looking for new whitetail & a few western hunts cailber

[Timnterra]

I don't mean to discourage you from buying another rifle, but I think you would better prepare yourself for long range western hunting by upgrading a scope rather than Changing calibers. I watched a YouTube video last week of a guy harvesting a cow elk at 800+ yards with a 308 Winchester. The bullet will do it's job if you can put it where it needs to be. A simple 3-9 cheapo will do fine for 100yds but if you want to hunt out west and shoot further your money is better spent on a scope. If you already have a good long range optic then by all means pick up a 300 win mag. I think it is the most versatile killing-cartridge ever created.

 

[Jud96]

I would choose something in the middle. There's a big jump from .270 Win to .300 Win Mag. The .270 is a great deer cartridge, but wouldn't be my first choice if I was going elk hunting or had to make shots beyond 500 yards on big deer. Like others suggested, the .280 Ackley is a great choice and so is the old tried and true 7mm Remington Mag. The .300 Win Mag is an awesome cartridge as well. It will do everything you need it to do. If you reload, I would work up a load running 165-180gr bullets at moderate speeds for the close range work. Then when you practice at long range and go out west, work up a load with some 200-225gr bullets.

I have a .270 and it's great for deer, but not my first choice for a long range cartridge. All you need is one good rifle to do what you're looking to do. Don't get anything overly heavy and don't get an ultralight rifle in a magnum round without a break. Any 7mm or 30cal rifle that's .280 Ackley or bigger will work great!

 

[snox801]

300wm is a great choice. Like others said you can buy reduced loads or load your own. I'm in Michigan so in your situation that's a perfect caliber. If you get the right twist you can run the monos like hammer and not worry about being overkill up close but can still have long range work.

 

[Aoudad shooter1975]

Well my long range do it all is a 338 norma in a 10 lb scoped rifle with 270s it will do it all--but recoil is on the edge of me liking it...alot of guys are recoil sensitive (me included--im getting more and more sensitive by the year)but for a out west starter--I'd say 280 AI..in most US areas you can get ammo for it...you usually land and most major cities have a bass pro or cableas. They have it--so stop in.If your international your pretty much screwed anyway--I have been on my fair share of international trips and my stuff did not make it one time out of 14 international trips--and it was my firearm that did not make it...so moot point.

7mm mag is a great cartridge--one of my favorites. you pay for it with powder. the 280 AI does 90% of the 7mm mag with less powder and blast--and I have killed a boat load of stuff with a 7mm mag and 168 grain bullets.

One short story on the 280AI. We had loaded some of the 175 elite hunters at a bit over 2720 with 7828SSC in his rifle, my 7mm rem mag needed right at 11 grains more powder to get to 2900 fps... we shot steel with that little 280 AI and at 630 yards put a neat little group of about 3.5 inches at 630 yards...got it all dialed in and shot a red sheep at 80 yards with it! the way hunting is! get prepared for the long shot and shoot them at point blank range. Good luck on your selection.

 

[Country Bumpkin]

Well my long range do it all is a 338 norma in a 10 lb scoped rifle with 270s it will do it all--but recoil is on the edge of me liking it...alot of guys are recoil sensitive (me included--im getting more and more sensitive by the year)but for a out west starter--I'd say 280 AI..in most US areas you can get ammo for it...you usually land and most major cities have a bass pro or cableas. They have it--so stop in.If your international your pretty much screwed anyway--I have been on my fair share of international trips and my stuff did not make it one time out of 14 international trips--and it was my firearm that did not make it...so moot point.

7mm mag is a great cartridge--one of my favorites. you pay for it with powder. the 280 AI does 90% of the 7mm mag with less powder and blast--and I have killed a boat load of stuff with a 7mm mag and 168 grain bullets.

One short story on the 280AI. We had loaded some of the 175 elite hunters at a bit over 2720 with 7828SSC in his rifle, my 7mm rem mag needed right at 11 grains more powder to get to 2900 fps... we shot steel with that little 280 AI and at 630 yards put a neat little group of about 3.5 inches at 630 yards...got it all dialed in and shot a red sheep at 80 yards with it! the way hunting is! get prepared for the long shot and shoot them at point blank range. Good luck on your selection.

What he said...

I have been prepared to take 500 yd shots on game for 4 years, until this year (5th) my longest shot was under 250. Even this year, most of my shots were "close". Bear at 185, Sitka deer at 202, bull at 360, mulie at 240. So with all of the preparation my longest shot is still less than 400. I could have shot a larger bull at 560, out of the same herd as my bull, but I'm a freezer-filler and will always opt for the higher-percentage shot.

Lots of good advice here, in my opinion, anything from 280 ai, 7 RM, 300 WM. I like them all. I was always curious about the 300 wsm but couldn't convince myself that it wasn't "fad-ish" and would limit my factory options. There's another roundabout plug for 7 RM or 300 WM, they have been around for a long time, are proven killers, with wide range of pill options. Good factory ammo options from Hornady, Barnes, Nosler, federal, the list goes on.

Then again, if you want to get a plug and play and start whacking coyotes right meow, this thread is sweeeeeet!!

https://www.longrangehunting.com/threads/multiple-rifle-sale.210029/

 

[55stone]

TIMNTERRA, im really comfortable with the .308 out to 600 yards shooting 178gr. ELD-x over varget... i have never taken a game animal much over 200 though.

