Essential Hunting Rifle Battery

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sigsooie

New member
A young guy I work with asked what would be a good list of rifles (calibers) to start building a battery that would be adequate to hunt anything on the globe. This what I am thinking about suggesting....

.22LR auto loader or bolt action- Small game
.223 semi auto long range tacticle AR- Varmints of all kinds
.270WSM- Medium game and preditors
.300WSM- Large game
.375H&H- Dangerous game

Your thoughts?
 
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fisherman66

New member
22lr
220 Swift
6.5x55 or 7x57
338-06
.416 Rigby
12g Shotgun

Course we could do this all day with different responses and all still be right. I guess that's the fun of it.
 
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jmr40

New member
The 270WSM and 300WSM are so similar you do not need both. Pick one or the other.

22LR
223
308 general big game
35 Whelen Large game
7mm Rem mag. Long range

I don" hunt or plan to hunt dangerous game.
 
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3StrikesNC

New member
Cancel the 270 WSM, may be difficult to get ammo worldwide. Replace it with 30-06.

Lose the 300 WSM also. Replace it with .338 Win Mag.

Other than that, pretty good.
 
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jhgreasemonkey

New member
Like mentioned above you are also going to want ammo thats widely available around the globe. I would like to think that you could get away with using 3 rifles and a 12 guage.
.22lr
30-06
.375 h&h
12 guage
 
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bcrash15

New member
echoing a lot of the responses already, but my picks would be:

.22lr - if it's for hunting (that is, cost is not an object) you might consider a more powerful rimfire like a .17hmr or .22wmr just for some flexibility up to some bigger game.
.223 - I thought it would be useful to keep an intermediate caliber for varmint type work. I was thinking of suggesting .30-30 for this, but it's power is almost too close to the next level to justify another rifle (though it is very available).
.308 / .30-06 - Either is great.
.375 H&H - classic, what else can be said about this?
12Ga - only real option here ;)

If he's serious about ANY game, I might get a larger rifle for the biggest African game (elephants/etc), maybe something like .416 rigby.
 
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sc928porsche

New member
If I had to limit myself to just a few:
22lr. for small game and plinking.
22-250 for varmits
300WM for large game
416WBY for dangerous game.
12 ga. for bird hunting.
 
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Wayward_Son

New member
22lr
.30-06
.375H&H/.416 Rigby, take your pick

And a pump-action 12 gauge.

And a decent .357 magnum.

Should have all your bases covered there.
 
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Smaug

New member
22LR
243 Win
308 Win

That's it. Unless you're going on safari or plan on taking shots beyond 300 yards, you don't need anything bigger.

The 243 makes a perfect deer cartridge as well as a perfect varmint cartridge.

The 22LR makes a perfect target rifle as well as small game out to 100 yards.

The 308 makes perfect big game rifle.

All three of these cartridges are inherently accurate, and popular enough that you can find just about any gun you want in them.
 
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Buzzcook

New member
22lr Self explanatory

.243 Great for varmints, large enough to be legal for deer in every state.

.30-06 Self explanatory

6 bore double Cause I don't want to be jelly between jumbo's toes.
 
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Swampghost

New member
You can pack in ammo to most places.

.22LR
.243 Rem. (long range, smaller game)
30-06 (overall versatility)
.375 H&H (for the big stuff, .416 Rem Mag. is in there too.)
.44 Mag. (smaller game, short range, heavy brush)
.600 Nitro Express (only if you're expecting charging elephants)

I've never varmint hunted so those cal.'s have been excluded. I'm strictly a meat hunter.
 
D

darkgael

New member
3 guns

".22lr
30-06
.375 h&h
12 gauge"

Yep. Agree with that. I may never need the .375 for an Africa trip but I do go to Alaska.
Pete
 
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HiBC

New member
There are a lo of variables.
Seems like a .22 is pretty worth having.
So is a 12 Ga.
That part is hard to argue.
For the BIG gun,depends.Outside I'd think a .338 is enough.A real big gun can be bought special when a trip shows up.However,I dont have a .338.I have a .375 Chatfield Tailor .375/.338)
World wide,the .375 H+H is universal,and a wonderful classic.It is also manageable.It can be shot well.
The USA universal rifle? IT DON"T MATTER!!!!. Sure,30-06!! but,.308,.270,.,280,6.5X55.Anything WW2 battle rifle or close will do about the same job.
I really like my .257 and if I have a .375...
I think my 16" Hbar free float < 1 MOA AR 15 covers varmints and some SD.
I won't give up my .44 SBH Ruger.A 1911 and a match grade .22 Semi-auto pistol.
The single six Bisley 32 H+R is fun,

Should everyone have an SKS just to shoot 7.62x39?
And a hawken is good.A rolling Block or a Sharps.At leat one Anschutz.
You must have a lever gun,I like my Browning 92 .44...

