Just got my new deer rifle back from the guy that airbrushed it with duracoat!Its a 300 weatherby magnum with a Atez silenser and a Meopta 3-12-56 with light! I think this one will be good medisine for the hunting this year!

Congrats on your new toy. You must have some pretty hefty deer in Norway!

- mike

well they are the same size as all red stags in europe but i will use the rifle for all types of hunting from beaver to bear!

Aha, so the designation "deer rifle" does not catch the entire spectrum of game this will be used for. That makes sense. The .300 Wby is a formidable caliber (if one can shoot it), but probably more suited to heavy game than roe, say. I like the MkV action, it is very smooth and the safety is very positive.

I'll allow myself to nitpick with you on one issue, though. Your signature gives the impression you are involved in a commercial hunting operation. That probably makes you aware of significant differences in red deer size as you move through Europe. If not, come to Hungary, say, and see if the red deer there are the same size as in Norway. Hunting them in either location is probably associated with the same pleasure, though.

- mike

The rifle will trawel a lot to Africa.....for plainsgame.But will hunt a lot of deer in denmark,sweden,germany,polen,estonia.... and ofcourse Norway Hungary have heard a lot of the wery good hunting going on there!

Yes, the .300 Wby was traditionally a tool for the traveling hunter.

Btw, if you are familiar with red deer in Poland or Estonia, I'll rest my case regarding difference in size as you move across the Continent.

Good luck with your new rifle.

- mike

As a "Yank", I'm not familiar with the size differences in Red Deer across Europe.

In North America, as a generalization, the further from the equator you travel, the larger a given species tends to grow; i.e., whitetail deer in Texas generally have smaller bodies than those found in Maine or Alberta.

So, do European deer generally follow this rule, or are other environmental factors at work?

Stonecreek, as a general rule the further south and east you go, the bigger the Reds get.

I saw Reds in Croatia last year which were just huge.

Hungary also has massive Reds.

The deer on Scotland for eg are pretty small, I can't speak of Scandanavia as I don't know about those.

quote:

Originally posted by Claret_Dabbler:
Stonecreek, as a general rule the further south and east you go, the bigger the Reds get.

That is it. I'm constantly amazed at the difference in size in reds (as well as other species) I see when I compare Hungary to other places I have hunted. Over a period of 6-8 years I hunted reds in the Austrian Alps, a yearling there approaches the size of a December calf in Hungary. It is all about availability of food, "growing season" etc.

- mike

Nice working rifle - it'll put the biggest red stag in Europe on the deck pretty quickly, regardless of growing seasons .

quote:

Originally posted by Boghossian:
...it'll put the biggest red stag in Europe on the deck pretty quickly, regardless of growing seasons .

I agree with you, and also consider the big .300s an excellent choice for (big) red stag. But you would be surprised to find how many professional hunters in Hungary actually prefer clients to bring calibers from 8mm and upwards. The .30 calibers are considered on the marginal side - as opposed to the "Teutonic" standards such as 8x68S or 9.3x64 etc.

- mike

Even in the UK there is a huge difference in the size of Red deer.

In the Highlands of Scotland 40Kg larder weight is a big mature hind where as down in Thetford 70Kg larder weight is not unusual for a calf.

The 243 is more than up to the task though

quote:

Originally posted by DJM:
Even in the UK there is a huge difference in the size of Red deer.

In the Highlands of Scotland 40Kg larder weight is a big mature hind where as down in Thetford 70Kg larder weight is not unusual for a calf.

The 243 is more than up to the task though

Dave, that is a good point which I was going to say, the south and east rule even applies within the UK. Devon has some huge Reds also.

quote:

Originally posted by Claret_Dabbler:

quote:

Originally posted by DJM:
Even in the UK there is a huge difference in the size of Red deer.

In the Highlands of Scotland 40Kg larder weight is a big mature hind where as down in Thetford 70Kg larder weight is not unusual for a calf.

The 243 is more than up to the task though

Dave, that is a good point which I was going to say, the south and east rule even applies within the UK. Devon has some huge Reds also.

Good points, which illustrate the effect of year round moderate climate and ready access to food sources.

- mike

Donner,

Nice looking Boomer, I wish you much Waidmannsheil with it!

Guys,

Magnum Ho & Magnum Hmmmh .... Yeah the 300 Witherbee is alot of cartridge, for some; others not.

Personally; I can't believe I waited so long in my life to finally discover the "Wonderfullness" of this cartridge.

It's not something you take to the range just to sling lead downrange with but rather to confirm zero with 3-5 rounds (because after 3 rounds the barrel is REAL hot!) and put it back in the gunslip.

I shot 11 Red Deer (all in The Fatherland) with the 300 Witherbee last season, 4 Stags, the remaining 7 Hinds & Calves. Each dropped in their tracks as if poleaxed - Whew! Pretty impressive perfomance IMO. To me it's some kinda "magic" smokepole.

I was always a .30/06 Sprg. kinda Guy and later in life have caught a good case of Magnumitis. Keep it sighted-in for 300 meters and it is easy to hit with at the distance, too.

Helluva cartridge.