Deer rifle help

I'd feel better with a 308 if you think you'll realistically end up going after something like an elk but as a deer specific gun a 6.5 CM would be great. I have synthetic and wood hunting rifles and for practical purposes I prefer synthetic although I prefer wood in terms of aesthetics. Of the guns on your list I like the Tikka and Browning a lot.

Another option if you are already invested in AR platform rifles would be to invest in a 6.5 Grendel upper. You'd give up a little snort compared to the CM but not enough to matter on deer, especially in your neck of the woods, and it would keep you in a familiar firearm style. Check your local laws, of course.

This is going to be a long thread I predict. I think where you state that you might want to go for slightly larger game than deer, (it depends on how much larger). Elk, Moose, Black Bear, etc. I think the conversation starts with .270, .308, .30/06, 7mmRemMag. You have a few questions with potentially many right answers. I'll let the experts chime in on suggested rifles in your price range. Scopes, there are many choices, but I would think a Leupold 3-9x40 is a nice place to start.

Mike

308

I was going to suggest getting a deer rife now and something else if and when you go to shoot larger game, but based on buying one rife now, 7mm08 could be a choice, but I think the 4 calibers I mentioned are all great for deer sized game and extending up to larger game for one rifle now for deer and ready for larger game.

Pick the cartridge first. I was a .308 fan for years; my go-to hunting rifle was a Remington Model 7 in .308. However, one doesn't need a .308; a .243 Win is adequate for whitetail. Much as I like the .308, I don't shoot one anymore, preferring a 7mm-08 for most things. I also shoot .243 and .260 Rem. The latter is the ballistic twin to the 6.5 Creedmoor, which is my recommendation for a general purpose hunting round. I don't own one as I am too invested in older cartridges. But 6.5 Creedmoor is what I recommend to any new shooter with aspirations toward hunting. It is powerful enough for most game, recoils less than the .308, and is available in a wide variety of loadings.

Once you settle on the cartridge, then look for a suitable launcher. That choice will be informed by the conditions under which you hunt. I like a carbine length rifle with a barrel of 18.5 to 20 inches for woods and hills, a 24-inch barrel for wide open spaces. But really, buy a rifle that looks and feels good to you.

And you'll have to report back here--with pictures!

Let me first ask, is this TRULY, for hunting alone? Or are there other aspirations with the rifle?

Given your criteria, I think you are best served with a Tikka T3. It’s a great super smooth action with a great trigger. (Especially after someone like me does a trigger job.) As for cartridge, either of your choices will work very nicely. It solely a hunting rifle, flip a coin on it. But if you will be engaging distance of any kind & looking for target accuracy, go 6.5

Oh, and welcome to THR!

For what you're wanting, I'd pick either the 25-06 or .270 as my cartridge (I have one of each in Ruger M77's). Both are quite capable of anything from hog to moose. As far as the gun, a very good friend owns a Weatherby Vanguard in 25-06. He loves it, and I do too. It's quite accurate and very pretty to boot. Another friend owns a Tikka, albeit in .243; I've handled and shot it and wouldn't hesitate to own it. Matter of fact, I'm considering a smaller caliber deer rifle myself and I'm looking hard at the .243 in either a Ruger M77 (used of course) or a Tikka. The choice of course is yours.

Mac

chsFISH said:

While Im here I'll also ask if y'all have any preferences on an optic?

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I like Leupold, and 3X9 is plenty. However, my custom built Montana Rifle Company 308 Norma Magnum (my retirement rifle) wears a 3X9 Weaver because I compared it side by side to a 3X9 Leupold, and it was clearer.

chsFISH said:

And I've always preferred the look of wood over synthetic, long term or in hunting applications would you push me away from wood?

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My custom 308 Norma Magnum is bead-blasted stainless with a granite-grey synthetic stock because that's the way I ordered it. I could go on and on about how stainless doesn't rust as easily, and how because it's bead-blasted (rough), it doesn't reflect like a mirror like a deeply-blued rifle does, and how wood stocks warp and change shape (which changes the point of impact) every time the humidity changes. And I could also tell you how synthetic stocks absorb recoil better than wood stocks, and don't get scratched or dented as easily.
But while some or all of that may be true, the fact is I like the looks of bead-blasted stainless rifles with synthetic stocks. They look more "business-like" to me. And while I enjoy looking at fancy, deeply blued rifles with rich walnut stocks, my rifles, in fact all of my guns, are first and foremost tools - some that I hope I never have to use, and some that I use on a weekly basis.

Pick whatever caliber you wish to use and then buy a Tikka T3X lite. I've owned a lot of different hunting rifles over the years. The Tikka produces an accurate rifle at a very reasonable cost. Tikka has become a popular rifle in the competition circles and aftermarket vendors are making a number of accessories.

My L/H T3 in 270 win. has become my favorite hunting rifle. It's not fancy, but it shoots really well.

I'd HIGHLY recommend a Browning A-Bolt II (hinged mag plate AND detachable mag) in 308.

