Olympus
Member
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2008
- Messages
- 4,212
Guys, I"m thinking about filling a spot in my deer rifle collection now that I have a few dollars to spare. Some may already know, but I've always been recoil-averse. I mean growing up, went all the way up the spectrum and had 300 mags and 7mm mags. As I've gotten older, I realized I never enjoyed shooting those guns and I actually dreaded shooting them. My groups were always "that's good enough" type of thing. So over the last few years, I've sold all my larger caliber rifles to now, the biggest caliber rifle I own is a 243. That's really my favorite caliber for deer hunting. It seems to be the sweet spot for me in terms of recoil management, shootability, accuracy, and I can spend more time at the range because I actually enjoy shooting the rifle. I've actually got two rifles in 243 and one in 6.8SPC. That's pretty much the extent of my deer rifle collection right now. So I'm thinking about adding another rifle to the collection and maybe possibly going up a caliber size from the 243, for "just in case" type of thing where a 243 might not be enough gun. 243 will probably still be my "go-to" caliber for deer hunting, but I think having a caliber that's slightly larger in the collection might be a good idea. And I also reload/handload, so I could always download the larger caliber if I found a rifle I really liked and wanted to hunt with more frequently.
Right now I've been looking at the Mossberg Patriot walnut stock in 7mm-08. It's not too expensive, would make a good woods rifle, still has pretty classy looks, and 7mm-08 would be an easy caliber to reload for. They also make the Patriot walnut in 6.5 Creedmoor. And I'm not opposed to that round either, but from what I read, practical difference between the 6.5 Creed and 7mm-08 are practically non-existent at ranges under 400 yards, which is WAY longer than I'd even be able to shoot. So I'm not sure that the 6.5 Creed gets me anything PRACTICALLY speaking over the 7mm-08. 7mm-08 would be easy to reload for, plenty of inexpnsive brass, and plenty of 7mm bullets to choose from. But if the 6.5 Creed has noticeably less recoil than 7mm-08, then I might could be swayed toward that caliber. If all things being relatively equal in terms of ballistics, I almost certainly choose the caliber with less recoil. Anyway, I'd appreciate your thoughts and opipions on this matter. Thanks!
Right now I've been looking at the Mossberg Patriot walnut stock in 7mm-08. It's not too expensive, would make a good woods rifle, still has pretty classy looks, and 7mm-08 would be an easy caliber to reload for. They also make the Patriot walnut in 6.5 Creedmoor. And I'm not opposed to that round either, but from what I read, practical difference between the 6.5 Creed and 7mm-08 are practically non-existent at ranges under 400 yards, which is WAY longer than I'd even be able to shoot. So I'm not sure that the 6.5 Creed gets me anything PRACTICALLY speaking over the 7mm-08. 7mm-08 would be easy to reload for, plenty of inexpnsive brass, and plenty of 7mm bullets to choose from. But if the 6.5 Creed has noticeably less recoil than 7mm-08, then I might could be swayed toward that caliber. If all things being relatively equal in terms of ballistics, I almost certainly choose the caliber with less recoil. Anyway, I'd appreciate your thoughts and opipions on this matter. Thanks!