 

[55stone]

i wasnt really considering the 7mm RM but will defiantly be checking it out more now.. Did i read somewhere that the browning x bolt hells canyons are now 1-8 twist in 7mm RM.. unsure what rifle im going to go with yet figured i better finalize a caliber first lol.

 

[Jud96]

i wasnt really considering the 7mm RM but will defiantly be checking it out more now.. Did i read somewhere that the browning x bolt hells canyons are now 1-8 twist in 7mm RM.. unsure what rifle im going to go with yet figured i better finalize a caliber first lol.

Yes, the new Browning X-Bolt Pro Long Range, Browning Hell's Canyon Long Range, and the Hell's Canyon McMillan Long Range all have 1-8 twist barrels in 7mmRM. The X-Bolt rifles are great factory rifles. I have a good buddy of mine who has an X-Bolt in 7mmRM and it shoots 1/2 MOA with reloads. They're great rifles, one of the best factory options.

 

[55stone]

not that im overly concerned with recoil but how is the recoil on 7mm RM?

 

[Jud96]

not that im overly concerned with recoil but how is the recoil on 7mm RM?

Recoil is hard to judge. It depends on the weight of the rifle, bullet weight, muzzle velocity, etc. It also depends on what you have experience shooting and how recoil shy you are. I know guys that don't like shooting sporter rifles in .25-06 and I also know guys who shoot the same style rifles in 7mmRM and .300WM. I'm not afraid to shoot a 7mm Rem Mag in a light rifle, but I wouldn't want to shoot it more than a handful of times in one sitting. With weight being equal, and using heavy for caliber bullets, it falls between the .270 and .300WM really.

All of the Browning rifles I listed come equipped with a muzzle brake from the factory. So recoil would be very manageable. It would be less than a .270

 

[Country Bumpkin]

I stopped using my brake about half way through this last summer (once I got through load development). I'm right handed, shooting probe off my pack as a rest, my right hand just barely holds the pistol grip (barely) and my left is used as a rear support for fine adjustments. My shoulder is also just barely making contact, just enough so it's not free-recoil. So basically I'm allowing the rifle to rest with as little input as possible. This obviously isn't the optimal method to manage recoil very well.

Even with my 8.25 lbs rifle, as long as my body and shoulders are square to the direction of the rifle, it jumps up and sets right back into place. I can spot hits for anything past 350 (assuming that I'm maintaining good form and everything is square). I mentioned before that I got sensitive to recoil after shooting RUM's for a few years. Shooting my 7RM is actually fun to shoot. I'll put a box of 20 through it and maintain my own level of accuracy from first to last. It wouldn't be much fun for competition where you are shooting 60-100 rds a day (or more) but I don't shoot competition - and you already own a bull barreled 308 for that.

 

[WildRose]

Hey guys, I'm having a hard time deciding what caliber to go with for my new hunting rifle . I Hunt whitetails in Indiana and a lot of the time my shots on whitetails are under 100 yards. I'm also finally getting financially stable enough to hopefully start doing some western hunting next year or 2 at the most ( pertaining I draw tags).i'm leaning towards a .300WM or a .270 win. Im a little worried the .300WM is over kill for whitetail especially at the distances most my shots are. Im not apposed to having to buy 2 rifles just not right at the moment, so im unsure if i should just buy a whitetail specific rifle for now and then get something larger later on for the bigger western game. first few western hunts will just be mule deer and antelope so a deer rifle would work on them. Just wanted your guy thoughts. Thanks guys

The 300wm is a great caliber for WT especially big, fat norther WT's.

The 300wm is the Toyota Land Cruiser of rifles, it may not be the newest, fastest, or prettiest but it will get the job done every time.

If a man is only going to own one medium to big game rifle the 300wm is a fantastic choice.

Bullet choice and shot selection will determine the outcome whether it's prairie dog or moose on the receiving end so "overkill" is a non issue.

The other caliber well worthy of consideration would be the 7RM or 7mm STW which is my favorite.

 

[WildRose]

Recoil is hard to judge. It depends on the weight of the rifle, bullet weight, muzzle velocity, etc. It also depends on what you have experience shooting and how recoil shy you are. I know guys that don't like shooting sporter rifles in .25-06 and I also know guys who shoot the same style rifles in 7mmRM and .300WM. I'm not afraid to shoot a 7mm Rem Mag in a light rifle, but I wouldn't want to shoot it more than a handful of times in one sitting. With weight being equal, and using heavy for caliber bullets, it falls between the .270 and .300WM really.

All of the Browning rifles I listed come equipped with a muzzle brake from the factory. So recoil would be very manageable. It would be less than a .270

There are lots of very good recoil calculators available online and len has a recoil spreadsheet posted at the top of the page.

 

[Creedmoor shooter]

I'm going to say 7mm rem mag. I shoot a 8.5 lb 7mm rem mag and with a stiff load of rl-26 and a 162 eld at 3125 fps the recoil is manageable. I can sit down and shoot about 20 rounds before I start to get recoil fatigue. If you get the browning x bolt with the 8 twist barrel you can run bullets like the 180 eld and the 195 eol which makes it a different critter. It will easily run with a 300 win mag in all departments minus the energy but with less recoil. Quality brass is available. Plenty of factory ammo if your ever in a pinch. Its hell on whitetail