Looking for a new caliber

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And no, we no longer reload. We used to reload shotgun shells, but my dad doesnt feel like it's worth his time anymore. I'd like to load, but he doesn't see much need when he can just stop by Academy or the hardware store and get a box of bullets.
 
If recoil is such a big deal then just use a recoil pad. If you were thinking of getting the .270 win then consider that cartridge has about the same recoil of a 308 and 30-06. It usually depends on what kind of rifle you have that determines the recoil. If the rifle is light and has a short barrel it is going to kick more. But those three rounds are very similar in that aspect.

Some of the most common ammo you are going to find will be 30-06 or 308 and since it kicks in the area of a 270, you may as well just get a recoil pad and go with the 308.
 
shadow shock...

i was jestin with my response...hence the :neener::neener::neener:

no offense taken...

I do agree there is a mighty difference with a good recoil pad...eg: the .30-06 pump rifle I spoke of is an mid '70's Remington 760 Gamemaster; this is when they routinely put a hard plastic buttplate on the stock; without a recoil pad, I wasn't very thrilled to shoot more than 10-15 rounds with full bore loads...expecially true for my father who is 40 years older and nearly 60 pounds lighter than me; I had a pre-gel Limbsaver pad installed...what a difference!!! recoil is now like a slightly stiff .30-30!

7mm-08 would make a good all around shooter as well as .270; both are 'below' the blast and punch of a 7mm remmy mag, but effective on most medium and large critters

later!
 
If recoil is such a big deal then just use a recoil pad. If you were thinking of getting the .270 win then consider that cartridge has about the same recoil of a 308 and 30-06. It usually depends on what kind of rifle you have that determines the recoil. If the rifle is light and has a short barrel it is going to kick more. But those three rounds are very similar in that aspect.
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Well, yeah, but then recoil tolerance is subjective. I've been pelted my whole life with goose loads in 12 gauge and recoil is just one of them things you put up with for me. I don't happen to think my 7 mag is all that bad. I've fired up to 375 H and H and not seen a problem with it. Yeah, it pushes ya back, but just roll with it. My little M7 is light and short in .308, but I can sit down at the bench and shoot it all day long. It don't feel that bad to me, lighter than the big 7 anyway, LOL. When I'm bench shooting magnums, I wear a Past recoil shield, but I don't need it in the field, don't even notice the recoil when I'm shootin' at game.

But, you're certainly right, if a person doesn't like a lot of recoil, you can make the gun heavier. There are ways of doing that to an otherwise light gun, like adding lead to the stock. But, a heavy barrel gun will run the weight up there and a big, heavy scope. There are lots of "sniper" or varmint/target heavy barreled rifles to choose from. Of course, if you have to tote that thing over mountain passes, it can be a pain. It's a trade off, I guess. I accept the recoil of the .308 in the M7 (not that bad) for the light weight and handiness of the rifle. It's a sweet shootin' little rig. In .260, it'd recoil less and probably shoot further considering the BCs of .264" bullets. I think a .260 is all you need in Texas, too. I got the .308 before the .260 came along, but I sorta wanted .308 anyway. It does everything I need it to do.

One thing about .308, if you don't handload, you have a heckuva selection in loads to choose from, probably more than any other caliber outside of .30-06. That might be handy just to find a load that will shoot under 1 moa (what you need for long shots you're talkin' about). With a limited selection of loads, might be hard to find a good, accurate load. I handload so that's not really a consideration. I have very accurate pet loads for my rifles and they cost a lot less per round than Federal Premium.
 
However 8 years ago, my dad broke his neck, and excessive recoil hurts him a lot. He's looking for something preferably in the .260 to .280 range. We need it to be flat shooting for long range accuracy, and have the power to knock the piss out of a deer or hog between 50yd, and 500+yd.
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ANY cartridge which is going to be hard-hitting at 500 yards is going to have some serious recoil; if the .308 and .30/06 are out because of your father's injuries, that limits you a bit.

Now, perhaps in the right rifle, a .308 or .30/06 might be manageable. Browning makes a semi-auto that reduces the peak recoil impulse substantially - couple it with a thick recoil pad and a muzzle brake, and your dad may be able to handle it. (Though the muzzle brake WILL increase the volume of the shot.)

In smaller cartridges, if you want to make a substantial improvement over your .243, you'll have to move up to 7mm. I'd be thinking 7x57 Mauser - it has a reputation for being mild recoiling with standard loads, which are all you need for deer. Out to a couple of hundred yards, it will do the job . . . but 500 might be stretching it a bit. (No, I'm not going to stand out there and let someone shoot at me!)
 
When my dad got home from work I mentioned the comments about the 7mm's, .30-06 and .308 etc. My dad said "Jesus Christ! Why do these people want to use f****** cannons on these little bitty deer!" I wouldn't consider them cannons, although they are a bit big to be using on whitetails here in TX. He asked me to remind y'all that in Central Texas where we live, deer are a lot smaller than in most other places. The heaviest deer I have ever seen here was only 180 lbs. And that was extremely rare. I've shot 2 year old does under 80lbs.
 
And most of the time in central Texas your shots are not gonna be anywhere near the 500 yards that you called for.

I suggest that reality is mostly inside of 200 yards, and a .243 would be plenty good to 300.

If you go out Manchaca Road to Slaughter Lane, you'll find what once was my stomping grounds. Deer, turkey, spear and dart points. I grant you won't find much of that now, but up until 30-some years back it was fun country. I took many a deer in that area.

I've walked many a mile around the hills north of Uvalde, in the Indian Creek country.

I killed as many deer with my .243 as with my '06.

