Your opinion please..

aikidoforever

aikidoforever

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Hello all,

I'm thinking of picking up a .300wsm for moose and deer hunting and am considering a few different options for rifles. I'm a left handed shooter and originally thought of going the semi route like the BAR, but have read some complaints about the trigger being one of it's weak points. Accuracy, in comparison to a bolt is suppose to not be as great but still pretty good. I'm also considering left handed bolts such as the Browning A-Bolt or the T3 from Tikka. I've handled a T3 in 7mm and it was very nice. I found it to be by far a smoother bolt than my Remington 700 that I owned a few years back. The other consideration is a Browning BLR but am wondering how the trigger, accuracy and quality is compared to let say the BAR, T3 or A-Bolt.

Accuarcy is of course the most important factor to me, which I believe includes a decent trigger. I'm not looking for a feather weight rifle but don't want to carry a 9 pounder either. I would like a barrel length of around 22-23".

Please chime in if you have any experience with anything I'm asking about or simply a suggestion.

Thanks,
 
I think that generally speaking, bolt actions will almost always have better triggers than a hunting semi, lever, pump, etc. It's not that a semi auto or a lever action can't be accurate, but on average, you'll do better accuracy wise with a bolt action.

I currently own a T-3, a Rem. 700, and a Win. 70, and the T-3 is the most accurate of the 3, at least in my own case.
 
The BLR is no long range wonder, but the other choices sound good.

The only thing about the Tika is it is very light weight for a 300Mag..You will find it plenty snappy in the recoil department.

What about an older Rem 700 in a 300 Winchester?
 
X-fan said:
The BLR is no long range wonder, but the other choices sound good.

The only thing about the Tika is it is very light weight for a 300Mag..You will find it plenty snappy in the recoil department.

What about an older Rem 700 in a 300 Winchester?
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Tikka makes a varmint stainless in 300wsm and it weighs in at 8lbs with a 23.75" barell. Then add a 4-12X scope and the weight should help with the recoil.

As for the Rem 700, as mentioned I had one 5 years ago. I didn't dislike it until I used my friends Tikka T3 a few times. If you ever get a chance to operate the bolt of a T3, you will wonder if it has ball bearings in it. It's that smooth. Try this: with the gun horizontal, with the bolt open, lift the barrel slightly to the sky then tilt it down towards the grown... slightly. You will notice that with the Rem 700 the bolt doesn't move, but on the T3 is slides forward then back with ease. Just like it was on bearings. It's really nice and shows, in my opinion, quality. I've never tried that with A-bolt, I'm wondering how they are..
 
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BAR's are very accurate, and the new longtrac's can borrow a few winchester sxr parts and have a fully detachable mag system.

Most magnum calibers are found in 24" barrel guns.

I know a few lefty's with BARs and they are happy with them.

Don't know much about trigger pull, but I doubt too much could be done to a semi. They tend to be a little tougher for safety apparently. I've never shot one that was really bad except for an sks. High quality semi's have all been good enough for me.

Good luck deciding, there are lots of variables and options!
 
Squamch said:
I don't own a BLR but my dad hunts with one in .308 and he's confident out to about 350 yards..I'd say thats about enouh reach.
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When I was a kid, I had a few relatives that had the BLR and they liked them. However, I don't think they used the gun for distances of more than 200 yards.

As for the .308, I love that caliber and would be my #1 choice if i were hunting only whitetails. However, I want one gun for both. Either way, I don't think I would attempt a moose at 350 yards with it... a whitetail yes...but then again, that's just me.
 
Gerich said:
BAR's are very accurate, and the new longtrac's can borrow a few winchester sxr parts and have a fully detachable mag system.

Most magnum calibers are found in 24" barrel guns.

I know a few lefty's with BARs and they are happy with them.

Don't know much about trigger pull, but I doubt too much could be done to a semi. They tend to be a little tougher for safety apparently. I've never shot one that was really bad except for an sks. High quality semi's have all been good enough for me.

Good luck deciding, there are lots of variables and options!
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The BAR shorttrac in 300wsm has a 23" barrel and does come in a lefty version if needed. I THINK I like the looks, but I'm not 100% sure. I tend to like the Safari a bit better. I'm just not sure if I want to go semi or not, again because the trigger AND reliability (jamming) issue. But the recoil reduction of the semi is a bonus... I'm leaning towards the Tikka but I love the looks of the A-Bolt too. I will probably change my mind a thousand times before laying down the cash. Yes, lots of options and that's great for all of us and fun too, researching and asking the forums etc.. Thanks for the input.
 
I'd pick up as many as you can, and go with one that feels good for you.

And make sure it has everyting you want it to have (eg detachable mag).

Don't settle for anything less.

I've tried a lot of different guns out there, and I like the benelli r1 the best for feel and function, but it's no tackdriver like the bar's and sxr's. I started hunting with a lever, then a pump. Then I hunted with a BDL for years because it was really accurate. Now I'm so used to semi autos from gopher hunting with a 22 and and bird hunting with a 12ga that I want one for big game too.

