Caliber Suggestions?

[GByrd]

Looking for a new barrel for my Encore. The barrels listed are 15".

I'm looking into the following calibers:
250 Savage
6BR
243
6.5 Creedmoor
25/06

I want something without a break that'll be kind to my wrist.

Intended game is whitetail from a solid rest with known distances. Maximum distance would be realistically 100-200 yards, with a possibility of stretching that to 300.

The calibers listed above are what I can find currently in stock. I feel all of them are pretty capable except the 250 savage. I just want what's best for my money and application.

 

[Ernie]

The 250 Savage would have been my first response, but with the popularity of the 6.5 Creed, I would go with that first.
Very capable.

Looking for a new barrel for my Encore. The barrels listed are 15".

I'm looking into the following calibers:
250 Savage
6BR
243
6.5 Creedmoor
25/06

I want something without a break that'll be kind to my wrist.

Intended game is whitetail from a solid rest with known distances. Maximum distance would be realistically 100-200 yards, with a possibility of stretching that to 300.

The calibers listed above are what I can find currently in stock. I feel all of them are pretty capable except the 250 savage. I just want what's best for my money and application.

 

[Deleted member 46119]

If it where me:
With the wrist saving parameter,
6BR
6.5 Creedmoor

 

[GByrd]

Truth be told I really like the look of the 6BR. I just wasn't sure if it'd be up to the task.

What type of velocities can I expect to see with it?

What would be a good hunting bullet for this application?

The 250 savage looked great but I was concerned it'd have poor ballistics. If either of these lighter recoiling calibers would be a very viable option then i'd prefer to go that route.

Thanks.

 

[RT2506]

If you go with the 6BR pay attention to barrel twist. You need a 9" twist to use the heaver bullets. With a 15" barrel you can get 2800 fps with 85 gr bullets, 2700 fps with 90 gr and 2600 with 100 gr.

I picked up a Contender barrel 14" in 6mm-225 Winchester plus loading dies in an estate sale CHEEP since it was a wildcat caliber. It about duplicates the 6BR. I get 2850 fps with 30 grs Varget with the Sierra 80 gr SSP bullet. My problem is that the barrel is a 12" twist and it will not stabilize any thing heaver than the 80 gr bullet. I shot around 10 deer with this combo but decided that it was too soft a bullet for my liking. On broad side shots inside 120 yards, longest shot I made, it would not exit and deer would run off some and did not leave much of a blood trail. The last 4 or 5 I used neck shots. I would weight until they were facing me and when they put their head down I would shoot them where the neck meets the body between the shoulders. It dropped them in their tracks from cutting the spine. I did get some 85 gr Nosler partitions to see if they would shoot but never did get around to trying them. I got a 14" MGM made 30-30AI barrel that became my deer barrel. It is AWESOME with 125 ballistic tips at 2670 fps and it SMOKES deer. I just use the 6mm-225 for varmints which it does a great job.

Don't know about the 6.5 Creedmoor in a pistol barrel. But many of the 6.5 bullets 120 to 140 grs are meant to use in the 2400 to 2700 fps muzzle velocity range and that should be doable with it. They would be better for the 200+ yard shots for deer.

 

[Ernie]

123 A-Max will work great

 

[GByrd]

That's what I don't want to have happen. The brush here is pretty heavy. And a minimal blood trail plus a long track could suck.

I'm a pretty decent marksman, so I can put it where it needs to go. I like more of the bang-flop type of situation, lol.

 

[Trever]

I have a 22-250 barrel and haven't looked back. There are other cartridges but I like it. And i have killed deer out to about 100 but that was just opportunity. I would take a 300 yard shot easy just not on a whitetail. It may be fine but I just choose not to. A 7-08 or 243 wouldn't be much different as far as recoil and they are inexpensive to shoot. If I had it to do over again I wouldn't change a thing other than another caliber or two. I have mounted a .50 muzzle loader barrel on the pistol frame and shot it. It wasn't too bad. Just awkward.

Oh and you may want a quality set of ear muffs or plugs.

 

[GByrd]

No kidding on the hearing protection.

I already have enough 44s I'm confident with out to 100 yards, really need something that can do a lot better.

I like the 22-250 a lot too. It's a great caliber and what I shot my first several deer with.

 

[Ernie]

6.5 Creedmoor with the 123 A-Max or the 130 grain AB.
A 243 Win (8T) with the 105 A-Max as well.

 

[RT2506]

If you want bang flop use a shoulder shot preferably in the top half of the shoulder. If you put the bullet behind the shoulder in the heart lungs area it really don't matter what caliber you use around 50% of the time they will run off some. Their dead they just don't know it for about 30 seconds and they can go a ways in that time. I have killed hundreds of deer with about everything from a stick to a 45-70 as a crop damage control hunter.

I did a little checking and you should be able to get a 120 Nosler ballistic tip or 123 A-max going 2500 fps of so and from my experience using 6.5 cal. rifles at loooooog range on deer they would be real effective on deer out of the 6.5 Creedmoor. The 120 BT is awesome from my 6.5X55 Sweed rifle on deer.

Another common caliber Encore barrel that you should be able to find easy is a 308 Win. Load it with a 125 Nosler ballistic tip and keep the MV under 3000 fps. With the weight of a scoped Encore and the lighter 125 gr bullet recoil would not be much. I shoot the 125 BT in all my 30 cal stuff for deer. As long as you keep impact velocity under 3000 fps is is a BANG FLOP deer killer. I shoot it in my 14" Contender 30-30AI at 2670 fps and it SMOKES deer. I have shot a dozen plus, lost count, deer with it from 30 to 120 yards away and it has exited with a quarter size hole on every shot and most have been through both shoulders and all have been into or exit a shoulder and I have only had two even move out of their tracks. Those were bucks all fired up in the rut chasing doe. They did not go over 30 yards.

 

[Rogue Hunter]

GByrd,

I have both the 6 BR and 6 Dasher in handguns, and would feel very comfortable hunting deer with them out to 200 yards. Recoil is minimal with both chamberings. I have taken deer with my 6 TCU with 85 gr speer btsp's. These where all under a 100 yards though, and none went far.
The 6.5 CM would be an excellent choice. As Ernie stated, the 123 gr A-Max, or 130 AB's would get the job done. -Recoil would be easy on the wrist too.

-Mike

 

[HarryN]

Maybe 338 Federal ?

 

[436]

For some reason, the 7mm BR Rem comes to mind.. the others would work.. but, just something always happens on the good side when you put a 7mm caliber into a handgun.
Just my .02
Cheer's
436