Open ended question obviously with no right or wrong question.

When choosing your rifle to hunt with, how many of you consider the ergonomics of a rifle in an emergency?

I hunt in Texas - it's all stand hunting. Love it or hate it, it's what I do. I drive to about a 1/4 mile from the stand, park the car well before dawn and take a walk. I'm hardly concerned about being jumped by a wild deer at 4am that's bent on vengeance...

It's conceivable that I could encounter a hog, but I've yet to see one that early. I'm sure they are out there but...

So, for the stand hunter, it's not really a question of weight. I could carry a 20# heavy bull rifle with a 100mm 10-40x scope that had a 1/4# trigger on it. Stand hunting is different - I'm not carrying that beast with me very far. Get to the stand, park it, relax with a book (*). It's all good.

On the other hand, I sure as heck wouldn't want to carry a rifle like that if I'm humping through the forests all day. And even that .270 with a 3-10x scope that weighs 8# isn't a great idea if there are a lot of known blackies running about or hogs are a real issue. I'd want something a bit more handy - fast acting.

And therein lies the great question: a rifle built for absolute accuracy tends not to be particularly handy. And a rifle that is short and handy tends not to be the same rifle you'd shoot bench-rest with.

So tell me, what are the conditions by which you choose the rifle you hunt with? Expectation of getting up close and personal? Knowledge that your game is never less than 400 yards away? PH Backup? Nostalgia perhaps?

We live in a civilized, sanitized world where people (in general) don't think about the potential of harm in wilderness. It shocks people that a Mountain Biker would get mauled by a Mountain Lion out here in SoCal - and yet I just shake my head. Nature's better armed...and better prepared to kick my ass than I am it's. I'm just smart enough to know it and prepare otherwise.

Does that thought of danger make any difference in the Weapon you choose for hunting? Do you choose a rifle with some thought about how you for deer? I have friends who hunt with their rifles always turned to "10x" - I question that at times...



(* PS: My Dad is 70. Even if Stand Hunting is all the hunting I get to do with him, it's worth it.)

280, 270 or .300wm in the US for anything that walks crawls or slithers.

In Africa, add the .375 H&H.

These will take care of anything out there.

My "go to" is a Rem 700 in -06 that I had built for me in the 80's. At the time I was backpack hunting deer and the Win 70 that I had was too damn heavy at 9+lbs. The Rem with a custom kevlar stock and compact Leupold 2-7 weighs 7lbs. At 2X I can and have shot game at 10ft. I also hunt blacktail in the coastal mountains of Cal where I am crashing through brush and humping up and down hills. A lightweight rifle is handy and sometimes a cane (I'm on my 4th paint job on that stock). It's a sub MOA rifle and I seldom shoot over 350 yds. BTW, when I am out on the trails on my place either afoot or horseback I am ALWAYS armed. I will not be lion lunch.

I hunt in USA, and almost always for whitetail deer. I sit in a tree with a Mannlicher Schoenauer 30-06 stutzen having double-set triggers that has a feather-light let-off. The gun has a swing-off scope mount with a good variable. If the weather is iffy, I'll use a stainless Savage left-hand (I am left-handed) 30-06 or a LH Tikka stainless 25-06. All this is a bit sad, because it does not allow mme to use my European combination guns (BBFs and drillings), Winchester pre-war 70s, Winchester 71, 95, and so many others..... They are longer, heavier, bulkier.....yet SO pleasureable. Where's the justice?????

Mine is a custom .300 win mag that we built when I worked in a custom rifle maker shop. It's based on a M70 classic. It wears a 6x36 leupold. The barrel is finished at 25''. I mostly hunt in NW wyoming. Our country is pretty open with WT, mulies, elk, and antelope being the most common. I shoot only 200 NPs no matter what I'm hunting.

We have a healty population of black and grizzly bears as well.

Most of my hunting is a combination of horseback to get into country and then walking. My rifle weighs abou 8.75 lbs all ready.

