.280 , 284, 7mm mag, 270 wbm

[hammer111]

I'm thing about one of these calibers in a new hunting rifle. I'm leaning towards the 280 or 284. I've only seen these guns in savage and browning guns.

I think I'm more partial to tikka and weatherby, but I didn't see them on their websites. If I go custom or semi custom, I have at the very most 1k budget max.

But I wouldn't rule out a 7mm mag or the 270 mag. So I'm open to the pros and cons. I guess I'd rank them in order of 280,284,270 mag and 7mm mag.

I'd even consider a 1 or 2 year old used rifle. So let the opinions fly, thanks for the help. I'm open to almost anything.I guess I should add I'm on the east coast, and it will be mainly used for whitetail and I'd like to shoot up to 500 yards for fun too.

 

[azsugarbear]

Couple of questions first:

Will you be buying ammo or reloading your own?

Do you plan on customizing (better stock, trigger, accurizing action, etc.) your stock rifle down the road?

What is the largest game animal you plan on hunting? Or the longest distance you plan on shooting targets?

These answers would be helpful before making recommendations.

 

[hammer111]

Well, whitetail deer on the east coast, if I get a high quality factory gun than maybe no stock upgrade, if I go custom or semi custom, than no stock upgrade.

Factory ammo to start or custom ammo until or if I set up hand loading a couple years down the road.

My local range just made a 500 yard range. I'd like to shot it. I figure my longest hunting shot might be 300 yards.

So if I can get a great quality shooting gun, probably no upgrades.

 

[WildRose]

Well, whitetail deer on the east coast, if I get a high quality factory gun than maybe no stock upgrade, if I go custom or semi custom, than no stock upgrade.

Factory ammo to start or custom ammo until or if I set up hand loading a couple years down the road.

My local range just made a 500 yard range. I'd like to shot it. I figure my longest hunting shot might be 300 yards.

So if I can get a great quality shooting gun, probably no upgrades.

A thousand dollar budget really limits your options.

For WT's any of the calibers mentioned will do the job to at least out to 800yds.

On your budget I'd look to the Remington Sendero or to the Winchester Model 70 Classic in a 7mm Rem Mag.

With either one of those you would be looking at minimal work to get them really shooting well and you can find them both used if you do a little shopping here in the classifieds section or on Gunbroker.

 

[azsugarbear]

Regarding ammo availability: 7 Rem Mag will be easiest to find and probably cheaper. Next would be the 270 WSM or the 280 Rem. Finally 284 Win will be the hardest to come by in the stores.

As Rose stated - all will do the job on whitetail and punch paper out to 500 yds with ease.

Sendero is a great place to start. Also look at some of the higher end Savages. To my mind, I would go with the 7 Rem Mag. Probably more gun than what you need, but it is versatile and would appeal to more buyers on resale.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Definitely have to agree with Rose and AZ... 7mm RemMag will be the easiest to find ammo for. And in a Sendero, is a great place to start for an accurate rifle that should need little work to get it shooting exceptionally.

Also, Remington now has out the new 700 Long Range, which is also offered in 7mm RemMag, for around $600-700. That would make just as good a platform as the Sendero, but save you a lot of money (compared to the Sendero) to go towards a good scope, and a good rail and rings.

 

[hammer111]

Part my reasoning for these calibers, except for the 7mm mag. Is I like to be different. I don't buy to resell. I have my very first gun.

Ammo shouldn't be a problem for me, since it will only be shot occasionally. Ill get ammo way ahead.

Should I or do I need to worry about rem 700 safety with all the recall issues.thanks.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Part my reasoning for these calibers, except for the 7mm mag. Is I like to be different. I don't buy to resell. I have my very first gun.

Ammo shouldn't be a problem for me, since it will only be shot occasionally. Ill get ammo way ahead.

Should I or do I need to worry about rem 700 safety with all the recall issues.thanks.

I wouldn't let that recall scare you off of a potentially great rifle.

