What is the largest caliber factory round for hunting???

[atlanticfire]

yeah yeah, 50 bmg, 700 NE and all that. But most common largest category I would say the .460 weatherby.

 

[proven]

just reading this almost induces flinch.

 

[krisb007]

Wow, talk about opening a can of worms!
I guess we will just define it as everday hunting (big game but not quite as big as a tank), and a caliber you can find in most mom and pop hunting stores. This still might be a little bit too vauge for the amount of knowledge that is on this site.

 

[gvnwst]

mom and pop hunting stores....might be the .338 win mag. Some might carry the .458 win mag or the .460wby mag, as prevoiusly stated. Really in bullet diameter, it is the 12ga slug. But that doesn't really count.

 

[ShadyScott999]

I would guess the most commonly available would be the 505 Gibbs

 

[MikeHaas]

You can tell folks are having fun with this thread because of the different directions everyone is going in. So I thought I'd throw this into the mix - the 8 largest diameter shoulder-fire rounds on AmmoGuide...


- 14.5x114mm Russian KPV - http://ammoguide.com/?catid=477
- .600 H&H Nitro Express - http://ammoguide.com/?catid=27
- .666 Teufel - http://ammoguide.com/?catid=686
- .700 H&H Nitro Express - http://ammoguide.com/?catid=17
- .700 Hubel Express (3.25") - http://ammoguide.com/?catid=612
- .700 Hubel Express - http://ammoguide.com/?catid=611
- 12 Gauge From Hell - http://ammoguide.com/?catid=613
- S&H 2-Bore Blackpowder Express - http://ammoguide.com/?catid=489

CLICK HERE to compare these rounds ballistically

 

[ShadyScott999]

I have been to 12 gunshops and a gun show since I first posted to this thread. This was split between two states, South Carolina & Indiana. I have reached the conclusion that the largest COMMONLY available factory round is the Win 338 Mag. I found it in 11 of 12 shops. I found 460 Whby in one and 505 Gibbs in one.

So lets all hope we aren't invaded by cape buffalo in the US

 

[JWF III]

I got to ask where are we talking about. The term common depends on where you are standing.

If you are in a southeastern (US) deer camp, not much over the .30-06 would qualify as "common". But if you're in a village in Tansania, not much under the .458 Win Mag would be considered a "common" hunting cartridge.

So generally speaking of common, as in made in a production gun (no matter how much it costs, or how few are made) I'd have to give my vote to the .577 T-Rex. It's in a production bolt gun, not a custom or semi-custom SxS. (The .700 NE has a good argument against this.) It has a larger "caliber" than the .50 BMG. Also I've never seen the .50 BMG loaded (from a factory) with a "hunting" style bullet. (I could be wrong on this point.) But the Hornady A-Max is not a hunting bullet, joust like the Sierra MatchKing is not a hunting bullet. But the .577 T-Rex and the .700 NE are both available from Midway USA, as well as others.

Since you did say caliber and it has to be a common hunting caliber I'd say .54(muzzle stuffer).

The OP did specify "factory round". So since you can't buy (AFAIK) preloaded factory "rounds" for a muzzleloader, I'd have to disqualify the .54. But then again, I'm not the OP, so it's not my thread to disqualify any answer.

Wyman