What’s your five? 5 Calibers to do it all...
- Thread starter Paladin300
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Ricky C
Well-Known Member
Hey, I started to read this thread this morning and starting thinking
about my choices. Thought it would be pretty easy, but realized I'd have to leave some good buddies off the party list!
So can't live without:
300 Wby
375 H&H, in case I ever decide to shoot another big bear or if anyone in the family ever gets an AK bison tag, plus it fits into the OP's category to handle up to Africa
A bit harder to decide the next three:
22-250 AI fast twist
6.5 RPM, because it's in the Wby Backcounty Ti
7-08 or 6.5x300 Wby, have to go with the 7-08 for sentimental reasons
Take Care
about my choices. Thought it would be pretty easy, but realized I'd have to leave some good buddies off the party list!
So can't live without:
300 Wby
375 H&H, in case I ever decide to shoot another big bear or if anyone in the family ever gets an AK bison tag, plus it fits into the OP's category to handle up to Africa
A bit harder to decide the next three:
22-250 AI fast twist
6.5 RPM, because it's in the Wby Backcounty Ti
7-08 or 6.5x300 Wby, have to go with the 7-08 for sentimental reasons
Take Care
This is a tough one. I have hunted North America, Africa, Asia (USMC) and leaving out rimfires 22lr, 22Mag, 17HMR, shotguns (20 & 12), .50 cal Smoke Pole along with hand guns (.380, 9mm, .357 Mag, .44 Mag) Hog & Deer.
Some of my needed rifle calibers not limited to (5). Why pick only five?
.204 - Varmits, Coyotes
.223 - Coyotes, Hogs, Varmits
.243 - Deer, Antelope, Hogs
.260 - Deer, Antelope, Elk, Moose, Black-Bear (my favorite 1,000yd)
.270 - WSM Deer, Antelope, Elk, Moose, Black-Bear
.284 Win - Everyting except Africa DG (excelent "F" Class Target)
.32 Win Special - Deer, Elk, Moose, Black-Bear
.325 WSM - Deer, Antelope, Elk, Moose, Brown-Bear. Anything in North America and Africa (Some parts of Africa limit the caliber for Elephant and DG).
.375 RUM - Dangerous Game and everything.
Some of my needed rifle calibers not limited to (5). Why pick only five?
.204 - Varmits, Coyotes
.223 - Coyotes, Hogs, Varmits
.243 - Deer, Antelope, Hogs
.260 - Deer, Antelope, Elk, Moose, Black-Bear (my favorite 1,000yd)
.270 - WSM Deer, Antelope, Elk, Moose, Black-Bear
.284 Win - Everyting except Africa DG (excelent "F" Class Target)
.32 Win Special - Deer, Elk, Moose, Black-Bear
.325 WSM - Deer, Antelope, Elk, Moose, Brown-Bear. Anything in North America and Africa (Some parts of Africa limit the caliber for Elephant and DG).
.375 RUM - Dangerous Game and everything.
Bruce Jarrett
Member
.22 long rifle,
.243
7mm08
.270
7mm Rem Mag
.243
7mm08
.270
7mm Rem Mag
- Joined
- Jun 11, 2010
- Messages
- 137
Wow, 25 pages. Looks like we all want to put our 2 cents worth in on this one.....
Rifles: 22 LR, 22-250 AI, 25-06, 6.5-284, 300 Win Mag
Pistols: 22LR, 9mm, 357 Magnum, 10mm, 41 Magnum
Rifles: 22 LR, 22-250 AI, 25-06, 6.5-284, 300 Win Mag
Pistols: 22LR, 9mm, 357 Magnum, 10mm, 41 Magnum
257 John Oscar
New Member
.22 Hornet - varmints in populated areas
.257 Roberts A.I. - tradition
.260 Rem. - just a good versatile calibre
.308 Norma or .300 Weatherby - for Anything !
.375 H & H - when all else fails. & cornered woodchucks !!
.257 Roberts A.I. - tradition
.260 Rem. - just a good versatile calibre
.308 Norma or .300 Weatherby - for Anything !
.375 H & H - when all else fails. & cornered woodchucks !!
bigbrad53
Well-Known Member
22 Hornet.
bigbrad53
Well-Known Member
22 Hornet, anything a rf will do +.
240 Wby, varmits, deer, speed goats.
7X57 same game but only with my handloads, then add elk.
30-30 in a bolt gun, good truck gun, hotter loads and brass will take it.
338-06 will kill anything I'll ever run in to.
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bigbrad53
Well-Known Member
Great question- full disclosure I own 375h&h and don't 9.3. I've hunted plains game with it and it hits like Thor's hammer. When it was time to go for buff I stepped up to 416 Rigby. Again Thor's hammer including one of five going away through right hip, rumen, engine room and exit left shoulder (swift solid). Kevin Robertson in Africa's most dangerous makes a solid case for 9.63x62. Without any personal experience I put value in his opinion because of his experience as PH and personal shooting and he's a veterinarian so he performed autopsies on many of the buffs. My summary of his reasoning is that it's an easy to shoot cartridge so shots tend to be more accurate and it hits some Buffalo sweet spot of energy, wound channel diameter and muzzle/impact velocity which he argues needs to be around 2200. Muzzle and impact velocity tending to be the same when shots are taken inside 50 yards.Bwana Barry what makes you choose the 9.3x62 over the 375 for your big gun especially since you said if you only had one it would be a 375? My reason for asking is I have owned and presently own several 375 H&Hs. I have also owned a 458 Lott. All bolt guns. I recently passed over a Merkel double precisely because it was in 9.3x62. I have never owned one but was looking for a 375 or 416. Think I should rethink that. It was a good deal I just wasn't up on the cartridge. Enlighten me! How does the 9.3 stack up next to the 375 or 416?
