Rifle Advise


rifleman25

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I recently accepted a position with with a newer outdoors program. The taping of the first season will be in 2006. There will be 5 of us working on there prostaff. I am to be supplied with one rifle of my choice of caliber. I am a rifleman and have a nice collection of fine guns, but I don't own a Savage. Savage is there firearms sponsor. I Need a rifle to hunt game as small as antelope up to elk or oryx sized game. They offer a limited number of calibers but here are my options, 7MM-08 REM, 308 WIN, 270 WSM, 300 WSM, 270 Win, 30-06 Spfld, 7mm Rem Mag, 300 Win Mag. I am leaning towards the 30-06, the 270 wsm, and the 308 win. I have lived in South Dakota and spent my life hunting western big game and know my shots are never further than the 350-400 yard range. I am open for suggestion. I have seen many times the question of the best do all rifle and answered, but let me tell you that you feel differently when you are placd in that situation. That is atleast the case with me. This is a tough one for me.

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Re: Rifle Advise

Considering you probibly won't have to worry about buying ammo, I would probibly go with either the 300 WSM or the 270 WSM because of the short action. I would lean a little to the 270 WSM because of the smaller bullet possibilities with smaller game and the lower recoil they would give you. I imagine you'll be doing a lot of bench shooting getting ready for the season and probibly checking the gun when you travel from place to place. After a while I think you would get tired of a 30-06 or 7mm Rem Mag pounding your shoulder.

Of course the 7MM -08 is pretty darn good looking too, has very little recoil and can shoot a pretty good sized load.

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Re: Rifle Advise

In the hands of a skilled rifleman, it does not matter. While the 270 WSM will shoot a bit flatter than the .308 or .30-06, it also has more recoil and that makes hitting at 300+ yards harder. Any of the cartridges you have narrowed your choices to will work just fine. Like you said, quality Norma brass and Partitions are available for each.

You have to ask yourself if you want a short or long action. That will reduce your selection a bit more. Personally, I would lean towards the short action. That narrows it to the 308 or 270 WSM. Flip a coin, although if I were offered any of Savages guns, I would definately lean towards the 14 Classic for the short action cartridges or the 114 Classic for the 30-06.

Take your pick, they will all work just fine.

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Re: Rifle Advise

[ QUOTE ]

I thought that the 270 WSM would have less recoil than the others.

[/ QUOTE ]

It may have a slightly lighter bullet using a 130 or 140 gr but a 150 out of a .270 Win will kick as much as a 150 out of a .30-06. Now when you add the extra powder of a WSM, guess what that does to the recoil level? Yep, it goes up.

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Re: Rifle Advise

Since the Savage short action in WSM and the long action in 270 Win weights are similar (~1/4 lb difference) I used 8 pounds as the gun weight. The bare gun is 6.5 - 6.75 pounds, add a scope and rings. The numbers are like this:

270 Winchester

130 gr = 17 ft/lbs of recoil energy

140 gr = 18 ft/lbs of recoil energy

150 gr = 18 ft/lbs of recoil energy

270 WSM

130 gr = 21 ft/lbs of recoil energy

140 gr = 23 ft/lbs of recoil energy

150 gr = 23 ft/lbs of recoil energy

So the 270 WSM has roughly 25% more recoil than the standard 270 Winchester. This does not mean its objectionable, just that there is a higher level of recoil.

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Re: Rifle Advise

I'd go withe the 7mm or 300 Mag. As far as the models go, Like AJ, I really like the 14/114. However, the new 16/116 FCSAK looks pretty nice as well. The latter features an SS fluted barrel with boss type system. Both have the accu-trigger that functions exceptionally well for me. The FCSAK is relatively new and I have only seen it available in 270, 270WSM, and 30-06. I really like Savage for out of the box accuracy at a very reasonable price. Great company to have as a sponsor!

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Re: Rifle Advise

The recoil of a 308 is comparable to the standard 270 Winchester. If you choose an ultra light weight mountain rifle, it will have more recoil than a sniper rifle (when using the same ammo). Gun weight, bullet weight, bullet velocity, and powder weight all contribute to the recoil. Most of the ballistics software programs have recoil calculators. The formula is:

E = 1/2 (Wr / 32) (Wb x MV + 4700 x Wp / 7000 x Wr)squared

Where E = recoil Energy in ft. lbs., Wr = Weight of gun in pounds, Wb = Weight of projectile (shot+wad) in grains, MV = Muzzle Velocity of projectile in feet-per-second, Wp = Weight of powder in grains.

Here are the numbers for a 308 Win in an 8 pound gun:

150 gr = 17 ft/lbs

165 gr = 17 ft/lbs

180 gr = 18 ft/lbs

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Matt,

I used 9 pounds as a gun weight. That is typical for a long action magnum with scope. Here are the numbers for your 300 H&H:

150 gr = 29 ft/lbs

165 gr = 29 ft/lbs

180 gr = 29 ft/lbs

200 gr = 30 ft/lbs

The 12 ga 3" with 1 7/8oz loads going 1210 fps churn out about 56 ft/lbs in a Remington 870.

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Re: Rifle Advise

[ QUOTE ]

Thanks for the info. Is there anything you don't know about firearms?

[/ QUOTE ]

I doubt it, AJ knows everything you need to know about any kind of firearm, he's a BIG asset to these forums. wink.gif

Out of your choices I would choose the .270 WSM. I shoot the .300 WSM and personally LOVE the cartridge, it shoots great! The short action guns with the long magnum capability is hard to beat. cool.gif

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