Rifle length, weight, forgiveness. What is an easy to shoot hunting setup?

[xsn10s]

I'd follow lancetkenyon's and BrentM's advice, they both have a lot of experience in this area. For me I'd want a rifle that I can shoot accurately out to distances and yet take an offhand shot on running game if needed. That puts the 8.5-10lb range rifle weight class. Any heavier it gets challenging for me to run offhand.

 

[338 dude]

Thanks for the reply! I am looking at a 6.5prc or 7 something. Currently run a 7lb 12oz .270 that is 25 years old with a 22" barrel. It's still a killer but I could use a backup gun anyways.

Good to hear on the weight, that is about what I was thinking. Speed and stability aside, does barrel length matter much? I know with my bow the longer ATA reduces torque. Not sure if I could tell the difference between a 22 vs 26" tube accuracy wise. The gun wont be suppressed.

4 inches of barrel approximately 25 to 35 ft./s per inch lost only equates to a couple clicks,your ballistic solver will account for that and the animal will never know the difference!

 

[338 dude]

Thanks! Do you notice how the 10 1/4 shoots compared to an 8lb gun? You have probably had a ton more bench time that I have (or will) if I am being honest.

I've done a good job cutting weight elsewhere but you'll have to pull teeth to get me to do it with my weapon. At least that's the way I feel with archery.

Take this for what you will, but you speak of accuracy between the two.target rifles are heavy hunting rifles are light!

 

[Tac-O]

I have no recommendations on weight or barrel length, but I would look at a lower recoil cartridge like a 308. That will help especially if you're using a brake. Longer barrel on a 308 will give you more velocity and a bit more reach.

If you don't plan on practicing a LOT, a shot at game farther than 500-600 yards would be a hail mary due to wind drift, so a 308 would be perfectly suitable. Plus, there's tons of ammo for the 308.

 

[c_bass16]

My first LR hunting rig is a custom 7mm Rem Mag that was purpose built to shoot 180gr bullets fast.
Downside is that with a 24" barrel, and a 9" suppressor...scoped, with a mag and ammo, it came in at a portly 22lbs.
I was a young, strapped, college athlete in his mid-late 30s and had no issue packing it as far as I needed to, especially considering it was shot prone off a bipod 100% of it's life.
Fast forward 15 years, I've had upwards of 10 custom rifles in a MULTITUDE of different sizes, shapes, calibers, lengths etc etc etc.
The one I'll be taking this season is an 18" Carbon Fiber 6.5 PRC in a Q Side Chick chassis that will probably come in around 7-8lbs scoped. ALL of my hunting rifles are 18" and in the future, I'll probably do a couple at 17".
Last year I took my west river mule deer at 550 yds with an 18" 6mm Creed and 108 factory ammo.
With the 18" 6.5 PRC and 150gr ammo, I wouldn't have any issue taking shots at 800 yds...but I shoot competitively and do it quite often.

Your skill set will ultimately determine your lethality. Not your weapon system.
For ME, 4-6" of barrel length has absolutely NO baring on my effective range, regardless of cartridge.

 

[Greyfox]

IMO, the balance point of the rifle is as influential as the weight. My hunting entails shots from 100 yards to 1200 yards. About half my shots are prone, about 45% supported upright(sitting, kneeling, standing), and 5% of shots off-hand and usually under 150 yards. I like a bit of weight, with the sweet spot at 10-12 pounds for stabile +1000 yard shooting in hunting conditions. Choice of scope and caliber usually determines where I fall in this weight range. At 71 years old and medium build, I have used this weight range for about 20 years. Perhaps this will change when I'm old.

My go to rifle for the past dozen years.

 

[Son of a Gun!]

Thanks for the reply! I am looking at a 6.5prc or 7 something. Currently run a 7lb 12oz .270 that is 25 years old with a 22" barrel. It's still a killer but I could use a backup gun anyways.

Good to hear on the weight, that is about what I was thinking. Speed and stability aside, does barrel length matter much? I know with my bow the longer ATA reduces torque. Not sure if I could tell the difference between a 22 vs 26" tube accuracy wise. The gun wont be suppressed.

