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Not Alaska so no bears. Drew a tag and interested in rifle setups. Caliber? Scopes? Etc. Go! White Mountains Arizona | ||
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Rem 700 with med weight Lilja 6.5 creedmore. Good quality 4-12 scope with turrets and zero stop.Bedded in a good McMillan hunter stock. 140 grn bullets running about 2750. Sheep sniper. | |||
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Remington 700 in 300 ultra magnum with 26 inch barrel, shooting 180 grain Barnes X. 3x9x40 Leupold scope and mounts. | |||
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Jack O'Conner's 270. | |||
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The ideal sheep rifle, according to those who have killed a lot of sheep, needs to be lightweight, accurate, and carry enough punch to kill sheep at ranges up to 350yds. Anything more potent than a .270 will kick like 7 mules in a lightweight rifle. I believe JOC had it right when he stated that a .270 in a lightweight, bolt rifle topped by a good scope (2-7 or 3-9) is the way to go. With today’s advanced powders and the wide variety of bullets, the range and power of the .270 is even better than it was 40 years ago. BH63 Hunting buff is better than sex! | |||
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I believe Buffhunter is right on the money with his above statement. More important than caliber or cartridge chambering is accuracy. I killed my Sheep and Goat with a 30/06, my brother used a 30/06 and a 325 WSM, people routinely use 257's, .264's 7mm's etc. Friends have used 300 WM, 7mm RM, 270's, 280's, all had the same effect. To me recoil is not in the equation, you won't be shooting prairie dogs all day with it. Light to carry and accurate to the distances you feel comfortable shooting is what is important really. Good luck on your Sheep hunt. I was going to suggest you contact Kevin Weaver at Weaverrifles.com as he specializes in "Sheep Rifles" but I'm not sure you could get one completed by sheep season, however he may have some on hand to sell already complete... | |||
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well the others have pretty much covered it. years back [1980's] when I was looking for a 'sheep rifle' I just bought a stainless Ruger boat paddle in 308 for 300$ and put a 200$ Leupold 3x9 rifleman scope on it. light enough, accurate, and pretty much bomb proof. it's still my 'back pack in for a week' rifle and it still gets the job done. if it was nowdays I'd get a Ruger Hawkeye or a Bergara in like 30-06 and a decent leupold scope and use that. wait,,, I did get a Bergara in 30-06, still take the little Ruger for longer trips though since my pack is all set up to strap it in place, and it's short enough to not be a bother on the trail. | |||
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Thanks for the idea all makes sense. As for my existing rifles that are suitable and fit the bill I have: No 1 a 5 3/4 lb tikka stainless lightweight in 300 wm. Has a bad habit of bouncing ejected brass off scope into port but no bears so that can pass. Kicks pretty good as well but my lightest gun I think leupold vx3 3.5-10 2) Winchester ss m70 extreme weather .270. Leupold 4.5x14 vx3 3) Montana 300 RUM stainless. Not to heavy just put a 4.5x14 vx3 ao on it. 4) Actual Jack O’Connor gun pre 64 M70 .270 with leupold 2-7 5) M700 30-06 leupold 3x9 These I have sitting here. Going to shoot all for accuracy and then decide whether to swap/aquire a “special” scope. Heck it’s a once in a lifetime deal in AZ Should be able to get one of these to work White Mountains Arizona | |||
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I took my 3 personal rams with a Sako Forrester in 243 with a 6X Leupold. I wish that gal hadn't finagaled me out of it !!  I tend to use more than enough gun | |||
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Nice Ram. Yeah a lot of times you can get close I hear but if not I may go for a bit more magnification. my AZ pronghorn I practiced to 1100 yards but shot it at 275. Hopefully be the same will happen on my ram, but I’ll be ready to 500 just in case White Mountains Arizona | |||
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Boddington just did an article on this very subject in Sports Afield. His opinion was a fast caliber 6.5-.308 bullet diameter moving 3000 FPS or faster was the best option. The 3000 FPS is a guess from my end. He didn't think much of the 308, 7mm-08, 6.5x55, 6.5 Creedmoor and 30-06 for a sheep rifle as they are not as flat shooting as the 280 Rem/Ackley, 270 WCF, 270 WSM, 270 Weatherby, 6.5x68, 6.5 PRC, 264 Win, 300 Win, any 7mm Magnum, 300 WBY, 30-378 and so on. He spoke very highly of the 6.5 Weatherby Magnum. I personally have no experience, but like long range shooting with my rifles. I'd do the lightest rifle I could accurately shoot, and add an optic I could dial turrets on. | |||
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55: Any of your rifles will work but I would pick the lightest. You should be more concerned about best boots, best binoculars and best spotting scope. | |||
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Nice ram...10 years old? | |||
