keep the range under 300yds, and be picky about getting a broadside shot. If you don't handload, you can buy federal premium with some excellent bullets in it.
Have fun with your new toy.
 
209jones said:
A .308 is a good all around gun for most people. If you decide to go for moose, use a premium bullet,keep the range under 300yds, and be picky about getting a broadside shot. If you don't handload, you can buy federal premium with some excellent bullets in it.
Have fun with your new toy.
Click to expand...

Premium bullets are definitely not a requirement for moose. Less then 10% of my moose camp uses them, and we never get a chance to find out how they work, cause the odds favour the guys not using them, who always seem to kill the moose just fine.
 
.308 will take any game in the Maritimes.

Unless you are a very good shot, it will do that at any range at which you are capable of hitting the pie-pan-sized one-shot-one-kill zone on a deer.

It will do that in an affordable rifle, with relatively cheap ammo, without a lot of recoil and noise.

What H Wally said, in other words.

Given the game you are after, you don't need more power - '.308 dead' is dead as dead can be. The magnums have the advantage of giving you give you the same power as the .308 at greater ranges. That's good - if you can reliably use it. Unless you are sufficiently skilled to reliably hit the target at 400-600 yards, you shouldn't be taking that shot. There's too much danger of a gut-shot deer dying slowly.

For what you are describing, the .308 will do very nicely. You'll be able to find ammo in the local store when you run out. It won't punish shoulder or ears. It's affordable. Good call on every level.

Mind you, the same thing can be said about .303 British, .270 Win, .30-06, 8 x 57mm Mauser, 7 x 57mm Mauser and a whack of others. When you come right down to it, they're all about on par - a few hundred fps more here, a bit less recoil there - but they are all capable of serving you well and, critically, putting Bambi in the pot.
 
I can't understand why people think that you need a magnum caliber to kill a moose. People have been taking moose for years with 30-30's and had success. Im sorry but a 300 win mag is useless unless your taking shots at 300yards. I don't really consider that much of a hunt and enjoy the idea of stalking prey and actually hunting it. Shooting an animal at anything over 200 yards is target practice not hunting. IMHO.
 
when you are hunting BIG moose..... and by big, I mean B&C contenders.... You need a magnum. You can put three well placed .338mag into the front shoulder of a 55" bull at 100 yards, and he might still bulldoze the bush and go for a 1/4 mile. Small moose just like small deer isnt a problem. Big moose, and even big mature white tail dont often go down so easy. Saying "a 30-30 is fine for moose as it has been for a century blah blah blah"... well, sorry, you have never seen a big moose, or taken one at least. It can be a little hairy at times, and sometimes, you are calling a monster in to you in heavy cover...you want a little more gun. Thats just the way it is.
Sure, a lot of moose have been taken to a 30-30. I will bet my left nut that there have been more wounded and lost moose to a 30-30 then all other calibers combined

wb9jlv.jpg
 
waderow said:
when you are hunting BIG moose..... and by big, I mean B&C contenders.... You need a magnum. You can put three well placed .338mag into the front shoulder of a 55" bull at 100 yards, and he might still bulldoze the bush and go for a 1/4 mile. Small moose just like small deer isnt a problem. Big moose, and even big mature white tail dont often go down so easy. Saying "a 30-30 is fine for moose as it has been for a century blah blah blah"... well, sorry, you have never seen a big moose, or taken one at least. It can be a little hairy at times, and sometimes, you are calling a monster in to you in heavy cover...you want a little more gun. Thats just the way it is.
Sure, a lot of moose have been taken to a 30-30. I will bet my left nut that there have been more wounded and lost moose to a 30-30 then all other calibers combined

wb9jlv.jpg
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You're aware that pic is a hoax, right? Someone with your experience "seeing big moose" should be able to figure it out pretty easily.
 
blasted_saber said:
You're aware that pic is a hoax, right? Someone with your experience "seeing big moose" should be able to figure it out pretty easily.
Click to expand...

lol an armchair hunter. there is nothing out of the ordinary here. whether this pic has been altered or not isnt the point, although it appears legit to me. the point is what I said, and if you have no experience in the matter....stfu
 
Im not saying a 30-30 is the best choice but if a 30-30 isn't enough than a 30-06 will do the job. If you want to use something bigger, fine but don't make it seem like anything less than a 300 win mag is gonna bounce off a Large Moose. People have been killing Moose as big as that long before Magnum Calibers were even invented as I said already. My point is that if you are actually hunting and stalkin an animal you get close enough to do the job. Not just spotting a Moose at 400 yards and taking aim. That is what a 300 Win Mag is for!!!!!
 
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