I don’t want to start a one upper thread here at all, I want to see your go to rifle for Texas blind hunting . The one you use to pick deer and pigs off a feeder at 100 yards.

I’ll start - this is my Remington 700 Tactical in 6.5cm , 22” barrel , Burris XTR-II 5x25x50 and I use factory Hornady 143gr Precision Hunter . I might have $2k in the entire package but it always shoots straight and makes clean kills

As of late a Ruger M77 in 257 Roberts with a simple 3-9x40. If I got the pipeline things change.

Use to be a 257 wby. Now tikka 223 24” 1-8 twist and A10 wart hog suppressor. NXS8 4-32

If hunting wheat and need for poke over 300 then 6.5cm or if I need to go Light weight rifle 7prc

That's a pretty easy one. AR 18" 300 Ham'r with 5X prism scope. Almost like cheating.

90% of the time I'm shooting a Rem 700 in 308 Win with 16" barrel, suppressed, toped with a scope I won, Primary Arms 1x-8x mil/mil FFP. This year I went to the 152 grain Lehigh Controlled Chaos bullets, and they are awesome!

The other 10% is either my Rem 700 in 300 blk out or my "Black Cherry Pie"

AR15 300 BO with Rattler IR. Too many dogs around for any day hunting. Hogs, yotes, dillos, possums, etc.

Since last season by default, it's my Tikka Roughtek, 7mm Rem Mag with a Leupold VX5HD-3-15 x 44. Currently it's my most accurate rifle with an optic set up that I'm 100% confident in out to 600 yards. Killed my buck the last two seasons with it. I want to get back to a .308 and currently trying to move my new Bergara from the clipboard to the starting job. It's getting close.

Marlin 36a 30-30 currently sporting a Leupold 3x9 Firedot is all I’ve ever used except on public land.

I have a few I have used a home job savage with prefit 7mmo8 I put together, a cz 30-06, a savage 243, but my original that I e killed most with and have a ton of confidence in is a rem 700 sendero in 270 win topped with a boring old leupold 3x9 vxII. It shoots great, very mild recoil. It’s been a great loaner as well.

Right now I have 3 loads I shoot. 150 grain partition, 110 grain Sierra prohunter (reduced for kids etc.), and some factory ram 140 NBT’s. They will all hit an inch bullseye at 100 with no adjustment.

My go to all arounder is my Remington 700 in .308 with a 20" heavy barrel, it's a tack driver at 100 yards.

Looks like you can see forever out there …

Weatherby Vanguard with Kuiu camo stock in 6.5 CM, topped with a 4x12 Burris E1 scope and Talley rings.
Shooting Nosler 140 gr. Bullistic Tip factory ammo. This factory ammo shoots so good it's the only gun I don't load for.
I won the gun at an RMEF dinner and got the scope on closeout for $125.00. So cost wise I'm way ahead of the game.

Go to Whitetail rifle is a Rem 700 BDL in .270. Hair trigger and accurate as hell with the Hornady SST 130 grain. Topped with Zeiss Conquest 3x9 40mm.

I have one of those as well. For whitetails, the 257 Bob in underrated IMO.

Kimber 84 M 308 22 inch barrel w a break.
NightForce SHV 3-10x40 on it
Very light weight. Fully loaded w a GI 1917 leather sling it's 7lbs 6 oz
150 Nosler Accubonds on top of Varget at 2900 FPS

My longest shot on an animal was from there, 550 yards on a coyote. Ranged him, dialed, boom, what seemed like a full second later he flopped. That was with my .308 with an identical optic. You really want something that can get way out there in that country. Most of the stuff I've killed from this stand was inside 200 yards. But it does have those other opportunities where you have all the time you need to range and dial.

Sako 85 Finnlight in .270 win threaded with a Dead Air Nomad on the end. Ran a zeiss conquest 4.5-14x on it for years but switched to the Vortex LHT 4.5-22x this year. Between myself and friends that have used it, it has killed more animals than I can count. She's a shooter.

Daytime my NULA 16" 300 HAM'R with a Burris FF2 3-9x40

Nighttime a WC15 AR 300 HAM'R with a AGM Rattler V2 50-640 thermal

Mine is Tikka T# in 308 that was chopped down to 16.5". Has a brake and is in a Tikka varmint stock. I load a 150gr Nosler BT @ 2650fps. Is now my go-to since last year. Nothing taken this season unfortunately.

75% of the time I’ll take my X Bolt in 22-250

Remington Model 7 243 from 1996. Triggertech special, Trijicon 2.5-12 Accupoint. Threaded original pencil barrel.

