For my brother what caliber

6.5 Creedmoor seem to have a great amount of people shoot them. I have a friend that hated recoil, and had 270, 300 wsm and sold them. He got a 6.5 Creedmoor and love it. I guess it doesn't have any great amount of recoil. The 6.5 has a high BC and used in a lot of matches. I never fired one so I don't really know about the recoil, but I know my friend. He has taken Elk, Deer, Bear with it and not the best shot either. Buys his ammo from the store too.

I jumped in this kinda late but I would go with 6.5 creed. 7mm-08 or the 308 win he will have better ammo choices with the creed or 308 but I still choose the 7mm-08 its just always been one of my favorites

Thompson Center Compass in 308 Win, 7-08 or 6.5 Creedmoor all good options. In my opinion there is no replacement for displacement. If one can handle the recoil, 300 Win Mag in this rifle is good for anything in North America. These are no frill rifle,but with threaded muzzle adding a break is easily done and these rifles will shoot. I have one I 6.5 Creedmoor and I have fed it everything and it is an absolute tack driver. For around $350 it is worth every penny. It's not a pretty gun, but it is a very accurate shooter. Trigger is a little stout (about 6 lbs.), but adjustable and crisp. The 60 degree 3 lug bolt is not the smoothest in the industry, but is not bad once you get use to bolt throw. Couple of issues I had was that the stock was not tightened to the action properly. Plastic Stock (composite) is functional for a hunting rifle, but if wood is a must Boyd's makes a laminate stock for the Compass at a reasonable price. For a hunting rifle I would not change the stock. Trigger I had to adjust and I change the spring to safely lighten trigger.
Another great caliber IMHO is the 280 Remington, but to find one within your $500 rifle only budget might be a little tough?

bassassassin104 said:

With regard to recoil and rifle fit, how big is your brother? I am 5'8" and have a hard time finding a factory rifle that fits me well. Length of pull is almost always about 3/4" too long for me and I cannot shoulder the rifle correctly which makes it uncomfortable and makes felt recoil much worse. You definitely don't want to get him in something that hurts him to shoot. Just something you might consider.

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I have the same issue. I always cut the stock down and add a grind to fit recoil pad. Not really an option with cheap tuperware stocks.

Since we both live in NC, I presume the bear hunting you mentioned is black bear, and not an Alaskan brown.

That said, there have been some good recommendations so far — and some I would not consider.

• Don't even consider a magnum anything for NC hunting. I prefer to have something to eat after I shoot a deer. A 7mm Rem can leave you with half a deer shredded to bits. They are great where shots are 300 yards+ on 300 pound deer, but that's not likely to happen in NC.

• The 30-06 and .270 are great all-round cartridges but more than is necessary for anything in the Carolinas. People use them because their grandfather used them. I would only recommend then if this rifle may do double duty on other hunts.

• The .308 is a good round but the 7mm-08 blows it away ballistically, it's flatter shooting with less recoil, and has greater down-range energy.

• The .25-06 may be the perfect Eastern whitetail and black bear cartridge. It has mild recoil, shoots as flat as the 7MM Rem mag, will easily drop a deer out to 500 yards, and not destroy a deer if you get a close shot. (If you handload, the 6.5-06 has better long-range potential, but factory ammunition is impossible to find.)

• The .260 Rem is a great round, slightly more powerful than the 6.5 Creedmoor, with mild recoil and great accuracy. The only limitation of the .260 Rem is that few choices of factory ammunition are available. (The 6.5 Creedmoor is a slightly better choice for extremely long range.) If you find a good deal on a .260 Rem, look at it seriously.

• The 6.5 Creedmoor is a great round, and currently the most popular in the lower 48 states. This correlates directly to lots of ammunition choices. This round will kill anything he's likely to hunt, and do it well. It's extremely accurate, with mild recoil. It doesn't shoot quite as flat as the .25-06 out to 500 yards, but is available from almost every gun manufacturer. The only reason I don't own a 6.5 Creedmoor is because I already own a 25-06, a .260 Rem, and 2 .243s.

• The .243 is a great cartridge that should not be scoffed at. Some consider it light for deer & black bear, but it's killed a lot of each and can do double-duty on coyotes for off-season hunting. The .243 is not recommended for animals larger than black bears.

Great rifle choices already made:
• Used Tika T3. These guns seem to always shoot phenomenally.
• Mauser M18 in 6.5 Creedmoor: https://www.eurooptic.com/Mauser-M1...thetic-5rd-Mag-Bolt-Action-Rifle-M18065C.aspx
• Savage rifles are scoffed at by many because they are not pretty, but they are inexpensive and I've never seen one that did not shoot well.
• Used rifles are often a GREAT BUY. It's been a long time since I bought a new rifle, occasionally new scopes but used rifles because used can mean more for my money.


I have a Remington Model 7 in .260 Rem with a Nikon Monarch scope that I should sell as it hasn't been hunted with lately. Let me know if you are interested. I'm in Orange County, not far from you.

Murph1951 said:

IMHO go with a 30-06, best selection of bullets, can hunt any critter in the USA,and there are a ton of used guns available. My 1964 Remington BDL still shoots 1".with the Walker trigger. Go to gun shows and bring a bore light and look at used guns for a first purchased. You can not beat a older 700! My second choice for light skinned deer and such would be a 25-06. Just remember the scope you put on it will determine how well YOU shoot. Don't cheap out and get some ***.

