Buddy wants one rifle for everything...?

[7070yshot]

1) All ungulates to 400 yds (deer mostly, but elk, moose, etc will almost certainly be tackled occasionally).

2) Steel and paper to 800 plus (occasionally out to 1200 just for giggles on big targets).

3) $1500 for scope and rifle.

4) Factory rifle most likely (see #3).

5) I'll load for him, perhaps indefinitely, but reasonably common factory ammo is a must.

6) He only hunts with lead free. So it needs to have a good factory option in copper (see #5). He's cool with slinging lead at paper/steel, but verboten on animals.

7) He can handle recoil, but I'd like to steer him towards "a bit more than minimum" that will get the job done, so a factory rifle with a brake is a high priority, but not a deal breaker.

So...

Rifle?

Scope?

Cartridge?

I have my own opinions, but would love to hear from the peanut gallery. Just stay in the lane. None of the above 7 points can be violated and keep him happy. He's not a high volume shooter, but I'd like to push him that direction, so keep economy in mind too.

Ruger American Hunter
Some vortex SE, Riton or other
400y is in the safe kill zone for 6.5CM,7mm-08, 270WSM, 300WSM all SA's so a bit lighter for long walk/stalk. A
Barnes LRX will do all of that. Ask me how how I know, lol.
The rest of you, balk if you want but if you haven't done it then it's hearsay.

 

[Kevin P McNeilly]

300 Winchester Magnum period. Moose and elk take anything smaller about out of the equation. Jmo

 

[Remhunter]

I am a huge .280AI fan, and that would certainly do everything he needs and more, but in that budget would be tough IMO. It may be an unpopular opinion, but the tried and true .308 Win will kill all of those animals dead and is a great target round as well, with many choices for factory ammo. In that price point I personally would grab a Tikka and top it with a VX3 of your preference. I have been very impressed with my Tikka's for factory rifles. They are no nonsense and shoot. A 7mm RM would also be a nice choice.

 

[mawbro]

IMHO, 1200yds rules out 30-06, AI and is a stretch for several others mentioned. Plain, old 300Win mag will do all that and then some. And with some work can likely find one in the price range.

The OP included pape ad steel out to 1200. The .308 and 30-06 can handle that and teach you how to learn a valuable skill, reading the wind.

 

[skookum]

Buy $500 rifle and a $1000 scope. Any of the calibers mentioned will kill STEEL at 1200 and most animals on the planet inside 400.

 

[RidgeTop]

1) All ungulates to 400 yds (deer mostly, but elk, moose, etc will almost certainly be tackled occasionally).

2) Steel and paper to 800 plus (occasionally out to 1200 just for giggles on big targets).

3) $1500 for scope and rifle.

4) Factory rifle most likely (see #3).

5) I'll load for him, perhaps indefinitely, but reasonably common factory ammo is a must.

6) He only hunts with lead free. So it needs to have a good factory option in copper (see #5). He's cool with slinging lead at paper/steel, but verboten on animals.

7) He can handle recoil, but I'd like to steer him towards "a bit more than minimum" that will get the job done, so a factory rifle with a brake is a high priority, but not a deal breaker.

So...

Rifle?

Scope?

Cartridge?

I have my own opinions, but would love to hear from the peanut gallery. Just stay in the lane. None of the above 7 points can be violated and keep him happy. He's not a high volume shooter, but I'd like to push him that direction, so keep economy in mind too.

.300 or .340 Wby Mag in a Mark V.

 

[gslindy]

1) All ungulates to 400 yds (deer mostly, but elk, moose, etc will almost certainly be tackled occasionally).

2) Steel and paper to 800 plus (occasionally out to 1200 just for giggles on big targets).

3) $1500 for scope and rifle.

4) Factory rifle most likely (see #3).

5) I'll load for him, perhaps indefinitely, but reasonably common factory ammo is a must.

6) He only hunts with lead free. So it needs to have a good factory option in copper (see #5). He's cool with slinging lead at paper/steel, but verboten on animals.

7) He can handle recoil, but I'd like to steer him towards "a bit more than minimum" that will get the job done, so a factory rifle with a brake is a high priority, but not a deal breaker.

So...

Rifle?

Scope?

Cartridge?

I have my own opinions, but would love to hear from the peanut gallery. Just stay in the lane. None of the above 7 points can be violated and keep him happy. He's not a high volume shooter, but I'd like to push him that direction, so keep economy in mind too.