I bought this Remington ADL .270 in 1977. I`ve taken a few of my other rifles but this one gets the favorite rifle and go to gun for me. Killed my first buck with it 3 months after I bought it. Killed my last buck with it on 11-19-24. I`d even go farther and say that it is my favorite possession.

Tikka T3 in 260. Leupold VX5 3-15. I didn’t have a pigless picture.

74 700ADL .30-'06 with a 79 Leupold 3x9.......when my daughter is not using it.

Bergara HMR in 308 topped with Sig Sauer Buckmaster optic.

My gun of choice in 2024 is my Kimber 84L in 30-06, 24" barrel topped with Nikon Monarch 3-12 x 42.
In years past was a Weatherby Vanguard-2 synthetic stock in 7mm-08 with a Zeiss Conquest 3-9. Great Texas hunting caliber and very good rainy day gun.

Savage Axis 2 in 300BLK with an Athlon Helos BTR 2-12x42 for most things. If I need more reach, then it's an older Weatherby Vanguard Deluxe in 30-06 or a Winchester Supergrade in .264WM.

Here's my custom Ruger #2 TX Hill Country deer/hog rifle:
6.8mmSPC II; Ruger #3 action; Ruger #1 wood; Shilen med-hvy 1:10 22" barrel; Leupold 6.5x-20x glass; Weighs 9lbs
Super handy in a blind & extremely accurate.

Suppressed AR in 6.8 SPC-II. LMT lower with Blackstone Arms upper, ARP barrel, and Saker 762.

I do a rotation unless I have to pick a rifle to be hunt specific.

6.5 Grendel AR. V Seven Weapons lower with Trigger Tech Competitive trigger, Luth AR stock, JP silent capture buffer and Ergo grip. Athlon Ares scope. Atheris billet upper.

I LIKE THAT Old School Single

Over the years fall back to Remington 788 in 7mm-08 if I feel like I just need to kill some meat. Mostly hunt with the CZ 527 converted from 7.62X39 to 6.5 Grendel.

if shots longer than 300 yards are expected usually pull out the Cooper 6.5-284

For just fun one to carry and good for shorter ranges Marlin Trapper 1894 357 Stainless laminated stocks

Last few years it’s been Ruger Scout 308 with a Primary Arms PLX Compact 1-8 and a Trash Panda suppressor.

It’s only 8.5 lbs and 41.5” overall length with scope and suppressor.

Rem. 788 carbine in 7mm08 or Browning BLR in 7mm08

I have a safe full but my go to gun is a butchered WW2 Eddystone Arsenal 30-06 that I traded a Win 3030 for many years ago. I scoped it, custom stock, competition barrel. I finally shot out the barrel and had a competition barrel installed. It doesn’t shoot as good as the old one did when it was good. Or maybe the old guy doesn’t shoot as well as he used to.

I don't have anything against the Lego guns other than they don't have the class that beauty has.

Last 5 kills have been with Dad’s Mark V .257wby with a Huskemaw 5-20 (best scope I had available) shooting 110gr Accubond’s.

700 in 30-06 or Tikka T3 .270 WSM

Man we have a great dispersion of cool weapons in this thread

This is My standby for the last bunch of years, since the 6.5 Juddmoor was invented. But I think I found my next "GO-TO"

McWhorter 7mm08

Sig Cross in .308 suppressed

I don’t have a blind to hunt out of, but I would use this 6GT for deer and pigs like mentioned. Typically a 6.5-300 or 300 PRC gets used on the wheat fields we hunt, long shots are the norm.

Ruger American Ranch converted from .300 BLK to .300 Ham’r. Magpul stock with Trijicon Accupoint 3-9 x 40 on top. Q Trash Panda on the muzzle.

Tikka T3x 243 win, Vortex 4-16x44, loaded with 90gn TGKs

My easy button is another Tikka T3, .270 Stainless Light that's good for any weather condition. Nikon Prostaff 4-12x40, Federal Fusion 130 grains.

Probably the cheapest and ugliest rifle I own, a Savage Axis XP II chambered in .243. A no-frills rifle I picked up on sale at Academy that came with a free Super Combo hunting and fishing license. Easy on the shoulder and just keeps killing them.

I don't blind hunt. But this rifle is carried every day. It goes with me always.

Tikka action, bolt, trigger.
Bartlein #3 chambered in 7mm-08 A.I. 16" long
Manners EH-1
CDI bottom metal
Atlas bipod
Night Force NX8 4-32X
162 gr ELD-X

Very nice looking rig for sure!

