Can't decide.

[JKump]

I currently have a NEF Survivor 308. It has a 22" bull Barrel and is a good shooter. It has a Fixed 4x32 Nikon scope on it. I use it for deer hunting and have taking many deer over the last 5 years from 10 to 200 yards.
However, I maybe hunting more fields in the near future and I am thinking of getting another 308 bolt action.
So do I really need to change rifles? I will stay with the 308, even in a bolt gun. Would a Bolt action gun give me any more accuracy?
Below is a picture of me current rifle.

 

[44 AMP]

The answer is no, and yes....depending.....

ON a lot of factors. The one certain thing a bolt gun will give you is a faster second, third, and fourth shots (and maybe a fifth?).

Accuracy? Will it be better than what you have now? No one can say. It might be. How accurate is your current rifle? Generally, new rifles today run more accurate than they did a generation or two ago. But, each rifle is an individual, and even consecutive ser#s can have widely differing performance at the range and in the field.

Any good bolt gun will be accurate enough for deer hunting, but if you think getting a bolt gun will magically give you a one hole shooter, you are in for a let down. It may happen, people win the lottery too! But its not to be counted on. The difference between good enough, good, and great depends on a huge list of variables, so no one should give you a blanket recommendation as if it were fact.

 

[10-96]

How is the trigger pull on your NEF? I had a SS in .223 and even after coughing up for a trigger pull- it was still in the ball park of 12lbs! I was determined to make that thing shoot the way I thought it should- but it didn't really. I mean, I took plenty of PD's and other such varmints but 'I' knew I could do better. My CZ 527 is certainly much more accurate- but nobody can say if those results would hold true for you. But, with a bolt- you can do a few things to swing thing into your favor such as free- floating the bbl, bedding the action, evenly torquing the action screws, adjusting or getting an after market trigger- little stuff you can tinker with over time. Do you have a buddy who might loan you a bolt gun to help form an opinion with? Also, if you picks up a bolt gun- you really won't lose any money on it if you keep it decent and hold onto it and then sell it in a couple years. Or, you might hold onto it so you can have a loaner rifle if you take the notion to take a rifleless friend or family member shooting/hunting.

 

[JKump]

The trigger is good. Smooth and breaks clean. NEF SS are know to have decent triggers. I thought about keeping it. Without trade it would be hard to convince the wife on another hunting rifle.

 

[10-96]

Ouch... the 'wife' factor.
How many pair of shoes or purses does she have? See where I'm goin here? A man hadn't ought to be limited to just one rifle. Have you tried to play to her family preservation instict by telling her that times are tough and that ol single shot is gettin up there in years and if things get bad and you have to hunt for food well a new rifle and a backup rifle is the most honorable thing a real American man can do to ensure his family stays fed.........?