Back when the 7-08 was still a wildcat, my BIL told me what a fantastic cartridge it was. Since I had a .243 and there's not much you can do with a .243 except to make it into something better, I had one made up. The .243 was a Rem 700 and that's the profile of the finished rifle.
It was love at first sight. I put a 2x7 on it and the lines and balance couldn't have been better. The fact that the first nine rounds that I had borrowed from my BIL went into a tidy group of 7/8 inches didn't hurt either.
I currently own 4 of them not counting the Rem Classic that my son has down in Texas. And if a fellow wasn't going to hunt the great bears, I believe it is all the rifle one would need including elk. I've jump shot whitetails in the thick stuff and bellied down with a bi-pod out west with one to shoot at distance (I don't shoot at looong distance) But that is just being familar with your rifles. Having a 20" barrel versus a 22" barrel ain't gonna make you hell on wheels in the thick stuff if you can't shoot to begin with.
If a fellow reloads, he has one of the most versitile cartridges going today and the recoil is very shooter friendly.
What's not to like?

I've hunted several places in California as well as in Montana, Texas, and Wyoming. The only hunt I didn't bring my trusted 30-06 on (in my life) was an antelope hunt in Wyoming. I brought my fathers 270 wsm instead since I wasn't confident in shooting long ranges with a 30-06 at the time.

I'm not at the point in my hunting career where I go on very exotic hunts where a specialized rifle is needed. I did buy a CZ550 in 375 for Cape Buffalo one day, but, otherwise I just search the used gun racks around here looking for a good deal on Mauser/CRF-type rifle. I figure, by pure chance, I'll end up with a nice selection of calibers, but, if nothing else, I've got a lot of CRF actions to build what I need on.

This is not an easy question to answer. We, all of us, have a favorite rifle or two, but the rifle we choose will depend on the hunt we are going on.

I have three favorites...a Remington kevlar stocked Model 7 .308 that has seen to the demise of many head of African plains game, as well as several head of critters here, and in Scotland.
I like it because it is light, easy to carry, accurate, and in a cartridge that can be found most anyplace.

Second is a .270 built by rifle builder P. L. Holehan of Tucson 18 plus years ago; Remington action with a Douglas barrel. When it comes to pronghorn or Coues deer, it is the one that will reach out there accurately.

My Marlin Guide gun....it is a real favorite but its range is limited (for me at any rate). When the quarry is likely to be less than 150 yards, it is my choice.

I have a very well endowed custom .375 that will be in the classifieds soon. I hate to sell it but come to realize I will not need it in future. It is getting more and more difficult to take firearms into many foreign destinations, and I have found that the chaps I hunt with have everything I need. In North America there is nothing my .300 Win mag will not deal with very well.

depends on where I'm going and what I'm hunting. For all black bears, I take the .06 or I've used the outfitter's 338WM if I didn't want to go through hassle of bringing gun.

Many times I flip a coin. Or, as an example, I took my 30.06 and one of my 270s to Ontario on a wolf hunt. I won't take that 270 back because it is a very fine custom rifle and the wolf hunt consists of going 3 million miles per hour on a snow machine by very anxious guides who are fearless. The rifle and hunter can take a serious beating. If I go back, I will take my older Ruger 270 with a Hart bbl on it.

I don't mind some beating on my .06 or Shilen 7mm Mag, and my 300 RUM I'm sort of ok with a little beating. The Ruger is a great light carry rifle and is very accurate...will take it anywhere and it can be abused too.

My newer rigs I still want to baby and nurture into their first kills. They will go on local deer hunts in stands or ground blinds over fields, or to CO, TX, and WY for pronghorn and deer/elk.

I like guns that are on the heavy side, stand hunting or mountain climbing.

bolt action 243/270/or 30-06. i hunt deer from elevated stands; hogs and elk on the ground. pumps, semi-auto, single shots would also work, but i prefer bolts.

I can already tell this is going to be one of those threads that will get "over thunk".

To answer your question, I hunt and live in Texas. My 7mm-08 with a 3-9x42 scope is my go to rifle. It weighs 8 lbs. It handles anything I hunt here, including hogs up to 285 lbs. so far. It has also taken black bears in Canada and plains game in Namibia.

Bob

I have a pair of 300 Roys topped with Leo 3x9s. One of them rides in a case in my pickup most days. I have shot 90% of my big game with them. Done the 338 thing, 30-06, 243 etc. Still have and use them, but these 300s are more like old friends.

quote:

Originally posted by Sevenxbjt:
...are more like old friends.

Yeah, I get that. A lot of hunting is "what feels right" as opposed to anything else. Killing capacity-wise, there's very little to separate many of the mid-range cartridges.

