Please help me pick a deer rifle and caliber.

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taylorce1

New member
A 1:10 twist will stabalize pretty much any hunting bullet you want up to 100 grains. So I doubt you have anything to worry about.

If you're hiking around all day carrying the rifle over several miles a half pound can be a big deal.. If all you're doing is walking into a blind or tree stand you'll never know the difference. Look at how you hunt, IMO having an extra half pound of rifle isn't a bad thing in larger caliber rifles not so much in a .243.

All your other concerns really don't matter, If you have factory defects I'm pretty sure Ruger and T/C will both fix the rifle. You'll get used to the trigger safety very quickly. As long as the magazine functions correctly, that's all that matters in a hunting rifle.
 
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Old Stony

New member
I removed the safety blade from the trigger on my Ruger. It has a beautiful trigger pull right now...just under 3 pounds. I figured it has a regular safety and no reason to have a second one.
 
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Lohman446

New member
I bought a Venture basically because the trigger safety on the Ruger American annoyed me. I have been happy with my purchase but give it some leeway for being a budget rifle.

A) Yes the performance really is as good as they claim accuracy wise. It shot sub MOA with the first premium ammo I tried (Federal) and when I switched to Federal copper for hunting it shot sub MOA. I'm not going to be that good in the field so its good to go.

B) I like the tang safety placement on the Ruger better.

C) The bolt throw is a little stiffer than expected. Not a deal killer.

D) The other bolt action rifles I have shot have been open at the top - I have used a M77 in .270 many many years. I like that better than the TC set-up. I notice it when unloading the rifle with a live round - its just not as handy.

E) I dislike removable magazines on hunting rifles. The Ruger magazines are probably far more readily available than the TC ones and will be forever

F) I liked the feel of the stock on the TC better than the Ruger.

In the end if I had to do it over again I could easily justify either the TC or the Ruger American if I were buying a sub $400 MOA rifle (I have no reason to believe the Ruger would not be - or be close enough). The accuracy guarantee sold me on the TC though.

For the record if I were doing it again I would spend a little more money and likely go with an M77 even if accuracy is not always as good. While the performance of these economy rifles is every bit on par or better than the more expensive ones some of the cost cutting moves annoy me in the end and considering I am going to have the rifle for many years that annoyance may build up. That last sentence may not be entirely true - I expected one of my nephews as going to lay claim to the TC this year but that is a different story and it did not go that way.

Actually I'd find a single shot like a number 1 but that is getting a long way from the conversation.
 
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jmr40

New member
Here ya go.

https://ruger.com/products/americanRiflePredator/specSheets/26973.html


The Ruger American Predators are tack drivers. I paid $389 OTD for mine in 308 and 6.5 Creedmoor. I like the newer versions that take AI mags better than mine. If I can simply buy another stock to accept those mags I'll upgrade, if not I'll be selling one of mine and buy a new one to be able to use the other magazines.

The 243 isn't a bad choice. It'll kill deer and is the better option if varmints are the primary game hunted.

But I like the 6.5 Creedmoor better. It is the better deer and up cartridge. It will basically do anything a 270, 308, or 7-08 will do, but with 25% to 35% less recoil. With the lighter weight ammo it is a good varmint round. Ammo is now available everywhere including Walmart and at about the same price as any other common ammo.

I’m still working to understand the subtleties of the 6.5wondermoor.
Click to expand...

The Creedmoor started as a long range target round about 10 years ago. it utilizes very aerodynamic, very accurate bullets instead of relying on speed. Target shooters don't care about flat trajectory, they can always zero the rifle for the ranges they are shooting. What matters is how long the bullet stays supersonic. A 308 is only supersonic out to a little over 1000 yards. The 6.5 Creedmoor out to 2000 yards. The 300 WM only beats it by about 200 yards.

