Semi auto for elk ?

[Dr.Rob]

I have seen Remingon 742 and a Springfield M1A in elk camp. Don't know anyone that used a BAR but some people like them. Keep your action dry lubed and the water/snow ice out of it you should be fine. My dad's Remington 760 pump gun froze up on him once, it can happen with any rifle.

 

[freakshow10mm]

You don't want to know what I really think about him.

 

[elktrout]

There is nothing wrong with using a quality, accurate semi for elk. Every hunter that I personally know uses a bolt action rifle. At the large private range where I shoot, I have only ever seen a few guys with semis getting ready for elk season. The bolt action is truly the most popular rifle in my part of the west.

However, you should go with the rifle you like and feel most confident in shooting. One other aspect to consider is that western hunting is hard on guns. You spend a lot of time walking, climbing, scrambling, sliding down or across slopes, etc. The wind blows a lot. It can be very cold or unseasonably warm. In short, your rifle gets a workout. At the end of the day, my gun looks like it has been in a battle. If your semi always works in bad conditions, especially with dirt blown into it by the wind, you are good to go. The bolt action will work, for sure.

 

[TexasRifleman]

Dunno how you feel about Chuck Hawks, but FWIW he gives the safari grade BAR Mk. II a "D+" grade for elk hunting

He does the same thing that a lot of people do, he wails about how heavy and long the BAR is.

Yet, it weighs exactly the same as a Remmy 700 bolt action, and is the same length.

Some people EXPECT the semi auto to be bulky and heavy, so it is to them. Sort of kills the idea of a 'fair' evaluation huh?

I guess I don't understand sentences like:

In summation, the Safari Grade BAR is akward to carry in the hand, on horseback, or even in a hunting vehicle. However, when the action starts it is admittedly very hard to beat.

That doesn't really make sense. Truth is the weight and length of the BAR are the same as the most popular bolt action, the Rem 700, and pretty much the same as the other bolt actions reviewed.

Rem 700 .30-06 7 3/8 lbs 42.5 inch overall length
BAR Safari 7 3/8 lbs 43 inch overall length
Wthby Vanguard 7 3/4 lbs 44.5 inch overall length (Vanguard Deluxe)


I guess Browning didn't pay enough for the review......but that's why I stopped reading gun writers

 

[browningguy]

I've used a BAR in 30-06, works just fine. I would also feel comfortable using my BAR in .270 or the HK SLB in 30-06.

 

[modwerdna]

On occasion I will get tired of wait and ambush hunting and try a bit of slow jump hunting. My Bar if my first choice. It's fast and comfortable, accurate, awesome single stage hair trigger pull, and with a Bushnell 3x9 wide angle I might as well look and think the bullet there. Heavy and awkward? What the heck is he talking about?!! If your that lame enough to complain about the weight of a bar will you complain about your day pack? or water canteen? Gosh where has hunting gone too? We are concerned if our rifle weighs a few more ounces. Want to talk about heavy, My dad loved hunting with his garrand, or his g-43 -- both weighed about 14 lbs, now that's heavy,. I know, I want to have a pencil barreled sporter bolt action in 1000 super nitro express freight train magnum launching a 700 grain bullet at 5000 fps that weighs only 6 pounds and wonder why I can't hit the broad side of a barn with it due to recoil-phobia or why they don't die with a shot square in the stomach.