I know this rifle. Call it Ole Rusty

I love my rifle !!!! It is the perfect hunting rifle!


Sako 85 Black Bear 30-06 Leupold V6HD 3-18 x42 w/a Dead Air Sandman 178 gr ELD-X

My go-to for the last 4 or 5 years has been a Remington 788 in .308 that I picked up for a song on the Cabelas used rack. Topped with a Burris Veracity FFP scope. Longest kill shot was 516 yards.

My son has taken a liking to an old western field Marlin that we found in the back of my FIL's gun safe. It shoots 150 gr core lokt way better than it should. Once we've burned through the ammo on hand, I'll start reloading for it and see if we can make it even better. It wears an old leupold vari-x II. Can't find a picture of that one right now.

I appreciate you sharing this - I like to know what the pros use

Original trigger?

https://texashuntingforum.com/forum...r-paint-my-rifle-which-color#Post9128152

Currently (I say that because it could all change tomorrow haha) ^^^ that is my favorite blind rifle. It's a 6.5 saum w/ a 16" barrel. I just about have all the parts to build a short 25 saum or 6prc...one of those two will be next. I've got to get caught up on all the customer stuff before I can play with my own though.

To follow up on my post.

I've replaced this trigger, and the trigger on my Dad's model 700 with a Timney.

This year I hunted exclusively with a Seekins Precision Havak Element chambered in 300 PRC. Topped with a NF NX8 4x32x50 w/ 212gr Hornady ELDX. Killed 8 deer, two hogs, and 5 coyotes during this season. Still got some more hogs to drop with it. Love this rifle. This upcoming season, I will primarily be using the new Seekins Precision Element Hunter. Excited to take that one for a spin


I will say, one of my favorite rifles is the one JG built for me, which has killed TONS of critters. It's a 280AI, and it is accurate as can be!

How do you like the spartan tripod head? I run their bipods on all my rifles but haven't tried the heads out yet.

It varies from season-to-season for me, but lately I've been enjoying a Remington Sportsman 78 in .243 that one of my lifelong best friends gave me a long time ago. I jazzed it up with a new Remington laminate stock, jeweled bolt, Timney trigger, Trijicon Accupoint scope, and Talley rings. It shoots lights out, it's smooth as glass, and everything I've shot with it has dropped dead.

My knee-jerk response is a Sako A7 300 Win Mag that J.G. developed a load for.

These days my "go-to" is mostly an AR in .260 Remington. All I wanna do these days is murder pigs, and it's the tool for the job.

The rifle was originally built by departed member "Cast" about 12 or 15 years ago. He had gotten into putting together (building? LOL!) AR15s and did a couple of them, and then wanted to do something a little different. He wanted to "build an AR10" or two and asked me what cartridges to go with because he didn't want to do a .308 Winchester. I suggested .260 Remington and .338 Federal. So, he whooped out the checkbook and away he went. Next thing I knew he had a couple of large frame ARs. The one in .260 gave him problems and he stuck it in the safe and never did anything with it. When he passed (RIP, Keith) his ol' lady had a bunch of guns in the safe and his kid only wanted certain ones and took those home with him. A few months later found me playing with AR15s in 6.5 Grendel and 6mm AR and decided I wanted something with more authority, so I waltzed over next door and bought that problematic .260 from his widow. It had a Lilja barrel which I knew had to be fine, but the rest of the gun was one big question mark. It turned out it had the wrong length buffer and spring in it and it was badly overgassed. I basically kept the receiver castings, barrel, and BCG and put it back together the way I wanted it, and it has been a great gun ever since. I put another one together with an identical Lilja barrel so that I'd have one with a thermal and one with a day scope. The one that Keith built has killed most of the pigs because I see them a lot more at night, so one day I'll swap the scopes out to even out the barrel wear.





That's a Witt Machine SME on the muzzle. I have yet to shoot the rifle anywhere but under a metal roof since I installed this thing, which is supposed to reduce the noise level the shooter experiences. It DOES NOT reduce noise under a steel roof (I shoulda anticipated that, but...)! If it's not a lot better shooting out the blind windows I'll put my Smith Enterprises flash hiders back on. And NO, don't try to sell me on suppressors---not interested!

Re: brushcountryhunter - I really like the tripod heads from Spartan. I interviewed the owner and he sent me one to test out. Super light tripod, head swiveled and tightened up nicely. Came in handy on a thermal hog hunt when stalking. If you have a heavier rifle, it might not hold it perfectly on its own, but definitely would help steady up a shot.

