I am getting back into hunting after years of doing nothing but fishing. I want an all purpose rifle for bighorn, mulies, and elk. Any caliber recommendations? I was thinking 30-06 or 270...

either the 270 or the 30-06 would be good choices. The 7mm rem might be a better option though. A little flatter and hits a little harder and not much more harsh on the shoulder. Seems to be the gun of choice out west.

Well, since you said sheep, I'm going to assume that this needs to be fairly flat shooting. And you said elk, so it's gotta have some umph to it. If I was you, I'd either go with a .280, 7mm Rem Mag, 30-06 or a .300 Win Mag

7mm rem mag

A rifle that is all round enough for long distance sheep shooting or knockdown elk hunting is the .300 Win Mag.

Not your best friend at the rifle range . . . (can beat you up), But has all the ammo variations and balistics to do the job on all species from white tail up to bison.

Welcome back! I would have to go with the 7mm rem mag. I shot my first bull elk two years ago with this caliber. The shot was 468 yards. Iwent with this caliberbecause I just wanted to invest in 1 gun...

Regards,

BWjohnny

We think alike. GREAT all around round!

The 7mmremmag would be a great choice.

slayer i would have to disagree that 7mm is the choice gun out west, in fact here in IDAHO very few people shoot 7mm, most shoot 30-06 or 338.

buck i myself would go with the 270, thats what i shoot and it has plenty of knock down power but shoots flatter than a 30-06...a lot of people have told me that 270 isn't big enough for an animal like an elk, but if you put that bullet where she needs to go it won't matter how big your caliber is

just remember you gun needs to be reliable and comfortable to shoot...you won't have as good a timehunting if you break your collarbone because your gun is too big and you put it too high on your shoulder in the heat of the moment...and it does happen

Nice shooting!!!!!