Semi-Auto Hunting Rifles

I don't have a horse in the race, so I won't make a suggestion. But there are advantages to the auto rifle that the OP didn't touch on. The action won't short stroke, and you don't need to break your firing grip to cycle the action. These attributes benefit field marksmanship, and provide a significant advantage in any sort of defensive shooting scenario.
 
had a rem 7400 and and bunch of Win 100's, a few Bars, and whatever else over the years, got a couple of 742's and acquired another 100 and few months ago, this time one in 284, which reminds me, I had better get to shoot'en it! I seem to keep favoring my Micro Medallions. Even my BLR's are standing idle! One of these days, I'm gonna clean house!
 
I just acquired a Remington 7400 (.308Win) from my long-retired neighbor that hasn't seen daylight in many,many years. There's a small scratch on the pistol grip from a branch rub,but,other than that,it's in beautiful shape. It's one of those deals you just happen to fall into,sometimes,too good to turn down. After a strip down,thorough cleaning and lubing,scope rings change (he had see-thru's on it) and remount and "zeroing",I'm betting it will be like a new rifle because it's only had,tops,a box and a half of shells through it since he bought it new 20 years ago. This is my first "semi". I may just restore it and sell it,but,I need to make sure it works,first,so,I'm really itching to get it to the range.
 
I've put in my wrench time with my m305 and I find it a decent semi for the field. A bit heavy but that doesn't matter on the stand. Not moa but easily modeer. Reliable gun great caliber. Don't discount it b/c of the Norc haters. Great value especially for the price.
 
I have had the following, M1A loaded stainless excellent , m305 excellent but needs about 800$ and work to be excellent, BAR excellent, FNAR excellent, Bennelli R1 had some feeding issues, difficult to clean, very accurate,finish is easily damaged,terrible customer support, do not recommend, 7400, ok if you're on a budget but not great,do not recommend , overlooked but excellent Keltec RFB, 1.5MOA, compact, easily cleaned, good customer support. I have no personal experience with XCR, but a friend has one,accuracy ok, not great 2MOA or so he tells me, easily serviceable, dependable. Those have been my experiences
 
I have shot a few deer with a mates, bar 3006, was a bit heavy, but very effective,
wouldn't mind browning bar safari, in 9.3x62 or 35 cal.
Allowed to hunt here in NZ with black rifles, so once get house in Fort Mac sold, I am going to buy a Bushmaster AR15 carbon, 16" fit a moderator and a 2.5 or 4 power scope, on quick detach mounts, and take it out for goats, pigs and bush hunting for smaller deer,
 
I am not up on all the new stuff.but the Remington autos and pumps have been getting it done at moose and deer camps all across this country for many years.and both have worked very well for me over the years.D
 
Most hunt camps I have attended over the years have all had there share of semi autos. And they all have been royally cursed at over the dinner table except the HK in .308 and the Ruger 44mag semi. Those two always seemed to work without issue. I have my Dads Win M-100 that he bought the first year they came out. It will work great as long as the gun, clips and ammo are kept meticulously clean. Let any of the semi auto's or there mags get dirty and you are asking for issues. But over the years the HK,s and the Ruger,s in my observation appeared to give the most reliable service.
 
I have two buddies that use the Remington semi's... One a 742, and the other a 7400. The 742 has always got cleaned where you could reach with oil and a rag, and has never been apart for a cleaning... The 7400 was brought to me last summer for me to refinish. It was the first time the gun had ever been apart, and cleaned... It had only ever been wiped down on the outside. Neither of the two have ever jammed a round... And the 7400 was the dirtiest rifle I have ever seen. No idea why it even still fired lol.

Here in Nova Scotia the 740/742/7400 is about as popular as the Winchester 94 used to be. The two I mentioned are the two I am most familiar with, but I know many people that use them, and only know of 2 or 3 that have been retired to the gun cabinet because of failures. They seem to have a bad reputation, but as far as I can tell from around here the reputation is worse than the rifle.
 
Last edited:
I love my Benelli R1 3006 camo comforteck. It's quite accurate once you find the right load, much easier to clean than a BAR ( complete disassemble and reassemble in under 10 min) , light weight, mags are much easier to change than the BAR, and with the comforteck stock the recoil is minimal. I use it as my heavy bush gun for deer and moose. Just changed my scope from a Swarovski 1.7-10x42 to a Aimpoint Hunter 34 mm red dot which should speed up target acquisition even more.

Are there semi's that are more accurate - yes, but I use a semi for heavy bush where a deer may be on the move and shots are seldom over 100 yards so 1/2 MOA really isn't an issue
 
Mudduck said:
I love my Benelli R1 3006 camo comforteck. It's quite accurate once you find the right load, much easier to clean than a BAR ( complete disassemble and reassemble in under 10 min) , light weight, mags are much easier to change than the BAR, and with the comforteck stock the recoil is minimal. I use it as my heavy bush gun for deer and moose. Just changed my scope from a Swarovski 1.7-10x42 to a Aimpoint Hunter 34 mm red dot which should speed up target acquisition even more.

Are there semi's that are more accurate - yes, but I use a semi for heavy bush where a deer may be on the move and shots are seldom over 100 yards so 1/2 MOA really isn't an issue
Click to expand...

Mags are reasonably priced too for the quality they are....$85 at Al Flaherty
http://www.alflahertys.com/products/benelli-r1-magazine-3006-300-270wsm-338-wm-308-300-wm
I've had no issues with mine and it's only seen handloads, easy to tear down like you said, chrome bore/chamber and cryo hammer forged barrel which will last forever, trigger is really good, BAR was on the list until I saw how hard they are to get at the gas system....
I really liked the drop and offset shims... wasn't sure I would use them then tried bringing it up a bit, really made it point and shoot nice, made the low recoil feel even lower, stayed on target much better.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom