I was wanting a gun that would be good for300 yards not too much recoil,good for deer, target and varmit.No bull barrel, a sporter is a must. want it to be cheep to reload compared to the mag's. I was thinking about a browning BLR chambered for 22-250 or 7mm08. Any suggestions on rifle and cartridge? reloader len
Posts: 237 | Location: Wesson ms | Registered: 12 November 2001
The oppinions will vary greatly on this one because there are many that would serve your purpose so my suggestion would be get a reloading manual and a copy of Cartridges Of The World, "wich you need anyway" and start at 6mm and work your way up to 7mm to narrow your search, and then choose the one that YOU just can't get out of your head. Personaly I like the 25-06 or 7-08 for your described purpose but like I said there are plenty of others in the category.
quote:Originally posted by reloader len: I was wanting a gun that would be good for300 yards not too much recoil,good for deer, target and varmit.No bull barrel, a sporter is a must. want it to be cheep to reload compared to the mag's. I was thinking about a browning BLR chambered for 22-250 or 7mm08. Any suggestions on rifle and cartridge? reloader len
I shoot 6mm-284 or 7mm Remington most of the time; having said that, it sounds like you need 6.5mm-284 with a barrel that does not wander too much when heated up a little.
Tom
Posts: 14812 | Location: Moreno Valley CA USA | Registered: 20 November 2000
Over here the answer to such a question would certainly be the 6,5x55. I have used it on everthing from long-range bird hunting (must be something like your varmint hunts but with FMJ:s) to roe-deer, deer and moose.
There are several manufacturers who chamber it but I'm not sure if these rifles are available in the US.
Posts: 544 | Location: Sweden | Registered: 27 October 2001
Well I have to say that if you don't shoot a lot of small critters the 2506 is the best of the bunch but there is a lot of flexibility in most rounds these days with the new bullets on the market
Have to agree with Wachtel on this one....6.5x55 Swede, but I'm on this side of the pond. I use mine with 100 grain Sierra HP on varmints and 129 grain Hornadys on deer. Either round would be good for target shooting; they are both sub 1" at 100 yards. And all out of a surplus rifle that is almost 100 years old!
a 7-08 rem or a .260 rem. Don't leave home without one. Last year my son killed a big bodied mulie at 287 looong steps with a 7-08 shooting a 140gr nosler part. One shot and he was using a model 7 with the 18in barrel. The reason I included the .260 is that the 7x57 and the 6.5 swede have become legends with their ability to harvest diverse sized game and the 7-08 and .260 are domestic (USA) versions of them. Ballistically speaking that is.
Posts: 2037 | Location: frametown west virginia usa | Registered: 14 October 2001
I have now or have had all the rifles recommended in this thread, but I have to go with the .308 Win for your triple-threat.
You can easily buy great factory loads for varmint, target and deer; and you can reload same for cheap. Plenty of components and good load data around.
I have or have had .308s in bolt, lever and semi-auto. You can also get a pump -- so you can choose your favorite action type.
Bottomline: buy the one you like, and learn by doing.
jim
------------------ "if you are to busy to hunt, you are too busy."
Posts: 4166 | Location: San Diego, CA USA | Registered: 14 November 2001
WOW, And not one mention of a 30-06! I guess it depends on what is considered "light recoiling". I do think that a 25-05 is a good choice, but of course any of these you can't go wrong.
Posts: 7786 | Location: Between 2 rivers, Middle USA | Registered: 19 August 2000
30 caliber down to 22 for your use you can find at least one cartridge in any one of these calibers to meet your needs. You want a light gun that doesn't recoil that will shoot to 300 yards and kill a deer.
If you are limited to commercial cartridges then I would recommend the .243 Win., 6mm Rem. or 257 Roberts. Each of these rounds is good for varmints out to 300 yards - will kill deer cleanly at nearly 200 yards, can be found in light weight weapons that are not too abusive even for a recoil sensitive guy like me.
If you would like to try a wildcat then go with a 30/30 necked down to 6mm. I get 3000 fps with an 85 grain bullet and 1/4 moa from a Thompson TCR. Not too bad for filling a hole in the armory.
For varmint, target and nothing bigger than deer......243win. or 6mm rem. or nothing bigger than the .25 calibers would be necessary. There's sure a big difference between .22-250 and 7mm-08. Why would you want to decide between these two?
What kind of target shooting? For competative target shooting the rifle and cartridge must be just right. Perhaps the writer means just practice or maybe a sporting rifle event?
Not enough information here so I will go with the .308 Winchester until I know more.
Back in 1957 I bought a M-70 for Varmint and target. It's a varmint model in .243 Winchester. The target shooting was 4 positions at 200 yards and I used a slightly reduced load for that. For varmints in New England that cartridge is kind of loud. But I still have the rifle. It has a 26" light target straight taper bbl. This selection was made because of money.
I think Col. Whelan shot his last whitetail with this model. It's too heavy for deer hunting however.
I shoot 6mm-284 or 7mm Remington most of the time; having said that, it sounds like you need 6.5mm-284 with a barrel that does not wander too much when heated up a little.
Tom
What kind of load are you shooting with the 6-284? I NEED SOME HELP.
I'll take a 6mm Rem but a 243 Win is probably better as far as available factory ammo.Coyotes are very impressed and deer drop out at 250 yds with 100 gr bullets.
Posts: 1111 | Location: Edmond,OK | Registered: 14 March 2001
I wonder if there isn't some difference in what some of us consider varmint hunting...
I'd hate to shoot several thousand or even 500 rockchucks or Prarie dogs with some of thoes larger rifles, beats the crap out of you,,,,
My limit on an all day hunt would be a 243 or 250-3000 and I really prefer a 222 or 223. Now if coyotes were your only varmint then the deer rifles would be fine.
Recoil isn't note worthy, it will take about any game, and it isn't tough to reload. Not as cheap as Ray's 222 or 223, but very effective.
Then again, the 243 probably does a fine job, not as flat, but still awesome & accurate, and it is definitely cheaper to relaod. By about 20 grains a pop!
But yeah, the 264WM gets you out there pretty darn quick.
I'd take either my .260 Rem or my 6mm Rem...favoring my 6mm. Shoots flatter, and I can get a .25 cal equivalent load with a Barnes 115gr Original load as an extra punch for deer.
But...why would anyone WANT to limit themselves to ONE rifle? Seems about like saying someone's going to eat nothing but plain baked potatoes for food.....workable, but BLAND after a while!!!
Posts: 115 | Location: Bryan, TX, USA | Registered: 27 November 2001