Take Care!
Gerich
 
I have had a BLR 243 for 30 years and it is very accurate. I have shot deer at 400 yards no problem. I have just bought a BLR 300 win mag and have a Zeiss Conquest Rapid Z 600 on it and shooting at a 12" gong at 600 yards is not a problem hitting it 3 out of 3 times and is a very light awesome rifle IMO anyhow. You will not be sorry with the BLR 300WSM
 
aikidoforever said:
As for the .308, I love that caliber and would be my #1 choice if i were hunting only whitetails. However, I want one gun for both. Either way, I don't think I would attempt a moose at 350 yards with it... a whitetail yes...but then again, that's just me.
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Personally,I wouldn't get too caught up in the magnum craze.The .308 will do just about anything a 300WSM will do.Moose really aren't that tough,they are just big deer with big lungs,and I wouldn't give a second thought to taking a 350 yard shot with a premium bullet from a .308.In fact,I'd be more likely to take that shot with the confidence of dropping it into the kill zone of a moose than that of a whitetail.The Swedes have been killing tens of thousands of moose quite effectively for decades with the lowly 6.5mm.

That said,if you have your heart set on the magnum,don't discount the BLR.By design they are inherently accurate with the rotary lug bolt and essentially floated barrel and will rival the accuracy of most bolt actions and exceed many others.My .223 BLR shoots MOA and several of my buds use .308,.270,and 30-06 BLRs for both moose and deer quite happily.They are most definately "minute of moose" accurate to say the least.;)Then again,T3 actions are sweet.
 
300 WSM Tikka Varmint. If you want to do any bench shooting it will be more pleasant to shoot than the lite. I like the extended range, flatter shooting characteristics of the 300 WSM.
 
Browning BLR's have a very nice finish (wood and blueing) and are a quality gun. Take a look at an older Tikka like a M-595 if you get a chance, you will turn your back on the newer ones(T-3's) as their quality has gone down hill in the past 15 years.
 
canadaman30 said:
Browning BLR's have a very nice finish (wood and blueing) and are a quality gun. Take a look at an older Tikka like a M-595 if you get a chance, you will turn your back on the newer ones(T-3's) as their quality has gone down hill in the past 15 years.
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I disagree, the quality of the action machining and barrels and fit and finish is just as good if not better but they have cut a few corners with all the plastic.
 
the way i look at it, they're all 30 calibers with varying powder capacities- basically, high speed 308's - if you want to kill from longer ranges, add more powder- if you want to really step up, well then there's the 338- but be prepared to only 100 shots out of a pound of powder, and your bullets cost more too
 
grinrgrn said:
aikidoforever said:
As for the .308, I love that caliber and would be my #1 choice if i were hunting only whitetails. However, I want one gun for both. Either way, I don't think I would attempt a moose at 350 yards with it... a whitetail yes...but then again, that's just me.
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Personally,I wouldn't get too caught up in the magnum craze.The .308 will do just about anything a 300WSM will do.Moose really aren't that tough,they are just big deer with big lungs,and I wouldn't give a second thought to taking a 350 yard shot with a premium bullet from a .308.In fact,I'd be more likely to take that shot with the confidence of dropping it into the kill zone of a moose than that of a whitetail.The Swedes have been killing tens of thousands of moose quite effectively for decades with the lowly 6.5mm.

That said,if you have your heart set on the magnum,don't discount the BLR.By design they are inherently accurate with the rotary lug bolt and essentially floated barrel and will rival the accuracy of most bolt actions and exceed many others.My .223 BLR shoots MOA and several of my buds use .308,.270,and 30-06 BLRs for both moose and deer quite happily.They are most definately "minute of moose" accurate to say the least.;)Then again,T3 actions are sweet.
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X2


I killed and elk in Nov 08 with a nice double lung shot at 500 yards with my Savage 99C lever action in .308. I had no qualms whatsoever about making the shot. It was calm (ie: no wind) and I shoot my rifle regularly all summer, every summer (to the tune of about 100 rounds minimum a year) up to and including 500 yards. Because I shoot my hunting rifle as much as I do, I know it VERY well and am extremely confident with it up to 500 yards and wouldn't hesitate to shoot anything at that distance (as long as it wasn't too windy right, I would pass up a shot at the longer distances on a really windy day because I'd rather not shoot than wound and side winds are tricky to calculate).

The line of thinking that says you need a magnum to make a long shot, or shoot something big, is ridiculous and very much not true.

What you need to make a long shot is accuracy. If you're accurate, regardless of distance, you can drop anything no matter how big it may be.

My hunting partner uses a .300 Savage exclusively and has all his life. He's shot something in the area of 30 moose over the last 4+ decades and I don't know how many elk.

I'm not saying don't use a magnum. Heck I like shooting them myself. But I would never tell somebody they have to use a magnum to make long shots, or kill a bigger animal.
 
Asside from the rifles,

The 300 spanks the shoulder (pending the recoild pad) at the range far more than the .308 will (you won't feel any recoil when you shoot your moose with either of them) and the .308 won't break the bank as much as a .300 will (that is buying ammo off the shelf)
 
I have a couple of Tikka T3 and love them, very accurate. I put a Sims Limbsaver on the t3 Lite, worth it, makes a bit difference. Caliber wise once you convinced yourself it's the one you need , it usually is :D I just dont think one is right for everything. Good Luck
 
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