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Anything between 6.5mm and .308 with a BC of .400 or better leaving the muzzle at 2750 or better and preferably 2800 or better. There is very little practical difference in trajectory between 0-300 yards between a .308 Win with a 180 (even though it doesn't meet the above) and a 270 win with a 130 (I use these because they are kind of at the extremes of typical medium bores). Both would allow you to hold on hair to 300 yards using a 5" window. If you are contemplating shooting beyond 300 which you may very well need to, you are likely going to have some type of BDC reticle which you will have practiced with and know where the various stadia marks hit at distance; therefore, it's not going to be about a difference of say 12 inches in drop at 400 yards but about knowing with this load the second stadia mark down is dead on at 380 and third stadia mark down is dead on at 480 and I use them as a bracket at 430. Mike Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue.  What I have learned on AR, since 2001: 1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken. 2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps. 3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges. 4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down. 5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine. 6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle. 7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions. 8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA. 9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not. 10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact. 11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores. 12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence. 13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances. | |||
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I have just taken possession of a Browning X Bolt Stainless Synthetic Stalker in 300 WSM at 6 lbs, 8 oz. and 23" barrel. I will sadly be unlikely to ever get to go on a sheep hunt, but I can only think that it would make a perfect rifle for the job with a good 165 gr bullet. (Back home I will be putting a suppressor onto it.) Make sure to post a hunt report. | |||
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I have a Rem 280 in 700 Mountain rifle topped with a Leupold straight 6 that I've used to kill a desert, California and Aoudad ram and numerous Mule deer in steep mountainous country. I Shoot 139 grain Hornady's at 3000 FPS. Has worked pretty well for all of the above. Easy to carry and gets the job done. | |||
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Almost forgot to mention that I drew another Nevada Desert tag and this rifle will be on my back again. | |||
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one that weights 1# -- hits the biggest ram automatically out to 600 yds or so - doesn;t hurt the hide but produces immediately kill without rolling the ram down the mountainside - and grows a big rotor to carry everything back to camp | |||
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I think I already have those covered kennetrek and Swarovski. The tikka is by far the lightest
White Mountains Arizona | |||
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You are one lucky devil. How long between tags? Rifle sounds good so you are happy with straight 6 power?
White Mountains Arizona | |||
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Definitely sounds like a sheep rifle. Will do a hunt report and while Africa some of the best game on the planet they are lacking sheep!
White Mountains Arizona | |||
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Agree on the scope and caliber recommendations. May have to upgrade the scope on one of the rifles
White Mountains Arizona | |||
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Never sheep hunted and likely never will, but I’d like to think I’d use a Kipplauf type special rifle. Maybe not an American classic but a mountain hunting classic nonetheless. Make it in 6.5x57R. Otherwise I have a titanium action 300 Win Mag that weighs 7.5lbs with scope that would likely get use. Shoot straight, shoot often. Matt | |||
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Something easy to carry. I used a Ruger 338 with 250 partitions for my first Dall ram and a pre 64 Winchester 308 Win with 165 Barnes xbt for my second Dalls ram. -------------------- THANOS WAS RIGHT! | |||
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I've been fortunate to have been sheep hunting 5 times and all the advice you received is good. I would only add two thoughts, caliber isn't as important as confidence so if you already have a reasonably light rifle you're accustomed to stick with it. Also, on two hunts my scope was "banged" against rocks (everything was OK) but I have learned to love the Leupold 6X36mm fixed power because they're light and strong. I'm not being critical of variables at all, I just feel it prudent to stack the deck and yes a 6 is adequate at least for me. Good luck in your upcoming hunt... Edward Lundberg | |||
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gunslinger 55, If you're doing it all DIY you have a couple of good choices in your arsenal. Caliber is not super important. Take what you're confident with. If you're using a real sheep guide most of them these days will have a long range rig and encourage you to use it. If you have a once in lifetime tag and that 500-600 yard shot is your only real opportunity maybe you'd want to use the guide's rifle. Mark MARK H. YOUNG MARK'S EXCLUSIVE ADVENTURES 7094 Oakleigh Dr. Las Vegas, NV 89110 Office 702-848-1693 Cell, Whats App, Signal 307-250-1156 PREFERRED E-mail markttc@msn.com Website: myexclusiveadventures.com Skype: markhyhunter Check us out on https://www.facebook.com/pages...ures/627027353990716 | |||
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Hi: 18 years for the first desert, 29 years for the California and now 24 years for the second desert. But I also drew a late rifle bull tag in a premium area and a cow tag as well. I just retired so the timing couldn't be better. I Have been very happy with the straight 6. It has the fine crosshairs and shoots dead on at 300 yds. Only about 11-12" low at 400. I've never tried anything further than that. | |||
