What’s your five? 5 Calibers to do it all...

[StumpGrinder]

Thanks guys for contributing! Keep them coming! Let me help us out a little. I am going to give you two freebies. Let's awesome everyone has a 22LR and a shotgun (i.e. 12ga etc.) of some sort. What are your other five and why?

I said 270 because as I have stated before it was my first love! But they are hard to beat in a light weight mountain rifle. It would be my choice for sheep or anything I have to hike in to kill at ranges out to 750 yards as well as whitetail. My next choice would be my universal big bore for bears and dangerous game out to 400 yards, 375 H&H. It would be a more traditional medium weight sporter of some type. Third I would choose 300 Win Mag for elk, Moose, kudu etc., a medium weight sporter as well. Then a 338 RUM big barreled heavy varmint barreled gun for all things beyond a 1000 yards. Finally, 308, because everybody needs one, a varmint configuration of some sort for the little critters out to 500 yards or so. I might would replace that with a 6.5 of some sort but I'd have to give it some thought. I do like 6.5s.

If we were going by continent or region. Lower 48 (270, 308, 300WM), Alaska (270, 300, 338), Africa (270, 300, 375).

I already own my top 5 and the reason for my choices are bullet weights from 40 grain to 600 grain with an AR thrown in just because everyone should have one. 243 Winchester, 308 Winchester, 338 Winchester Magnum and 458 SOCOM which is technically just An addition to the AR platform. I have no desire to hunt elephant however I wouldn't do it without a big double like 416 Rigby or 500 Nitro. And I always carry a sidearm, usually it's my Ruger Redhawk 44 mag.

 

[skipglo]

223 22-250 243 300win mag 12guage

I overlooked the 12 ga. Good choice! ( But I could always shoot the ducks sitting on the water with the 223...1 duck first shot...and up to 11 more with the RICOCHET!!!)

 

[mlayne]

22lr & 12ga. Check

From my safe:
222 REM. Tack Driving Varminter
7mm RM Big Game LR
308 Win. All round Game Medium Range
338 WM. Bigger Game LR
Not in my safe
375 H&H. Biggest Game.

Fun post. Thanks

 

[milo-2]

I love these types of threads

.22LR
.223 Rem
6.5CM
.308 or .30-06
.338 Lapua

Oh boy, you love, yet could not stick to the storyline and needed 6 cases with your indecisiveness.

 

[NDHunter62]

17 HRM
223 AI
22-250 REM
6.5 PRC
280 AI

 

[IdahoMatchGrade]

22-250 Rem
260 Rem
270 Win
300 Win Mag
338 Win Mag

 

[huntinghuasna]

.204 Ruger
6.5 Creed
.264 Win Mag
.30-06
.338 Lapua

 

[whitetailjunkee]

The middle 3 cross over a bit but for what I hunt, these would be my 5.


480 Ruger/475 Linebaugh
Retrieving big game in bear and wolf country when I don't want to carry a rifle and a full pack board.

270 Weatherby Magnum, 140 Barnes TSX
Deer, sheep, black bear, cougar

30-378 Weatherby Magnum, 220 Hornady Eld-X
Elk, Moose, Brown Bear
Open Country, Long Range

338 Win Mag, Swift 250 A Frame
Elk, Moose, Brown Bear
Thick Timber, expected shots under 300 yards

458 Win Mag
Dangerous Game

 

[joep17]

Dang it. Forgot about those.

We all need our favorite 5 shotguns and 5 handguns.????

 

[pastorcday]

So, for fun I'm going a little different, since .22LR and 12 gauge are givens. Giving two lists.

Sporting Rifles for hunting. Lower 48/Alaska
6mm ARC (predators)
6.8 spc 2 ( I know, but a hog/deer DRT)
308 / 6.5 Creed. (Sheep/goat)
338 Federal (hiking/bear/moose/caribou/ etc)
458 SOCOM (hiking/bear)

Bolt/other Alaska.
30-06
300 win mag
338 Win mag
460 Smith and Wesson
44 mag


Hiking runner ups: 10 mm, 45-70
I do live with Coastal Browns walking by my house almost daily.

 

[johngibbs222]

For me it's 223, 6.5 swede, 308, plus the 45/70 and 357 mag in lever guns.
Of course you can't take all these guns with you when hunting, I like my 308 but it's a single shot so I've ordered up a miroku winchester 1886 in 45/70 for all the woodland shooting I'm going to do.
I live in Europe and for me the first three cals you can buy ammo almost anywhere surprisingly all around £25 for 20 softpoint winchester (about $30), the last two are for reloading with a plain old lee loader.
One thing I would have is a thermal monocular, low power just so I can find the 357 and 45/70 ejected cases in the undergrowth.

 

[DVLDOG6.5]

I will make my choices for anywhere on the planet.

6.5CM/6.5 Grendel
30-06
7SAUM
300 H&H
404 Jefferey
I think that this would take care of anything to feed the family and also take care of anything that may want to eat us! Also easy enough to load for. These are my top and first choices.

If it comes to being able to pull ammo off the shelf and not load a couple would be different.
6.5CM/6.5 Grendel
30-06
7mm Rem Mag
300 Win Mag
416 Rem Mag
It's cool to see others choices. I dig this type of thread.
Actually I would have to replace one on both list with my trusty 6.5 Grendel. I never leave for the woods without it

 

[Allen Kitts]

17 Hornet
22-250
6.5PRC
7mm LRM
375 Ruger

 

[bigdogone]

Ok - you give me two firearms: 22 lr and 12 gauge and say that for the rest of my life I can only have:
one more - 30-06 (Everything in lower 48)
two more - 30-06 and 375H&H (Everything in the world)
three more - 30-06, 375 and 30-30 (open sights, Win model 1894, lever guns are just plain fun!)
four more - 30-06, 375, 30-30 and 243 (sweetest shooting deer hammer)
five more - 30-06, 375, 30-30, 243 and 416 Rigby (buffalo/elephant gun)

I have to stop now?!?! But wait, I'm not done yet. Does that mean I have to give up everything else? I might swap the 416r for a 6.5 Creedmoor