25 pages of responses in about 36 hours is impressive. I was curious to see what kinds of patterns fell out, so I did an informal tally through the 9th page before tiring (likely a big enough sample). Here are the stats, limited purely to centerfire rifle cartridges:
- The 394 opinions recorded covered 93 different centerfire rifle cartridges.
- However, two-thirds of those cartridges only received 3 votes or fewer (40% of the cartridges only received 1 vote).
- The top-5 cartridges plus honorable mentions:
- #1: 223 Rem / 5.56 NATO
- #2: 300 Win Mag
- #3: 7mm Rem Mag
- #4 (tied): 243 Win and 270 Win
- #6 (tied): 22-250 Rem, 6.5 CM, 308 Win, and 375 H&H Mag
- #10: 6.5 PRC
- The top calibers:
- #1: .308
- #2: .284
- #3: .224
- #4: .264
- #5 (tied): .243 and .338
- #7: .375 *Note, if you considered everything larger than .338 as one 'caliber', the big bores would have tied for 4th place.
It has been awesome to watch all the post! Thanks guys for being such good sports about it. A couple guys have ask if anyone was keeping tabs on which cartridges rose to the top. I have been watching and keeping a running total and there are definitely five cartridges and three calibers that rose to the top and it wasn't even close. Excluding the 22LR and 12gauge we gave everybody. They would have been the top of the list. The number one cartridge we can't live without and top on nearly everyone's list was 5.56/223 Remington/Wylde. Number 2 on the list was the 300 Win Mag. Those two were way ahead of everyone else.
The 3 and 4 spots were a tie and go to the 308 Winchester and 30/06. And the 5th spot was rounded out by the 375 H&H. So according to this forum if you own a 223, 308, 30/06, 300WM, and 375H&H you are set to hunt the world.
Honorable mentions go in the order they fell based on the number of times they appeared as follows: 7mm REM Mag, 243 Winchester, 270 Winchester and 6.5 Creedmoor (tie), & the 22-250/22-250 AI. All of these cartridges were mentioned more than 40 times by individual posters. The 223 got more than twice that!
The 6.5 PRC, 338 Win Mag, 338 Edge/Rum, 338 Lapua/Lapua Improved, and 280 Ackley Improved were all next down the list with about 25 post each. Following them were the 300 RUM, 7mm-08, 17 HMR, 6mm Creedmoor, 416 Rigby, 375 Ruger, & 260 Remington respectively.
I did not list any cartridge that got less than 10 post. The following got between 10-15 mentions and round out the bottom of the results. 6.5x284 Norma, 45-70, 25/06, 300 WSM, 300 Wby Mag, 257 Wby Mag, 220 swift and 300 PRC. The 284 win, 264 Win Mag, 7mm SAUM, and 300 Norma Mag Improved were all mentioned approximately 10 times each.
Maybe this will help some of you fill the wholes in your safe.
Or give some of you who are new to LRH some good places to start. As for me I am going to place my orders for a new 6.5x284 Norma and possibly one of those 375 or 416 rugers. It really is an addiction ya'll!!! Thanks again guys! It's been fun...
The 3 and 4 spots were a tie and go to the 308 Winchester and 30/06. And the 5th spot was rounded out by the 375 H&H. So according to this forum if you own a 223, 308, 30/06, 300WM, and 375H&H you are set to hunt the world.
Honorable mentions go in the order they fell based on the number of times they appeared as follows: 7mm REM Mag, 243 Winchester, 270 Winchester and 6.5 Creedmoor (tie), & the 22-250/22-250 AI. All of these cartridges were mentioned more than 40 times by individual posters. The 223 got more than twice that!
The 6.5 PRC, 338 Win Mag, 338 Edge/Rum, 338 Lapua/Lapua Improved, and 280 Ackley Improved were all next down the list with about 25 post each. Following them were the 300 RUM, 7mm-08, 17 HMR, 6mm Creedmoor, 416 Rigby, 375 Ruger, & 260 Remington respectively.
I did not list any cartridge that got less than 10 post. The following got between 10-15 mentions and round out the bottom of the results. 6.5x284 Norma, 45-70, 25/06, 300 WSM, 300 Wby Mag, 257 Wby Mag, 220 swift and 300 PRC. The 284 win, 264 Win Mag, 7mm SAUM, and 300 Norma Mag Improved were all mentioned approximately 10 times each.
Maybe this will help some of you fill the wholes in your safe.
Or give some of you who are new to LRH some good places to start. As for me I am going to place my orders for a new 6.5x284 Norma and possibly one of those 375 or 416 rugers. It really is an addiction ya'll!!! Thanks again guys! It's been fun...
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22LR, .223 WYLDE, .270, 300 PRC, 45acp
