Never been hunting, are my guns suitable?

[Smoovbiscuit]

Hi all. I have never been hunting but I have always wanted to, especially since I got my first taste of venison. I plan on hiring a guide in the next year or so hopefully if I can get the money together. I don't have any family members that hunt and few friends that hunt.

I haven't taken the hunters safety course yet, but I would take it before going.

To my questions. I probably will be hunting deer in NW Washington state, I was wondering if it is a bad idea for me to hunt with iron sights as a rookie hunter.

My guns are a Winchester 30/30 model 94 , and a Mosin Nagant 91/30. I am a very excellent shot with my mosin, and I am quite confident I could hit a deers vitals at 100 yards with its iron sights, I have done a good amount of long range shooting with it at a large gravel pit, shooting bottles and stuff at 100+ yards.

My winchester is a little beat up, and I have only put around 40 rounds through it. but what little I have shot it, its pretty accurate. I would prefer to hunt with my mosin if I can though. Maybe I would feel more confident with my winchester with some more practice.

Is it a really bad idea for me to go on my first hunt with iron sights? and is a mosin nagant not a smart gun to hunt with?

 

[pat86323]

a mosin with the proper bullet will kill anything in north america i would think. Ballistically very similar to the 30-06. The 30-30 will do a good job too as long as you operate within its limits.

 

[Frozen North]

Those are both fine deer rifles. With proper soft point ammo, the mosin is a fantastic choice.

Only you know your marksmanship skills, make your judgment based on that. My grandfather never owned a scoped rifle and he did just fine.

How long are your shots gonna be? Is this hilly and/ or brushy country? Is it wide open? We rarely shoot more than 100 yards in my area because of the wood cover and brush. If you go a bit more south, 300 yard shots are common on the flat prairie. If you are shooting inside a 100, irons may even be in your best interests.

 

[Art Eatman]

A question to ask your guide: What are the probabilities of a shot during decent or full daylight, versus a shot at first light in the morning or late in the evening?

Iron sights are not the best when dealing with the low-light times. Those times are when a scope lets you know that it's a deer-deer and not a stump-deer, a cactus-deer or a people-deer.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

My vote is for the .30-30. It is lighter to carry and great for a lightening fast follow up shot. As far as the Mosin goes, the safety isn't ideal for hunting if you need to make a quick shot.

 

[Smoovbiscuit]

pretty hilly and brushy I would say. I was planning on not taking shots much further than 100 yards as that is about the distance I have most practice with. But I will be practicing a lot more before I actually go hunting, and taking the safety course.

I recently bought a can of 440 rounds for my mosin so I will have a lot more experience with it before I go. I will try to push the distance further in my practice too test my limits.

I mostly just wasn't sure how common it was to hunt without a scope.

Edit* Colt I agree with you about the the safety on the mosin. But as for follow up shots, I'm faster than most on the bolt, and I think the chances of me needing a follow up shot are much smaller with the mosin because I'm a better shot with it, and the stopping power is significantly higher. My Winchester would probably need a trip to a gun smith before I'd take it hunting, and it is a lot more expensive to practice with.

I see your point art. I will certainly ask my guide about my guns and light situation before I would go. I just thought I'd get some opinions on here before I consider hunting in the first place.

 

[Hanshi]

I'd take the rifle I shot best. Just buy soft point hunting ammo and you'll be fine.

 

[KodiakBeer]

You don't need a guide. Do some hiking with a camera to take pictures of game over the summer. Prior to deer season, go rabbit hunting with a .22. You'll learn quickly.

 

[Smoovbiscuit]

I grew up on an island where rabbits were over populated, I've shot my share of rabbits I wouldn't consider it hunting them though because I didn't have to leave my porch to get them.

One of the bigger reasons I'd want a guide is to help me dress the deer. I have no idea how to do it and I'm in it for the meat. And honestly I'm a little squimish, I had trouble dissecting pigs in school. But I'm confident I can get over it and do it if I had someone to show me how.

I appreciate you guys' advice. I'm excited to hunt!

 

[shiftyer1]

I see no problem in hiring a guide to teach u how to hunt, i'd prefer a friend or relative but if none are available who else is gonna teach ya how.

Both rifle are good deer rifles, the mosin has more range and accuracy.

 

[Birdmang]

How can you tell him which one is more accurate without seeing the bores/chambers/barrels?

My 30-30 is a hell of a lot more accurate than my counter bored mosin.

