I think Ruger hit this one out of the ball park -- and a pretty good choice to have on your shoulder when fishing in Alaska bear country.

http://www.realguns.com/articles/883.htm

Like most questions regarding "perfect", it almost becomes, "what is YOUR perfect hog gun" rather than "THE perfect hog gun". I've got no quarrel with the Ruger, but since I only hunt hogs now, and in Texas, that wouldn't be my choice. I would have to choose between what I have. It would have to be either a 25.06 Rem., .308 Win., 300 WSM, or .375 H&H. Right now I would lean towards the 300 WSM. Tomorrow it might be the 25.06 Rem. It won't be the .308 because the rifle I have (Remington Model 600) isn't accurate enough. It won't be the 375 H&H. I don't need the pain.

While I indeed think that rifle is going to be a hit and quite popular among those who stalk piggies, "perfect" is defined differently by each person -- and for me, it wouldn't even be close.

For me, it's my little 7mm Bullberry Contender Carbine. Some may scoff at it being a single shot, but I've used TCs to take multiple animals on more than one occasion. I've taken two doubles on bobcats, scored at least 3 doubles on coyotes and twice have taken four hogs -- along with quite a few second-shot-porkers as well a few trios.

Now that I have sold off a few things and managed to put what I consider the world's best low-light hunting scope on it, the little rifle is even better and equally suited for the rare daytime hog as well as the more common moonlight or extreme low-light sighting. My only regret is that I didn't have it so nicely-equipped back when I still had mobility and could get out there and actually hunt instead of relying on sniping opportunities from the house.

Interesting looking gun, but I have to agree with Bobby, folks doing spot and stalk will probably enjoy it, but for the type hog hunting I do I will stick with my .35 Whelen/.300 Weatherby and such.

quote:

Originally posted by Bill/Oregon:
I think Ruger hit this one out of the ball park -- and a pretty good choice to have on your shoulder when fishing in Alaska bear country.

http://www.realguns.com/articles/883.htm

I like it! 5.5 pounds would be an awesome rifle to hunt elk in the black timber.

Bobby, you have the Contender platform so dialed in that you are an inspiration to the rest of us who take pleasure in Warren Center's great old single shot. Waiting for my scope to arrive so I can test the accuracy of my new .30 Herrett barrel from MGM.

For me, the two questions are this:

1) How many hogs are you trying to kill?
2) Are you mobile or stationary?

If you want to kill more than one hog, then an auto is clearly the way to go, particularly if you're trying to wipe out a sounder. On the other hand, if you're shooting the occasional meat hog and don't want to disturb the sounder too badly by killing three or four at a time, then any rifle with good glass will do.

If you're mobile, then weight quickly becomes an issue. In both circumstances, a suppressor is a big plus; but it's certainly an optional accessory.

A final very important question is this: How do I mount my really big low light / NV scope? One reason to use ARs or their bolt action clones is the convenience of mounting big scopes on a flat top receiver.

At a personal level, I used to shoot as many hogs as possible. For that matter, I still will, if the land owner has a shoot on sight policy, as his wishes are paramount, but I've more or less moved into the "shoot the occasional meat hog" category" and a light single shot or bolt gun can be an easier carry.

I considered buying a Browning BAR as the ultimate for groups of hogs. Some are said to shoot tight sub MOA groups with hand loads and medium calibers from .270 to 300 magnums. Then I found that 'some' need a lot of tweaking and the gas system could have issues.

My Short-trac (not the original BAR) in 7mm WSM will shoot into about 2.5" at 200 yards, or a bit over MOA. It has been reliable and I'm quite happy with it. The one quirk is that you **must** let the bolt slam shut to chamber a round, and that can't be done quietly.

Some recent victims:

I really like shooting them with my .338 win mag. It is handy to always walk down to a hog still in the same spot as where you last shot it.

Hopefully I get to try out my .45/70 soon on one.

quote:

Originally posted by Bill/Oregon:
I think Ruger hit this one out of the ball park -- and a pretty good choice to have on your shoulder when fishing in Alaska bear country.

http://www.realguns.com/articles/883.htm

Rechamber it to .45 Raptor will IMHO make it even better! You can make brass from .460 S&W and use the same load data too.

Backwards, if you have .460 S&W revolver, you can use .45 Raptor with moon clips in that . . .

.45 Raptor is rated at 62k psi, while the .450 Bushmaster is rated to only 40k psi. I'm not saying that the rifle can't take the additional pressure, only that it wasn't specifically designed to do so at the factory.

The other plus to the factory rifle is that it appears to be very usable as is. For a ~$400 rifle, it's amazing. I'd rather put gun smithing $$$ into something a little nicer; in this case, the Ruger American is what it is.

I try to never let the "perfect" be the enemy of the good.

ya!


