Which Cailber ?

[Travis1971]

Hello, I'm considering another rifle, with that being said I'mhaving trouble choosing a caliber. Thefollowing are the criteria I want to meet. 1) Capable of taking whitetail outto 1000 yards, and second has an elk rifle. 2) Be a factory loaded cartridge (I doreload, and will for the new cartridge, but I don't want to spend more timelooking for components that are not readily available "brass") 3) Able to bebuilt in a hunting set up (reasonable weight, not a bench rifle. 4) I already havethe following caliber, 260, 308, 7mm mag and 300 RUM. 5) I was considering6.5-284, 264 win mag, 300 win mag, 300wsm, or 338 win(I'm sure that will work). But I'm open to suggestions if youhave an idea. After I choose a caliber, I'll need to some help/opinions on thecheapest way to achieve the setup, complete custom build or piecemeal it? Andeither way what would your recipe be?

 

[WildRose]

The 7mm Rem and 300 Rum both already do what you are wanting to do just fine.

If you just want to add another in there that's lower recoil than the Rum and still very flat shooting to 600yds, capable of taking elk and deer out to 1000yds the logical choice to me is the 7mm STW or 300wm.

I have all three calibers in multiple platforms and without a doubt it is the STW's I enjoy and shoot the most.

The shortest route to what you want would be to find an STW in a Winchester Sharpshooter or 300wm in a Winchester Laredo, Remington Sendero, or Weatherby Accumark.

With the Laredo or Accumark you won't or at least shouldn't need to do a thing other than work up a load for them. With the Sendero you probably want to replace the trigger and do a good bedding job on it.

 

[MudRunner2005]

The 7mm Rem and 300 Rum both already do what you are wanting to do just fine.

If you just want to add another in there that's lower recoil than the Rum and still very flat shooting to 600yds, capable of taking elk and deer out to 1000yds the logical choice to me is the 7mm STW or 300wm.

I have all three calibers in multiple platforms and without a doubt it is the STW's I enjoy and shoot the most.

The shortest route to what you want would be to find an STW in a Winchester Sharpshooter or 300wm in a Winchester Laredo, Remington Sendero, or Weatherby Accumark.

With the Laredo or Accumark you won't or at least shouldn't need to do a thing other than work up a load for them. With the Sendero you probably want to replace the trigger and do a good bedding job on it.

This is the exact response that I was going to give, before I saw that Rose said it before I got to type it out. Except I would stay away from the Weatherby Accumark, and just stick to Remington Senderos or Winchester Laredos.

You can also buy a new Sendero in 7mm RemMag, and have the chamber opened up to 7mm STW. Simple, cheap, and quick.

 

[No Fear in Accuracy]

I've often shot with 6.5x284 out to 1,000 yards for Precision Rifle Shooting (PRS) and the group is very good with the mild wind. (140 gr bullet).
If it is windy most of the time in your area, then I'll go for 30 caliber.

Are you "really" sure that you can shoot tight groups at 1,000 yards? Otherwise, 300 WSM will do awesome job for any distance. 100-600 yards.

 

[Travis1971]

Me? shot tight groups at a 1000 yards??? Not likely on my best day, But I want the rifle to be capable of it. Yes I know most rifles could out shoot me, but if I only bought to my capability my rifle selection would then be limited to the axis, 770 and the American rifle. LOL Realistically I don't know if I would even take a shot at a deer much past 500.

 

[el matador]

You already have great calibers in .264, .284 and .308, so why not go for the gold and get a big .338 like a Lapua or RUM. They buck the wind very well and can be built in a rifle plenty light to carry. You'd be able to take whitetail and elk out to 1000 without trouble. Plus it would be a different animal than the calibers you already have. Some people will argue that they're overkill, I think they're just right for long range elk. Either way they are a ton of fun to shoot.

There are a bunch of ways to get a good .338:

Look through the classifieds for a used custom gun.
Buy an Accumark in 338-378 and bed it.
Buy a used Accumark with the right sized bolt and rebarrel it to 338 Lapua.
Get a heavy barrel Remington, several models come in 338 Lapua.
Piece together a semi custom
Have a rifle built.

Kinda depends on your budget and time constraints. If you don't like the concept of a big boomer my second choice would be a fairly lightweight 300 WSM. Pretty flat shooting with 165-180 grain bullets, adequate power for elk. Not as good at bucking the wind but you could get a real handy, low recoil rifle with the right build.

 

[MudRunner2005]

He's also missing a 1/4-bore, too...

I suggest the .25-06 AI with the Berger 115 VLD's.

 

[snowpro440]

The .338 Lapua would fill the gap , Components are available for that . shoots 1000+ yards, kills everything .......................
or the .300 WSM. I would never go smaller...