North America Big Game Rifle

[Grey Morel]

Good Lord, I remember the days when 300 WM was over gunned; now it's getting the minimum specs? Seriously. .375 for whitetail, really?? Maybe I'm one of the last believers in shot placement.

There are light weight 275gr polymer tip bullets for .375 now. They are intended for thin skinned game, and with a moderate charge make a great cervid round.

Nobody here is suggesting blasting a 100lb whitetail with a 400gr solid and a max pressure 375H&H.

 

[BrocLuno]

Back in the day, I worked for NOAA and for a while was involved in coastal mapping in SE Alaska. We'd get dropped by boat or chopper on some remote beach with our gear and do our work for two or three days, then get pulled out. Usually a three man crew with a fourth for bear watch. Always equipped with binoc's, radio and an 06. Never heard a story of, or got involved with, a lost person due to being under gunned

 

[MrOldLude]

.50 bmg.

 

[Captcurt]

I wouldn't feel undergunned with a 30-06, I'm already covered by my 300WSM.

 

[JShirley]

7mm Remington Magnum
.30-06
.300 Winchester Magnum
.338 Winchester Magnum
.35 Whelen
.45-70

7mm and .30-06 will be a little light for big bears at close range. .338 will be a little heavy for deer.

With proper load selection, .35 Whelen and .45-70 will be like the baby bear's porridge, just right. I wouldn't want to take any really long shots with the big .45, though.

Honestly, you'd do better admitting two rounds made more sense, and going 7mm Rem Mag and .45-70.

John

 

[KodiakBeer]

I love the .45/70, but this is supposed to be all North American big game - you going to hunt pronghorns or mountain goats with a .45/70?

 

[JShirley]

Thus my suggestion for the flat-shooting smaller bore and the .45-70...the big boomer can actually kill just fine at distance, but figuring the drop is a bit challenging!

 

[blitzen]

Other than just something to talk about, why would you even think about such stuff. I for one, don't use a 4ft level to pound nails and I would feel equally silly hunting whitetail with my .375 H&H. Get yourself a .260, .30-06 or whatever you like for hunting big game in general and by the time you come up with the $10.000 plus for a (mandatory guided) brown/grizzly bear hunt (in Alaska) the cost of a .375 will not seem like much. Moral of the story, use the proper tool for the job at hand.

 

[Blue Line]

#1 - 338 WM = great round
#2 - 300 WM = very versatile, light loads to brown bear loads

 

[crslght]

Thanks to all for their thought provoking comments. Just to clarify, I'm not trying to limit myself to just one weapon. I currently have 24 different rifles and shotguns in various calibers including a .50 muzzle loader, 44-40, .243, 7.62x54, 30-30, 6mm, 7mm REM MAG and a .375 WBY caliber Remington Model 1917. What prompted my question is I no longer have enough room in my gun safe to accommodate everything and am thinking of reducing the inventory. Consequently, have to decide what to sell and what to keep along with a possible versatile replacement for those I would sell.

Again, thanks for everyone's comments. Greatly appreciated.

 

[SpeedAKL]

I'd get a .300WM, .300 Weatherby, or .338WM and a nice recoil pad.

 

[JShirley]

Um, well, you can cover everything with the 6mm, 7mm Rem Mag, and the .375 WBY.

Just as FWIW, it's hard to think of a better Alaskan big/dangerous game cartridge and rifle combo than a rust-proofed 1917 chambered in .357 Weatherby. I don't have the money now, but let me know if you decide to let it go in the future.

John

 

[d2wing]

In the news a few days ago, a hiker killed an attacking grizzly with a .45 acp. Our forefathers almost wiped out grizzlies, buffalo and all other big game with black powder cartridges. I'd feel plenty well armed with an '06. There are also stories of real he men hunting in the 1800's with just a knife. More sporting that way. .338 mag? Any men left out there?

 

[Marlin 45 carbine]

don't care for 12ga rifled slug and buckshot for closer in do you?

 

[NWCP]

I don't subscribe to the one size fits all line of thought. If I had to pick and choose from my gun safe for large game only it would have to be my .308 and .338 Win Mag.

 

[CraigC]

Why? It would be rather silly to hunt whitetail deer with a rifle capable of cleanly taking brown bears. If you can afford to hunt the big bears, you can certainly afford a second or third rifle that's appropriate to the task.

What prompted my question is I no longer have enough room in my gun safe to accommodate everything and am thinking of reducing the inventory.

Buy a bigger safe or simply keep your boltguns in hardcases but lock the bolts in your safe.

 

[Jonny V]

There is no game animal in the Western Hemisphere of the planet Earth which justifies the use of a 375 Weatherby. Any animal on this continent (all of it) can be cleanly and quickly killed with a 270 (some say a 243, it IS the most popular polar bear round.......).