Any one of these
Whittled down from too many others that went to new homes

Thanks for the info. I will be looking into them for sure.

Only bad thing about spartan is bipod can’t be left attached as it doesn’t fold forward or rear ward, but it’s probably the lightest bipod and tripod option assuming you can glass off their tripod

I kinda like seeing the 260s. I've grown to like the caliber even though I'm about 20yrs late to the party.

CZ600 American ST2 in 6.5 Creedmoor with Arken LH-4. Camo wrap just to lessen sun glint.

The CZ 600 American rifles are one of the best kept secrets out there! Very nice rifle, my friend!

Thank you.

I really like it. Apart from being a little heavy, which actually helps the already-light recoil, smoothest action on a bolt rifle I've owned, very accurate and consistent, love the push button safety because it's silent when you disengage. And it was affordable. Hard to beat.

The best FEELING rifle I have is a 1970's Rem 700 BDL in .243. It's one of those rifles you love to shoot because its balance, weight and "fit" when brought to the should are just unbeatable.

Marlin lever in .44, .35 or 45-70

👌

Winchester model 70 classic featherweight. 270

Ruger M77 canoe paddle, stainless, .280Rem.

Great pic! I'm pretty sure i know exactly which stock you mean by boat paddle, don't know the exact name. BUT what are those wooden accent/attachments? I totally dig the look.

^^Thanks very much! The material was called "Zytel" when it came out. I think Ruger originally offered the wooden inserts, and also green plastic inserts. Very weird idea. So weird I had to try it. I think I found these inserts on either eBay or Etsy. A guy custom makes them, I think in the northeast somewhere. I have the original plastic inserts saved. I think it's so ugly it's cool. I shoot it left-handed, hence the LH stock pack.

As most would guess my go to is my 22 Creedmoor. Here is what it looked like in its second iteration with its first barrel. I actually built it right- handed but after a month decided I would give a lefty action a serious try. Back then use sized down Lapua 6.5 brass which was a pain.
This was back in 2013 I think.


This is what it looks like now with its 3rd barrel & Repainted stock shorter barrel.

You running 18” now?

That’s a 20inch. Runs the 80gr ELD-X at 3270fps and the 62grVT’s at 3690.

TY

My Bullberry Encore in 280ai.

Whichever one has ammo handy.

You just had to post this rifle!

Up till about 15 years ago my go-to rifle was a .308 with the same stock. At that time all was right in the world, until it was stolen!!!!

I had cut back the barrel to 19", floated the barrel, and bedded the action. MOA groups were commonplace. I copied the Ruger inserts using walnut taken from a tree on my property. It was the hunting rifle I grabbed above all others.
Since it was stolen I have bought two more "twins" but neither shot the same and they have been sold long ago.

My search for another "go-to" rifle has taken me 15 years and just this year I have found a replacement. Before I add it to this thread I need to pull out my camera since nothing can take the place of a good photograph.

Savage 110 ultralight with stockys ultra carbon hunter tipped with a banish backcountry 6.5 PRC. It’s a sweet shooter

Since everyone seems to be posting photos I figured I should too.

Hey Creek, what’s the scope here ?

^^Just a run-of-the-mill Leopold 3-9.

I like your setup.

I miss hunting in the woods like this

Tikka T3 in 7mm-08 cut to 19”
T3x stock with flat forend and grip added.
Vortex Razor LHT 3-15x50 MIL/MIL
EGW rail and rings
Triad Tactical cheek rest
Omega suppressor




Great thread. It’s fun to see what everyone uses.

Current situation.

Digging the new 10 rd tikka mags from NDr Shooting Supplies, little heavy to hunt with but great for shooting practice

Is that some type of see thru mesh shade thingy on window??

Freerange…I’ve been waiting on your response

On my rifle? I’ve been busy, but I also figure everybody knows.
Three more days in our season so maybe I’ll catch up and post then. My important posts arent usually short so I need some time…..

👍👍

Lovin' this thread.

No just cheap curtains that Sun has hammered on. That blind sits on a hill and over looks about 3k acres of the ranch including majority of wheat fields. It gets sky lighted really bad, and since it’s set up for kids, it’s easier to just keep curtains closed. With that said might be time to replace them. Use to be dark navy, sun side is white now.

I use those cheap ($4) blanket throws at WM for my curtains and just reverse them when they get faded.

