All Weather Deer Rifle
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sabbfan
Member
I currently use a blue steel and walnut Henry 44 mag, if I was to replace it I’d like to go with the Henry 44 mag all weather https://www.henryusa.com/rifles/big-boy-all-weather-side-gate/
I live in Iowa that only allows straight wall cartridges as well. I’ve thought about going to 45/70 but have held off due to Iowa contemplating dropping it from their allowed list next year. Plus I’ve never been unsuccessful with the 44 mag so far, one shot and they haven’t gone more to an 30 yards.
I live in Iowa that only allows straight wall cartridges as well. I’ve thought about going to 45/70 but have held off due to Iowa contemplating dropping it from their allowed list next year. Plus I’ve never been unsuccessful with the 44 mag so far, one shot and they haven’t gone more to an 30 yards.
SwampWolf
Member
No but they do stain less compared to blued firearms exposed to rain and such. A Ruger Model 77/44RS is chambered in a straight-wall cartridge (.44 Magnum) and would make for a good "All Weather Deer Rifle".
Have hunted in awful conditions up north here in AZ.
With wood stocked M70 from '53 and a Styer Mannlicher from the '60s.
Used a ruined sock loaded with mineral oil/ beeswax on the stocks and metal in the rain,snow or sleet. And a piece of electrical tape on the muzzle to keep it dry.
If the scope is worth anything it should be impervious to rain.
Stainless is a lot easier to care for but... no one makes a Stainless steel Styer Mannlicher in 30-06 and I'm too attached to the M70 now.
There's always a stainless marlin in 44 mag or 45-70
With wood stocked M70 from '53 and a Styer Mannlicher from the '60s.
Used a ruined sock loaded with mineral oil/ beeswax on the stocks and metal in the rain,snow or sleet. And a piece of electrical tape on the muzzle to keep it dry.
If the scope is worth anything it should be impervious to rain.
Stainless is a lot easier to care for but... no one makes a Stainless steel Styer Mannlicher in 30-06 and I'm too attached to the M70 now.
There's always a stainless marlin in 44 mag or 45-70
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stillquietvoice
Contributing Member
The advantages of the 11, 22, 16, 11x series rifles over the axis series are, a larger port, a solid tang not floating, the stocks are a little better, but quite as flexible, the 11x also has a 3 position saftey that locks the bolt so it can't open yet will let you unload with the safety on bs a 2 position safety.
The straight wall cartridges you have to use will fit in the shorter action 11,12 and 16 size rifles allowing easier scope mounting than the longer actions. For an all weather rifle the 16 is stainless and synthetic. Also with the shorter action it will allow longer barrels and have the same length as a longer action with a shorter barrel, have similar handling.
herrwalther
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Synthetic stock with a Cerakoted stainless steel barrel is about as weather proof as you can get without going crazy. Neoprene scope cover will absorb water and won't do much to protect the optic. A quality optic is going to be sealed against moisture anyway. So I would just use a set of flip up lens covers to keep water off the glass itself.
My fair weather hunting rifle is wood and blued steel. My all weather setup is a pipe dream right now.
My fair weather hunting rifle is wood and blued steel. My all weather setup is a pipe dream right now.
halfmoonclip
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Our old camp in Greene County, PA, had a tin roof and no underlayment. The metal was right on the roof rafters.
On a rainy day, it made the most wonderful sound.
In that event, I only got up long enough to check on the fire.
No use being a damnfool about it; go back to bed.
Moon
On a rainy day, it made the most wonderful sound.
In that event, I only got up long enough to check on the fire.
No use being a damnfool about it; go back to bed.
Moon
The American on the left is almost exactly that.
The stocks a boyds laminate with thier bedliner paint on it, and the barreled action are stainless with Duracoar over the top.
I use finger cots to cover rhe muzzle and brake, and keep the covers down untill its time to fire.
Ive had all of those out in wet weather, and i MUCH prefer the coated, stainless, and coated and stainless guns....with hard lean to the last.
I wont even hunt with my 527 anymore because its a pain to clean, and unless i leave the bore soggy with oil it rusts...and NOTHING i do seems to keep the lug recesses from rusting.
Actually the 527s the only blued firearm ive got. Even the other "blue" guns are duracoated. And my .22 is Nitrided.
Kept their powder dry......
WisBorn
Contributing Member
I would definitely start with a synthetic stock and stainless steel barrel rifle.
After having the barrel channel swell on my M700 BDL after a rain storm my opinion of synthetic stocks changed. I glass bedded and free floated the M700 after and it shot great, but synthetic stocks are more stable.
After having the barrel channel swell on my M700 BDL after a rain storm my opinion of synthetic stocks changed. I glass bedded and free floated the M700 after and it shot great, but synthetic stocks are more stable.
