Is a super magnum really needed????

Head_Hunter123

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As some of you know i started a post in another section about the .308 warbird. And i have been browsing magazines and internet articles, and some of those say the super magnums are not needed. like for example i want a gun that con consistantly hit silhouette targets at ranges of 500 to 600 yards. i can hit them with my .270 and 30-.06 but the drop is pretty bad at those ranges. Are there smaller cartridges such as the 6mm-06 that will perform just as good at long distances?
 
Just my opinion.- paper punching or silouette shooting?? not really.- just look for one that gives you the ghighest BC bullet with mnoderate power , although it will have to be enough to drop the metal target. Many use a 6 cal. cartridge to shoot at 600 yds.

For hunting: not necessary for short ranges,. start trying kills on big game at LR and in my opinon you NEED a "magnum", a powerful cartridge that allows you to send a high BC projectile with enough energy to drop your intended animal.-

Of course noone needs an ultra mag to kill deer at 200 yds.-
 
Is a super magnum really needed????

I want to get one of the magnums but, I am just weary because of barrel life and recoil, so i was think maybe a 6mm-.06 or a .22-250 or a 25.-.06 but the 6mm is suposed to have a short barrel life, and i shoot alot and dont want to have to change barrels all the time.and having a caliber that is easy to load for would definatly be a plus.
 
6.5/284 would ge a good one. It's real popular in 1000 yard light guns at the moment. If your not killing things there is not much need for a larger bullet and all the negetives associated with it. The 6BR would not be totally out of the question depending on how much wind drift you are willing to deal with to extend barrel life.
 
Barrel life is not realy depending so much on the caliber size as much as it does with the "over bore capacity" and how the gun is cared for , you can gte longer barrel life from a 300 RUM thats cared for properly and not shot so hot it'll brand cattle than youwould with a 243 thats used on a big praire dog shoot , where the shooting is alot and the cleaning is not!!
What exactly are you wanting this round to do? Kill animals at 600yds or just punch paper or knock over steel? A hot 6mm will get you out to 1000yds on paper with good bullets and decient barrel life if it cared for , if game is in the mix the 6mm may be on the light side depending on what your shooting. I'm curen't being converted to the moderate power 6.5 cals having just recieved my new 260 , the balistics are better that alot of rounds , recoil is mild and barrel life should be good. I'm planning to shoot paper and maybe varmints to 1000yds with it and deer to 600yds.
The 260 , 6.5-284 , 6.5-06 would be good choices and give you barrel life in the 1500-2000 range if cared for.
Unless your going to try to dump and elk at 700-1000yds I personaly don't see the "need" for a super magnum , if you hunt deer in the thickets of Main where the longest shot might be 100yds and you "want" a super magnum then thats all the need that you realy need isin't it?

So what exactly is it that you going to be asking this round to do for you?
 
paper punching dosen't need a big magnum. Critter killing does past 600 yards. I would use a 308, 7mm-08, 6.5x284 ect for up to 500-600 yards on deer etc. Elk or bigger need a magnum. It can be done with smaller calibers but Elk can soak up alot of lead and keep on going. I have seen them take 3 or 4 338win mags before giving up the ghost and 6-7 300win before giving up. these were all front vital shots not gut shot etc. It just depends on the animal. by the way these were two different incedents. most aren't that tough though.
 
Check this out:

rolandsbuck.jpg


With the right bullet and the right placement, even the lowly 270 can kill around a half mile.

A friend of mine used a 6br to kill an antelope at 535 yards this year.

For elk, you must use something a little bigger but it doen't have to be huge. The 7mm mag works very well.
 
GG ,

That 756 yd muley picture put a smile on my face.
I bought a 270 adl w/a hs stock way cheap ,ordered some nosler brass and 140gr accubonds.
 
Then think about JDJones suggestion.,- a moderate 6,5 would be the way to go. More barrel life_: get a 260 rem or a 6,5 x 55 swede.- more power: step up to a 6,5-284 or a 6,5-06. For sure this two will, under the same conditions, have better barrel life than a 6 cal, the bullets have a better BC, and more power overall for hunting than a similar 6 cal.
 
There is nothing wrong with the guns you have and you should just reload the cases with the right bullets and then get a lot of practice.

You are going to spend a lot of money on a "practice gun" when you already have two.
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
As some of you know i started a post in another section about the .308 warbird. And i have been browsing magazines and internet articles, and some of those say the super magnums are not needed. like for example i want a gun that con consistantly hit silhouette targets at ranges of 500 to 600 yards. i can hit them with my .270 and 30-.06 but the drop is pretty bad at those ranges. Are there smaller cartridges such as the 6mm-06 that will perform just as good at long distances?

[/ QUOTE ]

This is a fairly broad subject. Different hunting areas and styles dictate the use of more or less power to get the job done. I for one don't just want to hit the Silhouette targets, I want to bowl them over like bowling pins.

I have several hunting areas and have them all set up for longer range shooting. Specifically, 400 to 978 yards. I do this to keep the animals away from me to minimize the effect of scent when the wind is blowing from several directions while I am hunting. My shooting lanes are all planted foodplots and they are long, but, they are narrow. About 25 feet wide. So, I want a hammer that will be lights out without any of them leaving the food plots. On the chance that I would get a bad shot, at least I will know if they were hit.

If you have ever seen a deer get hit by a bullet from one of the cartridges like a 338 Lapua, you would understand why it is one of the popular ones for LR hunting. Finally, no one wants to shoot an animal and then have to spend all day tracking it and looking for it. All that scent in the area ruins it for the next day. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

James
 
Keep

This is what you said you wanted "i want a gun that con consistantly hit silhouette targets at ranges of 500 to 600 yards."

You old 270 is perfect for that. Shoot it until you burn the barrel out and then get the action trued and a fancy barrel and fancy scope
 
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