For my brother what caliber

[Murph1951]

Does your brother reload? That opens up more options. But Caliber isn't as straight forward without some other information.

But considering the following:
- The 270, 30-06 or 260Rem in Bolt Action is hard to beat... tried and true for Deer all the way up to Elk and Black Bear.
- Recoil Sensitive, then 6.5cm, 243Win, 7mm-08 or a 308Win.
- In AR-15 Platform, the 6.5 Grendel, 6.8SPC or 350Legend.
- If he loves Lever Action, then there is the 30-30. Which has possibly bagged more deer (and maybe small Black Bear) than any other caliber today. With the new bullet designs, its gets help to go a little faster with impressive expansion. If not recoil sensitive, then the 35Rem or 45-70 Gov.

If he likes lever action don't forget the Savage 99. One of the most beautiful guns made. Savage is 20 miles away from me and the 3d gun I bought as a youth was a Savage 99 in 300 Savage. Trouble is the gun is so beautiful I only take it out to look at it and admire the craftsmanship. The 300 Savage will do anything a .308 will do and is very close to a 30-06. By the way the gun is not politically sensitive having the Indian headdress on it.

 

[LVJ76]

My 7mm-08 recoils more than my 7 mag did.

The 7mm-08's I've owned have never recoiled more than my old 270, 280 Rem or 7mm Rem mag, or my brothers 7 SAUM.

Stock design might be an issue, some help tame recoil and some make it worse. Rifle weight can also make a difference.

Stay safe

 

[Goldengun]

25-06, 6.5cm, 270win/wsm, 7-08. I think the old 270 is pretty great with all the new bullets, but i could say that about alot of older cartridges, the 7-08 gets new life with them as well.

 

[jlw1974]

If he likes lever action don't forget the Savage 99. One of the most beautiful guns made. Savage is 20 miles away from me and the 3d gun I bought as a youth was a Savage 99 in 300 Savage. Trouble is the gun is so beautiful I only take it out to look at it and admire the craftsmanship. The 300 Savage will do anything a .308 will do and is very close to a 30-06. By the way the gun is not politically sensitive having the Indian headdress on it.

Agree, love the Savage Bolt Actions, but have a hard time finding the Savage 99 Lever Action under $500. Henry makes some beautiful Lever Actions as well (Long Ranger), but again, hover way above the $500 criteria.

 

[NorCalRiceGuy]

Check out the Savage AXIS II in .280 Ackley Improved. I recently bought one on-line from Smokey Mountain Guns & Ammo for less than $300 with a Picatinny rail installed. Shoots sub-MOA. Also available in 7-08 and 308, I believe. The 280 AI is faster than the 270 and within 100 fps of the 7RemMag with less recoil than the 06, with the full 7mm/.284 caliber selection of bullets if he ever starts reloading.

 

[Rooks]

Check out "Johnnys reloading bench," YouTube channel. He does a series on the TC Compass in 6.5 Creedmoor that makes a good case for that route.

 

[seattleman1969]

I think the 308 has the widest variety of ammo and grows with the shooter better than most. A very drama free cartridge. its my number one recommendation for a first rifle. even has factory reduced recoil loads. Ammo is cheap as well.

More options than 30-06? I would say about equal or even give the edge to the 06. Either way those two, 308 and 30-06 would give the most flexibility and availability of Ammo.

That being said, there is something to consider with the 50 cal muzzleloader! I love shooting and hunting with my smokepole! I love my Lyman PLains Rifle in .54 percussion.

 

[yr_tiger]

get a savage 300 win and see how he handles the recoil...it will shoot good and he will never need another hunting rifle. Bullets are everywhere and cheap.

