The Ultimate North American Hunting Round?

Best North American Hunting Round

  • .270 Winchester

    Votes: 70 8.4%

  • .270 WSM

    Votes: 11 1.3%

  • .30-06

    Votes: 358 42.8%

  • .35 Whelen (tough to find, yes, but solid)

    Votes: 19 2.3%

  • 7mm Rem Mag

    Votes: 67 8.0%

  • .300 Win Mag

    Votes: 147 17.6%

  • .338 Win Mag

    Votes: 67 8.0%

  • .375 Mag (H&H or Ruger)

    Votes: 54 6.5%

  • .300 Ultra Mag (tough to find, but hard to argue with)

    Votes: 8 1.0%

  • .300 WSM

    Votes: 35 4.2%
  • Total voters
    836
Outstanding Dogleg...........I'm getting tired of hearing that a 300 WM or RUM won't REALLY do anything an '06 won't do...............which is just pure H:S:


The 340 Wby is still the ultimate all around NA cartridge...........and all you '06 supporters and shooters can bite me !!!!! If you think the 30-06 is such a pleasant rifle to shoot then may I recommend you try a 200 grn load out of a steel butted Springfield 03-A3 or a crescent butted 95 Win...........Give me a 300 RUM any day with a properly designed stock and a good recoil pad.
 
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c-fbmi said:
Outstanding Dogleg...........I'm getting tired of hearing that a 300 WM or RUM won't REALLY do anything an '06 won't do...............which is just pure H:S:


The 340 Wby is still the ultimate all around NA cartridge...........and all you '06 supporters and shooters can bite me !!!!!
Click to expand...

I would never say that the .30/06 is the equal of the .300 WM, that is clearly not the case... but in the context of NA game, the /06 is "enough"... and the WM is "more"... and for Douglas the .340 Bee is quite a bit "more yet"...
 
c-fbmi said:
Outstanding Dogleg...........I'm getting tired of hearing that a 300 WM or RUM won't REALLY do anything an '06 won't do...............which is just pure H:S:


The 340 Wby is still the ultimate all around NA cartridge...........and all you '06 supporters and shooters can bite me !!!!! If you think the 30-06 is such a pleasant rifle to shoot then may I recommend you try a 200 grn load out of a steel butted Springfield 03-A3 or a crescent butted 95 Win...........Give me a 300 RUM any day with a properly designed stock and a good recoil pad.
Click to expand...

Easy solution, for a man with your talents, if a butt plate is the problem, change the butt plate?
 
galamb said:
If you take a look at the caliber offerings from the major mfg's on their various models, there is more than a few that are "only" chambered in 30.06 and 270 Win.

They don't do that because there is some "overwhelming demand" for other calibers.

They are trying to make money after all...
Click to expand...

Actually I see more rifles chambered in 308 win only than any other caliber...
I voted 30-06 btw...
 
When talking about the Ultimate North American Hunting Round I think there should only be rounds considered that are not only capable but also legal to take all NA game.

E.g. Yukon Hunting Regulations for Wood Bison state -

"Minimum Firearm Requirements for hunting Wood Bison:

A centre fire rifle, .30 calibre or larger, with minimum 180 grain bullets (premium
bullets strongly recommended) and minimum 2800 ft/lbs energy at the muzzle.
(A .30-06 calibre is the baseline rifle.)"

The .270s and 7mm shouldn't even be listed here.

I've seen large grizzly, moose and record book wood bison taken with a .30-06. This fact and the given versatility of the cartridge makes it my number 1.

.30-06 all the way!
 
Well, normally I suggest the '06 to most that ask, on the assumption that they don't hunt or shoot a lot and won't be going for the NA29.
But as the question is to cover them all, there are the present legal requirements also to be met, not only for bison, but the grizzly and polar bear, .......that eliminates anything below .30 cal with store bought ammo. I went for the .300WM although the closest I have is a .300H&H. For the bigger stuff I'd prefer the 9.3X64 or 450/400, even though I do have several in .375 and I'd trust them explicitly. Over the years and lots of international clients, the .300 was used by most likely 45%, so it does get the job done, and on guided hunts there's usually a back-up, ......thank God!! As always, not all clients are great shots when the crap hits the fan!!
The .375 or .340 can handle anything, but usually the hunter wants a mount, and although I hate the word, they can be a bit of "overkill" on smaller game.
I'm not a "one gun for everything" person, .......for pronghorn and deer I like a nice, short, lightweight rifle, and for the big stuff a big gun for confidence, it's no fun when the SHTF, and although I've downed grizzly with a .257 Roberts, it wasn't my choice as I wasn't hunting them and would have preferred not shooting.
For those that think the 30-30 is great, would you really want it on a $40,000 polar bear hunt?
'Nuff said.
 
Although the 30-06 will no doubt work for all north american big game, I chose the 300WM as the best from the choices given.....(308win, 30-06, and 300WM....good, better, best) :)
 
riversrest said:
When talking about the Ultimate North American Hunting Round I think there should only be rounds considered that are not only capable but also legal to take all NA game.

