New Deer rifle - 30-06 or .270 and Brand

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Sorta off the wall and over the $900 target pricing: I was very pleasantly surprised by the excellent quality of the trigger on my Rem 700 Ti. Not quite a Canjar, but definitely in the very-good-to-excellent category.

It can be had in .270 or '06. Bare weight is about 5.25 pounds. Mine, in 7mm08, with Leupold 3x9x40, sling and ammo is 6.25 pounds. In '06, long action, it would be 6.5 pounds. Mine fits me well enought that recoil is not bothersome, even at the benchrest.

Perfect critter for an aging Olde Phart, anyhow. :D

Art
 
why dont you go and look. pick it up. kick the tires. take it around the block.and make your own mind up.
gandermountain has all there rifles out, so you can go pick what ever u like up and look at them, Basspro on the other hand has all the rifles behind the counter and you have to ask, do you have this or that, and they have to go serch,Basspro told me, that savage doesnt make left handed rifles..they never did,,LOL..daughh,, I said go find someone thats got more knowledge then you do then i'll talk to them,,

but i would go look for my self.Gander will get you anything you want,
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Yeah, I have. I liked the feel and stock of the Browning the most. However, shooting it and holding it are two different things.

I wish you could rent rifles like you can pistols at the range.


I like the feel of the Browning's soft stock, but wonder how it will hold up over time?


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Look, don't give the man a hard time about his rifle, especially if you have never even shot one before. Just because most guys on The High Road insist on fancy guns that cost upwards of $800 doesn't mean his gun isn't as capable as any bolt action rifle off the shelf.

If you can effectively hunt with a model 770, good for you. Please don't bash other members for their choice of firearm.
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I don't need to shoot one to know that they aren't made to last. Just work the action and you can tell. Also it's something about the barrel that is bad. Not sure if you can't replace it or what I don't remember.

As I said they are supposed to be pretty accurate just not last. If it works for him it's great I just don't want to see someone else buy something that's not meant to last because someone recommended it and no one said anything against it as they didn't want to bash it. I've bought plenty of stuff that was crap. Most of which I wish I had never bought and wish someone would have talked me out of it first.
 
My choice would be Winchester Model 70 in .30-06. Mine was manufactured in 1974 and is an absolutely beautiful rifle. I picked it up at a Pawn shop. I would highly recommend searching your local pawn shops religiously. I went into the same shop 3 times a week until I found her. She had just been put on display earlier that morning. They won't last long once they hit the display. I also have a Remington 700 in .270 that I also love dearly, but the Model 70 is my favorite rifle.
 
Remington Model 700 in .270 win

I would have to go with the Remington 700 in .270. My twelve year old just shot his first whitetail this year at 220 yards with this gun. It shoots sub MOA and I picked it up used at a local sporting goods store with a Nikon Pro-Staff scope for $300 a couple of summers ago. Really what I would consider a sweet deal. I had the trigger worked on and it pulls at about 2.5 lbs. Really happy with it's performance; the bolt slides as smooth as silk.
 
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Ok I know you have choices but I'm gonna give my opinion. This is an old gun but It's cheap and the most reliable gun you'll EVER get...A Remington 742 Woodsmaster in .30-06 I'm tellin ya man it will be the best decision you've ever made. Trust me on this.
 
Rifle selection is a very personal choice, go to gun shops where you can handle them and see which fits / feels the best. Compare the apparent quality of the different models yourself, you're the one who will have to live with your choice. Think about the clothing you'll be hunting in when you do this. Also think about the fact that you need to safely and comfortably carry the rifle a lot more than you have to shoot it.

With regard to caliber, you don't say what kind of country you'll be hunting in, for open country with longer shot potential, the .270 is what I'd choose (it's a little flatter than the '06). If you are planning to reload, then I'd suggest a .308 over the 30-06, if you're rolling your own they are essentially the same. If you don't plan to reload I'd go with the '06 over the .270, just because of common ammo availability, it's probably the most commonly available ammo in the U.S. behind .22lr and .30-30.