Confidence in something is only born through experience. For instance, I have absolute faith that my .257 Bob is going to shoot exactly where I point it. Every time. If it doesn't, well, that's shooter error and nothing else.

But I've also seen that there are some rifles that get picked by users over and over again. They get the name "Old Reliable" and "Game Getter" over the years. It may be a tool, but it becomes more than that.

Good stuff in here guys!

quote:

When choosing your rifle to hunt with, how many of you consider the ergonomics of a rifle in an emergency?

I agree with the poster who said something to the effect that we'll probably wind up over-working the file on this one -

But I'm going to try and stick to the above question.

If "emergency" means just that, I want a 30-06 with a 3x9 variable scope that has the see-thru mounts for those quick shots that cannot be made with a scope, because the shot is too close and so a scope would just get in the way, or because you don't have time to adjust the magnification, or because the scope is off zero or loose for some reason (that does happen).

I would also want not a long barrel, probably a 22 or 24" at the most.

I would also want an autoloader or pump for the obvious reason.

The perfect (and inexpensive) candidate under those circumstances is a Remington 742 or 760. I'd back it up with a magnum handgun whose caliber starts with a 4.

Fwiw, I believe the perfect "best all around" "one rifle arsenal" for N.A. is the 30-06 Springfield. Mine are bolt guns in Weatherby Mark V, Browning Safari Model and M-70 Win. I go without the see-thru mounts but actually have seen cases in the field where it would have made the difference.

Model 70 Classic 300wm backed up by my 5in. 629 Classic 44mag in a crossdraw holster backed up by my 638 Bodyguard 38 in my right front pants pocket.

Joe A.

I have never been to Africa,just TEXAS,MIss,and COLO.
I have shot the 223rem to the 35 whelen.
As of now I shoot the 257rob imp and the 7x57.While not the lightest rifles that I own,they have given me that good feeling that only comes from hitting what you shoot at and hitting it.

geez i dunno - i hunt worldwide & have well over 100 rifles (well maybe more than 200) i guess i don't really have a favorite, but grab whatevere hits me at the time

If I had to pick a "go to" rifle, it would have to be my old Remington Model 700 ADL in 7mm Rem Mag. I rarely stand hunt and spend most of my time either still hunting or glassing and stalking. And, most of my hunting is in fairly open country so having a rifle that is flat shooting helps.

I've been carrying this rifle since I was 14 years old, and that's been a lot of years now. Every round that gets fired through it is a handload and they are tailored to the rifle. I know where the rifle shoots and can usually hit what I'm aiming at. If I miss, it is my fault and not the guns. And the caliber is adequate for the game I normally hunt which is mule deer, pronghorn antelope and elk. But it has also proven adequate on a whole slew of African plains game as well plus the odd bighorn or mountain goat I can get tags for.

My old 7mm isn't flashy and it isn't pretty. It isn't chanbered for one of the new whiz bang cartridges. It is simply effective and has put a lot of game on the ground. Bottom line, it works well for me and has never let me down.

I have gone through several rifles, so far nothing has been "the one" that I'll never part with and pick up for every hunt. My 300wsm was great, so is my 300 Roy. Everything I own now, are M70's, so in general feel they're all the same.

Where I hunt deer and elk, isn't the most hospitable place around, so I do prefer something light, durable and weatherproof.

I'm having a pre-64 300 Win built this winter, I think that will get more use then anything. Light, powerful, flat shooting and if it gets knocked around I'm not going to faint. Hopefully it'll make the trip to Africa with me as well in 2 years!

I hunt mule deer, elk, and pronghorn antelope in relatively open country in northwest Colorado. I have used the 30-06, 243, 35 Whelen Improved and (mostly) 270. I prefer a relatively light rifle because I tend to walk a lot. Right now my "go-to" rifle is a custom Mauser M-98 with a 22" #1 barrel, laminated classic stock, wearing a Leupold 2 1/2-8. Last October using that combo I took a very nice bull elk with one shot at 200 yards. He was bedded when I fired, barely managed to stand, then collapsed and died. Two years ago the same combo dumped a buck pronghorn at 300 yards, also with one shot. If I do my part, the rifle doesn't let me down.

