Took the Plunge -- New Rifle!

[Fremmer]

Hello everyone -- Hope you are having a good Father's Day.

Last year, my Remington 742 (which was my first hunting rifle that I received as a gift) became a jam-o-matic. Had it repaired, and then it started having extraction problems. Not too surprising because the gun was heavily used, well-worn, and probably older than I am. So I had to borrow my friends' guns for deer hunting, and I learned a hard lesson: consistently switching guns will result in inconsistent hunting results. I kept having to deal with different triggers, stocks, and actions. Not to mention that my friends were starting to politely hint that it would probably be a good idea if I actually bought my own gun.

I've spent a long time looking for a new gun. Too much time. So I was at a gun show yesterday, and I finally decided to quit trying to find the perfect gun and just buy one.

The result? A Remington 700 Classic in .308. I paid $550.00 + tax. The stock is really nice -- I like the dark stain, and it has a really nice grain pattern. I've successfully hunted deer with the .243, the .270, and the .30-06, but I've never used a .308, which I presume will work well for deer.

I'm pretty happy with the factory trigger. It's a little heavy (I'll guestimate at about 6 pounds), but has almost no creep, and it breaks nice and clean. The bolt travel is pretty smooth, too.

After getting home from the gun show, I took the gun over to my brother in-law's house to show it to him. He had a friend over, and this guy likes to hunt deer. When he saw the Remington box, he asked me what I bought, and I told him. He kinda smirked and said "only a .308?" I just looked at him and said "a .308 will kill deer just fine." I suppose he thought I should have bought a .300 mag. I hope I'm right about the .308!

 

[esldude]

Good choice on the rifle and the caliber. .308 isn't deficient in any way for deer.

 

[quack fiend]

anybody that says a .308 is inadequate for deer either: 1. uses improper bullets, such as non-expanding military surplus fmj 2. shoots at deer 500 yards away due to lack of hunting skill 3. is just a misinformed newbie with gun-magazine-induced magnumitis and a terrible flinch (from shooting his .30-378 weatherby at 100 lb. whitetails at 50 yds. from a rest and STILL missing the vitals) :barf: i'm suspecting by the guy's response it's number 3

 

[CarbineCaleb]

I agree with the others - the .308 is not a light rifle - with heavy bullets, you can take moose with it, so I wouldn't be at all concerned about deer. Your brother-in-law's friend is talking BS - maybe he's just jealous of your new rifle!

 

[Rustic]

Hey, you did your due diligence and bought a true classic in every sense of the word. The rifle and cartridge will do anything you need done for deer, if you feed it high quality ammunition and practice enough to be a competent shooter.

There are a world of experts out there, but most of 'em are legends in their own mind. Some think too much is not enough, but I like to look forward to a day at the range and so enjoy 6.5 swedes, 308 and 7mm-08s. They work well, but they don't sell many articles in gun mags anymore so won't get the press that the latest, shortest, fattest rounds will.

It all boils down to the nut behind the butt, so put in plenty of trigger time. And good hunting!!

 

[quack fiend]

shot a 200 lb. 8-pt. buck at 250 yds. a couple yrs. ago with a scoped hk g3 .308 and 150 gr. core-lokt ammo, took out both lungs and dropped him in his tracks--he would've died no quicker with a .50 BMG or any super fat shorty new caliber

 

[Pointer]

We met a guy while elk hunting... He had just shot a large trotting six-point bull at about 125 yards... one shot from his .308 using a premium quality 180 grain bullet.

No small elk... it took five grown men to "rassle" it, gutted, into the pick-up bed.

Until recently, it would have been "borderline" for elk but new bullet technology has given the .308 a boost in effectiveness.

Elk are considerably harder to "anchor" than their little deer-cousins...

Enjoy your .308 and :barf: on your ignorant visitor.

 

[LAK]

Arguably, with the right bullet, the .308 is adequate for just about any reasonable task. As is the 30-06, 8x57mm, 7x57mm, .303 .... and a pile of other medium bore rifle cartridges.

I think you made a wise choice and should stick with it.

 

[timothy75]

Hell a 243 would be fine for deer. You got enough for elk and moose. That guy was obviously abused as a child.

 

[Fremmer]

Thanks everyone!

Thanks for all of the good responses! I've learned a lot.

I obtained two boxes of PMC .308 150 grain ammo this morning (the first time I've ever seen a .308 round -- for some reason here in Nebraska, you don't see many .308s -- usually see tons of .270s and .30-06s). The .308 sure looks big enough for deer. I've never hunted elk, but I'm guessing a 180 grain .308 would be fine for that.

Next decision: a scope. I suppose I can take the old Tasco 3x9 off the 742 and put it onto the new rifle. It's not the brightest scope, but it was totally reliable and worked fine on the 742. I'm dying to shoot the new rifle, and frankly, I can't afford a new scope right now. In fact, I'll be eating pb&j sandwiches all week because I spent most of my money on the new rifle this Weekend, ha!

But in a couple of months, I'll want to buy a new scope. Probably a 2x7 or a 3x9. Any suggestions for a good quality scope in the $300 to $400 range? And here is another question: does the size of the objective on a scope affect the amount of field of view?