If you buy a Remington 700 (which are my favorite actions to build off of), I would immediately replace the trigger with a Jewell trigger. The factory Remington X-Mark Pro triggers are absolute junk.

Also, buying a large amount of ammo, before you get the rifle, is not a good idea. What if it doesn't like that ammo? Then you're stuck with tons of ammo you can't use for anything more than to break down, and keep the brass. Dump the powder, pull the bullets, and give the bullets away...Then you might as well have just bought a bunch of brass.

 

[idaho elk hunter]

7 Rem is the hard thing to beat. Selecting which rifle that is the best is up for debate and others personal opinions. I personally would look at the Browning with 26 inch barrel and other brands that offer the same. Weatherby and Browning are very often overlooked for accuracy. I have found that these rifles often outperform most others out of the box. The Weatherby is the strongest action out of all non-custom actions on the market. It has the ability to carry heavier bullets, shooting heavier loads at higher pressures and having stronger bolt lugs. For modifying a rifle the Weatherby MK 5 action is hard to beat. There Remington is the most popular due to the extent of modifications that can be done to it, the ease of parts, and more knowledge of how to work on it.

 

[matt_3479]

Like most others here have stated, go with a 7mm mag. If you wish to step up a to elk or moose then you have more gun to work with. If you reloaded I have a soft spot for the 284. Win and is where I'd lay my money but factory ammo is hard to find and good factory ammo is even harder!

Remington 700 long range will save you money as opposed with going with the sendero which will allow you to get yourself bipod, decent optic, or even set money aside to get into reloading.

 

[MudRunner2005]

I'm pretty sure bullet weight doesn't have anything to do with how strong an action is... Case pressures and case size do. But absolutely nothing to do with bullet size or weight.

And I certainly wouldn't put Weatherby in the top-tier for accuracy. Browning, yes... Weatherby, no.

I used to think highly of Weatherby, until I owned their highest priced production rifle (at the time)...The Accumark. Which, I think now they have one above it. But at the time it was supposed to be the epitome of all mass-produced rifles. And it was a complete turd. Everything about it, other than the stock (which wasn't made by Weatherby), was a complete turd. Accuracy was garbage. The trigger was garbage. And I'm not the only one who has gotten a lemon Weatherby. Lots of people have...But few are vocal about it. Most quietly trade them in towards something else. Which is what I did after 6 years of struggling with it to get it to shoot, and never could.

Will I own another Weatherby? Maybe someday, if it has a custom aftermarket barrel on it. But I will never buy another new production Weatherby and expect anything out of it.

I'm not saying to NOT go buy a Weatherby... I'm just telling you that from my experiences in life, just because it cost more, doesn't always mean you're getting a better deal, or a better product.

 

[idaho elk hunter]

Mud,, You are correct in the bullet statement is a misprint. I meant to type BARREL! Size of bullet would be not only illogical but quite stupid to think anything of that nature

 

[Bigeclipse]

Part my reasoning for these calibers, except for the 7mm mag. Is I like to be different. I don't buy to resell. I have my very first gun.

Ammo shouldn't be a problem for me, since it will only be shot occasionally. Ill get ammo way ahead.

Should I or do I need to worry about rem 700 safety with all the recall issues.thanks.

when people say ammo is easier to find they also mean the variety. For example, my gun shop only carries 4 different types of 270wsm ammo BUT they have over a dozen different loadings for rem mag. Every gun shoot different. You could get a very picky gun that may hate all the 270wsm ammo you try, which is what happened with my browning 300wsm. factory loads would not shoot better than 1.5inches at 100 yards but then as soon as I started reloading I got a load close to .5-.75inches. With the 7mm rem mag you should have plenty of options to find the load your rifle likes. if you reloaded, the story may differ but id probably still suggest the 7mm rem mag just because it is such a great caliber.

 

[coyotekiller82]

Tikka T3 Lite in 270 WSM would fit the bill nicely.

I own one and can't find anything to really complain about. For the price, it is one accurate hunting rifle capable of everything you're looking to do!