Here's my dilemma ... I have the opportunity to go on a three-day sheep/pig hunt at the end of August. This will be my first hunt for anything over 10lb so I don't have any experience in caliber selection. However, according to the organizer (an experienced hunter), my Remington 700 in .300WSM is too much gun for 80lb - 120lb sheep between 200 and 350 yards. I have a .308 Win and .300 Win Mag both they're both set up for long range matches with heavy barrels so they're definitely not hunting rifles. I have a couple of Marlins in .45-70 but I don't think that they'd be a good choice for sheep at that range (please correct me if I'm wrong).
I have an Alaskan Ti in .300 WSM for deer/elk hunts in the future and wasn't planning on a sheep/pig hunt at this stage. The Lyman manual lists a 150gr bullet but that may still be too much for sheep. I feel that I should have a .30-06 in my collection, but would that be a good choice? Ballistically (and in terms of felt recoil) it seems to sit somewhere between the .308 Win and the .300 Win Mag. How about a 7mm-08 or .25-06? Here are some of my options but what would you do?
1. Work up a 150gr load for the .300 WSM and hope it's not too much.
2. Buy a .30-06 and select an appropriate load for sheep (assuming there is one).
3. Go with another caliber altogether (would most likely be a Savage Weather Warrior).
4. Use the XLR in .45-70.
In case you're wondering about the pigs, I'll be using a Marlin 1894 in .45 Colt with 250gr OT Laser-Cast bullets and 23.0gr of H110. I could use 300gr OT Laser-Cast bullets and will probably work up a load over the next month or so. The pigs are fairly close range shots between 50 and 100 yards.
Any help is MUCH appreciated
Thanks.
I have an Alaskan Ti in .300 WSM for deer/elk hunts in the future and wasn't planning on a sheep/pig hunt at this stage. The Lyman manual lists a 150gr bullet but that may still be too much for sheep. I feel that I should have a .30-06 in my collection, but would that be a good choice? Ballistically (and in terms of felt recoil) it seems to sit somewhere between the .308 Win and the .300 Win Mag. How about a 7mm-08 or .25-06? Here are some of my options but what would you do?
1. Work up a 150gr load for the .300 WSM and hope it's not too much.
2. Buy a .30-06 and select an appropriate load for sheep (assuming there is one).
3. Go with another caliber altogether (would most likely be a Savage Weather Warrior).
4. Use the XLR in .45-70.
In case you're wondering about the pigs, I'll be using a Marlin 1894 in .45 Colt with 250gr OT Laser-Cast bullets and 23.0gr of H110. I could use 300gr OT Laser-Cast bullets and will probably work up a load over the next month or so. The pigs are fairly close range shots between 50 and 100 yards.
Any help is MUCH appreciated
Thanks.
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