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Armorer 101
Member
Old North Woods trick on regular steel, remove stock, bees wax, melt it and apply with a dab pad, rub it on, let cool dry and apply again, for 3 coats. Gun stainless rusts by the way.
Johnson’s paste or bees wax wax the stock. Small balloon, plastic bag O ring over the muzzle.
First up, on the scope, get a good scope. I have a Crossfire (bought to test) it is not all that much, even for a Chi Com. Put lens covers on the good scope. At 300 yards and under it is more about you. At your distance a16” to 22” barrel is perfectly fine with a scope. You mention a straight wall and mention a 223 which is not a straight wall.
If you can use the 223 for hunting deer in your area, there are reloads and factory loads that will work well on deer size game and they will work well with short barrels.I have shoot deer and wild hogs with several different 223s, they did not mind because they were DRT.
Johnson’s paste or bees wax wax the stock. Small balloon, plastic bag O ring over the muzzle.
First up, on the scope, get a good scope. I have a Crossfire (bought to test) it is not all that much, even for a Chi Com. Put lens covers on the good scope. At 300 yards and under it is more about you. At your distance a16” to 22” barrel is perfectly fine with a scope. You mention a straight wall and mention a 223 which is not a straight wall.
If you can use the 223 for hunting deer in your area, there are reloads and factory loads that will work well on deer size game and they will work well with short barrels.I have shoot deer and wild hogs with several different 223s, they did not mind because they were DRT.
Dave DeLaurant
Member
Not an issue for me right now, but I have thought this over a bit. I think there are two considerations: how well the rifle performs when used in the weather and how well it survives after harsh treatment.
Synthetic stocks have pretty obvious advantages over wood in the wet. A plastic stock won't begin expanding and warping when moved from a warm/dry room out into the weather. Laminated wood is better, but it still has grain that can and will expand a bit when thoroughly wet -- if you go that route, more generous free-floating seems advisable.
For myself, I'd want a synthetic stock that is designed to be frequently removed for cleaning and preserving the barrelled action after a dunking without seriously affecting zero, so something with a very solid and repeatable bedding system.
Stainless vs. blued vs. plated/coated is a much less important issue unless you are thinking in terms of extended periods of harsh treatment and zero maintenance. You can maintain a typical factory blued finish as long as you give it the proper attention after every single day in the field.
Remember, you can still find old rifles with excellent bores that had seen considerable use in the corrosive primer era. That's because shooters back in the day knew how to properly clean and preserve their rifles after a day's shooting -- the same goes with a blued finish. The advantage of stainless and coated finishes is reducing/postponing care, but anything made from steel will rust. I'm no chemist but I understand that iron's stable form is as an oxide -- it wants to rust.
Synthetic stocks have pretty obvious advantages over wood in the wet. A plastic stock won't begin expanding and warping when moved from a warm/dry room out into the weather. Laminated wood is better, but it still has grain that can and will expand a bit when thoroughly wet -- if you go that route, more generous free-floating seems advisable.
For myself, I'd want a synthetic stock that is designed to be frequently removed for cleaning and preserving the barrelled action after a dunking without seriously affecting zero, so something with a very solid and repeatable bedding system.
Stainless vs. blued vs. plated/coated is a much less important issue unless you are thinking in terms of extended periods of harsh treatment and zero maintenance. You can maintain a typical factory blued finish as long as you give it the proper attention after every single day in the field.
Remember, you can still find old rifles with excellent bores that had seen considerable use in the corrosive primer era. That's because shooters back in the day knew how to properly clean and preserve their rifles after a day's shooting -- the same goes with a blued finish. The advantage of stainless and coated finishes is reducing/postponing care, but anything made from steel will rust. I'm no chemist but I understand that iron's stable form is as an oxide -- it wants to rust.
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Garandimal
member
Yep.
Parkerized finish - is especially friendly to grease.
Once embedded, it also acts as a lubricant against abrasion as well.
Clean the metal w/ a solvent like mineral spirits, wipe'em down w/ grease, then clean'em off w/ oil/diesel and a rag.
But just oil/diesel - as CLP will float out the grease.
GR
halfmoonclip
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A buddy stored a Ruger stainless revolver in its holster; we're talking years. It had pits you wouldn't believe. Stainless will rust if you work at it.
Moon
Moon
sarduy
Member
Get yourself a Ruger American, Mossberg Patriot or my favorite Savage Axis II, and a can of camo spray paint, apply the paint and go hunting, when done just wipe it clean with wd-40
they are cheap but good rifles to take to the good, and the paint will protect it but its not permanent, you can remove it if you want to.
they are cheap but good rifles to take to the good, and the paint will protect it but its not permanent, you can remove it if you want to.
