The Accurate Reloading Forums
What is you favorite truck/woodsbumming/utilitygun
28 February 2004, 11:47
ShilohWhat is you favorite truck/woodsbumming/utilitygun
I thought this would be a good topic. I always like to hear what other peole carry while out on the farm in loafin around in the woods. I usually have my refurbished enfield no 5 carbine in 303 or a marlin 25 in 22. these are the guns i grab when i just wanna go out and walk around the woods or cruise the property in the jeep.
28 February 2004, 12:53
RugShiloh I also carry a 22 for small stuff,however I often carry a Ruger 7.62x39 , its small size is good in the cab and semi auto for my late night deer poachers. Rug
28 February 2004, 13:16
Rogue6Its usually a M99 F in 308 win. Its just easy to carry and get around with.

28 February 2004, 13:19
tiggertateIt's not medium bore but mine is a 24" Colt Elite AR-15. Second is my CZ 17 HMR.
28 February 2004, 14:14
fla3006Marlin 39 22LR or Brno ZG 7x57.
28 February 2004, 14:18
fredj3384 5/8" SSBH in .45colt. 300grLFP & a couple of shot carts. in snake country. It will do for mice, man or moose.
28 February 2004, 16:23
packrattusnongratus1911A1 always. 99 Savage in 358 WCF or Sako Fullstock in .308.
28 February 2004, 17:32
GibA Marlin Guide Gun 45-70 and a Marlin 1894 .357mag are my woods loafing/truck guns.
28 February 2004, 19:00
Dave JamesS&W 3 1/2" model 27, and most of the time I carry the Little Marlin lever in 256 winchester
28 February 2004, 19:48
salinea polish NM M44 carbine and a
s@w 457.
28 February 2004, 20:07
OldsargeIf I had to build perfection . . . a Remington 760 rebarreled to 9.3x62 with a Cabela's 10 round magazine. Likely I'd replace the stock with a pistol grip version that's originally designed for the 870 police use. It would fit perfectly. Add a good 2x scope. Ah cahls it der Davis/Lockyer Assault Rifle Conversion Kit. Serious firepower and totally legal here. Heh, heh, heh!
29 February 2004, 09:59
Rick RDarn it Sarge! Now you got me thinking that a short barrelled M-760 in 9,3x62 with one of those Choate stocks might just the trick as a brush gun round here.

Wonder how that cartridge does out of a 16" barrel? How hard is it to change the barrel on a 760 anyway, and where did I put that synthetic skeet stock with the adjustable comb. . .
29 February 2004, 12:55
Shooter973I keep and old single shot 12 ga, and old beater SKS and a Marlin Model 60 22 lr. as my truck guns. I always have a 45 acp with me also. Another rifle that I sometimes use as a truck gun is a Win Model 94 in 30-30. I like to have what ever is needed.
< !--color-->29 February 2004, 16:33
CarsonWish I knew the answer to this question. The most general answer is a centerfire handgun and whatever other long gun I don't care if it gets slightly muddy, wet, etc. So far, most of my long gun selections are frustrating, too much money on my latest brainstorm. My Remington 700 in .308 Winchester or 12 gauge Remington 870 seem to go most often with me. I've had both the longest of any "serious" guns I own and used the most. The rest are refinements on the theme. Bigger hand guns and rifles for the really big stuff and smaller handguns and rifles for the really small stuff. A good medium bore has gotten me my elk steaks, a .35 Whelen, a .44 Special my largest herbivore, a cow water buffalo. Not too exciting beside a .375 H&H or .458 Win Mag but I've never found anything to shoot with them yet, without looking overgunned or underconfident. What I have with me seems to be the most generally useful. A .45 ACP Kimber and "what ever else" seems to be more the norm these days. My woods bumming seems to be more in line with nurturing my pre-teen kids, lots of .22 LR and the occasional 20 guage. My duties as guide and gun bearer usually mean I get to feed and rehydrate my hunting party, carry their too hot coat, or magically provide a rain suit if the weather man has guessed wrong again. I can't go without a centerfire handgun and feel dressed, and a second rifle for myself seems kind of redundant. Now I understand Hal Swiggett (sp) and all the deer finished with a .45 ACP or Bob Milek with his .357 Mag. S&W used on elk and, I assume, mule deer and antelope.
01 March 2004, 05:41
packratDepends where I'm at, but for the most part I carry a Marlin 336CS in 35 Remington, and my trusty S&W 686. Out on the prairie I carry a M77 MKII in .257 Roberts.
01 March 2004, 09:08
OldsargeWell, I'm not sure that it's a garage-smith operation but it shouldn't be that hard. Even out of a 16 incher, there still should be plenty of pop to take care of whitetail, blackbear, migrating moose, annoying neighbors, pick-up trucks . . . anything like that.
01 March 2004, 11:58
Shilohvery interesting indeed. keep em comin
01 March 2004, 18:23
LoneEagleI just about always have a 44 Spec. around. For a handy little rifle I like my Encore w/ 16 1/4" 250 Savage barrel. Sean
04 March 2004, 09:40
PygmyI do a lot of walking/hiking cross country in the farmlands and woods near my home...I walk several hundred miles per year...I usually sling a Garand M1... I know, it ain't LIGHT and HANDY but I like it... On occaision I'll carry a Yugo M48A in 8x57 or a SMLE #4 in .303...
If I don't have a rifle, I carry my 4" S&W M66 in .357....
04 March 2004, 11:22
covey16off season bumming Winchester model 63
Deer season bumming Winchester model 70
City bumming HK USP 45

