Deer Rifles

[jameswilson]

It's that time of year. . . Just for fun, thought I would throw in.

Savage makes a nice bolt action, Safety is good, three position, allows bolt to be opened with safety on. Safety is tang mounted and therefore can not be flipped down like most of them by rubbing on your clothing. Additionally, it shot a 1" group at 100yd, out of the box. Get the "fancier" trigger and the pull is as good as most gun smiths can do. I know it is not a pretty gun, but then you do not have to worry about using it in brush.

My 14 year old almost shot his foot because of a side mounted flag safety (Remington, Mauser, Sakko, Tikka) the safety snagged and flipped down while he was removing the rifle from his shoulder. (we walk most of the day, and the rifle stays on the shoulder sling unless a deer is sighted).

As for calibur, I have never had to chase a deer using 220 grain round nose from a 30-06, but have chased deer when hit with a 150 grain 308. Might be over kill, but sure beats tracking all day.

Good luck with your hunt.

 

[El Toro]

I love the Remington 700s, and I've got a bunch of them. I've got a full range of calibers from .220 Swift out to .458 Lott. Actually, I guess in the Lott, I've got a CZ. But I do have a Win Mag in that caliber that's based on the Remington 700, as well as a 416. Anyone want to hunt "BIG" game?

Full set of tools too... Most of mine have aftermarket triggers, and other mods to reduce lock time and get things to be more uniform. The Remington 700 is the best modern rifle for anyone who wants to do their own gunsmithing in my opinion.

If I wanted a single caliber for deer, in short range stuff, I'd be looking at a .270 Winchester. If I were looking at long range stuff, I'd go for the .300 Remington Ultra Mag. If I could only have one, it would be the .300 RUM. That's got to be one of the nicest rounds for handloading. It can be extremely accurate, and power levels can be very varied per your hand load. Plus there are so many bullet choices.

 

[Joe2Lmaker]

As for calibur, I have never had to chase a deer using 220 grain round nose from a 30-06,

Yikes! Can you say Howitzer?

 

[jekirby]

.308 would be a fun calibur to have. In the right rifle it would be a decent f class shooter. I don't hunt deer but 6mm remington is what I shoot and would use it for deer with a heavier bullet.

 

[Fubar]

45/70 is the fun caliber. But they are all good. Use a 300WM for Elk and Moose, and 243 for deer, 45/70 will work on all of them.

 

[El Toro]

45/70 is the fun caliber. But they are all good. Use a 300WM for Elk and Moose, and 243 for deer, 45/70 will work on all of them.

I have a Remington Rollingblock .45-70 knockoff, complete with bayonette.

When Remington came out with this cartridge, it was an incredibly powerful round, and many foreign governments made orders for their militaries. The Danes made a huge initial order, and then copied the rifle in the interest of national security (home sourcing). Eventually they also changed the round to a metric equivalent, but in the initial copying, the rifles continued to be chambered for the .45-70. I think the date on it is around 1876.

Mine has open iron sights with a ladder that looks like its set up so that you could go to Long Island and shoot at 1000 yards in international competition.

I've never shot it for groups beyond 100 yards, but at 100 yards, with the open iron sights, it will put 5 rounds into a 2" circle, and at 50 yards it will tear one large hole. The gun came sighted in for about 300 meters, and I have no doubt that it could easily hit a man's torso reliably at that distance. I used to ring the gong at 300 yards without any trouble at all with this rifle and hand loads.

I always thought I would like to take a wild hog with it, but I never had a shot on one when carrying the rifle. My buddies used to joke about how if I missed I could mount the bayonette and take the hog in a charge.

 

[Auburn]

Well, I am indeed a cheap bastard. A friend of ours let my son borrow a Winchester Model 94 30/30, so I've put off the rifle purchase until the off-season.

The first rifle I bought was a Winchester model 94 30-30 for $88 brand new in 1974. Taken many black tail deer with it. I still have the rifle. The only thing I did was put a military stlye sling on it, made it easier to steady when shooting off hand and to keep the hands free when getting through thick brush. Does quite a number on grouse and coyotes.

For elk, I have my grandfathers rifle. A Remington .358 with a Weaver quick scope Model R-1 (put the orange dot on it and squeeze, will kill at 200 yds very nicely) He probably took 50 or more elk with it including his last year when he was 96. He did send it back to Remington when he bought it and had them shorten the barrel. The rifle is lighter than my 30-30, but packs one hell of a wallup.

My suggestion is get the 30-30 for the kid. IT forces them to learn how to shoot and get in close. Keep it open sights, which keeps simple for him.