I am just getting in to hunting after going with some friends this past year. I am looking to buy a new rifle I can either buy the Winchester model 70 featherweight or the Browing X bolt hunter in 7MM 08 which rifle would be better fo shots under 400 yards. THANKS
Better rifle
- Thread starter Jason7271
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The one that fits you the best. But don't limit yourself to just those two. Pretty much all rifles built today shoot accurately (consistently). But actions, triggers, weights, materials, and ergonomics can greatly differ. Out of the two you chose, I'd take the Winny. Others will have differing opinions. And that doesn't mean they're wrong.
Well, Winchester Model 70 rifles are made in Portugal and the Browning X-bolts are made in Japan, so I would be focused on finding a rifle that is actually made in the United States by American workers so that my money went to support our econcomy rather than contributing to our balance of payments problems.
redneck2
Member
As noted, both should be great. I'd also concentrate on getting GOOD glass for it. Since it's a long time until next year, I'd take my time.
Dog Soldier
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I like the early Winchester and Sako rifles. My hunting pal likes the Remington 700. Spend some time reading and looking over the many options. You will find the one that is right for you.
bearman49709
Member
I have owned both and prefer the x-bolt.
I am really happy with my Winchester M70. But honestly any of the major manufacturers would work just fine. Find one that fits you best and go from there. Buy the best glass you can afford and enjoy.
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I am a fan of mid power scopes. My rifle is topped with a VX3 2.5-8x36.
RPRNY
Member
Classy rifle in a great caliber! Happy hunting 
.308 Norma
Member
Great choice! My wife has(had) a Winchester 70 Featherweight 7mm-08 since Winchester came back out with their pre-64, CRF style actions. I put "had" in parenthesis because our oldest daughter laid claim to that nice little rifle about 10 years back, and she's done very well on mule deer with it.
The best that I can remember, my wife's/daughter's 70 Featherweight has a fixed 4X Leopold on it. But I myself prefer variables - a 2.5x8 or 3x9 would be my choice, Leopold or Weaver.
redneck2
Member
Might take a peek at a Leupold VX-6. My friend got one in 2-12x40. Says its superior to his VX-3's, and they're awesome.
Jason7271;
Both Leupold and Vortex make good scopes, but here's a bit of advice about winnowing through some of the options. For hunting purposes, you do not want a scope with adjustable focus. That limits the top end magnification to 10 or maybe 12 power, but that's OK for a hunting rig. What you don't want is to bring the gun up to your shoulder & have it out of focus for the shot you want to take. The game animal may not wait around for you to change things, it's a life & death survival reaction for him. Don't be too anxious to get the biggest objective diameter you can either. More depends on the quality of the glass than the size of the objective. A large to super-large objective makes you mount the scope higher & that puts more weight higher. Big glass weighs more & that can affect the way the gun handles to you. The same holds true for any factor that affects scope size & weight, like tube diameter. In a rapid hunting situation, a busy reticle can be confusing more than helpful. Personally, I prefer a mil-dot & nothing fancier than that. That being said, the standard duplex works fine too.
If you do the range work to find out what your combination of gun, ammo, and glass does at various ranges you should be just fine come hunting season. You may want to get a decent spotting scope too if you spend the time you should at the range. If possible, go to the range in the early morning & late evening. Find out there what the glass's resolution is in low light situations. Find out how much it affects your accuracy, if any. Here's the point: If low light increases your group size at 300 yards from 5 inches to six inches, does it really make any difference when you hunt? The bullet is still gonna go into the animal's boiler room & really ruin that mulie buck's day. I don't know what the hunting regs are in your state, but here shooting time begins a half hour before sunrise & lasts to a half hour after sunset. If there's a lot of cloud cover, first light can be pretty dim, but most of the time you don't need to spend a whole big gob of money to get a very decent scope that'll do the job just fine.
