New gun/what caliber

[Muley73]

I am just looking for a little advice from some knowledgable resources and figured this would be a great place to start.

I have shot a 300 win mag for about 20 years now and have killed a handful of animals from 500 to 725 yards, however I have never really been a serious long range shooter.

Here are a couple questions I am hoping to get some input on.

I am looking at buying of building a gun in 6.5X284. I would mostly be hunting deer and occasionally elk. I know the .30 caliber guns would be better on elk but I am also wanting a rifle that I can also go out and shoot 100 rounds in a day without be sore. Should I be looking at a different caliber?

Also, I am looking at starting with a rifle in the 800.00-1200.00 range, minus the scope. Am I better off in trying to build a rifle for go with a Savage Longrange, or Remington Sendero?

Thanks in advance on any input.

 

[FEENIX]

You already have a proven and capable gun and the experience to go with it. If I were you I'd stay with it and perhaps install an effective muzzle brake (if it does not have one) to make the shooting experience more enjoyable. Please note that muzzle brakes are loud and the proper ear and eye protection is required.

If your looking at being able to a do a 100 shot range session, I'd go with a .308 Win ... lots of bullets and factory ammo to choose from at a very reasonable rate and the barrel life is hard to beat. Either one of your brand choices will serve you well.

Good luck!

Ed

 

[roninflag]

i have a sendero in 6.5-284. they do not come from the factory that way like a savage. it kicks more than my 7mm mag with vais. my 300 sendero is excellent , i have shot in 1000 yard matches. it has a vais also.

 

[sp6x6]

The cost of a new rifle? Or a used custom, customs are money$$. Take your 300 wn and rebarrel and brake, maybe stock also and have a good LRR. Then later buy a pratice shooter rifle

 

[Muley73]

Thanks for the input. My 300 win is 20 years old. It is an old Browning Abolt topped with a straight 6X42mm Leupold. It was a gift from my wife the first year we were married. Still not sure how the heck she came up with the cash to buy it? Anyway I have shot a lot of animals with it some out to past 700 yards. But it is not really set up to be a long range gun and I kinda want to just leave it as is for sentimental reason.

So would I be better off going with another 300 win over a 6.5???

 

[roninflag]

it does not say where you are . how often you will hunt elk. i would get a sendero in 7mm or 300 win mag.

 

[kcebcj]

Thanks for the input. My 300 win is 20 years old. It is an old Browning Abolt topped with a straight 6X42mm Leupold. It was a gift from my wife the first year we were married. Still not sure how the heck she came up with the cash to buy it? Anyway I have shot a lot of animals with it some out to past 700 yards. But it is not really set up to be a long range gun and I kinda want to just leave it as is for sentimental reason.

So would I be better off going with another 300 win over a 6.5???

Sounds like you know what's up. The 06 and 300WM are my most favorite rifles. It sounds as though you are very learned with the 300. To me it's a no brainer. Build a very accurate 300WM just the way you want it....make it look as good as your wife and shoot it for the next twenty years. Use a good local rifle smith or one of the experts here on this forum.

Good luck with your project!!

 

[diriel]

After having read your post more than once, I would honestly say Think .277 and think Berger 170 grain Hybrid EOL hunting bullets....

270 AI: hey it was never really all that popular, but with this upcoming bullet and new powders it looks pretty good!

You could wildcat the 300 Ruger Compact Magnum to 270... That actually looks pretty good on paper, and it should feed very well.

I am not a 270 nut, I am a long range shooting enthusiast.

There is also the 7mm 195 grain Berger Hybrid EOL hunting bullet, but I think that might get into enough recoil to make you stop and consider after about 60 rounds or so... looks awesome though.

I am a 6.5 NUT!! But in all honestly for a LONG range elk type hunter I have to admit it may not quite Haul-The-Mail so to speak. Now out to about 500 it is a great caliber! Maybe not for elk, but then again...it might depend on how fast you get that pill moving down range too...

Another 270 option would certainly have to be the 270 WSM. This little jewel should get things moving quite well, especially if you make it on either an Intermediate length action or a long action. I would hesitate to make it on a short action with a 170 grain bullet.

Have a good one sir,
Gary

 

[nateisw]

Have you considered a 7mm-08 as a long range deer gun, but then continuing to use your old 300 wm when you go elk hunting?

 

[MHO]

For sure stay with what you have and get a break put on. I have one on my 300 and there is zilch for recoil. Loud as hell. But you could shoot it all day.

 

[carpooler]

Hi Diriel,

I am playing with two or three ideas right now. I took a 300 RCM, and ran it through my Boer 8mm Mag. forming die. This one only puts taper into the basic 375 Ruger cases. It equals the taper in the 8 x 68 S Schulers and the 458 American. My goal is to end up with a 1.75" long case in 270. It will look a lot like the old 6.5mm x 50 R Japanese. It will be fitted into a Black Hole magnum lefty upper. I think I'll use the banana magazine used in the AK adaption. With solid gilding metal bullets, and a slow twist, I can make it sing. With a quick twist, the bullets will have to be seated pretty deep, and that will cost plenty. But this puppy should chamber out of a M-98 Mauser, which in Rem6mmBR, is only a single shot, now.

Last month I dropped three antelope in the Karoo, of the RSA, with a left handed Ruger MKII, and Federal 270 Win. ammo using 110 gr. Barnes. I only recovered one bullet, driven some eight inches into the spine of a fast departing Springbok, and that one sample still weighed 104 grains. I think the rest was just the delrin tip. One way or another, I managed to kill them clean and not damage their front shoulders, forward, or mess up the meat. My Blesbok and Springbok went SCI bronze, and a silver for the smallest species, a Steinbuck. So, this little 270 idea, based on a shortened RCM case, should be death on wheels, in a AR-15, with a banana magazine.

But it could be a re-barrel prospect in just about any old military rifle action. This is what makes it so interesting to me. This idea is predicated on using solid gilding metal bullets. Andy Baker of Black Hole thinks a 100 gr. spitzer will be about the shortest bullet shank which will be accurate in the AR-15. The heavier bullets, using a quicker twist, will be more for a bolt or pump, rather than the AR.

I don't know at this point, whether it will surpass the 6.8mm Spc. 2, enough to make a difference. But my soldered up dummy has almost 50 grs. of H2O, to its case mouth. The quick twist would make up a neat bolt action Bushveld rifle for collecting hides, and wild meats. The problem is that the Black S.A. Gov't doesn't want any black rifles coming in, on Safaris.