Best short action cartridge for long range

[benchracer]

Originally Posted by ishootkittens

*facepalm*

Please tell me how you can kill something TOO dead. I admire him for wanting to drop them where they stand. NO pain to the animal and no chase for the hunter. I hunt coyotes with a .30cal too because I dont use the pelt, but I do have respect enough not to shoot them with a .22lr and watch them roll around for 5 minutes before they run off and slowly bleed out. With my .30 cal.. He never blinks before he hits the ground. If its not overkill... its underachievement!

Btw.. the reason I didnt recommend a .50bmg is that he wanted a short action...

I've got to hand it to you, that last bit is a pretty witty comeback! Given what the OP has since stated about what he is looking for, I have to say I stand corrected!

Look, I killed my first whitetail @ 12 yards with a 375 H&H. It worked beautifully. I had my own reasons for using it, but no way would I try to tell someone that it is the best choice for whitetail. At that distance, I could have killed that deer with a brick just as cleanly.

I am not one to harp on overkill. But, when someone asks for advice, I try to match that advice to the requirments given by the person asking, not my personal favorites.

In general, I consider it to be malpractice of sorts to advise someone to put up with more weight or recoil than they have to in getting the job done. That is the very simple concept of matching one's tool choice to the intended application. I consider pleasantness of use to be far more important than paper ballistics alone. Given what the OP has since stated, a 7mm or 30 caliber magnum does indeed look like an excellent choice.

Is there such a thing as needlessly powerful? Absolutely. The assertion to the contrary is still an absurd assertion. If that were not true, we would all be shooting one rifle in the same chambering for every conceivable purpose. Since that is not the case, I stand by the idea that there is such a thing as an appropriate tool for any given application. You can err on the side of excess if you wish, but not without compromising another aspect.

So yes, Outlaw 6.0, the answer I gave was an opinion that is both useful and carefully considered, whether you think so or not.

[roninflag]

JP- i knew you were not talking about the" diminutive coues" bench was mentioned. i doubt he has hunted coues. the remington sendero was offered in 7rsum briefly . i had one. also you could build one off your action easliy. a build takes time. the 264wm and 7mm mag ( offered in the long action sendero ) would be good choices. using lighter bullets like the 123 scenar in the .264; or a 120 balitic tip or 140 berger in the 7mm ; they would do what you want without the build time.

[Greyfox]

Im very interested in this thread since i hsve a couple of short sctions thst may soon be ready for a rebarrel.. But every time I take my 308 Milpec out and smack orange size targets out at 700-800 yards with absolute consistency, I defer the question. Has anyone done this with a 300 WSM on a Rem 700 action with the COAL needed to handle the heavier VLD's and feed well. If so can a good smith be recommended to do this work,?

[Dirtrock]

243wssm, I have taken it deer hunting the last 3 years here in Nevada. Fired it 3 times. 3 deer down. They never new what hit them! Closest was 130yards, farthest was 340 yards.

[ishootkittens]

*scratches head* do u really think the .243 stands up to the 6.5, 7mm and 30 cals at long range?

[limige]

6.5 creedmoor and 140 gr Vld's. Be all the gun you'll need, excellent barrel life designed for short action and made to load long or short to tune the load without having problems with magazine length.

[roninflag]

Originally Posted by ishootkittens

*scratches head* do u really think the .243 stands up to the 6.5, 7mm and 30 cals at long range?

i am not sure it has to. -the OP said up to 400 yards. a 243 will do it. i have done it. 17 of 26 deer i have killed were with 243. most in az use something with more power for coues because they are shot even futher than 400 often . in f-class out to 1000 yards even the 6mmbr fairs pretty good. the extra 150fps of wssm over a standard 243, i am sure it will do it if you can get the accuracy needed.