what's your brush gun

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troy fairweather

troy fairweather

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Like to see your brush guns. Mine for a long time is a 1977 marlin 336 in 35 rem. But this year I'd like to take out my old navy arms siamese mauser in 45/70. My dad got this fore me when We went on a Russian boar hunt. He shot a bison to. I have shot some deer with this but don't use it much. It is very accurate I have stacked holes at 100 before. And it seems to shoot anything good 250 - 520 copper lion bullets. The gun Moves good in the brush with its 22 inch bbl we put remington sights they work real good on this gun. I use imr 3031 most of the time. 350 to 405 the most. so show you're brush guns add what ammo or load u use any any pics are cool.
 

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This is a question that can never be solved but can be debated forever.
I used to think a 44 mag lever action until I was shooting at a local strip mine pond & shot
a brush trunk about 2 inches thick from about 20 yards away, the bullet hit the trunk on the
side I guess & the bullet was deflected left about 15 feet & struck the water only 10 yards
behind the bush.
We went back there the following day with an arsenal of calibers, but didn't get to shoot
them all for the rain. But the 30.06 did best with a couple of deflections but most plowed
right thru.
Now I know this will cause argument but the large diameter bullets deflected the most
of all.
Now my brush gun is a 12 gauge with double out-aut-auot = 12 pellets.
Or a 30-06
Wish some reliable ,but not mfg dependent person would post a real honest test undeniable
test & not use a 6.5 creedmore or 30 blackout which would show the test was a mfg sponsored.
Perfect for Hickok45 to do a vid of this.
 
Last edited:
Ruger Predator, 308. It is just as effective at 400 as 40 yards. It is about the same overall length as my 30-30 and 35 lever action rifles and even with the scope on it is lighter than the lever actions with no scope. If I need quick repeat shots I can shoot it dry in about 3 seconds.

I have several loads that I use in this and 3 other 308 rifles ranging from 130 gr Barnes TTSX's at 3050 fps up to 178 gr Hornady ELD-X bullets at 2600 fps over Varget powder. They all shoot close enough to the same POI at 100 to not worry.

predator 002.jpg
 
ACES&8S said:
This is a question that can never be solved but can be debated forever.
I used to think a 44 mag lever action until I was shooting at a local strip mine pond & shot
a brush trunk about 2 inches thick from about 20 yards away, the bullet hit the trunk on the
side I guess & the bullet was deflected left about 15 feet & struck the water only 10 yards
behind the bush.
We went back there the following day with an arsenal of calibers, but didn't get to shoot
them all for the rain. But the 30.06 did best with a couple of deflections but most plowed
right thru.
Now I know this will cause argument but the large diameter bullets deflected the most
of all.
Now my brush gun is a 12 gauge with double out-aut-auot = 12 pellets.
Or a 30-06
Wish some reliable but not mfg dependent person would post a real honest test undeniable
test & not use a 6.5 creedmore or 30 blackout which would show the test was a mfg sponsored.
Perfect for Hickok45 to do a vid of this.
Click to expand...
there seems to be 2 definition of brush guns one they should be handy. and two they have to not deflect much. some guys say why would u even shoot in to brush like that then some just like to have a little help if they hit a twig they did not see. i have had good luck with 35 Remington and 45/70. i think the slow moving bullets do best from what i have seen. thanks for your reply
 
jmr40 said:
Ruger Predator, 308. It is just as effective at 400 as 40 yards. It is about the same overall length as my 30-30 and 35 lever action rifles and even with the scope on it is lighter than the lever actions with no scope. If I need quick repeat shots I can shoot it dry in about 3 seconds.

I have several loads that I use in this and 3 other 308 rifles ranging from 130 gr Barnes TTSX's at 3050 fps up to 178 gr Hornady ELD-X bullets at 2600 fps over Varget powder. They all shoot close enough to the same POI at 100 to not worry.

View attachment 797013
Click to expand...
good chose how do u like the Barnes have shot any deer with it yet. thanks for the post.
 
Wish some reliable ,but not mfg dependent person would post a real honest test undeniable
test & not use a 6.5 creedmore or 30 blackout
Click to expand...

Been done dozens of times. They all deflect enough to miss. There is some evidence to support that RN bullets deflect SLIGHTLY less. This is because the weight is more evenly distributed along the length of the bullet. Pointed bullets are heavier in the rear and when they encounter brush are more likely to tumble as the heavier end of the bullet tries to pass the front. With more weight forward RN bullets deflect slightly less. Bullet diameter, velocity or weight seems to not matter. A RN 150 gr 270 bullet at 2900 fps seems to do as well, or as poorly, as any other RN bullet.

But even then the difference is very slight. The best brush guns are precision rifles that shoot laser flat with quality optics on them to be able to shoot through baseball size openings in brush. A traditional 30-30 class cartridge will rise and fall 2-3 " between 50 yards and 100 yards. Even if the gun is a 1 MOA rifle that arched trajectory greatly increases the odds of striking brush instead of going through openings.

My rifles when zeroed at 100 yards will never have the bullet more than 1/2" above or below line of sight between 50 and 120 yards. A quality scope lets you see those tiny openings even in poor light. And the 6.5 CM would actually be one of the better choices. But really anything, caliber simply isn't important. The key is a small compact rifle to carry through the brush or into a stand with enough accuracy to do the job.
 
I shot at a deer with a 30-30 and shot through a hole in a Mesquite tree while sitting on a stand. I was using a scope and as far as I could see I had a clear shot. The deer was walking away from about 35 yards out and at the shot just walked a few more steps and was lost in the brush. The deer never flinched or showed any signs of being hit. But I did see a big divet of dirt fly up beside the deer.

