What is your favorite medium game rifle?

I have several bolt and AR rifles but my favorite for medium/big game is my 12 year old Ruger Hawkeye in 338 Federal. It's in a McMillan Classic and currently wears a 2-7 Leopold VXR Firedot. I like 180 Accubonds or old ballistic tips at 2750-2800 FPS and would move up to 200 Accubonds or 210 Partitions if going after something big.

I'd likely have to limit shots 300 yards but that's fine with me.

DPMS LR-308

That’s a great scope for that rig. I really liked my 338-06. I don’t understand why it never gained a following unless it was because Weatherby put out rifles with the chamber cut wrong. Guess that would sour me if that was my first experience.

I keep trying to move on but my 16" Horizon Firearms 6.5 Creed is my go to rifle. I've got two other 6.5s that are nice and a 6.8 Wilson Combat SBR that is a close second but I carry the HF every time I go to the field.

TexFlip, is that one before or after he made it big time? Personally, I don’t think I could ever part with it myself! He does good work. Doesn’t Predator Pursuit use his builds?

Custom LH Rem 700 .257wby--- and it hasn't seen the field yet! Shooting phenomenally with Chad's 115gr Berger VLD load. Can't wait for the season to start!!

McM Edge fill Classic, 26" Bartlein 3B (fluted), bolt fluted and skeletonized, timney trigger. Wearing Talleys and a Z5 5-25 4w/BT.

Stainless Browning X bolt carbon fluted 270 wsm with 3-10x40 Swaro Z3. Lightweight and extremely easy to shoot and accurate.

7mm-08ai. It's on a surgeon 591 in a McMillan stock with a fluted bartlien barrel on it and has a premier 3-15 scope on it.

17" suppressed 7mm-08 A.I. Tikka action, Manners EH-1

162 gr ELD-X 2640 fps MV.

I can see how a shorter barreled suppressed bolt would be ideal. My favorite may change when my suppressor finally arrives.

2014 is when he built it.

I crunched lots of numbers in the ballistic calculator, and that's what I decided to go with. For my purposes I was correct, I wouldn't change a thing.

This is tough as I do not have a single rifle that is well suited for all of the environments that I hunt every year.

When in the AZ mountains chasing game or checking cameras, I always take my Savage 16 Lightweight Hunter. She's chambered in 308 Win, topped with a Vortex Razor LH (3-15), shoots Hornady Precision Hunter very well, and has been absolutely accurate out to 600 yards (sub-MOA). She's light (7# fully loaded), shoulders well, and I would not hesitate to shoot anything in the lower 48 out to 500 yards. The 20" barrel does kill velocity (2500 FPS), she won't win any beauty contests, she has a sloppy bolt, and the barrel heats up quickly. With that said, this is probably my most instinctive shooting rifle.

When the terrain is more open, my first choice is my Savage 116 FCSS (Weather Warrior). She's chambered in 6.5x284 and will do a dime-sized group at 200 yards using handloads. No issues with taking shots at deer/black bear/cow elk at extended ranges. She's a bit heavy for my tastes and won't win any beauty contests but she is 100% lethal. Despite having more kills with this rifle, shooting this rifle is not as instinctive as my 308. This is probably due to the longer ranges and wanting to get everything right.

Rem 700 sendero 270 Winchester.

My home job savage 7mm08 might give it a run for its money if life ever slows down enough to work up a load for it!

Weatherby Varmint in 7/08.

Whatever I pick up that day!

6.8SPC & .308 Win

One of 4:
Winchester Model 70 in 6.5x55
Newton 1st Model in 256 Newton
Rem 700 25-06
Win 70 in 264 WM

Being in the East makes my choice simple. I've been using a Wilson Combat 16" 300 HAM'R for the past year for just about all of my hunting. 100 yard shots are about the norm and out to 200 on rare occasions, The NC mountains eliminates long shots and deer and bears are our only medium to large game.

Have several go to rifles.

If where I am hunting all shots will be inside 100 yards - Marlin 1894 357 Mag
Longer shots or walking a lot CZ 527 in 6.5 Grendel
If where I can see and shoot a long ways Cooper 6.5-284

If the gritters expected are LARGE Remington 700 in 350 Remington Magnum

Sometimes though my first centerfire riflehas to go hunting Remington 788 in 7mm-08

I have a couple as well.