GWB

the "perfect" hog rifle is the one I have in my hands when the opportunity is there.. i've taken them with 22LR, through 550 express, 577NE, and 50 BMG, and just about everything in between..

a 416, scoped, with speer 350 magtips and a decent spot to take a shot aint bad ..

a 22LR pistol at 20 feet does it also ..

but, hey, there's LOTS of pigs, and LOTS of rifles.. coincidence? I think not

I will go a little bit heavier than most a double in 375 flanged magnum with a good detachable scope. Or a 405 Winchester 95, but I am kind of wired like that.

A very respectable group. Was that with factory ammo?

quote:

Originally posted by analog_peninsula:
My Short-trac (not the original BAR) in 7mm WSM will shoot into about 2.5" at 200 yards, or a bit over MOA. It has been reliable and I'm quite happy with it. The one quirk is that you **must** let the bolt slam shut to chamber a round, and that can't be done quietly.

Some recent victims:

It's 160 grain Accubonds pushed by a healthy dose of MagPro. I believe the velocity was around 2960 fps, if I recall correctly.

quote:

Originally posted by jeffeosso:
the "perfect" hog rifle is the one I have in my hands when the opportunity is there.. i've taken them with 22LR, through 550 express, 577NE, and 50 BMG, and just about everything in between..

a 416, scoped, with speer 350 magtips and a decent spot to take a shot aint bad ..

a 22LR pistol at 20 feet does it also ..

but, hey, there's LOTS of pigs, and LOTS of rifles.. coincidence? I think not

Here is the man with the right answer. I have killed them with rifles ranging from 17 HMR up to 500 NE and a hell of a lot of things in between.

If I had to guess, I would guess that I have killed over 1,000 in my life. I never kept count. There is a hell of lot of them on ranchlands down this way. I do know the most in a single day was 42.

Again, if I had to guess, I would guess that I have killed the most hogs with a 22 magnum. Next would be a 270 Winchester followed closely by a 300 Win mag.

The difference in rifles changes the shots one takes. Using the 22 magnum was fantastic for developing stalking skills. We got close, often REAL close. My kids and I developed this "game" hunting hogs. We called it elephant hunting. We got as close as we could and brained them with the 22 magnums with FMJs. Damn it was fun. we picked up a few ticks but we had a blast. That little magnum will flatten them when they are brained.

Bullet & placement mean everything. Far more than caliber.

When my oldest son ( now 34) was about 7, I saw him shoot multiple hogs out of a sounder with a Chipmunk 22 LR single shot. All it took was the right shot. Still have that rifle. Can't wait for my grandson to use it.

I only get to hunt feral hogs through pages like this forum.
However, if I knew that I was shooting over a feeder at a given range, I would try and find an accurate 338 Federal with a 20" barrel and a suppressor.
Many variations like it in terms of cartridge (7mm-08, 308 Win, etc.) would make the project great fun.
For my warthog hunting that has both long and short shots, my 270 Win with 140gr Accubonds is close to ideal.

quote:

Originally posted by Karoo:
I only get to hunt feral hogs through pages like this forum.
However, if I knew that I was shooting over a feeder at a given range, I would try and find an accurate 338 Federal with a 20" barrel and a suppressor.
Many variations like it in terms of cartridge (7mm-08, 308 Win, etc.) would make the project great fun.
For my warthog hunting that has both long and short shots, my 270 Win with 140gr Accubonds is close to ideal.

This is similar to my Bushpig rifle set up:

308 Win 18.5" Barrel
Suppresor fitted
Quick detach mounts with scopes for different scenarios;
Aimpoint H34 for pigs in Maize
Schmidt and bender 2.5-10x56 for bigs on bait
Night vision for pigs on bait when there's no moon

Currently using a 140gr GS Custom, thinking of using a Norma Oryx 180gr.

Saw this plastic lefty on GBroker with a Zeiss if anybody is looking. Seems like a fair price.
Search - Dakota Model 76 in 338 Federal.

quote:

Originally posted by Karoo:
I would try and find an accurate 338 Federal with a 20" barrel and a suppressor.

The perfect hog rifle? That sounds pretty singular to me. I have shot a lot of hogs with a lot of different rifles but my 7x57 has taken more than all the rest combined using a 150 gr. Ballistic Tip pushed to somewhere between 2600 and 2700 fps. Now I mostly take a 308 loaded with 150 grain Nosler partitions at just a bit faster. I am putting together an AR in 6.5 Grendel and will test it soon. My boltgun Grendel works but I have been missing out on possible second shots and want to try a suppressed semi auto with night vision.

The perfect rifle for killing hogs is the US Rifle Caliber 30 M1. If it was good for killing fascists and communists then it is good for killing hogs.

quote:

Originally posted by Reverend Recoil:
The perfect rifle for killing hogs is the US Rifle Caliber 30 M1. If it was good for killing fascists and communists then it is good for killing hogs.