My go to rifle is a rifle I picked up off a friend many years ago.
He had won a rifle and scope from a clay shoot and did not need it, so I bought it from him.
I had never heard of the brand of rifle or scope at the time, but it has proven to be a winner.
Tikka T-3 in .270 WSM with a Sightron SII 3-9x40 scope.
The only thing I have done with it over the years is switch the wood stock out for a Bell and Carlson stock.
It has been a great rifle combo.

Set up this one for longer range nite hunting.

Don’t think about reversing. These are cheap dollar general

I like it!! Thank you

I like this thread. My go to is kind of basic compared to some of y’all but basic suits me. 26” Remington 700 Classic left hand in 7RM. My age probably has something to do with it but I am partial to blue steel and walnut. Barrel is floated. Action is bedded. Recoil lugs are trued up. Drop in Timney trigger. 4-12x50 Swarovski. Easy to shoot good and does more than I need it to.

Sweet little gun. I am currently outfitting an original 243 Model 7 for my sons first gun.

If I’m sitting close, I use my pre64 Win 30-30 that I bought new.

My Interarms Mark X .264 Win Mag.

I like it. Would not want the 26” though. I think I like the sling too but not sure exactly what all its doing.

Likey!

I have right hand version in 270 same scope and same trigger in my safe. The think barrel is 24” though. My 257wby sps is 26” though

Freerange, the long powder column of slow burning powder in 7RM uses that 26” barrel to push a 160 as fast as a 270 will push a 130. I don’t see the point of shooting a toned down magnum. The sling is handy for free hand shooting at extended ranges. It is not my first choice how to shoot. A dying facet of shooting today that is fun practice and useful as ever in the field.

Bobo, 270win does not get the respect it deserves as a big game cartridge on this forum.

The one that gets picked up the most is old reliable tikka t3 in 7-08 cut down and suppressed running 162 eld-m's. It's like a toyota tacoma; no matter who I give the gun to everything people shoot with it drops in its tracks.

Has never lost zero, always goes bang and is consistently accurate. My son shot his first buck at 200 yards with it over the holiday break and dropped him in his tracks. I suspect that will no longer be my gun and I'm going to have JG build me a LH version.

My go-to weapon is a bow, but if I'm needing to use a rifle and I'm serious about the hunt, my go to is a Mark V in .300 win.

Covered some miles with this rig in West Texas, its been to Africa and on several trips out to the Rockies.


Very pleasant to shoot, with the brake it's a cream puff


Sometime soon I will also have J.G build me a short action, short barreled rig to shoot suppressed, but for now, this is my go to for big game.

It was 2009 when my Go-To Rifle was stolen and I have been searching for its replacement since that night. To begin with I limited my search to various .308's.


The Ruger Scout Rifle ended up being my choice for a "Do-It-All" rifle.



However, around 2011 I picked up an AR in 7.62x40 and it grew on me. More and more I found myself using that little 16" carbine.



Then Wilson Combat came out with the new .300 HAM'R and I was hooked.
I still didn't have my Go-To hunting rifle but I did have my Go-Go Cartridge! The little 300 HAM'R will take care of anything I will ever have to face on my side of the country. Defensive, offensive, hunting, or just playing, the baby HAM'R will handle them all. It wasn't too long before I had half a dozen ARs all set up for the 300 HAM'R.



Then it happened! The 300 HAM'R became available in a bolt action. I liked the ARs but a bolt-action just cries out "Hunting Rifle."



The little Ruger worked very well and even if it is a little basic it can take just about any abuse.
The Kimber is nice, but a little too nice. The weather has to be just right and I have to make sure I don't scar it up in the rush. (Yes, it is my Gentleman's Rifle)
Now the NULA 20S goes a step above. It is as smooth as you can get and weighs under 6lbs. with the mounts, scope and fully loaded. It is short and handy as well as being the most accurate rifle I have ever owned. It is more accurate than you will ever need while hunting but that accuracy does give you a feeling of confidence. This is the first year I have hunted with it but I can already tell it will be my "Go-To" hunting rifle for many years to come.

Sig Cross .300 WinMag

"Brake"

Well “Brake” was already taken, so I had to improvise.

Thanks for your sharing your knowledge though. I’m impressed.

Second go to would have to be my .300 RUM. Killed a lot of elk with this one.

Try “Recoil Slowy Downy”. That’s what I’m going to call mine from hear forward.

It's a proper noun, spell it how you want. BTW, I gotta get that Bogpod. I borrowed a buddies. It's perfect for how I hunt most of the time.

They are very heavy

Now that's a fun rig right there!

Bergara ridge 6.5prc 140 Speer gold dot handloads at 3050fps with leupy 6-18 freedom and omega can.

Details please??? I like!