You can find them on gunbroker used for $500-$600

You can't go wrong with a 308, but they kick a little. If your going to have one rifle that ammo is easy to get I would grab one.

Not an expert but go and shoulder anything before you buy and see if you like the feel of it

TIKKA

Winchester model 70 featherweight. .308 winchester. Leupold vx-3i 3.5-10. you'll find the rifle for around $850 and the scope for under $300.

More than you indicated you are willing to spend, but in the end you'll have a rifle for a lifetime. The "rifleman's rifle"

They are now building them to pre 1964 specs with the mauser style controlled feed.

The best advice is to go for them in a gun store/show and see how they all fit you. Features like detachable mags or hinged floor plates, tang or wing safety, bolt lock or not are all personal preference and there's no right or wrong. Same with how the rifle fits you personally. There's a bunch of subjective elements to picking one out that's best done in person. It's similar to asking US what's YOUR favorite color. Plus, it's not that cheap anymore.

Cartridge wise, I'd go 6.5 for less recoil and plenty of killing power. Leopold scopes are nice and hard to go wrong with as are Vortex. Ignore the lure of "cheap" 308win, cause it won't shoot well out of your rifle. It's OK for blasting at 100yrd through an old FN FAL, not practicing at 250yrds with a nice bolt gun. Plus it's not that cheap anymore.

godale said:

Not an expert but go and shoulder anything before you buy and see if you like the feel of it

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Not trying to be a wise guy here, but if my 5'1" wife (with arms to match) had to like the "feel" of a rifle, or for that matter a shotgun before she bought it, she probably wouldn't have very many long guns. Shopping for a rifle or shotgun is not exactly the same as shopping for handguns, particularly if you're a small, or very tall person.
I'm 5'10" with a fairly long (for my height) torso and arms. And most factory rifles and shotguns fit me pretty well. On the other hand, my 5'1" wife has had to have every rifle and shotgun she's ever bought, or had given to her, cut down to fit her. That's one of the main reasons she's been looking at one of those Ruger "American Rimfire" 22 LRs pretty hard lately. The model she's looking at has a synthetic, modular stock that she can shorten and change the height of the cheekpiece herself.

chsFISH said:

I plan on trying to get my hands on one before I buy one but a lot of places don't have them in stock immediately around me but say they can get them so Im trying to narrow down that list as much as possible first and just want to get as much info as possible before making that purchase.

I think I will end up going with 6.5 creedmoor as I was leaning that way and a lot of people are backing that up

I really like the tikka super lite but don't like the 24" barrel as a lot of my hunting is out of stands/blinds (am I over thinking that?) and I saw somewhere that the barrel would get hot quickly and lose accuracy after 5-7 shots. Any truth to that?

Im also still very interested in the others as well but the only a few have 22" barrels so if thats a deal breaker it narrows my search down

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Out of a stand/blind I don't think it matters very much. It's not like you're stalking through scrub brush and thorny vines doing drives. For that, I prefer a pistol cause there's a slim chance I'm taking a shot anyways.

Heck, if you don't have a long hike to your stand I'd skip the superlite and just go with one of the plain models and put that money towards nicer glass.

@308 Norma makes a good point, if you're of a large or small build, you may need to look at outfitting it with a different stock right out of the gate. I'm 6'4" 215lbs and most stocks just barely fit me tolerably. An extra thick recoil pad is usually all it takes to shore it up for me thankfully. In which case, you only need to worry about the individual features, not so much the fitment.

Tikka T3, not Superlight in blue for around $600, SS for around $750. The standard rifle is already light enough. I kind'a like SS, but it isn't worth $150 more to me. With most other rifles the difference between SS and blue is much closer.

The better 308 loads exceed what they were getting from 30-06 just a few years ago by a sizeable amount, no reason to think you'll need a 30-06. Even if you compare the best modern 30-06 loads the same bullet fired from a 308 will impact at 400 yards with about the same speed and energy it would if fired from a 30-06 at 450 yards.

The 6.5 CM will kill the same game as a 270. It fires a 140-150 gr bullet a little slower at the muzzle than a 270 with the same weighs. But will out penetrate the 270 at any range. And because of the better aerodynamics of the 6.5 bullets will close the velocity gap as ranges increase. By the time you get to 200-300 yards they are a virtual tie.

I'm torn between 308 and 6.5 CM. Enough so that I have one of each. If I were primarily hunting game bigger than deer I MIGHT give a slight edge to 308. But as a primarily deer rifle with lots of range time thrown in 6.5 CM is the clear winner. And it is still adequate for deer, elk, and bear.

IMHO, a 6.5 Creedmoor will take anything you don't need a .300 Win Mag or more for.

Legionnaire said:

IMHO, a 6.5 Creedmoor will take anything you don't need a .300 Win Mag or more for.

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That begs the question...what do you think you need a 300 Win mag for?

The best deer rifle I have ever owned is a Ruger American in 6.5 CM with a Vortex 4-12 x copperhead scope. It shoots better than 1" at 100 yards. Total cost with scope around $600. I would hunt anything in the lower 48 with it.