Rifle for moose

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Here is the truth and the .300 Win mag only gets 300 fps better ! You know the muzzle velocity of a Daisy BB gun is 300 fps right ? :) Any way a .308 Winchester 180 grain Federal Premium Nosler Partition will most certainly work well to 300 yards + . Most moose's I ever heard are shot within that. If you want a new rifle , which you will need a quality scope and mounts then the Tikka is nice. To shut up that uniformed guide I would get a bigger bore, .338 Win mag or bigger :) .
I have booked a trip to Newfoundland for moose in September. I have a .270 Savage and a 308 Savage, but the outfitter tells me both are inadequate for moose past 150 yards. He recommends 30-06, 300 win mag, or 7mm rem mag. I don't want to spend a lot, so I narrowed the gun down to Savage 110, Tikka T3x, or Howa. Which would you choose and why? I will invest in a a good scope for the rifle.
Obviously a larger bore is needed go with either the .338 fed or .35 rem! I'll not overlook the opportunity to get another rifle, based on your current selection, grab a savage in 7 mag if you really want a new rifle.
 
It always makes me smile when a guide insists on a big boomer, then gripes to his colleagues about how sports can't seem to hit anything. A good guide should be able to get you within a couple hundred yards, as others have noted.

I can't blame a guide for not wanting to have to trail a wounded critter, but I have to think that using a rifle one is familiar with beats pulling out a shiny new latest-and-loudest lightweight when the moment of truth arrives.
 
That pretty well mirrors my thoughts on the subject. Not to say a wounded moose wouldn’t be dangerous if cornered but both dad’s and mine were more or less DRT, his with a second shot, mine after just one. No 600 yard sprint or death charge, just 10 more seconds of chewing willows and a flop.


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Garandimal quoted some truth regarding both the .270 and .308, and really nailed the thought about spending the odd 1200 1500$ on ammo to develop a true skill, not that you may not already have one, shooting your current rifles. I'm not against buying a new rifle by any means, but I love being absolutely familiar with my equipment. My opinion: .308, I really like the Berger 168 hunters with RL17 @ 2750, or 4895 at a little higher rpm. I've never had anything walk away.
 
If a -06 is G2G, so is a 308win.

I'd be hesitant to pick up an -06 just cause they're so close in performance to what you already have.

This was the first thing that came to mind for me as well. I guess if you handload you can get some separation performance wise with -06, but 308 can do pretty much anything -06 can.

Caliber-wise, I'd lean 300 Win Mag just for the extra energy but 7mm wouldn't be a bad choice either.

As far as rifle brand, I own a Savage and a Howa. The Howa is definitely a more refined rifle, much smoother action. Both are more than capable of getting the job done though.
 
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Both of your present rifles will easily kill a moose with heavier for caliber bullets - moose are not Tiger tanks. I understand “his hunt, his rules” but sometimes the rules are unsubstantiated or just plain wrong. I must say that I am jealous of your hunt and I wish you a good time. Ps, you might as well go with the magnum if you must.
 
It's easy, you have a Savage 270 with a barrel nut (?). If so, just swap barrels and go hunt same rifle in 06 :)

He'll let you, you know the gun, what's to choose ... You want the 270 back, switch barrel back - duh
 
There are some outfitters that know a lot about cartridges. Phil Shoemaker immediately comes to mind, I’d take as gospel anything he said. Then again there are many many outfitters who know next to nothing about cartridges as has been alluded to. I’d get another outfitter cuz .270 and .308 are fine for moose.
 
FWIW, the vast majority of 55.000-60.000 moose downed in Finland annually are shot with .308. The caliber is so common it's almost synonymous to "moose rifle".

It's the same here in Sweden, but there are a LOT of moose taken each year in 6.5x55.
Mainly because of it's a good long range cartridge.

Have him chew on that for a while...

We shoot 80,000 moose per year nowadays, back inte early 80's we peaked at 170,000.
At that time I should guess that most of them would have been with a 6.5.

I hunt in woodland which means short distances, shortest shot was a moose at 7 m, longest shot was a roe deer at 140 but I have a friend who lives up north, his idea of hunting is hiking out in the dark and making a campfire, at dawn you might spot the moose on the horizon in your binos and then you take a nap, at lunchtime you cook up a meal and check the moose's progress.
Late afternoon he might be in range, which would be within 3-400 m. If the daylight is giving out, you put the bottom of you scope on the moose's shoulder and pull the trigger.

