Moose/target gun, .308, 30-06, or .300 wsm?

All 3 calibers will do the job on moose given proper shot placement and a quality bullet and bullet weight. your ability to place the bullet properly will in turn be affected by how much you practice and that in turn will be affected by your tolerance for recoil. I've never found that when a moose does show up, that I was even aware of the recoil - recoil is worse by far shooting from a bench. if you don't handload, your choice of bullet weights might be limited a bit with the .300WSM as opposed to the other two. the advantage of the .300WSM and 30-06 over the .308 is more velocity which means that the distance at which range estimation becomes critical (because of large bullet drops) is a little further out.
 
csmith99 said:
Well, IMHO, my 30-30 just wasn't good enough to take that moose down way out in the swamp, and my hunting friend has a 30-06 that he swears by that just wont' do it either so last year I grabbed a Model 70 in 300 WSM. Haven't taken a moose with it yet, but it sure has the kick to knock down something that big, and make sure it stays down.
You mean it recoils enough to kill something?
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30-06 will not kill a moose. Ive got a bunch of sandbags on top of the freezer to keep this guy in there. Damn he gets nasty when I open it for a roast :eek:

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bushwhacker said:
If you hit a moose with .30 cal. bullet in the vital area at <300M, It won't know the difference. Ammended to add, if you try to do it with a 30-30 @ 300M. you might have a problem hitting the vital area, if you try to do it with a 7.63 X 39 @ 300M. you might have a problem. If you try to do it with a Supercalifragalisticextraalegocious MAXIMAGUNM that kicks you so hard you close your eyes and jerk the trigger, you WILL have a problem.
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Excellent advice!
 
todbartell said:
30-06 will not kill a moose. Ive got a bunch of sandbags on top of the freezer to keep this guy in there. Damn he gets nasty when I open it for a roast :eek:
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That looks like a cute little bunny, about all that 30-06 is good for.
 
cereal83 said:
That looks like a cute little bunny, about all that 30-06 is good for.
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sure tastes like a moose :) maybe you could post some pics of moose you've shot with a 300 magnum
 
Very few moose can tell the difference between a 308 and an -06. I'm sure there is nothing wrong with a WSM, I just don't see the point, but I'm old and cranky and coming off night shifts... the only reason for anything bigger than a 308 or a 30-06 is a grizzly bear. A friend of mine, lost a hunting buddy to a grizzly. He killed the bear with a 270, but not before it killed him. If you don't hunt in grizzly country, then a 308 or better yet an -06, will do a moose just fine. PS "Good bullets" when you're talking moose, means nosler partitions, trophy bonded bear claws or if you have money to burn swifts A frame.
 
Yeah... whatever you do don't buy a 300WSM... it will shoot farther, flatter and faster with more energy than either the .308 or the 30-06. It will likely come in a lighter rifle with a short action and a short barrel. Reams of factory rounds are loaded for the 300WSM and available everywhere due to the popularity of this cartridge.
It has managable recoil that is very comparable to the 30-06 and the .308 due to efficient case design and the ability to make use of slower burning powders.
By all means buy some old technology and whatever you do don't try anything new... it's just way too scary to be cool.... get an 06.
 
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The 308 is the favorite cartridge of the guys at our moose camp.
Light rifles, light amo, decent range, top notch accuracy, and more than adequet power.
What more could you ask for, unless you want to shoot moose on the open prarie?
 
BIGREDD said:
Yeah... whatever you do don't buy a 300WSM... it will shoot farther, flatter and faster with more energy than either the .308 or the 30-06. It will likely come in a lighter rifle with a short action and a short barrel. Reams of factory rounds are loaded for the 300WSM and available everywhere due to the popularity of this cartridge.
It has managable recoil that is very comparable to the 30-06 and the .308 due to efficient case design and the ability to make use of slower burning powders.
By all means buy some old technology and whatever you do don't try anything new... it's just way too scary to be cool.... get an 06.
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FINALLY! Big Redd has come to his senses. :D
 
JohnC said:
I carry a .300WSM when hunting moose. But in my Ruger frontier with a 16.5 inch barrel, velocities are comparable to those of a 30:06 with a conventional ( 24 inch) barrel.
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wow, I wonder how many grains of powder are wasted in a giant ball of fire out the end of that short pipe :D

I wouldn;t want to shoot that thing!
 
While it's a tad noisy the recoil is'nt actually that bad. I'd say a lot less than a .338 Winmag - more of a strong shove. A little more than a .300 win Mag. She likes to climb but if you pull down & back on the foreend a bit, the recoil is straight back. My hunting buddy who is recoil sensitive shot 2 caribou with it and had no issues whatsoever.
 
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