Ruger scout chambered in .308

 

[shooter53]

my worst nightmare is when i die, my wife will sell my gear for what i told her i bought it for haha

 

[wkdwdg66]

1) All ungulates to 400 yds (deer mostly, but elk, moose, etc will almost certainly be tackled occasionally).

2) Steel and paper to 800 plus (occasionally out to 1200 just for giggles on big targets).

3) $1500 for scope and rifle.

4) Factory rifle most likely (see #3).

5) I'll load for him, perhaps indefinitely, but reasonably common factory ammo is a must.

6) He only hunts with lead free. So it needs to have a good factory option in copper (see #5). He's cool with slinging lead at paper/steel, but verboten on animals.

7) He can handle recoil, but I'd like to steer him towards "a bit more than minimum" that will get the job done, so a factory rifle with a brake is a high priority, but not a deal breaker.

So...

Rifle?

Scope?

Cartridge?

I have my own opinions, but would love to hear from the peanut gallery. Just stay in the lane. None of the above 7 points can be violated and keep him happy. He's not a high volume shooter, but I'd like to push him that direction, so keep economy in mind too.

Any quality 30-06 with good glass. Just picked up a model 700 with synthetic stock for 300 dlls. Trigger and glass completes package.

 

[basinman]

When I bought my first high powered bolt action rifle I wanted a "do all" rifle as well. This was about 15 years ago (I finally had other places to hunt besides my home swampland.) and I chose a Winchester M70 in 300 WSM. I put a 3-9 Nikon scope on it and it worked for everything I hunted. But I have since bought other rifles that are more "specialized" for what I use them for.

 

[reconrover]

For that budget I would be surfing the classifieds for the best bang for the buck and not so much worry about a specific caliber but a range of acceptable cartridges.

A factory rifle to meet #2 is a tall order without at least a aftermarket trigger in that budget

I'm a big fan of "used". You save a lot of money, many come with decent scopes and mounts, and honestly, it's rare to find a hunting rifle with a worn out barrel. I like chassis guns in the reasonable range. Yeah, they weigh a little more, but you also cover all bases for long distance. Caliber, man, that's the word of the hour eh? I'd personally stick with .300 WSM, or .300 Win Mag. There are a ton of other calibers out there...but just try to find one in a sleepy little town where you are deer hunting. Most likely they'll have a few boxes of the old standy's right on the shelf.

 

[dougduey]

Thanks for all the replies everyone.

We've got time to shop, so I think I'm going to steer him towards a Savage or Tikka in 7mm Mag. I know everything is hard to find right now, but perhaps we could even score a used rifle in the $500 range, and then his budget might accommodate a new barrel with a faster twist (X-Caliber on sale can be had for <$500. Indeed, I have a couple myself).

As for a scope, I haven't looked at the $500 range for quite awhile, but I'm sure there's something that will suit his needs. I'm thinking something in the 3-12 or 4-16 range. He's a hunter first and foremost, so as long as it's durable and reasonably clear and bright, he'll be happy.

He was ecstatic when I tuned up his old Win 670 and 30 year old Burris Signature 2-8x40 with a 166 HH going 3200 fps into 1.5 MOA at 200 yds, so he shouldn't be too hard to please.

I will possibly steer you away from the Tikka in 7 Rem only because of the Mag length issue. You're going to be limited to a shorter COAL in any hand loads. If not a big deal, the by all means, buy a Tikka. They are great rifles. I love mine.

 

[HVGBDT]

I have a savage with a stainless custom barrel 1:8 twist & set up to shoot eld/vld bullets, model 110 thumbhole stock, Timney trigger, Vortex hs lr 6x24x50 scope, Hornady reloading dies, Nosler brass fire formed, i think a new box of Nosler brass, load data, in a 6.5-284! Velocity with 143 eld-x just over 3k fps. Shoots extremely good!! All for $1500!! Have too many rifles & have to pay for Christmas.

 

[choprzrul]

$657 Tikka 300 WM: https://www.eurooptic.com/Tikka-T3x-Lite-300-Win-Mag-24-1-3-1-10-Bbl-Rifle-JRTXE331R10.aspx
$750 Leupold VX-3HD 4.5-14x40: https://www.eurooptic.com/Leupold-V...Focus-CDS-ZL-Wind-Plex-Riflescope-180623.aspx

The Tikka has a threaded barrel, so adding a brake is easy: https://www.shootsmallgroups.com/product/ec-tuner-brake-ss-5-8-24-thread/

1200 yards will probably need a 20 MOA scope mount: https://www.dnzproducts.com/product/game-reaper-tikka/

Adding the brake and scope mount will push this over $1500, but the above should be a solid performer with the stated parameters?

.