My first is a Browning A-Bolt in 7mm-08. It has taken more deer and hogs than I care to count.
My second is a custom AR in 6.8SPC.
I have a TC Encore with an MGM barrel chambered in 6.5 Grendal that is really fun to shoot and will put deer on the ground as well.

Now, I have two more being built that will probably become my favorites. The first is a custom Turk Mauser that I just rebarreled to 7mm Mauser and is at cerakote right now. The second is a Tikka action that is currently being rebarreled to 7mm-08AI and will be housed in a McMillian Game Warden stock.

Now I just need to find more places and things to hunt so I can start using them more!

Remington 722 in .257 Roberts!

My WC15 16" suppressed 300 HAM'R with a Trijicon 3-9x40 Accupoint will handle anything I need to do here in NE TX, however I still like my WC10 16" suppressed .358 Win with the same scope awfully well. Both shoot sub inch with loads that kill hogs and deer really well.

I have a few 3-9x40 Trijicons but mine are Accupowers. Love those scopes. Recently put one on an AR-15 in 224 Valkyrie.

7/08. I’m one of the few that’s never owned a .308. I have owned a lot of rifles. I still don’t know why anyone thought a .308 was the way to go?

Is a military cartridge, and has been for 67 years. Rifles chambered in it are (and have been) widely available. Loaded up, it hits the hardest from 0 to 300 yards. That's why.

Having said that, the one .308 I own, I would like to rebarrel to 7mm-08, which would make three, for me.

I flip a coin

my daughter grabs her 7mm-08 cuz Fireman said too

Weatherby Mark V in .257 wby

Are you serious? Surely you jest.

Sako 75 in 30.06...

I use a customized Rem 700 300 Win mag most of the time.

Weatherby in 270 winchester

I agree with scalebuster

I ban you both from my thread.

God call, Scott.

Only thing 308 is good for is necking the brass down to better options.

Or up to better short range thumpers, 338 and 358

I don’t get why into who can shoot the furthest, most expensive, my daddy had a..., newest fad, clip or mag, ballistic tip or not even though some do...

.308 for medium game at 300 or under works and it works well

Torch me

You can neck 308 Win brass to any caliber and have a winner.

For most hunting, Savage 110 25-06. For hogs, AR in 6.5 grendel

Scott, be ready to roast.

Left-hand Ruger GSR 18" .308.

Let's be friends

I’m cool with that

This rifle section draws the biggest cult ding dong following of any on THF

Quote something not to specs, proper name, etc and they will crucify you.

But I really trust what some are saying on here so I tune in

Idk what it is about this section to be honest.

Savage Axis II in .243. Inexpensive and effective.

Tough one..
I have probably killed more with my 16” Wilson Combat 6.8
Has it close to 10 years and it done a lot of damage.

They make great rifles.. I recently converted my WC 18 308 to 6mm CM with a 20” barrel.
That one was my go to doe headshot gun this past season with 87g VMAX

I have nice bolt actions in varying calibers of course

Too hard to choose

Who brings too many rifles out hunting?

Some will crucify me anyway. Sometimes I ask for it though.

Wish I could recommend a fave deer rifle but I only ever killed one deer and have since sold the rifle. Ruger American .243.

My favorite gun capable of deer hunting is the 336Y but mine has not drawn blood. But it is fun to shoot and I like how it handles. Don't gotta worry about a scope and etc.

If I had to settle for one gun it'd be a 12 gauge single shot. I have killed a lot of animals with mine, but no deer. But capable and ammo is cheap, zero will never change as long as you remember where to hold

I could never find the fascination with the .308


the best thing to happen to that cartridge was Mark Wahlberg. I don't remember anyone ever shooting one in our circles until "shooter" came out. I did think it was a good chambering in rifles like the Model 88 Winchester, as was the .284 Winchester.


Ballistically, it does not impress me. Its a fine round in and of itself, and it is certainly adequate for deer hunting, but I do not understand its cult following.


I am strange for the 7mm-08. Its the best cartridge I will never personally shoot as I have other calibers that fill its niche but if I was starting over and I hunted in a different area and needed a short, handy bolt action rifle, a 7mm-08 would be it. Someone mentioned the Weatherby Varmiter in 7mm08. Once of my clients has one and its a great little gun. Both my wife and my oldest have one and my Middle Son will be getting one this fall. I think its as close to magic in a short action cartridge as you can get. of course a lot of folks feel the same about the 6.5 creedmoor.