For what it's worth my 2 favorite field rifles are my pre-WWII Model 70 in .30 Government (.30-06), and my pre-64 Model 70 in .270. The '06 has been in my family as long as anyone alive can remember, and has taken nearly every large game animal native to North America, from Caribou, Elk, and Brown bears in Alaska to gators in Florida. The .270 has accounted for more than 50 whitetails, and about half as many muledeer, and 9 elk (6 bulls and 3 cows). About the only things I wouldn't want to hunt in North America with an '06 would be Grizzly and Kodiak bears, ditto for the .270, with Moose added to the list (personally, I think the '06 is a little light for Moose as well, though one of my ancestors accounted for several nice bulls with mine).

If I could only have one of them, I'd probably keep the .270, flatter shooting over normal hunting ranges generally means better shot placement (but then I reload, so I'm not as concerned about off the shelf ammo availability). In the field you have to deal with windage and range estimation, which is easier the flatter your trajectory is. I realize you can get fast light bullets that shoot flat in the '06, but other than a few sabots, I've never gotten great accuracy out of them, they may be neat tricks for predator control (if you can get them to shoot), but I think they rather defeat the purpose when you're talking about larger game.
 
Since you now are saying stainless and synthetic the best 2 options in my experience are Tikka and Ruger. If you can go $1000+ look at Kimber.

Winchester is just starting up production of the new 70's and are only making wood stocked Featherweight rifles in 270 and 30-06 at this time. They show all kinds of neat things on their website but God knows when they will be available. They have been tempting us for almost 2 years now without producing anything.
 
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caliber choice is easy, 30-06! way more avalibility of ammo (not that the 270 is scarce) but you can find 30-06 ammo everywhere, and in almost any weight and bullets type you would ever want. as for the rifle itself, i would say this. go out and put your hands on all of them. whichever has the best features, and feels the best is the one you want. they are all top quality rifles. so it is a fit / function thing at this point. i would not be ashamed to walk into any deer camp with any of them. and future congratulations on your new toy!:D:D:D
 
Savage 116 or 16

Check out the Savage 116 or 16: stainless, synthetic stock, accurate and well within your budget. Speaking of budget, my Savage 16 has a Bushnell Legend 2-7 scope that is inexpensive, but not cheap. It performs fine and didn't cost an arm and a leg.

Caliber depends on your preference: 30-06, 270, 7-08 or 308 would all be good choices, listed roughly in order of decreasing power and recoil (except last two perhaps), with all being adequate for your purposes. The long range ballistic advantages of the 7-08 put it slightly ahead of the 308 for your use in my opinion, but they're all good. If I were buying today I would go with the 7-08.
 
From the rifles in the list:

- I'm Ruger (rifle) shy. They seem to be hit-or miss.

- The Sako would be interesting to me, but that plastic bolt shroud is a deal killer.

- I can't comment on the Browning, for I haven't formed an impression or any experience with it.

- Always liked model 70s.

- Also consider CZ 550 American(s) and perhaps Savage 114s.


In terms of the cartridge, my opinion is: Both the .30-06 and .270 do the same jobs. There isn't a case that I would consider the .30-06 good for that a .270 can't do. (Including Elk). That said, the .270 is essentially a 'production' wildcat of the .30-06 (Necked down to .277) that wasn't as limited in SAMII pressure specs as the '06 was by older guns. It shoots flatter within hunting ranges, and the .277 bullets compare favorably to the .308s in terms of SD when you compare them mid-weight to mid weight, or heavy to heavy. Irrespective of what you often hear, I feel the .270 is more flexible than the '06, for they really do shoot both lightweight thru heavy bullets well. I've not seen an '06 that can shoot the accelerators or 100-110 gr bullets well. Yet I can shoot Sierra 90 Gr BTHP varminters and 110 V-Max .277s well, as well as the heavy Berger 150 VLD(s) (.535 BC) in my .270s. (90 Gr Varminters @ 3500+ fps through 130 Gr Ballistic tips @ 3100 fps, through 150 Gr @ 2850 fps...yet they all shoot accurately.) The only downside to .270s is the limited bullet choices.