 

[Ninering62]

Hello all I'm asking this to better help my brother he is looking to buy his first rifle which will be for huntin white tail and maybe bear if hes able.hes not sure what caliber or rifle to go with and what I've recommended to him hes not sure on yet.hes looking at couple different rifles but he is on a tight budget of 500 just for rife but me and my dad will help with little more cash if he finds something he really wants.the caliber he is most interested in is different 6.5 cal,,270 win and maybe 308.he has shot and hunted with either my dads 308 or 30-06,270 or 50 cal muzzleloader.he wants to have his own rifle he is 17 right now and I'm not sure how he is on recoil any help would be greatly appreciated thanks

Find him a Browning A-Bolt ll in 30.06 with the BOSS tunable brake on it. That way you have that .30 cal power & can reach out there with it. Plus you can then use all the bullet weights that make the 30-06 so popular & versatile from 90gr-220gr and you can tune the brake to drive tacks with all. Winchester makes a good 30-06 bolt rifle with their BOSS system ( same thing tunable brake ) IDK what either would cost used nowadays, but I'm a Browning fan & would walk past 10 Wins to buy the Browning. Another absolutely fantastically versatile long range , fast, flat, is the 7mm Rem Mag. Either will be a great choice that he can take anywhere, hunt anything in North America with & have that true longrange capability & accuracy.

 

[hawk45]

I like calibers where the ammo is easy to find and cheap. I know the 270 win seems to be losing popularity these days to anything 6.5 but that is what I would seriously consider. The recoil isn't bad at all but If you are worried about it, get a 1 inch recoil pad for it. The great thing about the 270 win right now is that it is probably the easiest to find ammo for and its cheap. I love the 308 win. You can find really cheap ammo, cheaper than the 270, and get allot of trigger time for not much money but with all the nonsense thats going on right now and people hoarding, its been hard to find. I would recommend it over the 270 if you didn't have to worry about an ammo shortage everytime there is a panic. I have been wanting a 7-08 but the ammo is a little more expensive and a little harder to find.

Agree! When I got my last rifle I made the choice based on what ammo I see on the shelves even in panics/hording, which seem to be constant anymore.

 

[73driver]

Hi Sam. I grew up hunting with an 06, taken lots of our AZ white tail with it and four bull elk. 06 is a solid choice. I switched over to 270 a while back and had great success with it. The ammo choice for 270 is very good. I prefer the Hornady 140gr SST Superformance load, I have taken at least 10 whitetails from 200-300 yards with that ammo. Currently am using the Federal Fusion 150gr 270 ammo in my new MOD 70 270. Just did a range session shooting it at 500y and when the first two rounds went in the 4inch bull just resting rifle over my pack, I put it away and worked with another rifle. Dial up on the 150gr Fusion at 500 was 9.25 MOA or 2.8 MIL's for you sniper types. Everything I said about 270 goes equal for the 308. My vote is 308 or 270. BTW I have shot couple thousand rounds of 6.5C at steel the last few years but just haven't taken it out hunting yet. You get a Howa 1500 for just over 400 at Sportsman's.

 

[bassassassin104]

With regard to recoil and rifle fit, how big is your brother? I am 5'8" and have a hard time finding a factory rifle that fits me well. Length of pull is almost always about 3/4" too long for me and I cannot shoulder the rifle correctly which makes it uncomfortable and makes felt recoil much worse. You definitely don't want to get him in something that hurts him to shoot. Just something you might consider.

 

[P7M13]

Stock design might be an issue, some help tame recoil and some make it worse. Rifle weight can also make a difference.

Ruger All Weather Light, 18" barrel, now 7lbs 5oz with Leupold glass. Originally ~ 7lbs with factory stock and Sightron scope.
Got rid of the *** plastic stock. Put it in wood, havent made the time to bed it yet.
Putting it in wood tamed the recoil quite a bit so its more like a hard 308.
Mind you, all JMO, my 7 mag recoils about the same as my buddy's X-Bolt 30-06, but friends I have let shoot it massage their shoulder after 1/2 a box.

 

[5gauss]

Hello all I'm asking this to better help my brother he is looking to buy his first rifle which will be for huntin white tail and maybe bear if hes able.hes not sure what caliber or rifle to go with and what I've recommended to him hes not sure on yet.hes looking at couple different rifles but he is on a tight budget of 500 just for rife but me and my dad will help with little more cash if he finds something he really wants.the caliber he is most interested in is different 6.5 cal,,270 win and maybe 308.he has shot and hunted with either my dads 308 or 30-06,270 or 50 cal muzzleloader.he wants to have his own rifle he is 17 right now and I'm not sure how he is on recoil any help would be greatly appreciated thanks

So many choices....308 common all round great one and can handle larger game than White tail...decisions decisions...