E.g. Yukon Hunting Regulations for Wood Bison state -

"Minimum Firearm Requirements for hunting Wood Bison:

A centre fire rifle, .30 calibre or larger, with minimum 180 grain bullets (premium
bullets strongly recommended) and minimum 2800 ft/lbs energy at the muzzle.
(A .30-06 calibre is the baseline rifle.)"

The .270s and 7mm shouldn't even be listed here.

I've seen large grizzly, moose and record book wood bison taken with a .30-06. This fact and the given versatility of the cartridge makes it my number 1.

.30-06 all the way!
Click to expand...

i dont think the 30-06 should be the minimun for Bison but that means people needs to train and shoot with bigger calibers and i dont see it soon ...

in Alaska or NWT you need a 200 gr bullets mini for bison.

Phil
 
I had a conversation with the late John Hunt a few years ago and asked him what he thought was a good North American hunting caliber and his answer was,
Quote "the 300 Weatherby, it's the only thing I use" .
I do not own a 30-06 or any magnum's but if I had to choose it would be one of the 30 caliber Magnums.
Its easier to reduce a load to achieve 308 or 30-06 levels than create a 300 mag out or a 30-06.

David
 
I have 30/06 and a 375 H&H both are versatile rifles. I voted 30/06 in the poll. I also like walnut and blued steel. I don't need a 300 wm. I don't need a 300 wm in a Winchester model 70 stainless steel extreme weather rifle. Saw one yesturday and picked it up for a look. Thinking about it all night and day.Has me looking around for scopes too. Yep would be an all round rifle for back country hunts anywhere in North America. Was thinking about it, this thread just cost me close to two grand.
 
I voted 7mm Rem Mag.

- It didn’t punish the shooter too badly.
- Flat, long range, powerful caliber.
- Ammo, easy to find and affordable.
- Need a 24 inch barrel and over to shine.
- Can get a rifle under 10 pounds, scoped, and still pleasant to shoot.
- From yotes to elk, it’s an awesome caliber.
- Wide bullets choice, with High BC.
- North American big games, are not the exception like (Grizzly/Bison)
- If you go Bison, then get a 45-70.
- Hunting big game requires shooting, learning your equipment is part of the process.
You need to shoot your rifle to learn your and hers capacity.
Shooting bigger then 7mm Mag, is not a joy ride. (hunting rifles)
-Yes I do believe 30-06 will get the vote, and I do believe it is the most common caliber out there. But: I prefer my 7mm Mag better. And that’s the one I kept with my 270 WSM.
-As this is my own opinion, I voted: 7mm Rem mag.
Depends of your needs: some people are mainly hunting moose and moose only: then 338 would be a good choice.
While some other will only hunts deer’s.
We’re all different, our vision and opinion reflect that.
My first rifle 25 years ago was a 7mm Mag, Sold it because I wanted to try something else.
After 25 years experiencing all kind of rifles, calibers, game. I came back to the 7mm Mag.
And yes I had 338 UltraMag, 30-06, 300 mag……Etc….Etc….
Guess witch one I carry the most out there 90% of the time: My savage Youth 243.
So short, So small, So light, So pleasant, So cheap.
Take 12 individuals, from all age, gender, life experience: put them in a room: asked then to look outside by the window for 60 seconds. After that; take these individuals and asked them to describe what they saw: Guess what: You will have 12 different stories.
There’s no good or bad answer: but only yours.
 
My natural instinct would be to gravitate towards a 300 or a 338. They offer good trajectory and a wide selection of bullets. Although who just has one rifle? Like......WHO? :)
 
I've shot a 270 once, 2 different '06's one shot - almost against my will :) and a .338 few shots, and only have experience with the 7 mag on your list so naturally I'd pick that with 160 premium bullets and could get 'er done.

I personally don't care for the .30cals but on paper I'd say your correct on the 300Win based on the criteria, makes the most sense. If ya got enough cash to hunt all over NA then you should be able to afford more than one rifle though!

I love reading these as everyone seems to get pissy when there favorite is missed or bashed a bit and others cartridges get tossed in the mix somehow. It's all about bullet selection now days it seems anyways.
 
I polled for the 300WM. I've hunted deer, caribou, black bear and moose with mine and the caliber can easily go up or down the game size scale simply by changing the load. I looked at superslam.org's list of "traditionally recognized" NA big game animals and could see myself using the 300WM (lotto Max please) for any of the listed game. I got thinking, however, there's more than the traditionally recognized big game animals to hunt in NA. A 300 WM will certainly take smaller stuff like pigs, canines, gophers etc but a 30 cal really isn't necessary or especially fun for those critters. So my thanks to the OP, he helped me confirm yet again that I do need more than one gun.
 
So Ardent, when you say "Anything in N/A"....your talking what? Not many people will actually have a chance to hunt all the N/A big game species.

It would be interesting to know if anyone here has had the opportunity to hunt them all and how succesful they were.

And it would also be interesting to have a ballpark cost to fulfill that quest.
 
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