iron buck

Re: 7600 Snapper: It is very easy to get off an aimed and accurate follow up shot with a pump rifle (as well as the first shot!). People that just "sling" rounds off un aimed are going to do it with any action they have. This is just poor shooting. The motion of snapping the forend closed to chamber the next round automatically points you in the right direction. As I have seen myself and as AJ stated most are very accurate rifles. Layne Simpson of Shooting Times magazine has written many times that the most accurate 30-06 he has ever owned is his Rem 7600. He gets 1/2" 3 shot groups at 100 yards with 180 grain factory core lockts. I have seen it written by several writers that the pump rifle is only good for casual big game hunters who are primarily small game or bird hunters and use pump action shotguns. I believe that Jack O'Connor was the first one to put this statement in print and I have seen several other writers say the same thing. These writers were all primarily bolt action hunters who rarely if ever even fired a pump rifle. Statements like those do a diservice to the 760/ 7600 rifles. They are very good hunting rigs. Have you ever read about the Benoit family in Maine? This is a family of big woods hunters who use nothing but 760s or 7600s. They hunt by tracking and have taken 100s of outstanding big bucks. This type of hunting takes advantage of the ability to get off fast, aimed and well placed shots. This is where the pump action shines. Try one, you might be surprised!

I own a 7600 in 35whelen. They may not be pretty but most I have seen are great shooters. Mine will shoot factory ammo into nice small groups (around 1 1/4") all day long. This is the only rifle I have ever owned that has NEVER changed point of impact between seasons. It is dead nuts reliable, 1 1/2" high at 100 yards dead center. The 7600 would be a sweet shooter in 308. Look around for used models also, you should be able to get a better deal and may be able to avoid some of the quality isues that have plauged Remington lately. If you do get a new one and it has problems, take advantage of the warranty and get it fixed. All in all I like the 7600. It is a good solid and reliable base for a hunting rifle .

Re: COTW - .284 Winchester I would love to find a Savage 99 in 284. I have seen a few on the auction sites but they end up selling for $800-$900+ !!! A friend on mine has a Ruger M77 with the tang safety in 284. It does a number on whiteails with his 140 grain handloads. I guess the 284 was the original "short & Fat" cartridge. Ahead of its time when you see the short mags of today.

Re: Archery season Archery season does not start here in PA until the First Saturday in October BUT I will get a jump on things and be out in Colorado chasing elk with my bow from September 5th through the 14th! I can't wait! I practice so much for the elk hunt through the summer that I am more than ready by the time deer season rolls around. I will be using fixed Thunderhead 100s again this year for both elk and deer.

Re: COTW - .25-06 Remington I bought my first 25-06 this year. It is in a Ruger No 1 with a new 4-12 Leupold VXII. It has proven to be fun to shoot and accurate. I will try it on the local deer population this fall.

Re: COTW - .375 H&H Magnum I have a Browning Stainless Stalker in 375HH. This rifle will follow me up to Alaska for a bear hunt some day, and to Africa for a Cape buffalo hunt. I have used it in the past to take deer here in PA. While it may be bigger than necessary, it does the job while damaging very little meat. Contrary to what many people think, using such a large round on small animals does not "blow them apart". Someday I would like to get a M70 Express rifle in this caliber. The 375 is very mild in the recoil department (When compared to other dangerous game rounds) and is used as a back up rifle by many professional hunters. It is a very versatile round. If I could have (2) rifles for the rest of my life this would be one of them. The other would be a 30-06. Combined I could confortably hunt any game animal I desired. [ 06-21-2003, 08:48 AM: Message edited by: iron buck ]

Re: COTW - .270 Winchester Great Round. I love the 270.

Re: COTW - 7mm Remington Magnum I have an old Remington 700 in 7mm Rem mag. It is one of the most accurate rifles I own. I have not hunted with it for several years. I may just have to take it out with me this coming seson! I like the versatility that the 7mm mag offers. I have used mine for whitetails. I have never taken it out west for elk, but only because I have other calibers that I think are better suited for elk.

Re: Dicks Sporting Goods... Dicks is one of the main stores around me. The prices are often better than Cabelas and Wall MArt. They carry quality gear and they put things on sale BEFORE the season starts when you need them. Then you can get great deals. It benfits all of us in teh price department to have more options. The only thing I dislike about Dicks is that they drove the small shop out of business by me. He could not compete with the prices. He closed shop and sold out. Other than that Dicks is a great store for the sportsman. They have an entire department with nothing but hunting and fishing gear.

Re: COTW - .338 Winchester Magnum The 338 it a great round. I have an older Rem 700 BDL in 338 win mag. Leupold VX-III 2.5-8x sits on top of it. It is an accurate, light weight rifle. I bought it for elk and bear in Alaska but it has yet to go on either hunt! I have used it on deer here in PA just because I wanted to take it out. I've taken a few deer with it using the 225 grain factory core lockts. It is a very versitle round with the margin of error on the high side!

Re: COTW - .45-70 Government When did they do that? The guide gun is on my "wish list". What problems was the porting causing? Or is just a cost issue from the factory? I have always liked the 45-70. I have had a few different rifles chambered for it. Another one I want is the Ruger #1S. The 45-70 is a great old round.

Re: Muscle Car... I used to have a 1968 Dogde Charger 440 R/T. What a great car! I had to sell it to pay for college I would LOVE to replace it. Here is the rest of my short list: 1970 426 Hemi Cuda 1970 Boss 429 Mustang 1966 427 Shelby Cobra roadster Nice dreams anyway!

Re: COTW - .35 Whelen Great article for an outstanding cartridge! I read about the 35 Whelen in Elmer Keiths books. I knew I had to get one! I bought a new Remington 7600 chambered for this round back in the early 90s. My 7600 is fairly accurate shooting 250 grain factory rounds into 1.25-1.5" 3 shot groups. The nice thing with this rifle is that it has NEVER changed it's point of impact since I've owned it. I take it to the range ever year to sight in and it is always dead center, 1.5" high at 100 yards. I have taken (2) black bears and several deer with the 250 grain Remington factory loads. It has floored everything I've hit with it. All the deer have gone down in their tracks. The bears went about 10-25 yards before dropping. This is important in PA because if anything goes far you run the risk of someone else tagging it! I am a fan of the Whelen. I can't figure out why it is not more popular, I guess most shooters do not know what it is all about. It will take all game on the North American continent with little fuss. I have been thinking of getting a bolt action put together for the 35 Whelen this year, it is my favorite cartridge. [ 04-12-2003, 02:05 PM: Message edited by: iron buck ]

I own both. I have an 870 12 gauge and a 1300 12 gauge. I much prefer the action and lock up on the Winhester vs that on the Remington.

Re: Factory bore sighting I have a bore sighter that I use on my own rifles when I mount scopes. It will only get me on paper most of the time at 100 yards. The height usually comes close to what I want, but I usually am 4-6" to the right. It does what it is intended to do but these things are no substitute for actual range time.