You can easily spot an idiot at your local rifle range. He's the one with the 300 magnum (or bigger) in his hand. He's also the one who's lucky to get 5 shots all on one single 14" x 14" standard size NRA target at 50 yards.:banghead:

There are really only three choices here. There is the 30-06 (probably the favorite), the 45/70 (very, very, very, very close, maybe tied) and then the 270 (darkhorse). For North American game, the magnums serve the purpose of getting numbskulls to waste huge amounts of powder on shots they don't have the skill to make in the first place.

A magnum is like a 50 year old man with a huge-tired 4x4 or a Dodge Viper. It's his compensation for the fact that he's "smaller in other ways". With a big gun in his hand, he tries to imagine what it would be like to BE more manly......

 

[JShirley]

Like I said, if you decide in the future to sell the .375, I might be interested. I believe I have a better idea of my potential firearm needs than random anonymous intarweb folk who want to talk about my genitalia...

Johnny V, it's interesting that you especially mention the .300 WM. It was Gale McMillan's favorite round.

John

 

[Eb1]

I love my .25-06. I would take it anywhere. Probably isn't the best choice, but I can shoot it well, and have great confidence in it.
I also love my .303 British Lee Enfield. I would shot anything with it as well, and would not think twice about it. We are not talking snap shot SD bear hunting right? We are talking setup, scout, and shoot type hunting.
Either of those out of my cabinet would do me fine for anything in the 50 States if I had time to prep my shot.

But with that said. I think the .30-06 is probably the best all around cartridge for anyone to handle.

 

[db_tanker]

some of the replies on this subject are great.


you know opinions and all that.


I think Col. Townsend Whelen and some of his admirers had the right idea.


For someone who doesn't reload...I would suggest a 30-06. Almost as much variety as a 308 or a 300 WM. A bit more power but a bit less availability would be the 35 Whelen.

Wildcat round that I wouldn't mind messing around with would be a 375 Whelen...

and here is the great part...all you need is a nice Thompson Encore rifle OR a Savage 111 GCNS chambered in 30-06. Then get yourself the tools necessary to swap out to the other two calibers. Easy in the Encore, harder in the Savage. All are based on the 30-06, and most will, I am sure, use similar powders...something like H414 or 4895. So reloading would not be too much of an issue...

You know...now that I think about it...I have an old Stevens 200 in 270 sitting in a corner waiting for that "next project"...

 

[blackops]

I'd like to say 30-06 until Bear and Moose is brought into the equation. Then I say 338 win mag.

 

[CraigC]

I would honestly consider a good .375H&H to be a better all-purpose round than any of the high intensity small bores. Big and heavy bullets tend to punch right through with much less bloodshot meat. It's not really as menacing as it sounds.

 

[ms6852]

450 marlin, or 45-70, or 30-06.

 

[jmr40]

I'm not a big fan of the 300 mags. They are either too much, or not enough. They are just too much gun for 90% of the shooting we do. For the really big bears they are not enough. Shooting the same bullet as a 30-06 just a bit faster does not impress big animals. Big animals require big bullets.

The 300's are at their best for long range work on medium sized animals, but even here the 7mm mags shoot flatter. And while the 300's have more energy at closer ranges, at 400 yards and beyond a 160 gr 7mm Rem mag will not only shoot flatter, but will have more energy than a 180 gr 300 Win mag.

It comes down to 338 caliber for only 1 rifle for everything in NA. I still like the 338-06, but it is a hand load proposition where the 338 win mag is easily purchased. The 338 Federal is just a bit too light in my opinion. The new 338 Ruger Compact Magnum deserves a look.

There are some very aerodynamic 338 bullets out there and they really hold up much better at long range than most folks realize. The 338-06 trajectory is very much like the 308 while the 338 Win mag is very much like the 30-06.

With lighter 185-200 grain bullets they are not too much for deer. The option of 250 grain or heavier bullets are there for the really big stuff.

Did I mention I really like the 338-06. At ranges inside 200 yards there is not an animal on the planet that will notice the difference between it and the 338 mag. While it does not shoot as flat as the 300 and 7mm magnums, it still shoots flat enough to be a 400 yard elk rifle with over 2000 ft. lbs of energy out there.

The 338-06 has another advantage over any of the mangum rounds, magazine capacity. The magnums are 3+1. The 338-06 is 5+1. Sometimes big animals just don't want to die even with good hits from big rounds. 2 more rounds might prove more useful than a little more energy.

 

[ssmlr3]

Big bores

Several things else to consider. Cost of ammo relative how much you plan on shooting it. Bigger the bore it will take more time to get familar with so you dont flinch. Is it fun to shoot. I love to shoot my 338 win mag but ammo cost high. Love my 270 but it recoils more than my new 338 federal in a semi auto platform. Remember it is not the size of bullet but the shot placement. There is a 80 or so year old lady in Alaska who has killed alot of Grizzelies with a 22. Alot of people have killed elephants wtih a 6.5x55. Are these ideal NO. Be realistic can you shoot and HIT a 6 to 8 inch target at 800 yards every time. If not then to you need a conon to shoot at a 100 to 300 yards at the animal you are hunting? Good Luck. I love big bullets though