That said, take one last factor into consideration: .270 really shines when you go beyond those 22" barrels. If you're limited to a 22" barrel, get an '06. If you're getting a rifle with a 24" barrel, you'll be getting more of those Jack O'connor velocities that make .270 Win the flat shooting rifle that gives you an advantage in the field when targets are at unknown ranges.

Again, just my $.02
 
The Browning Abolt and Xbolt trigger spring can be replaced with a Timney 2 lb. or a 3 lb. spring from MidwayUSA. The trigger is good as any Remington or Savage. The CZ550s and 527s have the best trigger of all out of box rifles.
 
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Thanks for the replies guys.

As for caliber:

I will be hunting in mostly wooded areas, however, I have a deerstand on a powerline that gives me up to and over 500 yd shots. (I most likely would not shoot that far.)


I am not a reloader, so I will be stuck to storebought rounds.


And like I said, it will be stainless and synthetic.


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The Browning trigger is not even close to a Sako trigger..!


Are you talking about the A-Bolt trigger or the new trigger on the X-Bolt's?

A-Bolt & X-Bolt
 
The Browning trigger is not even close to a Sako trigger..!


Are you talking about the A-Bolt trigger or the new trigger on the X-Bolt's?

A-Bolt & X-Bolt
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I read that the Browning has a much improved "Feather" trigger which is user adjustable from 3 to 5lbs and is crisp with no creep.



I went and held a bunch of rifles today and the Browning and Sako A7 seemed to be the nicest. The Browning fit a little better, smaller grip circumference, so I liked that a lot.


Money is not really a problem as this is the first and probably last deer rifle I buy for a long, long time. So I don't mind spending a little more to get one I'll like.
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I was wondering if anyone knew the answer to this about the Browning X-Bolt.


When lifting the bolt, it gets to a point where it's hard and almost has to be popped up.

The other rifles bolts moved up smoothly.



Why is this?



Will it eventually smooth out?


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Marine;

Not sure about this, you'd need to check it out, but a rifle can cock on opening, or closing the bolt. If Browning has a cock-on-open bolt, which I doubt, it would account for the feel I'd think.

To check for cock on closing, do this: Close the bolt, feel the resistance. Then cycle again, pull the trigger & keep it pulled while closing the bolt. If the bolt closing is pretty much effortless in comparison with the trigger pulled, it's almost certainly a cock-on-close system.

900F
 
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Marine;

Not sure about this, you'd need to check it out, but a rifle can cock on opening, or closing the bolt. If Browning has a cock-on-open bolt, which I doubt, it would account for the feel I'd think.

To check for cock on closing, do this: Close the bolt, feel the resistance. Then cycle again & pull the trigger while closing the bolt. If the bolt closing is pretty much effortless in comparison with the trigger pulled, it's almost certainly a cock-on-close system.

900F
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That's what I thought too. But I thought most bolt rifles were this way.
 
Between the two, the caliber doesn't matter, they will essentially do the same thing.

My choice for the rifle would be the Sako, or even look at the Tikka T3 made by Sako. Both are nice rifles.
 
Years ago I parked my auto loaders for a very accurate sporterized 1903 Springfield in 06 of course. I used it for deer hunting for 15 yrs. Now my deer rifle is a Ruger 77 syn/stainless in 06. It is camo painted and dead accurate. I keep an old 742 handy during deer season for my "truck gun". It has see through mounts like most do(in case the scope goes bad). Most are '06s(wonder where my handle comes from) but I did secumb to an inferior round last week. Picked up a laminated 700 w/tactical scope/bipod in 51. wc
ETA: that is 7.62 X 51 (308)--someone didn't know what I meant by just 51 so wanted to clear it up, wc
 
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