The gun for me

6.5 Creedmoor!

horsemen61 said:

6.5 Creedmoor!

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Haha. That is what I was going to say too. Mostly serious but some tongue in cheek.

It is a good choice and in an AR10 a fine semi auto option. .308 will work too in an AR10 or M1A. Or could go .338 Federal in the AR10. That would really slam hogs down.

Remington 7400 in any of those caliber offerings would fill the bill as well as any Browning BAR.

There are too many good options to cover here.

308 would be my first choice. Your stated 50-150 range for hogs is specifically what I bought my Savage 10 in .308 for. Ammo is plentiful and not terribly priced, and it can certainly reach out to 500 if you do your part.

6.5 Creedmore would be another option as mentioned above. It has better long range characteristics than the 308. Probably won't be as easy to find walking into a random shop but it is getting more popular by the day. The 308 in comparable loads will have more energy out to about 300 yards, past 300 though the 6.5 will retain more energy.

Both are available in the AR-10 and M1A platform re: semi auto.

And so it begins....again. 500 yards is a LONG ways in the hunting world. Not so far in the shooting world.

BigBore44 said:

And so it begins....again. 500 yards is a LONG ways in the hunting world. Not so far in the shooting world.

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Well put. I honestly wouldn't feel comfortable taking a hunting shot at 500 yards under any circumstances, at least with my experience so far. 500 on the range, though, game on even though I've never reached out that far.

A BAR in 6.5 Creedmoor hmmm???? Sounds fun!

.243, 6.5CM or 7mm-08, probably in that order.

260 rem...7mm-08...30-06..270 win

All available in semi auto of one flavor or another.

Shoulder fired or crew served?

Flabbergasted1776 said:

I'm looking for a caliber that's good for the 50 to 150 yard range (pigs and deer) but can also reach out to 500 if needed, .223 is questionable for deer hunting and loses much of it's effectiveness past 200 yards, ( or so I've been told) and 7.62x39mm drops like a rock around 300. Semi automatic is preferred but not needed. Any insight and corrections are welcome,
Thank you.

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.224 Valk and 6.5 Grendel in semi, .243 6.5 Creedmoor, 7-08 in bolt action

What platform?

Bolt, semi, Single shot?

In all honesty, I am not questioning your manhood...I do want to note that 500 yards is a lot longer than most guys will admit on a forum like this. But most guys on a forum like this are also better than your average shot. I am decidedly on the lower 1/2 of the curve on this forum: time, money, training...

Supported, I have 3 rifles I would feel comfortable taking a 300 yard shot: 270 Win, .30-06 Gov, and 6.5 SW.
Not supported, each of those rifles I am comfortable hunting with out to 150-170 yards.

I second the .308 suggestion. My buddies M1A is at 100 yards so much fun that you have to try to miss with it.

I have zero experience with the 6.5 CM. However, if I were looking at that caliber today like I was years ago, I would go CM as opposed to SW.

I would start with the .308. So much you can do with it for so many applications. You can’t go wrong (and I’m a .30-06 guy ).

Greg

Ar15 length rounds...can be done in 6.8 and I like mine, but 500 is absolute max Hail Mary kinda shooting. Lots of drop at 500 though. As in 3 feet worth the way my rifle and my reloads are shooting.

AR10 length rounds... anything based on .308. I really like 7-08 and am looking for a reason to buy one. It’s all a trade off... I will get back to that... I personally would use your situation as an excuse to buy a 7-08... but you may be wanting to cash in on something else.

Long action bolt rifle rounds... no need for a magnum so I won’t go there. .270win is what I chose for a good balance of range, speed, and punch. It’s all a trade off and at 500 your needing help judging range (admit it or not, a 5% estimation mistake can move a bullet several inches, and within 5% is darn good estimation) so flatter trajectory is your friend, and you are running out of momentum by that point so you need decent mass in the projectile. .270 shines with 130s but I have shot some good 150gr which is where I think I would be for expected shots to 500 on deer or hogs.

My honest-to-goodness reaction when I read the OP's question was the 30-06. Just because the answer is obvious does not mean that it is wrong.

