All around big game rifle

There's nothing wrong with a 30-06 with a 165-180 grain bullet, and the recoil is more friendly. When you put long range elk into the picture, the 7MM magnum and 300 win. mag. will deliver more energy on target, and will get there with less drop. Recoil does becomes an issue for some. Ammo is readily available for all three, unlike some of the WSSM, WSM, or RUM.
 
A 7RM with a good 160 class bullet is a great way to go. A 280 Rem isn't a bad way, either, and reduces recoil. I'd rather, personally, sling a 168 out of a 280 Rem vs a 30-06. Just easier to get out there, IMO.
 
Go 7MM Mag

Dress it down to 139 grain @ 4200 an it is a stone cold killer on even the biggest whitetail.

Dress it up with a heavy Nosler Partition and you can hammer an Elk.
 
If you have no desire for a semi 308 before you shouldn't have a desire for one just because it might go away. I don't want a sex change, if they outlaw sex changes next month, I'm not rushing to get one today. That thought process is great for gun sales though, which is why gun makers love every scare that comes along. Their sales go through the roof. A lady I work with has never owned a gun in her life, after the last go round she owns 3 handguns and 2 ar's, and wants her money back for 5 guns. She has no use for them but the 'what if I can't get one' thought made her dump a lot of money.

And most semi-center fire hunting rifles I've played with were novel, but not novel enough for me to spend money on them. Too heavy and unwieldy for me. Although I guess .223 is legal in Wy this year so I could go hunting with my AR if I wanted to.

Caliber-wise the rule of thumb I still go by: Deer .243 class minimum, Elk .270 class minimum, brown/grizzly 30-06 class minimum. And that's MINIMUM. If you show up in Canada chasing grizzly's with a 30-06, your guide isn't going to be real happy unless he knows you really well.

The 30-06 loaded correctly takes care of north america.

Bullet selection is important for the game. Friend of mine and I both dropped cow elk a couple years ago at similar (close in) ranges, both were double lung and clean shots. His was 80lbs lighter than mine. He was using a 200+gr 300 winny factory load, I was using 150gr ttsx out of a 30-06. I recovered his 300, it never exited and the ttsx was gone to parts unknown. I also recovered a 460 rowland (similar ranges again), it penetrated the same as his 300.

Everything was equally meat in the freezer, but the barnes bullet performed better.
 
I have killed many elk with .30-06 and .300 WM Remington Core-Lokt 180 gr. those that I didnt shoot in the neck, the bullet was found on the opposite side under the hide.
All of my elk have been one shot kills. So I have always held the belief the those bullets not only did their job well but also left every ounce of energy in that animal.
 
I read a test not too long ago ref the energy on a pass through. I'd have to do some digging to find it again. The results were the energy retained on most bullets was enough to exit and keep going, but not a ton remaining. Many of the rounds tested exited and basically just dribbled out the other side.

On the other end of the spectrum I know I can wing a wiffle ball at an elk, and the ball will expend all its energy, but still not be as effective as another round
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I know from my ^ example my buddy *generally* shoots corelokts, but I'm not 100% sure what he was shooting out of his winny. I'm personally not a fan of them, I can't get them to shoot better than MOD out of anything for some reason. With the side by side on that one hunt and talking just bullet, totally excluding caliber, the amount of damage caused was drastically different. So far I've done a dozen different 'premium' bullets over the years and all have worked well. The copper bullet though has been insane. Itty bitty entry hole, itty bitty exit hole, everything inside looks like it was hit by a grenade. I've switched every hunting caliber over to them, they make me happy
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I've never shot anything in the neck, it's been vitals every time. Except once that I pulled one of my elk rounds on a mule deer. 30 caliber through and through, both shoulders, no vitals. The processor couldn't salvage anything from the front quarters. It was impressive on 1 front, dissapointing on the meat in the freezer front. I also had toput the animal down which didn't make me happy. From what I can tell the bullet didn't expand at all, didn't even know the deer was there. The right bullet for the right game kind of thing
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Either the old 06 or the .270 are great rounds and will do the job well. Use quality bullets and both elk and deer will go down. Im bad about breaking down the shoulder and putting the elk on the ground. I know it wastes meat but having to pack an elk out of some hole a couple of times will convince you its worth it. Im not a huge fan of Barnes anymore since they quite making the old X bullet. The triple shocks are over rated from my experience with them. They do shoot well but so do the nosler Accubonds and the other quality big game bullets. I used barnes for years then had a real failure with TSX from a 300 RUM. I complained to barnes and sent them a photo of the recovered bullet and wound. They replied that at ultra high velocity they wouldn't promise anything for sure on bullet performance.
 
30-06. It's hard to argue with a 100+ years of proven performance. From 55gr accelerators to 250gr and everything in between. It's not the biggest, baddest, or fastest out there but it will hold it's own.
 
I'd go with a .30-06 so I could step up to the heavier bullets if I had the need. Taking bullets over 180 grains out of the picture and the .308 is equally as good a round.

I have a .308 carbine as my daily ranch gun but an old beat up .30-06 is always the one I grab when it comes to deer/elk hunting. Even after all these years the collection has grown to include two .300 Winny Mag, .338 Ultra Mag, .270 etc. etc. etc.
 
Well you asked for opinions & you got em ! Now I suggest you pull out a ballistic chart & let that help be your guide also. That's what I did when I had to make the same decision .

I chose the 300 win mag because its a 30 cal. & bullet choice is unlimited . At the time the 180 gr. 300 WM would fly faster & hit harder than the 338 shooting the 220 gr.

Whitetails don't run. The 300 delivers a devastating blow. Drops muleys & elk too. Compare the ballistics to the 06. Will you be hunting in bear country ? You will get more bang for your buck with a magnum !

I bought a thin recoil shoulder pad for bench shooting for shooting the magnum ,the 300 WM has some recoil but it doesn't bother me shooting game.
Happy shopping what ever you choose !
 
I like the short actioned, milder recoiling 308.
308'll kill Elk just fine as long as you don't shoot em in the azz.

For a new rifle within your budget I'd look at FN built M70.

Luck
 
Thanks for all the advice and opinions. I ended up sticking with my initail plan and went with the Remington 700 in 30-06. Found an awesome deal that i couldnt let myself pass up. Figure i can always upgrade and get more specialized calibers as the years go on. Thanks again.

 
Rem 700 30-06 is very difficult to beat. Best whitetail cartridge hands down. I use a 300wsm for whitetail, mule deer, bear, and elk. Too much for deer but just right for the others. I like the extra giddyup.
 
First rifle is a lot like your first beer, it just primes your for the second
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. My first was a 30-06, several billion rifles later im moving to 358 for elk, built it all by my lonesome! Of course its a savage so theres not much skill involved in the build
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I vote 7 mag. But honestly this thread is just like every Craig boddington article from the last ten years of every gun rag ive ever read. Recycled articles titled "Which is better the 06 or the win mag?". Insert any other two big game cartridges into that title and you have the next months article in the can!
Honestly you can't go wrong with any of them for what you are gonna hunt. If you decide to go shoot a moose years from now, but you bought a 270, odds are your gonna buy another gun anyway.
 
Originally Posted By: jblomquiBut after talking to a buddy at work he said he would seriously look into a Springfield semi auto 308 things are going .

A far as I know Springfield doesn't make a semi-auto 308. In fact, It has been many years since they made any rifles. Please correct me if I am Misguided.

Dave
 
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