Then you skin and butcher with a torchlight and carry the meat out all night.
 
Late afternoon he might be in range, which would be within 3-400 m. If the daylight is giving out, you put the bottom of you scope on the moose's shoulder and pull the trigger.
6.5x55 is a relatively common moose cartridge here as well. On the other hand, the longest game shot I've taken with .308 was lasered at 365 yards. The bullet (165gr Norma Oryx) still expanded quite well and created a good .6"+, profusely bleeding wound channel. I can't say much about penetration as the bullet went through, so it may be deemed adequate.

The 18-pointer I shot last fall was taken with a .35 Whelen mainly because it was a dog-driven bush hunt, all my .308:s have high(ish) magnification scopes and I also wanted to try out my new rifle.
 
My thought is what it you get the 300WM and then decide the felt recoil is not for you ? I've unsuccessfully :( hunted moose in NH . NH Fish & Game say that 7x57, 308 and 270 are all gtg for moose. That said, this is a good excuse to buy another rifle if you want.
 
Both calibers are more than adequate for the purpose, only question, are you?
If you know your aiming points and leads for the distances you want to shoot then take either one and you're good to go.

But if you buy a new gun, will you know it as good as the old ones?
I wouldn't go on a (presumably) paid hunting trip with a new gun.
 
I killed a large Alaskan bull moose with a 30-06 and a 308 would have just fine worked too, although to be fair it was a very close shot. I think a 30-06 is the best overall one gun option for North America when you factor everything in. That said, since you have a 270 and 308 already, if you're going to upgrade to one of the other listed options I would opt for the 300 mag or 7mm mag because they offer a little more of a difference over what you already own. Strictly for moose the 300 mag would be my pick but both are totally adequate so I'd probably let your other hunting needs dictate the choice. A 7mm mag for longer range deer and elk hunting is pretty tough to beat.
 
I think a 30-06 is the best overall one gun option for North America when you factor everything in.
I agree, but not only in NA.
Harry Selby used a Remington Model 721 in 30-06 for over 50 years to hunt most everything in Africa including Cape Buffalo
 
The .308 is easily adequet for moose, but probably not worth the trouble of convincing the guide otherwise and going on the hunt with that shadow of a doubt. If something did go wrong, it would automatically be your fault for not having "enough gun", and might become a self fulfilling prophecy. If this will be a "one time" deal going for moose, I'd get the .30-06 in the Savage, and mount an optic similar to what your other Savage rifles share. Familiarity with the platform will reduce your learning curve. A 180 NP, Speer GS, Swift A frame or Norma Oryx will do the job nicely with little guesswork or experimentation needed. Put a throw away scope on it and sell after the hunt, it will be easy to move in September or October in whitetail country. If Moose or heavy Western Game will be "a thing" for you going forward, get your choice in a .300 WM or .300 WSM and learn to shoot it well. The same 180s will work, with 200s and mono-metals also in play.

As for the effectiveness of .308 on moose, I've killed 4 with the caliber, 3 with regular 180 soft points, one with 150 gr M80 Ball from a MI state police M14 (wounded on highway/head shot, would not recommend). All were good, clean kills, one at 200 yards in a clearcut. All died with a relatively short trail. The .303 British round has probably killed more Canadian moose than all other calibers combined, with slightly inferior ballistics and bullets of softer construction than those available today.
 
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6.5x55 is a relatively common moose cartridge here as well. On the other hand, the longest game shot I've taken with .308 was lasered at 365 yards. The bullet (165gr Norma Oryx) still expanded quite well and created a good .6"+, profusely bleeding wound channel. I can't say much about penetration as the bullet went through, so it may be deemed adequate.

The 18-pointer I shot last fall was taken with a .35 Whelen mainly because it was a dog-driven bush hunt, all my .308:s have high(ish) magnification scopes and I also wanted to try out my new rifle.
More than one moose has been shot in your country with the 7.62x54R also. ;)
 
Heavy and good bullets in a .270 will do anything a 30-06 will do. I’m not following the guides logic unless he is referencing a lot of the soft pointed bullets that fail before they reach vitals. If I were chasing an antlered horse I think I would probably want something more in the 35 whelen category, but of the stuff that’s readily available I would just jump right on up a whole power class to a 375 H&H. They may be recommending the small magnums simply for trajectory, biggest question is what is the extreme range for a shot. Many guides won’t let a hunter shoot past XXX range so that seems somewhat unlikely.
 
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