I have killed hogs with quite a few calibers, mostly leverguns.
The most effective I have found us my Remington 870 Marine Magnum loaded with 12 pellet 00 buck.

For longer range. ...I sure like my Garand. .30-'06 is more than enough for hogs and the Garand is easy enough in some light out to 200 yards If the hogs are not in too tall of grass.

Killed my first one with either my M77 .25-06 or 7 Mag, can't remember. Since then, everything from a .22, .308 (Rem 600 that shot MOA with 150-gr .30-30 bullets), .45-70, 20-ga #3 buck, 12-ga buckshot (#4 is my favorite), but the majority of them I've killed have been with a M70 Featherweight in .22-250 shooting 55-gr ballistic tips at around 3550 fps. Stick one in their CNS and it is DRT. No longer have the 7 Mag or .45-70, and the shotguns are generally for "wipe-out" situations, so it is either the .22-250 or the .25-06, and like was posted earlier--don't let "perfect" get in the way of "good enough."

I won't criticize anyone for their choice of caliber, though anything under the .22-250 is getting on the light side IMO, but to each their own.

The perfect hog rifle is a loaded rifle.

quote:

The perfect hog rifle is a loaded rifle.

That is as Accurate as it gets!

very interesting ,i use a cz 308 mostly beause its on my truck .

Lately, I've been using either my 7-30 Waters Contender carbine, or my Baikal .45-70 double rifle. Both are fun.

Yeah, Bobby, I'm kinda in the same shape, but your sniping skills put most of us to shame. GW

I go down to Florida to visit my stepson. We have gone hog hunting quite often. The most sensational kill I ever had was when I shot a 100 pounder +/- with my .458 SOCOM right between the eyes at about 80 yards with a 405gr. Remington bullet. He spun 180 degrees and his eyes bulged out to where they almost blew out. His feet didn't even wiggle. Since I'm an old service rifle shooter and I still have three M1A's, I'm thinking that I should take one of them on the next trip. They all shoot the 150 gr. TTSX very well. I think it would be a hoot.

Last Sunday my .500J did the trick on a boar that nudged 150kg, with a 600 grain Woodleigh soft.

quote:

the "perfect" hog rifle is the one I have in my hands when the opportunity is there..

I shot them with a lot of different calibers most with my 06 scout and 220's.

But thumping them with my 416 is really fun.

I found a 460wby was a bit much recoil wise for me. But then I was shooting a left hand stock right handed. But I just had to shoot some hogs with a 460.

Sneaking up on them in the thick stuff and whacking them a mere feet with my 44 mag is really fun too.

Ive killed hogs on my nephews ranch, he has many hogs from time to time as hogs come and go.

Ive usued a 22 L.R., 22 mag., 222, 223, 22-250 for the most part, and they all worked fine. During deer season I may or may not shoot one with my deer rifle of various calibers..thus my post as a loaded rifle is a perfect hog gun...I don't see feral hogs as hard to kill..

Any deer rifle is good with me but my FNAR with a Super Sniper 1x4 illuminated reticle is pretty close to perfect for most situations.

Scott, I think you may be on to something. That looks like a super combo. Got another picture of the gun showing the end of the barrel? What is it firing?

If we were going to vote on this, yours is the one I would like to use.

I agree with Bill. I think Ruger has something good going for it in this rifle. The darn thing only weighs 5.5 pounds. That's about 2 pounds less than the average AR-15! The .450 BM cartridge is a wonderful choice for such a rifle. It hits plenty hard enough and it's large in diameter, but it doesn't produce the sort of recoil a magnum cartridge would, or even the .45 Raptor.

quote:

Originally posted by Kensco:
Scott, I think you may be on to something. That looks like a super combo. Got another picture of the gun showing the end of the barrel? What is it firing?

If we were going to vote on this, yours is the one I would like to use.

Here is a wider shot. It has a 16" barrel. I was using some bulk bullets that were a one time run on Midway. They were the 130 OTM Barrier Blind Bullet (MK319 Mod 0). Essentially, a thin lead HP front to explode with a sold copper shank. I picked them up for 16 cents a bullet. They pretty much mimic Partition performance.

I will say that bashing hogs with medium & big bores would be a blast. For me, that would be my 338 Federal, 350 Rem Mag or 9.3x62.

Might be a good idea to separate hogs into 2 catagories, Feral and Russian, In some locales hogs have a lot of Russian in them, and that's a different breed of cat (hog)...Russians are bigger and can be aggressive, Id want at least a 30-30 on Russians, something with a good deal of penetration with a soft point..I;ll shoot Ferals with whatevers handy, even a 22 or 357 pistol up close and even then one might run across one of those big 300 to 350 pound hogs and that calls for a deer rifle caliber..Where I hunt ferals you only see a really big one about once a year, if that....I suppose its because they shoot every one they see every day of the year.