Barrel length depends on the cartridge! Myself I prefer a 22" on standard cartridges, 24" on standard and short magnums, and to get the benefit from the bigger fast cartridges you need at least a 26" bbl.

 

[Lenny Foffa]

Last year I learned that a factory Weatherby Mark V, In its heavy wooden stock, with a 26 inch barrel, in 270 Weatherby Mag, can be a great Long Range hunting rifle. Yes its probably 11 pounds with 8.5Xto 25X Leupold scope, In steel Leupold DD rings and bases . A pound too heavy for sure, but accurate enough to hit the steel over and over at 820 ,1000 and 1200 yards. Very Good Velocity and Energy numbers for hunting medium game out to 800 yards. Comfortable to shoot, and Able to hit steel targets at long range on the plus side. A pound or more over weight, on the negative side. Perhaps a lighter Synthetic stock could save a pound.

 

[manitou]

Just sayin'

 

[Willybuck]

I've hunted with short barreled .243 to long 35 cals. Hunted for years with a 22 inch 270 Winchester. Key is small bore short barrels work until they don't. It's one thing to shoot 100 pound white tails broadside in Texas and a whole different story than a once in a lifetime opportunity at a giant bull elk or kudu across a canyon in the mountains. I found a 30 cal magnum works for me out to 500m. With a 26 inch #3 fluted barrel with an Accubreak one and done. 150 grain TSX at 3400 for deer / sheep sized animals. For bigger animals like elk / kudu or longer range work 180 grain TSX work well.

 

[180ls1]

What cartridge are you interested in shooting? Cartridge/chamber choice will help dictate barrel length. If you don't need the weight to tame recoil then don't build it into the rifle. Weight does help make a rifle harder to move also, meaning if your trigger pull is rough or that buck fever kicks in.....a heavier gun will move less when you move wrong.

A thicker barrel has a higher potential for accuracy. But there is no way to quantify that. Even if you took a 1" Dia straight profile barrel that shot .2" groups and then turned that same barrel down to .620" at the muzzle....it would behave like a different barrel and might not shoot 3" groups with the original load.
All a thicker barrel does is reduce barrel harmonics, give you are larger heat sink for higher round count shot strings without heat dispersion and adds mass to reduce felt recoil and shooter movement.

I can't think of a cartridge off the top of my head that doesn't benefit from a longer barrel. That's not to say that some cartridges don't perform well with a short barrel. The 300wsm does pretty well with a 22" barrel while the 300wm does better with a 26".

Some cartridges just flat out come alive with a longer barrel. Most of the cartridges that do are generally considered overbore cartridges like the 25-06 or 7rum. They need longer barrels to truly live up to their potential.

As far as shooting positions go I'd say that it's not advisable to make off hand shots at game past 200yds unless you practice them A LOT. I use shooting sticks quite often. Out here we have broomweed that's 30" tall so prone shots are all but impossible and kneeling shots are marginal.

I rarely hunt suppressed so I run a 26" barrel on my 300prc that weighs 13# and my 25-06 that weighs 8# My current build is a 25-06AI that will have a 26" barrel. I have a 20" 6.5 Grendel bolt action that gets used on hogs a lot and might weigh 6.5#.

My ideal hunting rifle would be a long action with a 26" barrel that weighs 8-9#

Thanks for the helpful reply. I am looking at a 6.5 PRC. I am not a reloader yet so I want something with factory-available accurate ammo in lead-free and leaded. From what I gather one of the higher BC rounds would get me out to 600 yards with 1500ftlbs and minimal drift, which is really about the most I should be shooting anyways.

I hunt out west mostly deer followed by elk, pigs, bear and every **** coyote I see.