900F
Both Leupold and Vortex make good scopes, but here's a bit of advice about winnowing through some of the options. For hunting purposes, you do not want a scope with adjustable focus. That limits the top end magnification to 10 or maybe 12 power, but that's OK for a hunting rig. What you don't want is to bring the gun up to your shoulder & have it out of focus for the shot you want to take. The game animal may not wait around for you to change things, it's a life & death survival reaction for him. Don't be too anxious to get the biggest objective diameter you can either. More depends on the quality of the glass than the size of the objective. A large to super-large objective makes you mount the scope higher & that puts more weight higher. Big glass weighs more & that can affect the way the gun handles to you. The same holds true for any factor that affects scope size & weight, like tube diameter. In a rapid hunting situation, a busy reticle can be confusing more than helpful. Personally, I prefer a mil-dot & nothing fancier than that. That being said, the standard duplex works fine too.
If you do the range work to find out what your combination of gun, ammo, and glass does at various ranges you should be just fine come hunting season. You may want to get a decent spotting scope too if you spend the time you should at the range. If possible, go to the range in the early morning & late evening. Find out there what the glass's resolution is in low light situations. Find out how much it affects your accuracy, if any. Here's the point: If low light increases your group size at 300 yards from 5 inches to six inches, does it really make any difference when you hunt? The bullet is still gonna go into the animal's boiler room & really ruin that mulie buck's day. I don't know what the hunting regs are in your state, but here shooting time begins a half hour before sunrise & lasts to a half hour after sunset. If there's a lot of cloud cover, first light can be pretty dim, but most of the time you don't need to spend a whole big gob of money to get a very decent scope that'll do the job just fine.
900F
Welding Rod
Member
Both are great rifles. I have owned both and would give a slight edge to the M70 except for one thing. The M70 has a cheek swell on the stock that drives me nuts. I could never get comfortable with it so now I am an X-bolt guy. But the M70 (30-06 in my case) was very accurate even with rapid fire, and had a great trigger, bolt, and safety movement.
Very different rifles, but from the same parent company. The Winchester is very traditional with a controlled round feed action and traditional build. A little heavier but if my life depended on the rifle working a Winchester or Ruger Hawkeye would be in my hands. The X-bolt is very modern, much lighter and probably at least as accurate, but I'd not be surprised if it were more accurate. For my money it would be Winchester. If I wanted something more modern I think there are better options than Browning.
Llama Bob
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I have a strong preference for the Mauser flavor actions with 3 position safeties. They just feel right and have the right features. I have shot them for years and have had many fewer issues than I've had with various push feed mini-extractor plunger eject actions. So of those two I would go Winchester, no question, even though I'm sure the Browning is a fine gun. However, If I were you I would at least consider a third option - the Kimber Classic (or Classic Select). It's a slightly smaller action but similar to the Winchester. It's lighter than either, which for 7mm-08 (not a high recoil cartridge) is arguably a good thing. It also has a 1:9 twist barrel instead of 1:9.5. That opens up the option to use some heavier bullets that may not stabilize well in the Winchester or Browning. I think the 160 Accubond and 175 Partition, as well as possibly the 175 A-Frame, are useful bullets in 7mm-08 and to be sure they're stable even in very cold weather you'd want a 1:9 twist just to be sure. The Accubond has a commercial load, the other two do not as far as I know. So whether you reload may determine if you care. But for me the twist rate tipped the balance between the M70 featherweight and the Kimber.
Big7
Member
That means OP want's a Ruger.. 77 MII, if you can find someone that will part with it. Hawkeye would be the second.
Llama Bob
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To each their own, but the American companies are doing themselves no favors. Dakotas and Coopers are insanely expensive and Cooper has repulsive politics. Rugers tend to have pretty ghetto fit and finish. Ditto Savage. The various Freedom Group brands in general are a disaster, and Remington in particular has had this bad habit of making unsafe triggers that kill people standing near their customers. Montana Rifle Company barely has any stock available in many calibers (including 7mm-08 right now). Kimbers are an option (which I recommended) but that's only one.
If the US companies would step up their game that would be one thing, but as it stands a Winchester made in Portugal or Japan looks pretty darn good.
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