Favorite for semi-auto platform: 6.5 Grendel and favorite for bolt action: 358 Winchester

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I could never find the fascination with the .308



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For me, there was never a fascination with the .308 round. It just so happened that the rifle I wanted was only chambered in .308. I wish it was chambered in 6.5CM or 7mm-08, either one and I'd like the rifle even more.

My criteria was that I wanted a left-hand, stainless steel, 18" barreled carbine. That left me pretty much one choice of rifle and it happened to be in .308.

Sort of the same as I recently got into 6.5 Grendel. My M&P10 will go to one of my kids or get sold. I've already taken the trigger out and the scope off.

For me, there was never a fascination with the .308 round. It just so happened that the rifle I wanted was only chambered in .308. I wish it was chambered in 6.5CM or 7mm-08, either one and I'd like the rifle even more.

My criteria was that I wanted a left-hand, stainless steel, 18" barreled carbine. That left me pretty much one choice of rifle and it happened to be in .308.

Sort of the same as I recently got into 6.5 Grendel. My M&P10 will go to one of my kids or get sold. I've already taken the trigger out and the scope off.


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curious as to what rifle that was?

Ruger Gunsite Scout Rifle. That it has DBM was a nice added bonus I probably hadn't spent much time thinking about. The threaded barrel may come in handy if I ever feel like dealing with our government, but now it just has a thread protector.

That 260 Tikka that Chad had put together for me is by far my favorite game rifle and caliber. No doubt I’d be just as happy if it was in 6.5CM, but I wanted it in 260. I have this great Sako in 270 that I hunted with for maybe 30 years, but now it just sits in the safe. Killed no telling how many deer with it, from 30 yards to 450 yards. I am going to HAVE to hunt with the 270 this year, but I also lied to myself last season.

I have a ruger .270 like that.

I have told myself i'll hunt with it but I never pull it out anymore. I think I hunted with it one time in the past 4-5 years.

Purely from a hunting perspective on medium sized game, I have found bullet construction to be so much more important than caliber, that I really don't give caliber much thought anymore. 243, 7-08, 270, 308, 30-06 they all work just fine with the right bullet and are equally horrible with the wrong bullet.

Don't ever trust a Gen X male that doesn't own at least one 308 Win.

Or don’t trust anyone from Dallas....

I have a Swedish Mauser in 6.5x55 that was dirt cheap, has a fantastic trigger, and seems to smoke everything I shoot with it. As unlikely as it sounds it has become my favorite rifle. I like my 30-30, 243, and 300 win mag but I love that old 6.5. I hunt with 140gr projectiles and it’s dropped several deer, bobcats, pigs, and a few coyotes.

Technically, I live in Allen.

Plus, you were banned from this thread!

For years it was a Pro Hunter, all stainless, 28" barrel cut to 24", in 243. A few months ago i bought another AR15 in 6.5 Grendel, 20" 1:8 stainless barrel.
Haven't hunted with it yet, just punched some paper but it is really growing on me. I used to think i had to have a 45-70, 7mag, 300 Winmag or 338 Winmag.
I'm done with the higher recoil stuff, have no need for it anymore. My AR15 300bo gets used now more than any mag stuff.

I hear you. I will most likely hunt with one of my 6.8 SPCs or new 224 Valkyrie. This year, no trips. I'm just hunting in East Texas where my longest shot is 150 yards.

I'm hoping the cherry 1st Gen Tikka T3 Hunter 6.5x55 with some killer wood under it, I just traded for from a guy in Great Falls will give me the same service and confidence the 1st T3 Hunter Swede I bought in 2006 did. Foolishly I swapped that one off as it was boringly accurate and produced Bang/Flop performance and DA me began looking for a new toy to start the hunt for Mo Bettah performance over again with. That rifle had the best ballance of weight and power of anything I ever shot under 300+ yards. I'm getting toooo Old for these silly games anymore.
Ron

Exactly what I’m hunting with again this year. It’s the first time I can remember fielding a rifle two years in a row. It just gets the job done.

Edit: except in left hand of course.

Well I feel like an old codger with all the flak thrown at the 308. My favorite medium game cartridge is the 30-06 running 165 and 150 grain bullets as fast as IMR4350 will push them. Always seems to work for me plus the old 03 Springfield is a lucky rifle. I shoot a lot of different rifles though and run them in a sort of rotation. The 30-06 gets the end of season hunting, it is after all a lucky rifle.

Killed a ton of stuff with 308s !
It works