I have a stainless Browning X-Bolt with 3x9 Leica in .30-06.
If it rains and gets wet I put it in a closet with a space heater and quickly heat up the room and that stops any rust.
I really like Butler Creeks Blizzard see thru scope covers. Not expensive and you can shoot through them if you are in a rush and flip them up for long shots.
I also had the barrel chopped down to like 17" I think for $125 and it was worth it.
If it rains and gets wet I put it in a closet with a space heater and quickly heat up the room and that stops any rust.
I really like Butler Creeks Blizzard see thru scope covers. Not expensive and you can shoot through them if you are in a rush and flip them up for long shots.
I also had the barrel chopped down to like 17" I think for $125 and it was worth it.
9x56MS
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I would go with the Ruger American but try some cast bullets to eliminate the fragmenting issue.
Lead can fragment too......and would you be able to drill it in properly (accuracy+velocity) at 300 yds.
I built a new deer gun this past season & the first day of gun season it poured down rain all day but I didn't see any deer much less get a shot.
The new gun weathered it through without a problem I built a 350 Legend AR. It took me a few months to get the bugs worked out & to choose my hunting rounds, all the time I could see the ammo supply during the panic getting less & less.
After it's first hunt I was soaked & was worried how the gun did. When I got home after taking all the wet cold clothes off & into dry clothes, I took the AR down to field strip condition & sprayed it down with WD-40 then cleaned it as I normally do. I was also worried about the cheap Simmons 3x9x40 scope but it was solid not a speck of water got in. I was worried when I few times I looked through it from the stand & it was fogged over.
It was two days later when I took this doe from about 30yd with Winchester 180 gr SP. It's a great gun & is legal in Indiana public woods. I can reach out & hit the center of a paper plate from 300yds without a problem & does less than 1 moa at 100yds.
The new gun weathered it through without a problem I built a 350 Legend AR. It took me a few months to get the bugs worked out & to choose my hunting rounds, all the time I could see the ammo supply during the panic getting less & less.
After it's first hunt I was soaked & was worried how the gun did. When I got home after taking all the wet cold clothes off & into dry clothes, I took the AR down to field strip condition & sprayed it down with WD-40 then cleaned it as I normally do. I was also worried about the cheap Simmons 3x9x40 scope but it was solid not a speck of water got in. I was worried when I few times I looked through it from the stand & it was fogged over.
It was two days later when I took this doe from about 30yd with Winchester 180 gr SP. It's a great gun & is legal in Indiana public woods. I can reach out & hit the center of a paper plate from 300yds without a problem & does less than 1 moa at 100yds.
Yes stainless can rust but it takes a good bit of abuse for it to happen. Compared to blued steel and wood, there is no comparison. Certainly a blued rifle can survive harsh conditions and do so handsomely if cared for but there still is no substitute for the stainless steel in wet, humid, salty conditions. I too am from Louisiana and hunted the salt marshes, bottoms and woodlands and my blued rifles still look fine but I cannot say there is no rust on them whereas my stainless rifles, there is no rust, none.
I own both fair and foul weather hunting firearms; wood and blue for fair, syn and SS for foul. Now that I am an old man, I much prefer fair weather hunting so weather durability has faded into yesteryear - I now hunt for the pure pleasure of being outdoors, the game has become secondary.
jmorris
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Boats made out of wood and steel have sailed across every salt water ocean on earth a little rain won’t hurt your rifle with proper maintenance.
I’d never allow that to put a stop to a new rifle acquisition though. Lots of stainless/plastic combinations out there, just remember most of them don’t have stainless triggers and springs. So you still have to do your part.
I’d never allow that to put a stop to a new rifle acquisition though. Lots of stainless/plastic combinations out there, just remember most of them don’t have stainless triggers and springs. So you still have to do your part.
FL-NC
Member
The Ruger American is an excellent cheap ugly rifle. Both of mine are way more accurate that a $400 rifle should be, and I was "raised" on the 700 in various guises. I don't know anything about the straight wall cartridges required in some states, but it seems like most of the rifles that fire them tend to be on the shorter side, which makes me think that is the idea. US M4 carbines have a 14.5" (or shorter) barrel, and they do their job fine at 300 yards, and beyond. There are 308 caliber sniper rifles with 16" barrels. The most important thing is knowing the muzzle velocity and the required holds or adjustments at a given distance. As far as the rain, a little water won't hurt a decent scope. I would stay away from a neoprene cover- too much noise and movement to get the thing off when the time comes. Look at flip-open covers, possibly clear ones. I keep a small lens cloth around my neck in my jacket if my lenses get wet. I also apply a coat of motor oil to the outside of my barrel, etc. Motor oil won't evaporate and stays on there. We even used it on our weapons that were exposed to salt water in the mil.
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