What is the most hated deer rifle you owned ?

I don't own any rifles I hate, but I have been so disappointed in a few. So much so that I sold them in disgust. One in particular was the Mossberg 4X4 stainless 7 RM. I knew I was in trouble from the beginning because it was supposed to have a muzzle brake but the early models didn't. I was very excited about it as it had a fluted bolt and barrel with an adjustable trigger. I couldn't get it to shoot! I spent hundreds of dollars on primers, powders, and bullets trying to get a load that would shoot under an inch in a half. I probably should have restocked it but gave up and sold it. I seemed like such a cool gun.
 
Blaser R8. The German "plastic fantastic". After all the great reviews, etc on another website where it was highly recommended for its accuracy, flexibility of calibers, light weight, etc. etc., I jumped both feet into a complete set-up! Blaser R8 with barrels for 375 H&H, 30-06, 6.5 Creedmoor, and 223. Man was I set up and ready to sell all my other antiquated guns! Then reality hit.
It was heavier in the lighter calibers and lighter in the 375! Accuracy in all calibers was OK and good enough, but not like my old rifles.
The main things I really hated were the cocker/safety. My old skiers' "floppy thumb" injuries didn't work well for cocking and decocking.
Then topping off the magazine with the same old thumbs was a problem.
After a year and a small fortune (I could have paid for a great Africa hunt for the cost!) I sold everything at a loss to those who loved theirs and convinced me I needed one.
The only rifle I need for Africa is my 375 H&H MRC. It has always done the task from Duiker to Cape Buffalo.
 
Remington 770 (therein lies the problem) in .30-06. Would not shoot for anything. Changed scopes, cleaned, kept dirty. All nope. Got $100 for it.
 
Currently I am not a fan of a Browning A-Bolt 300 WSM. NO branke and its pretty light, so recoil is pretty sharp. The bigger issue is the stock design causes it to whack me in the cheek bone every shot. I much prefer the X bolt 28 nosler. Stock is more user friendly.
Decades ago, I bought a deer/ turkey combo, single shot 10 gauge. I had a cantilever installed for scope mount. It shot a 1.75 oz slug into 2 feet at 60 yards. Horrific recoil in a gun that weighed about 6.5# and had a butt pad about .75" wide. That went down the road pretty quickly.
 
I don't think I have any I "hate". Also, I'm probably too stubborn to simply give up on a rifle that won't shoot accurately. Even if I hated the thing, I would take it as a challenge to make the darn thing shoot!

The smarter thing is to probably move on, rather than wasting that kind of time and effort.
 
ridgewalker said:
Blaser R8. The German "plastic fantastic". After all the great reviews, etc on another website where it was highly recommended for its accuracy, flexibility of calibers, light weight, etc. etc., I jumped both feet into a complete set-up! Blaser R8 with barrels for 375 H&H, 30-06, 6.5 Creedmoor, and 223. Man was I set up and ready to sell all my other antiquated guns! Then reality hit.
It was heavier in the lighter calibers and lighter in the 375! Accuracy in all calibers was OK and good enough, but not like my old rifles.
The main things I really hated were the cocker/safety. My old skiers' "floppy thumb" injuries didn't work well for cocking and decocking.
Then topping off the magazine with the same old thumbs was a problem.
After a year and a small fortune (I could have paid for a great Africa hunt for the cost!) I sold everything at a loss to those who loved theirs and convinced me I needed one.
The only rifle I need for Africa is my 375 H&H MRC. It has always done the task from Duiker to Cape Buffalo.
Click to expand...
Did you ever wonder if your friends talked you into it because they thought you would enjoy it or because they were willing to wait a year for the discount? 😬
 
Calvin45 said:
Woah! That's a surprise to me but I sure don't doubt you. My brother in law has a 99 in .308 that seems positively tame in the recoil department. My 99 is a .243 so, you know, recoil conversations need not apply haha.
Click to expand...
Win 100 .308 Winchester. Unreliable and not very accurate. Did not kill the best buck of my lifetime thus far when the firing pin hung up from a weak factory spring and didn't hit the primer hard enough to discharge the cartridge. Have nightmares to this day about that event.
 
Calvin45 said:
Woah! That's a surprise to me but I sure don't doubt you. My brother in law has a 99 in .308 that seems positively tame in the recoil department. My 99 is a .243 so, you know, recoil conversations need not apply haha.
Click to expand...
 

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Maybe he just needs a custom Savage 99 😉
antleredacres said:
Win 100 .308 Winchester. Unreliable and not very accurate. Did not kill the best buck of my lifetime thus far when the firing pin hung up from a weak factory spring and didn't hit the primer hard enough to discharge the cartridge. Have nightmares to this day about that event.
Click to expand...
This same thing happened to me this year with that *** rifle. I had an 8 point lined up broadside for a 35 yard chip shot, pulled the trigger and got only a "click". Went to rack the bolt and it failed to remove the round from the barrel but happily picked up another round from the magazine to jam my gun.....😂. Then walking back the forearm screw came out and got lost in the snow. I stripped the whole rifle afterwards and it's still in pieces because the ejector pins keep bending every time I try to reassemble the bolt. Worst gun I have ever owned.
 

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