My style of hunting is twofold - open country for sheep & caribou and relatively thick timber/brush for moose. On top of all that, when we go on a trip, it's for several weeks - little or no contact with civilization.
My "go to" rifle for sheep & caribou has always been my trusty Pre-64, .270 Win with a 150 gr. Partition. Although it's been worked over and weighs in the neighborhood of 8 1/4 lbs., it shoots and I trust it implicitly. I'd even use it on a grizzly if the opportunity arose. I've been interested in the .270 WSM for a number of years & have a Kimber Montana. After a lot of extra work, that sucker won't group consistantly so it's now going down the road. In it's place, I've got a Win. Extreme weather on order in .270 WSM. Hopefully, it will perform much better.
My moose rifle is a Ruger stainless in their laminated stock and my bullet of preference is a 225 gr. NorthFork. Where we moose hunt there is a chance of encountering both black bear and grizzlies, that's why I like the .338. Again, when we go after moose, it's a 3 week jaunt with little or no contact with outside civilzation. That's the reason I am extremely "touchy" about the quality of my equipment.
One of my pet peeves is that it's difficult to find a firearms manufacturer that puts open sights on their rifles nowadays. Both my Pre-64 and the Ruger have the open sights for a backup. I wish that the Win. Extreme I have on order had backup open sights as well and the argument of taking along a "backup" scope on an extended trip is ridiculous as far as I'm concerned.
Just my point of view.
Bear in Fairbanks

Last week I took a really nice bull moose that I had to leave in the field over night.
http://forums.accuratereloadin...8521043/m/7071037041
Obviously the next morning I went back in after the bull with at least the possibility of a brown bear having already laid counter claim to my claim and the odds were good that if that was the case he wouldn't give easily.

I generally carry rifles that I think are big enough to convince predators I am not as interesting as previously thought, accurate enough to place a bullet where I deem appropriate and managable enough in the recoil department to allow for repeated follow up shots.

I see a serious down side to packing a rifle around not big enough to stop or deter DG, or on the other hand too big or un wieldly to fire repeatedly and accurately.

quote:

Originally posted by rnovi:
When choosing your rifle to hunt with, how many of you consider the ergonomics of a rifle in an emergency?

It's for this reason all my bolt action hunting rifles work exactly the same way. I've missed a few opportunities, even in fairly open country, at quick shots at animals that jump out of cover when I came too close and escaped into heavier cover while I'm trying to find the M721 safety on a Ruger with a tang safety.

I'd hate to think what would have happened if I couldn't get the shot off at something nasty coming toward me, instead of just being embarrassed I didn't get the shot off at something tasty trying to get away from me. They all wear M70 type safeties now; if they didn't have them as original equipment or I couldn't convert them to a M70 type safety I sold them. They also have nice crisp triggers.

I'm not a big fan of 3x-9x scopes; I only have one rifle that wears one, and I inherited it. Everything over .30 cal. has a scope that can crank down to 1.5x. I like something with a nice wide field of view at the lowest power. Which is where they stay unless I have the time to prepare for a longer shot. But obviously an emergency isn't going to be a longer shot.

Then it's just a matter of practice working the bolt without taking the rifle down from the shoulder. I do that at the range, and I have at least a magazine full of dummy cartridges for every rifle I own so I can do dry fire practice at home.

I don't think anything over 4.5x is really necessary for big game, which I consider anything larger than deer. That's assuming a good quality scope with a nice crisp sight picture, which to me is a more important consideration than mere magnification. If you want a higher magnification scope than that you can get 1.5x-6x scopes, & if you can't hit a deer inside of 400 yards you probably can't hit it with a 9x scope.

Well, speaking for myself, if I can't hit what I'm aiming at w/a 4.5x to 6x scope, a 9x scope wouldn't have made the difference. I have a rifle w/a 3x-12x scope, but that's chambered in a cartridge suitable for predators up to deer-size animals.

I didn't mention cartridges because I find the subject beat to death. There are a ton of good deer cartridges, elk cartridges, etc. I'm not going to argue with someone over whether a .270 Win isn't as versatile as the .280 Rem. because of differences in bore size & bullet weight no animal suitable to be shot with either will ever notice, or a WSM makes for a better rifle than a rifle chambered for a .308 or '06 based cartridge in the same bore size because it could be made a couple of ounces lighter, marginally stiffer, & then theoretically more accurate.