I don't mind telling you I was baffled. How could I have missed at such a short range? I spent the next hour looking for blood or better yet a dead deer. I never found either. I went back the next day to see if the soaring deer finders(buzzards) had found the deer. Nope none in the sky. So I crawled back up in the deer stand and looked over where I made my shot. And then I saw it. I limb cut off and caught in the Mesquite tree.

So I got the limb that had been shot clean in half and concluded that my "brush busting" 30-30 had been deflected by a limb just a little smaller than my little finger. I didn't see the limb fall because it was caught in the tree. The scope made the limb disappear from view. I don't not the name of that optic feat but I know it works. My BIL showed me pictures taken at the Zoo through a chain link fence but the focus on the distant target made the fence just vanish from the photo.

So to me a brush gun is a short handy, lightweight rifle that doesn't snag on trees when carried on my shoulder and I walk under them. And thats it. If a gun is so long you can't swing it in the brush then the woods are so wooley that I doubt you will ever see or get close enough to a deer to take a shot at it.

So my Brush Gun is whatever I happen to feel like hunting with. And I aint picky.:evil:
 
In this order:

Ruger Super Redhawk Toklat 454Casull with Trijicon RMR in a Jpoint mount
Ruger Super Blackhawk 44mag with Simmons Prohunter 2-6x
Home brew 10.5" AR-15 in 6.8 SPC with a SiCo Omega out front with a Sig Tango4 4-16x44mm
Marlin 1895 Stainless Guide Gun 45-70 with a Nikon 4.5-14x40mm
 
Mine used to be a chopped X54r M44 carbine with "mojo" ghost ring sights. Then I acquired a sporterized (Bannerman?) M1903 Mannlicher Schoenaur in 6.5x54. Man was that a sweet little carbine with 160 rn cruise missiles and safari style leaf sights. Unfortunately my BIL absolutely fell in love with it and I had to trade it to him for some outboard motor work he did for me. Now I'm back to the M44. It does fine work with the 174 Hornady RN, just not nearly as refined or classy as the MS. I'm also not a big believer in the old wive's tale of RN slow bullet vs brush deflection. I am however, a big believer in a high sectional density bullet with a blunt frontal area at moderate velocity on tough shot angles which I tend to encounter in heavy cover.
 
troy fairweather said:
Like to see your brush guns. Mine for a long time is a 1977 marlin 336 in 35 rem. But this year I'd like to take out my old navy arms siamese mauser in 45/70. My dad got this fore me when We went on a Russian boar hunt. He shot a bison to. I have shot some deer with this but don't use it much. It is very accurate I have stacked holes at 100 before. And it seems to shoot anything good 250 - 520 copper lion bullets. The gun Moves good in the brush with its 22 inch bbl we put remington sights they work real good on this gun. I use imr 3031 most of the time. 350 to 405 the most. so show you're brush guns add what ammo or load u use any any pics are cool.
Click to expand...

Ya know, I've always really wanted one of those for some reason, hard to justify another big bore build right now tho lol.
 
its
LoonWulf said:
Ya know, I've always really wanted one of those for some reason, hard to justify another big bore build right now tho lol.
Click to expand...
a fun gun. when we used to go to the range many people loved it. wish i had a nother action id like to do a 35-348 ackley or like the 6mm or 25 ackley krag.
 
Brush guns are more about quick sights than anything else from my experience. That means a big field of view that’s easy to do rough aiming in a real hurry while still seeing the tree that you will swing across early enough not to centerpunch it. I hunt thick brush along openings. It’s where the deer run to before entering an opening so that they can check the place out if they get nervous.

So, quick sights, short range, quick handling gun with enough oomph to bust a buck. I like powerful handguns, a marlin 336 with a no-magnification very large open red dot, or my hawken rifle. If I plan to hunt open ground as well I carry my rem700 .270 with see-through rings.

My dad still hunts like I do, but no matter what he is carrying his very first father’s day gift, a a 1980 model marlin 336 with a 3x9 over see through mounts.
 
cdb1 said:
Since I dont believe in brush busting cartridges I don’t believe in or have a brush gun. I do have a Marlin 30-30 that is used for hog hunting but the reason I use it isn’t because of “brush”.
Click to expand...
Agreed. I do still have brush guns though. Simply cause of barrel length and ease of use in brush. Not because I believe the cartridge will "bust brush".
 
mokin said:
That's kinda what makes hunting a sport. This ain't golf.
Click to expand...
Golf and hunting are BOTH sports. If you can find a club that does it all, great. But selecting the right tool for the job is something a lot of us hunters do. I'll have days where I hunt whitetail in brush where the max distance is 50 yards. For that day, my model 8 35 rem (brush gun) comes along. I have days that same week where I post up on a fields edge and can reach 400 yards. That day I select a different club.
 
Mn Fats said:
Golf and hunting are BOTH sports. If you can find a club that does it all, great. But selecting the right tool for the job is something a lot of us hunters do. I'll have days where I hunt whitetail in brush where the max distance is 50 yards. For that day, my model 8 35 rem (brush gun) comes along. I have days that same week where I post up on a fields edge and can reach 400 yards. That day I select a different club.
Click to expand...
well said :thumbup:
 
Mn Fats said:
Golf and hunting are BOTH sports. If you can find a club that does it all, great. But selecting the right tool for the job is something a lot of us hunters do. I'll have days where I hunt whitetail in brush where the max distance is 50 yards. For that day, my model 8 35 rem (brush gun) comes along. I have days that same week where I post up on a fields edge and can reach 400 yards. That day I select a different club.
Click to expand...

I agree with you 100℅ on golf. It's too much like shooting. In my experience, you're more likely to have a seven iron when you need it rather than make due with a putter or wood. BTW, that's a mighty nice Remington you have there.
 
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