But, there are literally dozens of rounds that will fill these criteria. Since you put pigs in the mix, I would look for something in 25 caliber or larger. Also, keep in mind that past 300 yards everything begins to drop like a rock.

SOOO, find a rifle chambered in any one of these rounds that fits and has a good trigger. I think that both of these things are more important than the chambering.

Semi auto, want to hunt pigs and deer, max range of 500 yards. The first caliber that pops to mind is 308.

I've never taken a 500yd shot on game, and hopefully never will. I have put a lot of different bullets into critters between 10ft and 300yds.
In my experience pretty much any cartridge .243 to 30-06 will do the job equally well when decent shot placement is used. Where you gain some advantage with larger, heavier bullets is when you screw up.
I like rounds that launch relatively heavy for Cal bullets at 2800-3100fps, and this includes most small bore Magnums. If meat damage is a concern, shoot a harder bullet, or don't shoot them in the eaty bits.
Bang flops won't happen every time, no matter what you shoot, but cause more damage and your more likely to have a dead critter quicker. This becomes more important the farther away your target is.
I chased a 40lb goat over a mile, because we couldn't connect a second shot on it after my buddy hit it with a relatively slow .243 (100 at 2800) at 300ish yds and it tumbled and ran. The shot wasnt that bad, but the exit wound was only about an inch, and only one lung was damaged.
Faster, softer, heavier bullet and the exit would have been double or triple that, and internal damage much more.
Would it have been any deader? Nope, but I bet it woulda been dead, quicker.

The 500 yards puts a dent in the idea of 223. I have killed many deer and pigs with 223 at much shorter distances. It sounds like you need a flat shooting rifle with good terminal performance at 500. For this, I would recommend a 6.5 CM. Mine is a Ruger American. That 223/ AR15 will do the deed out to 150 though.

For 200 yard hunting and 500 yard range fun, a 6.5 creedmoor in a bolt action, or a 6.5 Grendel in an AR15.

And just for the record, for range plinking a 223 works well out to 600 yards or more when properly loaded with 75-80 grain bullets. Never tried any further.

I'd probably opt for a .243. I think a .30 cal is a bit overkill for deer and hogs, but the .243 is right in that sweet spot. It'll be good for deer at 500 yards, and much, much further for paper targets.

You can get AR10's chambered for .243, but I'd go for a Browning BAR.

someguy2800 said:

For 200 yard hunting and 500 yard range fun, a 6.5 creedmoor in a bolt action, or a 6.5 Grendel in an AR15.

And just for the record, for range plinking a 223 works well out to 600 yards or more when properly loaded with 75-80 grain bullets. Never tried any further.

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Sounds like you will be just starting out with hunting, and if that's the case forget 500 yards. As someguy2800 said: "For 200 yard hunting and 500 yard range fun", that's good thoughts on ranges. Most hunting for the average person should be say 200 yards, 300 yards after your sure of your shot placement and the caliber/bullet you select.

BigBore44 said:

And so it begins....again. 500 yards is a LONG ways in the hunting world. Not so far in the shooting world.

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This is good advice in my book. As you talked about hiking experiences, get closer. One post on here recommends shots less than 300 yards because of the rapid fall of the bullet becomes exponential. At the same time bullet performance becomes marginal. Again cartridge performance. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. The chance of a wounded critter goes up exponentially when you extend ranges. There are some experienced hunters out there that can and do make the long shots, but, not as many as think they could/should be taking the chance. Once your hat size shrinks back to normal size, you will opt to get closer, or pass on the shot.

Go out and buy the gun in the caliber of your choice. Then find some place you can shoot 500 yards / 1500 feet. Have fun learning to shoot good at that distance. I do mean have fun.

BigBL87 said:

6.5 Creedmore...probably won't be as easy to find walking into a random shop but it is getting more popular by the day.

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I went to my LGS, which is well stocked, for 308 match ammo. They had just a couple of boxes of two different types of 308. On the other hand, they had several types of 6.5 Creedmore and at least four boxes of each type.

Last month, the wife and I took a trip to Blanding, a tiny town in the southeast corner or Utah. The nearest Wal-Mart is two to three hours away in New Mexico. I walked into the hardware store looking for 300 BLK. They had none, but did have a good selection of 6.5 Creedmore.