 

[Art Eatman]

Let's not drift into comparing accuracy, okay? Either gun is quite likely to be plenty accurate for Bambi. It's not about chipmunks at 400 yards...

 

[jimmyraythomason]

a stump-deer

We have a LOT of those "deer" here, making a scope mandatory. Choose the proper ammo,learn the anatomy of your quarry(you can't hit a deer's heart unless you know exactly where it is) and enjoy.

 

[phoglund]

The Mosin should do a fine job for you if you are confident with it and know your limitations. If you ever cleaned any of those rabbits you shot, just consider the deer a big rabbit and you should do fine cleaning your kill.

 

[Mr_Pale_Horse]

Those times are when a scope lets you know that it's a deer-deer and not a stump-deer, a cactus-deer or a people-deer.

Use binoculars for those ID's.

 

[Smoovbiscuit]

birdmang what does counter bored mean? sounds like you got a bad apple mosin. For me there is no question my 91/30 is far more accurate than my model 94.

I'm not overly concerned with shooting "stump deer", I wouldn't take a shot in the first place if I didn't have a clear view, don't want to hit a person. I wouldn't take risky shots without a scope and more experience. I will certainly have binoculars with me.

 

[CoastieShep]

Just throwing this out there, but make sure your practice shots are from different positions that you might see out in the field. Standing, standing resting against a tree, kneeling, sitting. I'm sure you're not just shooting from a bench, but I always like to throw that out there. First time I went hunting with a buddy of mine, he couldn't hit a deer at 40 yds. But he was on the rifle team at work. (wasn't that good at that either now that I think about it)

 

[mgmorden]

Either one of them will do fine. You're looking at iron sights either way. The Mosin shoots a more powerful round, but IMHO, the Winchester 94 will handle much better. IMHO the .30-30 is powerful enough for anything that I'd take a shot at with irons either way, so I'd use that. I've even got the little carbine sized M38 for my Mosin Nagant and I don't even like to feel of that much. I've taken it hog hunting but never got a shot on an animal with it.

Naturally all rifles are different, and I don't have a Winchester 94, but my Marlin 336 (similar type platform) will do 1.25" groups at 100 yards. All lever guns aren't inaccurate.

 

[phoglund]

Smoovbiscuit,

Counter-bored refers to over-boring the business end of a barrel to remove damage to the end of the barrel. In Mosin Nagants the damage was usually caused by cleaning in the field by troops who didn't use the bore protector while cleaning. It restores the accuracy of the barrel. Counter-bored barrels are very common on Mosin Nagants that actually saw combat use. The counter boring usually was done when the rifle was refurbished at the arsenal after the war.

Paul

 

[azar]

One small suggestion. Before you decide that the Mosin is more accurate, you should locate and purchase soft point hunting ammo for it and test that for accuracy (assuming you haven't already). You wouldn't want to judge the performance of the Mosin based on ammo that you won't be using on the hunt.

Just my $0.02.

 

[Asherdan]

I'd be tempted to put a Williams or Lyman aperture sight on the 94, much better than open sights in pretty much any light condition as well as simpler (quicker) to be accurate with than open irons. A classic smooth handling package.

BUT

If you like the Mosin there's no doubt that the rifle and cartridge, with soft points, will do a fine job.

 

[kayak-man]

I have NO hunting experiance, but I can answer some of the terrain questions.

In the western half of the state, you're looking at lots of hills, trees, some shrubbery, and its very wet. On the western half of the state, its a little flatter, and a lot more open. Most of the guys I know who hunt all say the same thing: 30-06 bolt gun with a scope. On the west side, theres a few areas that are bow/pistol/crossbow/shotgun only (I can only think of one or two, so don't assume thats the norm) but for the most part, rifles, not carbines, are king. Bring whichever one you can shoot the best. Also, when you're over here, it shouldn't be too hard to find someone who is a hunter and can show you the ropes.

Hopes this helps.

 

[huskershooter]

I have actually killed deer with both of these weapons and I would recommended the 94 for a brush gun and the mosin would handle better in less confined space but I know that the 7.62x54R is a deer DROPPING machine. They don't run.

 

[JEB]

just this last season i made the switch from scopes to iron sights and i love it! faster on target and lighter to carry all day. trust me, your sights will not be your limiting factor, it will be your ammount of practice.

 

[rondog]

I'd wager that there's been far more deer killed with iron-sighted .30-30 Winchester 94's than has been killed with Mosin 91/30's. Either rifle will do the job, but I personally would take the Winnie. Deer hunting's what those were born and bred for.