For hunting you get the best bullet performance if impact speeds are between 1800 fps and 2800 fps. If they impact faster than about 2800 fps they often don't stay together. Below 1800 fps and you often don't get any expansion. Many rounds that start bullets at 3000+ fps often fail at closer ranges. Others drop below 1800 fps at 300-400 yards depending on the bullet chosen. The 6.5 Creedmoor shoots a 143-147 gr bullet to 2700 fps at the muzzle. That is enough bullet for any animal on the lower 48, and retains 1800 fps out to about 700 yards.

And it does it with about 12 ft lbs of recoil. Just for comparison a 243 is about 11 ft lbs, a 308 or 7-08 is in the 15-18 ft lb range depending on the exact load. Once you get to 270 or 30-06 you're in the 19-22 ft lb range.
 
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samsmix

New member
The "...deer and also something smaller" category is a slim one, IF you want to eat your smaller creatures. Of said creatures are sod rats and yodel pups, then any of the above will be fine.
 
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Theohazard

New member
OK, so I finally made a decision on what rifle to get. Or, rather, a decision was made for me in the form of an offer I couldn’t refuse.

I was talking to a coworker (I work at an LGS) about the rifle I want to buy (outlined in the first post of this thread), and I mentioned it would be nice if it had iron sights also.

As a Marine who was trained on the M16A2, I’m very comfortable with iron sights. Also, that would mean I wouldn’t need to invest in a scope right away, but I could always get one in the future. Besides, I hear that most deer in this area are taken at 150 yards or less. If I could hit a torso-sized target at 500 yards with my M16A2 with irons, I’ll bet I could take a deer down at 150 yards with irons.

I mentioned to my coworker that I couldn’t find any rifles in .243 that met all my requirements plus had iron sights. I said I liked the Savage Hog Hunter, but it didn’t come in .243. At that point another coworker chimed in and said he had a Savage Hog Hunter .308 for sale.

It’s a rifle he bought new in gunsmithing school as a project gun. He refinished it with a high-gloss blue finish, fit it with a hand-checkered walnut stock, and smoothed the action. I forget how many rounds he said he’d put through it, but I think it’s less than 100. He wanted $325 for it. He said the checkering isn’t the best (it was his first time doing it), but I don’t really care about that.

So we made the deal and shook on it, and I’m going into work on Friday to get it from him. I can’t wait. The main criticisms I hear of the Hog Hunter are a flimsy stock and a rough action. This rifle has neither. Along with the blued finish, it’s got a great classic look to it (he showed me a picture).

I’ll try to post some pictures for you guys when I get it into my hands. How’d you think I did? It’s not in .243, but .308 should still work for my needs and I couldn’t turn down that price. It seems like $325 is a pretty good deal, even if the checkering isn’t the prettiest (it was hard to see the checkering in the picture he showed me).
 
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Art Eatman

Staff in Memoriam
One aspect of a scoped rifle has to do with early morning or late evening, in poor but legal shooting light. You can tell if that deer is a real deer, a cactus deer, a stump deer or another hunter.
 
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Theohazard

New member
Thanks for the info. I guess I’ll probably end up getting a scope for it before deer season, but at least I can shoot it now while I save up for the scope.
 
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NMC_EXP

New member
"The .30/06 is never a mistake" ~ Townsend Whelen.

Factory ammo from 110 gr to 220 grain.

Can reload and one of the reduced load powders and shoot bunnies.
 
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johnwilliamson062

Moderator
Even price I'd probably go with the Ruger b/c S&W doesn't know a single thing about my encore so I doubt they know anything about the other TC products, but...

For $150 difference I'd probably go with the T/C.
 
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Don Fischer

New member
I would strongly suggest a Bob Hart rifle. 700 Rem with the threads trued up, add a Timiny trigger set to 2#. Nice blue job on all the metal. Exhibition grade walnut stock with 24 lines to the inch hand cut checkering. Nice one piece Leupold base and rings and the top of the line Night force scope. Think I'd get it a 30-30! Remember what the scope people tell you about buying a scope, buy once! :)
 
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Picher

New member
Seems like you've made a good selection for what you need. Go with it! I don't know if silencers are allowed for hunting in your state. A far as I know, they're not in my state.
 
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