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I definitely agree with him on this. Buy a quality used rifle and take the savings and buy a Scope that is right for his hunting situation. A rifle is only accurate as the shooter,ammunition, and optics!

SamuelBerryhill308 said:

Hello all I'm asking this to better help my brother he is looking to buy his first rifle which will be for huntin white tail and maybe bear if hes able.hes not sure what caliber or rifle to go with and what I've recommended to him hes not sure on yet.hes looking at couple different rifles but he is on a tight budget of 500 just for rife but me and my dad will help with little more cash if he finds something he really wants.the caliber he is most interested in is different 6.5 cal,,270 win and maybe 308.he has shot and hunted with either my dads 308 or 30-06,270 or 50 cal muzzleloader.he wants to have his own rifle he is 17 right now and I'm not sure how he is on recoil any help would be greatly appreciated thanks

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The 308 Winchester is a great choice and you should look at the Ruger American rifle; I have several and love them; they are inexpensive and available in 308 or 30-06. But the 308 is light, handy and low recoil but hard hitting. The 7mm-08 is a great choice too but it's somewhat limited in rifle availability. Ruger American is somewhat limited in caliber choice but it is a great rifle for the money. Might even find a 6.5 in that rifle

NO NO NO you are asking the WRONG PEOPLE. Get out the yellow pages and call all the local Pawn Shops and see what they have AVAILABLE to hunt with and Write em all down ... THEN CHOOSE. And dont saddle a 17 yr old with anything that is weird or exotic. Stick with the mainstream. I have a buddy in the pawn business and he said now because of covid and people being out of work he has never had more inventory
of pawned rifles in his life. People are pawning their rifles because they need to eat and pay rent and not because the rifles have anything wrong with them.

I love all the suggested calibers, and I've hunted with them all, I give a slight edge to the .260 rem. Short action, 4-5 round capacity, really flat shooting for long range, and great bullets now for anything from varmints to Elk.

SamuelBerryhill308,

A few years ago my brother, I, and another guy were socializing. My brother said, "Jesus is coming. I need a .30-06." The other guy asked, "What?! You gonna shoot Him?" "No. I never been hunting so I want to before He comes back." I told him, "A .270 is going to be just a good and kick less." I took him to the pawn shop. He picked up a .270 with a scope in a soft gun case for $300. He went deer hunting once and sold the whole kit. Good place to start.

If I were going to get something as light as 30-30 I would go with the 7.62x39 in the Ruger Ranch or CZ 527. It has better ballistics than flat nose 30-30 and ammo is Cheap!!! I started with 30-06 and dropped back to 308 for less recoil with only 100 fps loss. I also have a 243 which covers from 50 grain to 200 grain bullets. If I could only have one gun it would probably be the 7-08 and reload to whatever need that arose. You can neck up 243 or down 308 if you couldn't find brass.

P7M13 said:

Mauser M18 6.5 PRC 24.4" Synthetic 4rd Mag Bolt Action Rifle M18065P

Mauser M18 6.5 PRC 24.4" Synthetic 4rd Mag Bolt Action Rifle M18065P For Sale

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Mauser M18 .30-06 22" Synthetic 5rd Mag Bolt Action Rifle M180306

Flat Rate Shipping on Mauser M18 .30-06 22" Synthetic 5rd Mag Bolt Action Rifle M180306

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Mauser M18 6.5 Creedmoor 22" Synthetic 5rd Mag Bolt Action Rifle M18065C

Flat Rate Shipping on Mauser M18 6.5 Creedmoor 22" Synthetic 5rd Mag Bolt Action Rifle M18065C

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If he's touchy about recoil on any of these, take him out for some porterhouse steaks and get him to man'up.


My 7mm-08 recoils more than my 7 mag did.

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I like thos Mauser 18's. I picked one up in 7mm Mag and it shoots great, 1/2 in for 3 shots with faxtory ammo. If anyone is sensitive to recoil, the 270 Win may be the way to go. Ammis everywhere, and it has proven itself for many decades. Good luck.

SamuelBerryhill308 said:

Hello all I'm asking this to better help my brother he is looking to buy his first rifle which will be for huntin white tail and maybe bear if hes able.hes not sure what caliber or rifle to go with and what I've recommended to him hes not sure on yet.hes looking at couple different rifles but he is on a tight budget of 500 just for rife but me and my dad will help with little more cash if he finds something he really wants.the caliber he is most interested in is different 6.5 cal,,270 win and maybe 308.he has shot and hunted with either my dads 308 or 30-06,270 or 50 cal muzzleloader.he wants to have his own rifle he is 17 right now and I'm not sure how he is on recoil any help would be greatly appreciated thanks

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7mm08 don't look back

25WSM said:

6.5 Creed will kill anything in the lower 48. Light recoil. Tons of ammo. Very accurate with factory ammo. If you think it's too small ask Southern precision rifles how many elk they dropped in their tracks on their last hunt. It has a huge following for a reason. It just plain gets it done. All the haters are guys that have never owned or shot one. Pick up a used Tikka t3 and he will have a heck of a good starter rifle.
Shep

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He never mentioned where he was hunting bear at.
Black and Grizzly bear supposedly coexist. Creed might not be a wise choice based on where he is hunting.