 

[quack fiend]

either 2-7 or 3-9 with 40-44mm objective will be fine for deer, larger objectives appear brighter in low light--prepare to spend at least $150 for a quality scope, don't skimp by buying a cheap bsa or other off-brand, you'll be sorry--if you can afford it a leupold vari-x II is a great scope for your needs, they've been discontinued but closeouts can be found on the 'net

 

[essexcounty]

.308 with proper bullet selection will do it all. I favor a low power variable or fixed 2/12 for deer. It makes for a sweet handeling package. You'd be suprised at how well you can shoot with a "minimal scope". Good luck..........Essex

 

[bergie]

took the plunge

Bought a new rifle and joined TFL!! Welcome

That .308 will work just fine on anything here in NE, even if you would be lucky enough to draw one of the few elk tags. You are right about the majority of people here using an '06 or.270. These along with .243 and .30-30 probably make up 90% of the rifles used, of course I couldn't back that up with any hard numbers, just an observation over many years of hunting.
As far as scopes, to some degree a larger objective will have an affect on field of view but that is somewhat more dependant on magnification, and the relationship between the two. Be aware that if you go with a large scope, you will have to go with higher rings, and it may be more difficult to get it set up for good eye alignment with the scope and good shooting position on the stock. For a decent scope around $200, I would recommend the Sightron SII 3-9X42, or the Bushnell Elite 3200 3-9x40. You can find both of these at wholesalehunter.com
good luck,
bergie

 

[esldude]

Bushnell Elite 4200 with Firefly reticule for $359 at the Optic zone. 3-9x 40mm.

Firefly lets you charge it a bit with a flashlight and glows for a couple hours. Good near dawn or dusk.

One of the best deals going, the Nikon Monarch 3-9x 40mm for $259 www.theopticzone.com also.

Both of these are among the brightest, clearest you will see. Would be a very good choice for your .308 rifle.

 

[gak]

Great choice, round and rifle! No demerits here!

 

[Fremmer]

More good info! thanks! And I'm now convinced that the .308 will work just fine. I guess I was just a little surprised when the neighbor questioned my choice. But he's an OK guy who was probably just teasing a little bit.

I'll probably buy a Nikon, a Leupold, or a Bushnell. I've used Nikons and Leupolds, and they seemed like pretty good scopes (plenty bright and clear). I have no experience with Bushnell, although I've already had a friend suggest that I consider one.

The Nikons seem like a good value. Leupolds are really nice, but expensive. Then again, you get a good warranty with a Leupold. I think the firefly option on the Bushnell is a pretty neat idea; whether it would actually be useful, I don't know.

1. Is a Bushnell 3200 and/or 4200 as tough and clear (optical quality) as the Nikon Monarch or the Leupold Vari X II/III?

2. Is there a significant practical difference between the Bushnell 3200 vs. 4200, or the Vari X II vs. III? Significant enought to justify the difference in price? I guess what I mean is this: will it really matter that a scope transmits 90% of light vs. tranmitting 95% of light in actual hunting (non-benchrest) conditions?

Thank you for help with this -- I've never purchased a scope before (the darn Tasco just refused to die!). First time for everything, I guess. Once again, your kind words and wisdom are appreciated.

 

[rwilson452]

308 Deer?

Good to go. The difference in factory ammo for the 308 and 30-06 isn't worth talking about. If you hand load you can get 200 FPS more out of a 30-06. You can harvest almost anything in North America with a 308. I don't think I would choose a 308 for Grizzly or polar bear. I would want a bit more gun for "dangerous game" For mule or whitetail, your in the zone. I have read on many occations that the 30-06 has harvested more deer than any other modern load. As the 308 has similar ballistics, Bambi will never know the difference.

 

[BusGunner007]

A good, foolproof optical setup might be:

Redfield JR 1-pc. base and JR low-rings
NIKON 6x42 fixed-power scope

You might try some 'enhanced power' .308 ammo from Federal or Hornady to give 'almost' .30-06 levels of performance.

I like Remingtons; Redfield and NIKON...and extra power ammo!

Good choice on your rifle/cartridge. Have FUN with it.

 

[guntotin_fool]

Buy the leupold scope. Stand up people making stand up scopes and they back them up completely. THis is a company owned by a gun family and they treat people right. Nikon and some of the others are just conglomerates. leupold is USA made too. The scopes that they make are strong, quality glass, and utterly reliable. for 200 bucks you can not go wrong to buy the leupolds.

Look at 165 grainers for deer. the remington corelokt is is a great bullet that people want to put down because it doesnt have a fancy name. I use the corelokt 165 in a 300 savage. I have a string of fifteen deer in a row one shot each. I used to use a 308 7600 but changed to the 300 when I inherited the one i started with.

 

[LAK]

I do not think you'd be making a mistake with Leupold, Burris, Nikon, Pentax or the top of the line Bushnell 3200 or 4200.

Leupold and Burris are an even better buy used; they have lifetime transferable warranties.

Field of view is loosely tied to magnifcation, although optical systems vary some. A lower magnification generally gives a wider field of view than the higher one.

I wouldn't go any higher than 3-9X - and unless I was going to hunt small game and varmints I would just put a good fixed power 4X with a 30-ish millimeter objective. For me, bigger scopes turn sleek trim sporters into the heavy and unwieldy.