Rifle I can’t pass up

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Mobuck

Moderator
My suggestion: A moderately priced 25/06 with synthetic stock. SS or blue isn't important unless you live where you're in the rain/snow daily.
I've become a fan of the 25/06 after years of using many calibers from .224 to .338. The 25/06 has great flexibility of use, is easy to handload if you like, and can handle critters from coyote to elk(with properly chosen bullets). OH yeah, it doesn't beat you up in the process.
 
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hagar

New member
I like my Ruger 270 stainless with boat paddle stock I bought back in 1998.

It also helps that it is also the best shooting hunting rifle I own, I don't even want to state what kind of groups it shot because nobody would believe me.

I actually bought it to hunt in South Africa and sell it to a friend there, once I sighted it in I decided no way in hades will this stay in Africa, so I bought another one. It shot good as well, but not as well as the first one. I had a 243 stainless Ruger that shot OK, but also nowhere as well as the 270.
 
A

Art Eatman

Staff in Memoriam
I hunted in Travis and northern Uvalde counties for some twenty years. A .243 is plenty good for any whitetail or Axis deer you'll ever see.

Pawn shops are loaded with little-use bolt action rifles. They typically have only around 40% of the asking price invested in them, so if you are any good at bargaining, there's your good chance.
 
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Nathan

New member
Interesting.

I would look for a 6.5 or 7mm to keep the recoil down.

CDNN has some real bargains on cool Ruger/Winchester/Browning rifles that you should check out. It looks like overstock on distributer exclusives.

Or, if you just want low cost & tough, the Ruger American, T/C Compass cannot be beat.

My favorite: LINK

Or: LINK
 
M

ms6852

New member
As a boy my first hunting trip I had a 30-06 that my father had borrowed. Took my first deer with it. Since than for the past 50 years that is the only caliber rifle I have used for hunting from coyote, to pronghorn, all the way to elk. I have a Savage Rifle I bought more than 40 years ago which I had to replace several years ago. The new rifle in 30-06 is a Tikka T3 lite. Very lite rifle stainless steel with the fiber stock. Surprisingly the recoil pad is excellent and out of the box this rifle shoots sub-moa at 200 yards using factory loads of Winchester 165 grains silver tip bullets. I would highly recommend a Savage or a Tikka rifle.
 
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tmd47762

New member
So an update: I’ve been looking around and found a few things around here. Minimally used synthetic stock Mossberg Patriots with cheap scopes in 30-06 are fairly easy to find here in the $250 range. I’ve also seen used savage 11s, Howas and new Ruger Americans around 350. The thing that has been keeping me up at night is a Ruger m77 in 270 (wood stock, looked nice but no scope) I saw popping into my corner pawn shop for around 450.

Now my moral dilemma is that the 30-06 has soul and I don’t have a 30-06. I feel the 270 might not have a soul. I’ve shot a Ruger in 270 (the 1990s era synthetic flat paddle stock) and it was a real natural shooter, felt like a 22, granted I grew up shooting shotguns and my fathers ruger in 7mm mag.

I figure I can go by another LGS for some therapy before figuring it out, but I can see how used hunting rifles can get you.
 
B

BeeShooter

New member
Go to the gun shop and look and touch new rifles. I recommend a light weight stainless savage in a short action. 243 to 7mm-08. Your choice . Get something you like the feel of.
 
D

Deadduck

New member
tmd47762 said:
Now my moral dilemma is that the 30-06 has soul and I don’t have a 30-06. I feel the 270 might not have a soul.
Click to expand...

Not sure about "soul." But if you're talking about legacy, while the 30-06 certainly has a lot of history behind it, the .270 Win has been around since 1925 and is right up there with the 30-06 as one of the top selling cartridges of all time. For deer hunting, I can't think of anything much better. The '06 would have an edge on larger game. Read some Jack O'Conner articles where he waxes poetically on the .270. Either would make a fine addition to your stable.
 
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L

LineStretcher

New member
Deadduck said:
Not sure about "soul." But if you're talking about legacy, while the 30-06 certainly has a lot of history behind it, the .270 Win has been around since 1925 and is right up there with the 30-06 as one of the top selling cartridges of all time. For deer hunting, I can't think of anything much better. The '06 would have an edge on larger game. Read some Jack O'Conner articles where he waxes poetically on the .270. Either would make a fine addition to your stable.
Click to expand...
I have to agree when it comes to the 270. It's a flatter shooting rifle with less recoil but very similar performance characteristics overall. It's actually a .277 and quite effective on large game out to 400 yards.
 
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SCgman

New member
You mentioned Howa, ruger 77 (hawkeye?)....both are strong actions.......I own a Hawkeye that became a real shooter after tweaking the mag box so that it stays loose after the action screws are tight. I imagine a lot of ruger 77s end up on the used rack because the owner wasn't aware of the fix......
 
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