truck gun Mauser 98k (yeah I bubbaized it in 1965)
Covey16
04 March 2004, 13:42
befusScout mount on a sporterized Spanish FR8 in 7.62 Nato. It has Alumihyde II on it and will not rust if it gets wet. NEA 17 HMR single shot is also a constant companion since I first shot it. Ballister Molina 45 auto is the camp pistol.
05 March 2004, 05:22
sharps54Old Sarge,
If you are willing to spend a few more bucks on your "dream gun" I would recommend the Speedfeed stock instead of the Choate. You can get it in either the regular LOP or a short version for runts like me. I have always felt the Speedfeeds are much superior to the Choates.
I will stick to my Remington 7600 in .35 Whelen that has been cut down to 19", very handy and fast. In fact it is so fast (and like my 870) that my Winchester Trapper in .44 Mag has been in the back of the gunsafe since I picked up the Whelen! Most times I just carry my 1911 though.
Jason
07 March 2004, 06:48
OldsargeJason,
I haven't tried any of them but I really like the lines of the Advanced Technology Tactical Shotgun system. The dead straight stock has a more military look and feel to it. I carried an M16 for nearly 30 years and even though I hate the internal workings of the rotten mousegun, the over all feel and fit have become very familiar. I think it would make the ideal truck gun.
07 March 2004, 07:29
HobieShiloh,
I think that the most versatile I have is my .357 Remington Maximum 21" Contender. From deer to cat sneeze, from zero to 150 yards (farther on coyotes or groundhogs), weighs only about 5� lbs., light on recoil, easy to load (carbide dies), cheap to feed (3 - 21 gr. of powder, very usable with "unsophisticated" bullets), and accurate with all loads.
07 March 2004, 10:14
4X4SNEAKMy mini-14 is my favorite bummin around rifle. It is usually in my Bronco with mag of assorted rounds.
Super coyote rifle!
The mini-14 usually does not get much credit; it is a fun gun that is light and easy to shoot.
07 March 2004, 11:30
DaManI like this topic! A lot of good answers.
The multiple gun approach is good.
If I were to pick ONE truck/woodsbumming/utilitygun, it would be a nasty looking military surplus 8x57 bolt action military rifle/carbine.
DaMan
07 March 2004, 11:35
Savage99I don't have any guns like that. At least I don't think about them that way. I try to carry the best gun that I have for the application. Of course sometimes it comes up short this way or that and it may not be as good as your gun.
For casual walking in the country I would just as soon have a pistol concealed. For this I have used many but my favorite is a Colt Woodsman.
07 March 2004, 12:44
boilerroomI adopted a scratched up BLR in 308 when I bought my house. It bounces around on the floor of my truck alot and I've lent it out to my carless absent minded buddy for a whole season.
It don't shoot that great and you have to squeeze the lever hard for the trigger to fire. It's a well used tool more than something I enjoy shooting.
I use my A-Bolt 25/06 for deer on foot in the mountains when I'm most likely going to be out in the wide open. I also use my Ruger stainless/synth 7mag on the quad during the Oct moose openning because it can handle sloppy weather and mud that seems to get all over everything.
07 March 2004, 14:27
HiWallStainless Marlin 336 in .30/30
07 March 2004, 16:49
NONEIII have had many truck guns over the years for me it must be cheap, something that if stolen I didn't lose much and light and handy. Most times its a Mini 14 ranch with a fix power M8 lup. and a few 30 rounders, I swap out with a old REM 700 cut down barrel in .308 and of course I never leave home without my .45 ACP LW colt commander custom but that is not in the truck it stays with me.
James F. Nixon III