Shawnee
member
On another thread, "Woof" brings up the worthy topic of the new "managed recoil" ammo, which is essentially factory ammo in certain calibers that has been downloaded for less recoil while still having a viable degree of performance. As "Woof" pointed out, this would seem to give the shooter "2 guns in 1". It certainly gives the country's many non-reloaders a great opportunity to dispense with the recoil of the heavier calibers in use today without trading their rifles off.
"Managed recoil" ammo is available for both the .308 and the .30/06 (among other calibers). At present, Remington offers both with a 125gr. bullet with a MV of 2660fps. About the closest commercial caliber to that is the .257 Roberts and, of course, the Roberts is a superb deer caliber that is much easier on the shooter than the standard .308 or .30/06 loads. Remington's comparative ballistics show that whereas the Roberts is a bit flatter-shooting after 200yds. That could be considered a moot point as 200yds is a pretty handy effective range.
For the comparatively small number of American hunters who will hunt both deer and elk, I agree with "Woof" that they could get a 7mm/08, a .308, or a .30/06 and - with the use of the "managed recoil" ammo - they would indeed get two highly usable guns in one... a comfortable and effective deer gun and, with full loads, a gun capable of elk and larger game.
But for the comparatively large percentage of American hunters who will never shoot anything bigger than deer, hogs or black bear - the "managed recoil" ammo for calibers like the 7mm/08, the .308 and the .30/06 does not really give them "2 guns in 1" - it merely turns a largeer caliber with excess power and recoil that they don't need into ONE gun that will suit their primary use very well withOUT having to reload and withOUT excess recoil - and those are two big PLUSES for most American hunters.
But is there such a thing as a "2 guns in 1" caliber for the typical American hunter? Yep, more than one, in fact. But to illustrate I'll pick just one, the one I'm most familiar with, the .243.
Again using Remington's comparative ballistics, one can see that the 50gr. Accutip bullet from a .22/250 (a superb Varmint caliber) and the 75gr. Accutip from the .243 are quite close. Though the .22/250 will start out faster that velocity difference shrinks and turns around quickly - and since the .55-grainer weighs less and is losing velocity faster it is more vunerable to the nasty tricks of the winds. Thus the . 243, even with factory ammo, can certainly be considered a premium Varmint caliber. And that is very good news for Joe Typical who shoots a lot of lead at a lot of varmints.
The "other gun" provided by the .243 is, of course, the deer gun - and that's good because the usual hunting uses Joe Typical finds for his centerfires are Varmints and Deer. That makes two guns that can be used for two different but likely and common, purposes by one heck of a lot of hunters.
And here is the surprise (for some, anyway) ... The energy of the 95gr. Accutip bullet from the .243 can be compared almost identically to the load Remington lists for the 140gr. PSP from the 6.5x55 Swede.... however the .243 is quite a bit faster (speed kills
) and thus has somewhat flatter trajectory and thus a somewhat longer range (though the "longer range" is beyond what most deer are shot at). That should give those who are fans of the 6.5 Swede (myself included) a good (and possibly "new") perspective on the .243. With that said - it's clear the "2nd gun" offered the American hunter by the .243 (and a few other similar calibers) is a premium deer rifle - and that is something a great many American hunters can (and actually will) put to use every year.
Now - before the usual small covey of THR flamers begin their weeping and wailing that I am besmirching their beloved '06 - I will direct them back to reread the third (3rd) paragraph - probably several times, as necessary. The "mangaged recoil" ammo is indeed a really good thing for the many, many, many users of those calibers who don't happen to reload but do get to hunt deer AND larger game.
"Managed recoil" ammo is available for both the .308 and the .30/06 (among other calibers). At present, Remington offers both with a 125gr. bullet with a MV of 2660fps. About the closest commercial caliber to that is the .257 Roberts and, of course, the Roberts is a superb deer caliber that is much easier on the shooter than the standard .308 or .30/06 loads. Remington's comparative ballistics show that whereas the Roberts is a bit flatter-shooting after 200yds. That could be considered a moot point as 200yds is a pretty handy effective range.
For the comparatively small number of American hunters who will hunt both deer and elk, I agree with "Woof" that they could get a 7mm/08, a .308, or a .30/06 and - with the use of the "managed recoil" ammo - they would indeed get two highly usable guns in one... a comfortable and effective deer gun and, with full loads, a gun capable of elk and larger game.
But for the comparatively large percentage of American hunters who will never shoot anything bigger than deer, hogs or black bear - the "managed recoil" ammo for calibers like the 7mm/08, the .308 and the .30/06 does not really give them "2 guns in 1" - it merely turns a largeer caliber with excess power and recoil that they don't need into ONE gun that will suit their primary use very well withOUT having to reload and withOUT excess recoil - and those are two big PLUSES for most American hunters.
But is there such a thing as a "2 guns in 1" caliber for the typical American hunter? Yep, more than one, in fact. But to illustrate I'll pick just one, the one I'm most familiar with, the .243.
Again using Remington's comparative ballistics, one can see that the 50gr. Accutip bullet from a .22/250 (a superb Varmint caliber) and the 75gr. Accutip from the .243 are quite close. Though the .22/250 will start out faster that velocity difference shrinks and turns around quickly - and since the .55-grainer weighs less and is losing velocity faster it is more vunerable to the nasty tricks of the winds. Thus the . 243, even with factory ammo, can certainly be considered a premium Varmint caliber. And that is very good news for Joe Typical who shoots a lot of lead at a lot of varmints.
The "other gun" provided by the .243 is, of course, the deer gun - and that's good because the usual hunting uses Joe Typical finds for his centerfires are Varmints and Deer. That makes two guns that can be used for two different but likely and common, purposes by one heck of a lot of hunters.
And here is the surprise (for some, anyway) ... The energy of the 95gr. Accutip bullet from the .243 can be compared almost identically to the load Remington lists for the 140gr. PSP from the 6.5x55 Swede.... however the .243 is quite a bit faster (speed kills
) and thus has somewhat flatter trajectory and thus a somewhat longer range (though the "longer range" is beyond what most deer are shot at). That should give those who are fans of the 6.5 Swede (myself included) a good (and possibly "new") perspective on the .243. With that said - it's clear the "2nd gun" offered the American hunter by the .243 (and a few other similar calibers) is a premium deer rifle - and that is something a great many American hunters can (and actually will) put to use every year.Now - before the usual small covey of THR flamers begin their weeping and wailing that I am besmirching their beloved '06 - I will direct them back to reread the third (3rd) paragraph - probably several times, as necessary. The "mangaged recoil" ammo is indeed a really good thing for the many, many, many users of those calibers who don't happen to reload but do get to hunt deer AND larger game.