Art
 
True most of the shots are much closer than 500yd, but one of my dad's good freinds has a property here, and a bigger one in East Texas. Both of these places have feilds were you can get a 500yd shot easy. It is mainly because of this that we want a bigger rifle.
 
can you just adjust your setup differently so you dont have to shoot that far? i mean i love the idea of a challenging far shot, but i'd rather get in closer if possible
 
.257 roberts. light recoil, flat shooting

my mistake, .257 roberts actually has less energy. looks like a .260 is the next best thing....in reality, i'd just say use a .243 and limit shots to 300 or so yards. problem solved :)
 
Your first post stated " . . . we want something that has a lot more knock down power at longer ranges . . . "

People have made reasonable suggestions based on that, and your father's reaction is "Jesus Christ! Why do these people want to use f****** cannons on these little bitty deer!"

I live in TX too, and these Hill Country deer aren't that big . . . but if you want "a lot" more knock down power at longer ranges, you're going to have to go up to a 7mm or .30 of some sort. An incremental step up to an ordinary .257, .25/06, or 6.5mm - fine choices though they may be - will not give you "a lot" more knock down power over that .243.

From his reaction, it sounds like your father has already made up his mind, has sent his son out to seek advice, and is PO'd that he's not getting enough validation . . . maybe he still has some growing up to do. :(
 
My '06 has four feet of drop at my 500-yard range. I have held as much as two feet of windage in what seemed like no more than a "good breeze". I reckon the Devil would be selling ice cubes before I'd use less performance than an '06 if I were planning on beanfielding...

You want little or no recoil? You can flat-out forget about 500 yards and clean, ethical kills.

Art
 
i would probably go with the 7mm 08 or 270. you could reach out a little farther with the 270 but recoil is worse.
 
Kimber, I'm just posting what he tells me to, as I have stated, I'd rather a.308, or maybe a .30-06. However compared to a .223, a .270 has a good bit more power to it. And yes it does seem kinda like he's allready decided, although no he doesn't have anymore "growing up to do".
 
Your dad needs to be realistic. You got to give a little to get a little. If he wants better performance and more knowckdown power, he is going too have to trade some recoil for it. A 308 in the right rifle with the right set up is not a hard recoiling rifle. Buy a heavy rifle, add a muzzle brake and a recoil pad and almost anyone can shoot it.

Personally I would recomend either the 7mm-08 or the .260 Remington. He won't get the kind of performance he is dreaming about, but he will be taking a step up from the 243. Good luck. Sounds like your dad is as ignorant as mine when it comes to guns and ballistics.:D
 
Like Scrooge McDuck used to say...Shoot smarter not harder.
7mm-08, 6.5-08, .308(it is a fairly light recoiling round), .270, or .280. The 6.5 sweede is always good too.
BTW im jealous of the fact that you both get 5 deer a year. I hope to one day hunt deer but im in Kali.
 
now that 500 yards is in the mix...that changes things alot...now there is bullet drop, windage, and retained energy considerations to throw into the mix...

minimum: 7mm Rem Mag or 7mm Win Short Mag
preferred: .300 Win Short Mag or .300 Win Mag

you're gonna need the extra ooommmph to get the retained energy at long distances...especially if you have to factor in sloping shots uphill or downhill

again...good luck
 
If you have all the stuff for reloading then maybe a Remington Sendero in a 246 win mag. The gun is heavy enough to absorb alot of recoil and the 264 is a mild kicking magnum. If it's beanfield shooting your doing, then use a bean field rifle.
 
thats my advice, use a proper gun for the long range shots, and build the rifle around the cartridge. if you cant handle recoil, set up the gun with a thick barrel, a heavy stock/scope, and recoil reducers such as pads, porting/brakes, etc.

300 ultra mag in a factory 9-10 lb rifle wasnt bad off the bench...not bad at all! add some porting and nicer recoil pad, and it will be tame like a 6.5 swede.
 
SS, Guess what I will endorse using-duh-lol. Have been using an '06 for many decades and have never had one to get lost. I try to never take a shot that will not positively kill an animal. Deer hurt just like we do and I will not injure one if at all posible. We raised one from a bottle and "Abel" was housebroken. She was the best dog we had. I love to hunt and enjoy venison but what ever you shoot, make it a clean shot. I often carry a shotgun with OO for low light and close up shots but have dropped deer as close as twenty feet with 'ol betsy. Now it has been retired and I replaced it with a Md 77 Ruger stainless with composite stock. I like an '06 for many reasons but mainly for its long distance ability. I shoot 150 grain Silvertips but carry a few heavy rounds for posible brushy shots. Get yourself an '06 w/pad and vents and you should be happy. Mine have neither but the recoil is a bit heavy. wc
 
I'm afraid I'm going to have to side with everyone else on this one. If .308 and .30-06 and .270 and 7mm mag are all "******* cannons," well, then it just takes a "******* cannon" to get any power left over at 500 yards.

With present firearms technology, it'd take a miracle to get a rifle with good retained power and reasonably flat ballistics out to 500-600 yards with recoil in the same neighborhood as .223 or .243. You can't have everything.

It's kind of like asking for a car that can do 0-60 in three or four seconds, can tow a 25' boat, can do serious offroading, and gets 50mpg to boot :).
 
With present firearms technology, it'd take a miracle to get a rifle with good retained power and reasonably flat ballistics out to 500-600 yards with recoil in the same neighborhood as .223 or .243. You can't have everything.
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Well that would be a heavy rifle with a muzzle break..that could work, but i do get what your saying... in a lightweight sporter, it isnt gonna happen.

It's kind of like asking for a car that can do 0-60 in three or four seconds, can tow a 25' boat, can do serious offroading, and gets 50mpg to boot
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well i know a few diesel trucks that can do about 3 out of those 4 lol
 
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