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I've ben very fortunate to live in Nevada my entire life and my father was a desert sheep guide. I went on my first desert sheep hunt in 1969 and have participated in 50-60 desert sheep hunts in Nevada since then. As others have stated your most important equipment will be your optics that you use to find and then judge the ram your after. Comfortable relatively stiff boots that fit your feet can be nearly as important. I'm not sure about Arizona, but in my experience Desert rams are not pressured by hunting very much as compared to other critters such as big mule deer bucks. As long as you see them first and use the terrain shots longer than 300 yards are a big exception rather than the rule. | |||
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If I were going after Sheep I would take one of two of my rifles. A 6.5 PRC shooting a 130 gr. Barnes TSX at 3229 fps. The rifle is a Sauer 100 with a 5X25 Ziess scope mounted. Or I would take one of my .270 WSM's, a Winchester Featherweight with a 130 gr. Northfork bullet going 3450 fps. I have a 6.5X20 Ziess Conquest mounted on it. Both will shoot with pinpoint accuracy when I do my part. I am afraid my Sheep hunting years are past but we can still dream can't we. If one of the grandsons or great grandsons ever wants to go I have him fixed up.Good Shooting. phurley | |||
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Mine have looked like Kevlar stocked light weight barreled rifles in 270, 280, 280AI and 300 Win mag (because I was shooting a moose too). Right now it's a blueprinted 700 rem, SAAMI 280 AI, Kevlar stock, 25" Lilja fluted #2 with a Swarovski 3-10 TDS. Light, accurate, handy and works fine on sheep! There are so many variants of rifles that WOULD work that the best we can do is tell you what we have used on sheep. Zeke | |||
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Agree. Leaning towards my lightest gun a 300 wm. Trying to sort out the optics issue White Mountains Arizona | |||
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Just to clarify: It is a one-in-a-lifetime sheep and not the tag itself. And it is possible, though not real likely, to get drawn again with the way our bonus point system is structured. Tony Mandile - Author "How To Hunt Coues Deer" | |||
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I've hunt sheep all over the place for over 35 years. Everyone here has giving you great advice, nothing wrong with any of it. A .243 or a 12 pound rifle will work if that's what you feel most comfortable with. My personal rifle was built by Brown Precision in 1982. It's action is a 700 in 300 WM and yes I went that caliber because of all the bears I've run into while sheep hunting in Alaska. The rifle weighs 6 1/2 pounds, is short and a dream to carry. Originally it was topped by a fix 6 power Zeiss, now it has 1.7 X 10 power Swarovski. This rifle has always been a tack driver and I'm extremely confident that when I pull the trigger it will put that 180 gr pill wherever I think it should go. The key components of this description for you are; wonderful to carry long distances for multiple days in a row, extremely accurate when you are shooting it and will maintain that accuracy out to long distances. That's what you want in your sheep rifle. Always remember you will carry that rifle for hundreds of hours for every shot you take with it, but when you do shoot the most important thing is you hit exactly where you need to. I'll also add that most of the time I've shot sheep from 50 yards to 500 yards and you need to be prepared to do that in almost any conditions. The longest was a Marco Polo at measured range of 1,000 meters, but it was a hail Mary with 10 minutes left in my hunt. I was the most shocked of everyone when the ram tipped over and rolled down the mountain. I'm just want point out that typically if you don't push sheep to hard they will stay in an area and you can come back the next day and have another go at it, but sometimes you just have to try an extreme shot. I'm very happy that I shoot that big old .300 as I know it has range and punch out to those ranges. Congratulations on your tag and wishing you enjoy the ultimate hunting experience (in my opinion). | |||
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Its Rocky Mountain if I get drawn again. My buddy just tagged out on both a few years ago. He’s a native though I am playing catch-up
White Mountains Arizona | |||
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What reticle do you use?
White Mountains Arizona | |||
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I use a simple cross hair. I’m a throw back, always just hold over. The Marco was with a strong wind left to right. I held approximately 20 feet behind his rear and 20 feet over. Just big guess, but it work. Typically I dial the hold over pretty close as I’m so tuned into this rifle. | |||
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Well done I’d say for sure! White Mountains Arizona | |||
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Ultra light rifles with ultra precise optics chambered in ultra flat shooting calibers are typically discussed. Not always taken at extreme range and altitude however. I've used a variety of rifles and calibers including 7.62x39, 300 WM, 45-70 and 416 RM. | |||
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Interesting....Go on? White Mountains Arizona | |||
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In reality, you can bag one Desert & one Rocky Mt. per lifetime in AZ, but use as many tags as you can draw. Tony Mandile - Author "How To Hunt Coues Deer" | |||
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