 

[DUCKMAN11]

I think you would be fine with a 24" barrel 6.5prc. Factory 6.5prc ammo is hard to find. Heck all ammo is hard to find! 7mm-08 or even a good 308win would do what you are wanting to do and there are hundreds of 308win factory options on the shelves right now. Just food for thought

 

[JakeC]

I think you would be fine with a 24" barrel 6.5prc. Factory 6.5prc ammo is hard to find. Heck all ammo is hard to find! 7mm-08 or even a good 308win would do what you are wanting to do and there are hundreds of 308win factory options on the shelves right now. Just food for thought

Ouch, no reloading. But you're right duckman, that bar is reachable for a lot of rounds. I wouldn't go PRC if you need several great shooting options from factory ammo. Hornady ammo is good, but it's not generally capable of the level of accuracy you need to shoot to 600 on smaller targets. I know it says match on the box, but case prep is a big weak link with them and I don't think it's capable. .75 moa to 1.2, lot to lot. Elk... maybe. But I wouldn't. Maybe Hornady is good enough in some guns, I dunno. I just wish they did a little bit better because they could be amazing with just a little more effort. You could make a belt buckle and a zippo case with the flash hole shavings from 100 fired factory cases.

So what the OP needs is a round with a LOT of selection and plenty of horsepower. 308 is good enough and has the best selection, even though a chunk of that selection is always going to be junky range bangers. But it will always have the best support with one obvious exception in history. 3006 will have good selection and a high proportion of that will be high quality. 270 will be right between the 2. 7 rem mag with a fast twist would be great in normal times but 7mm in general is really suffering right now because the makers are just shoveling 308 and 264 into the bottomless pit created by the hoarding/panic.

Maxed out 270 will give anything a run for its money and regular 270 is fine for tons of stuff. If you want something new and unfamiliar, I dunno. It's been said a lot but the 30-06 is still undervalued. Oh hey, 25-06 actually has availability right now. bunch of it. People really get hooked on that thing and it's one of those that really shines a lot brighter in a 26" barrel which I suspect you're leaning towards. Put it in a 10 pound gun with a brake and you'll be able to see your hits at every distance. I don't know about elk at 600 with it but I bet someone is doing it with a grin.

 

[180ls1]

Ouch, no reloading. But you're right duckman, that bar is reachable for a lot of rounds. I wouldn't go PRC if you need several great shooting options from factory ammo. Hornady ammo is good, but it's not generally capable of the level of accuracy you need to shoot to 600 on smaller targets. I know it says match on the box, but case prep is a big weak link with them and I don't think it's capable. .75 moa to 1.2, lot to lot. Elk... maybe. But I wouldn't. Maybe Hornady is good enough in some guns, I dunno. I just wish they did a little bit better because they could be amazing with just a little more effort. You could make a belt buckle and a zippo case with the flash hole shavings from 100 fired factory cases.

So what the OP needs is a round with a LOT of selection and plenty of horsepower. 308 is good enough and has the best selection, even though a chunk of that selection is always going to be junky range bangers. But it will always have the best support with one obvious exception in history. 3006 will have good selection and a high proportion of that will be high quality. 270 will be right between the 2. 7 rem mag with a fast twist would be great in normal times but 7mm in general is really suffering right now because the makers are just shoveling 308 and 264 into the bottomless pit created by the hoarding/panic.

Maxed out 270 will give anything a run for its money and regular 270 is fine for tons of stuff. If you want something new and unfamiliar, I dunno. It's been said a lot but the 30-06 is still undervalued. Oh hey, 25-06 actually has availability right now. bunch of it. People really get hooked on that thing and it's one of those that really shines a lot brighter in a 26" barrel which I suspect you're leaning towards. Put it in a 10 pound gun with a brake and you'll be able to see your hits at every distance. I don't know about elk at 600 with it but I bet someone is doing it with a grin.

I've thought about just pouring more time/money/tools into my .270 and giving it another year for things to normalize.

I actually just called two local stores and one had "zero 6.5 prc" although the lady kept telling me about 6.5 creed and 6.8spc, it wasn't quite unnerving but enough to raise my doubts. The other store has 6 boxes. I will admit that I really don't shoot much so I wont go through much ammo.