If I had a gap that a short magnum rifle could fill, I wouldn't be adverse to trying one. But I sure wouldn't be in a hurry to get rid of, say, a .25-06 that's proven to be reliable, light enough, and accurate enough for a rifle that theoretically could do marginally better in the latter two categories.

It may not deliver on those theoretical promises for a variety of factors such as parts at the extreme range of acceptable manufacturing tolerances, assembly issues, materials used, etc. I'll stick with something I know that works until I wear it out.

Whatever floats your boat. There are some pretty dead horses out there.

In past years its been my m70 in 300wm but this year i`m going to try my new encore ph in 300wm. I hunt on ground level wether its walking through the heavy woods or sitting in my favorite spot. For protection my 300 will handle any bear or cougar and if I ever run into a pack of wolves I carry my 10mm.

It doesn`t matter how you hunt it just matters that you hunt

I hunt mostly in the Eastern US, and much of that in PA. Weather is often cold and rainy or snowy. I tend to hunt more than a mile from the road and mostly still hunt over rough cover of steep slopes, laurel thickets and rocks. I tend to carry rifles that have a complete weight of less than ten pounds. I like walnut and blue. None of the the stocks has rotted off and none of the barrels has rusted off. All of them have open sights that have been sighted in for the load in the rifle, whether they have a scope or not. I'm clumsy and wet leaves on rocks are slippery. I have fallen and broken scopes. Since shot opportunities are often quick and offhand, they also either have a tang safety or a hammer. Never considered blackbears to be dangerous. The neighbors rottie at three in the morning when I'm going to the truck is a different story.
Bfly

I also stand hunt in middle Georgia. The 1st 4 weeks of the season it's ladder stands in the swamp or oak ridges where a 50 yd shot is long. I normally hunt with a remington 7MS in 308, a 700Ks in 35 Whelen or a Mariln 45-70 all with low power scopes.

When we move to open crossing & food plots, I switch to a John Lewis 257 on a m700 action or 270 on a Win. m70 action. The 257 has a Zeiss scope & weighs 8#, the 270 has a Leupold Illuminated scope, heavier barrel & weighs about 10#.

My last guoup is a rainy.snow rifle which is a stock m700LSS in 7 RemMag. It has a Bushnell 4200 2.5x10 raingard scope which actually works. I have less than $700 in this set up and it is my most accurate deer rifle. It is also a lucky rifle that has killed several Elk & many hogs.

This kinda reminds me of the AA meetings I've seen on Rescue Me. Hello, my name is Trey and I have a rifle addiction. I'm a true addict and need has Nothing to do w/ it. Mine start at 218 Bee and end at 404J---at this time. 2 AR smiths are currently cobbling together 2 more to feed this addiction. As for me, I'm grinning from ear to ear. It's the healthiest addiction I have and if truth be told, I really look at it as a blessing.
I am beyond anal when it comes to my reloads and the accuracy of my rifles so none of them get let behind due to lack of performance.
So, the answer to you question really depends on the game hunted, conditions and weather. I rarely travel and hunt w/ only one rifle. I now have one that stays in the truk, so sometimes I have 3 on board. Don't ever want to be mis-gunned. Also, it allows you to help out when some goreon shows up w/ the wrong cartridges or has not sighted in his rifle for 3 years.

I hired a Gun Caddy.He dopes the weather and hunting conditions and then hands me a rifle pre zeroed for the distance to the animal and caliber according to game at hand.Saves me from a lot of stress!!!!

After 40+ years of big game hunting, I've acquired a safe full of rifles, pistols, and shotguns, but for this question, I'll narrow it down to six rifles.

My favorite rifles are scoped bolt action with clean barrels, ie, no iron sights. I've re-worked or custom stocked these rifles so they have a similar weight of 9-10# and length of pull of 14 1/4". They are also capable of shooting 100 yd, 3 shot MOA groups. Most of my big game hunting has been in my home states of Colorado and Montana, but I have also hunted in Alaska, Texas, Wyoming, Canada, and Africa.

.22 LR A Rem 541-T topped with a Simmons 3-9x. It's lighter than my other rifles, but has the same LOP. Great for plinking, small game like rabbits, and for inexpensive practice out to 100 yds. And it has put a few mule or whitetail does into the freezer.