I would think that will be a start,but things do come up I may not have covered.An 1895 Marlin 45-70?
 
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taylorce1

New member
Well I think you were on the right track for the most part but your list needs a little tweaking.

Here is your list:
.22LR auto loader or bolt action- Small game
.223 semi auto long range tacticle AR- Varmints of all kinds
.270WSM- Medium game and preditors
.300WSM- Large game
.375H&H- Dangerous game
Click to expand...

First off lets cut out the WSM rounds as they are a little new and not as popular yet as some others. Plus you can find one rifle that can do the job of both of those and save this young man some money. I didn't mind the suggestion of the WSM rounds but the .300 WM or 7mm Rem Mag would probably have been a better choice due to the fact ammunition is easier to find in a wider variety than any WSM.

I'll change that AR to a Varmint style bolt action as well, just because it will save money again. Plus he can learn to work the bolt action on the range and be better in the field when hunting. Plus AR rifles are just very hungry, and take a lot more ammunition to feed per session than most bolt rifles.

Here is what I would do:

.22LR auto loader or bolt action- Small game
.223 Bolt Action Heavy Varmint Rifle
.30-06 For everything between Varmints and Dangerous game
.375H&H- Dangerous game

The .30-06 will and has taken anything that walks North America plus it is one of the cheapest rifle cartridges to buy for a young person starting out. A few other rifle cartridges can fit this slot between .223 and .375 but the 06 probably does it the best.

The .375 H&H or you could sub in the .375 Ruger will do the rest, if you feel the .30-06 isn't enough gun then this one surely is for everything else.
 
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Scorch

New member
22LR bolt action
223 or 22-250 bolt action (not opposed to semis, it's just that they breed poor shooting habits)
30-06, 308, 270, 280, 7-08, or 7X57 (magnums can also be accused of breeding poor shooting habits)
12 gauge pump

For a beginner, it's important to emphasize functionality. A 22 bolt action, a 30-06 (or similar power cartridge) and a 12 gauge constitute the arsenals of many average hunters in this country. Adding a walk-around varmint rifle is a minor concession for those animals too big for a 22 but not big enough for a 30-06. No need for magnums, no need for specialized varmint rigs or heavy game rifles for beginners, let them develop their own bad habits (like lurking around gun stores fondling steel and walnut).
 
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davlandrum

New member
Lots of variations on the same thing. My choice would be:

.22lr (fuzzy little critters)
.257 Roberts (or 25-06, if I didn't reload) (varmits/deer)
30-30 (deer)
30-06 (deer/elk/bear/moose)
12 ga (birds/ducks/geese)

Anything bigger would really be very specific for a particular trip/hunt. Having a rifle to "hunt anything on the globe" doesn't make sense if I don't ever leave Oregon.....Africa I would get a .4xx something, as some countries require at least that for big 5.

Except for the .257, I got them already :D

Add to that a hunting caliber handgun and Bow....
 
2

22-rimfire

New member
I'd also skip all the short mags and get the regular caliber like 270 win. You don't need the 300 WSM if you have a 270 or 30-06. But if you want something a tad more powerful, then look at the 325 WSM or 338. Depends on where you live in the country and what you expect to use the rifles for.

For my shooting, I like to have a 243 also included in the list as intermediate to the 223 and 270. It can be used for deer hunting or varmints and you have more effective range than the 223. The 243 can also be loaned to a wife, teen, or brother to tag along as a hunting partner for whitetails if they are new to the sport.
 
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riogrande27

New member
22lr varmits
.223 Remington (14" twist) varmints
6mm-06 (13" twist) varmints / deer
7mm stw (12" twist) big game / deer
458 for dangerous game
12ga dove / ducks
10ga geese
 
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