.22-250 A Mark X action and a tapered octagon barrel by Les Bauska of Kalispel, MT. It's topped with a 10x Weaver scope. Mainly for prairie dogs and coyotes, but it has put several mule deer and antelope into the freezer.

.257 AI Also on a Mark X barreled action and under a 6x Leupold scope. This is my favorite rifle for deer size game, but isn't too bad on prairie dogs and coyotes. For the past 30 or so years, it's averaged one deer and antelope each year, plus a handful of bighorn and Dall rams, a mountain caribou, and a bull elk.

7mm Rem mag This is a stainless Rem 700 in a Rem plastic stock that has been glass bedded and floated. It's topped with a 3-9x Weaver. This rifle is good for anything from coyotes to moose, and is the rifle that I grab if it's raining or snowing. Besides being my Montana bad weather rifle, I've taken it to Africa twice and hunted with it in the Canadian Arctic for caribou and musk ox.

.300 Weatherby This is the newest addition to my battery. It's a Vanguard that I custom stocked with fancy walnut, and wears a 4-12x Leupold. It's my primary elk rifle, and it replaces my old .30-06/.30 Gibbs that I used for 35 years to fill my freezer with 30 elk, 2 moose, a mountain goat, an Alaskan caribou, and a pile of deer and antelope.

.375 Ultra mag This is also a Stainless Rem 700 action and barrel that I fitted in a laminated stock. It's under a 2-7x Leupold. I primarily built this rifle for a Zimbabwe buffalo hunt, but I've taken it to Africa twice shooting a variety of animals from steenbok to buffalo and eland with it. I haven't hunted any North American animals that need the power of a .375 RUM, but I haven't hunted Alaskan brown bears, yet.

And then there are archery seasons, muzzle loader seasons, and handgun opportunities.

Too many guns, too little time...

I like a light rifle that's accurate, it's hard to find but it's what I like.

I have a Kimber 84M 2 possition saftey in 7-08 that I love to hunt with. After hunting with it for a couple days every other rifle I have feels heavy.

I favor very heavy, very accurate rifle for stand hunting if the stand offers shots of 100 yards and more. I never go deer hunting without my 30-30 Marlin for chasing down cripples even though It has been more years than a can count since I even fired a second shot at my own deer. I have a Remington 760 in 30-06 that will put TTSXs into an inch with boring regularity and most loads at any temperature I have tried so far. That rifle wears a 1.5-6x32 Zeiss and I could be quite happy with that in any situation anywhere short of having to stop an elephant.

There isn't anything particularly threatening where I hunt here in Oklahoma. The greatest danger is driving on the highway to and from hunting.

I want the most accurate rifle and loads that work for the hunting situation. Am I going to be hunting in an elevated stand; or in a ground blind with a good chair and a rest? Am I going to be stalking or just waiting? Will the shot be most likely short range in a brushy area or will it be a long range open shot? These are the types of things I consider when choosing which gun I will use.

I hunt Whitetails here in NC an Va. Sometimes a long walk of a couple miles or maybe just a few hundred yards. Also hunt Montana and Colorado where the walking is up to you; usually alot for me.

My rifle is one I built, 300 RUM in a Weatherby Vanguard action with a Shilen Stainless Select Match 12 twist, 5.5 contour that finished out at 27.5". Has a Laminated stock and Leupold bases with Burris DD Signature rings. A Burris 6-24-50 Black Diamond with fine plex reticle with a custom turret I made with marks out to 1000 yds that matches the load I shoot precisely. It weighs right at 11.5 lbs loaded. If I do my part it shoots sub 3.5" groups at 500 yds with Berger 185 VLD's off my homemade bench and sub whitetail when laying down. Which is my chosen way to shoot when hunting at extended ranges. I can loose a couple pounds easier than hunting with less rifle. My second choice would be my old 308 788.

God Bless, Louis

I have 3 rifles that are stocked to fit like my shotguns for offhand shooting. These weight 8 lbs or less. I hunt whitetails by still hunting, and quick shots are usual.
For antelope and mule deer, I use a rifle that is stocked for perfect fit in the sitting position. It weights 10 lbs. It is carried on its sling most of the time. Caliber and rifle type mean little. Bullet style and placement mean everything.