Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Hehe. Have you noticed the propensity of writers to describe cartridges under 30 caliber as lady rifles? (Time to give up that 6.5x55, James! )

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

LOL...Tell that to this bear. Killed with a 6.5X55 swedish mauser. 1991 outside ofDryden, ON.My first bear and my first bear hunt. 350#

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

hardcore - great looking bear. Now get that damn bass off the wall an replace it with a walleye :D

One has to love the hype that the gun writers create. Its all about money to them, whoever comes out with the latest greatest thing gets their publicitiy. Lately that just happnes to be a few calibers over the .30 bore.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

My 6.5x55 thinks its a big MAGNUM. I have never told it any different:D

Some of the gun writers have a different favorite every month. I quess I should have been a gun writer;)

One writer though has claimed for many years that his favorite deer rifle is the 250 Savage. Partly because of the custom rifle its chambered in but also its another gentle giant like the 6.5x55. He also likes the 280 and 44 Magnum. That would be Jim Carmicheal.

All that said though , A guy could do worse than a good 30 caliber.:)Like maybe a 308 A-Bolt.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

If those writers spent as much timehunting as they do bull shipping and trying new guns at the range, they'd realize it doesn't take a 375 H&H to kill gophers.:D

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

WE p'oed a guneditor that was a moderator on another forum because we made the statement that "Gun editors rave about whatever gun they happen to be shooting since the gun company happens to be paying for their hunting trip and that they had better write something good or the free hunting trips are over with." A week later I proved this point as this moderator and I got in a heated discussion over whether a Savage was an attractive gun or not. He stated" Attractive, I think not, taking a Savage hunting is like taking an ugly girl to prom. She only looks good in the dark." Then I found an advertisement on Savages website that used him as a quote when he did a gun review for a Savage mod 12 varmint rifle.. Here is his quote," The Savage is an attractive rifle with a stainless heavy bbl and a beefy laminate stock." Needless to say he didn't like anybody standing up to him as he was a tyrantalso and we didn't get along to good....I now take gun reviews in magazines with a grain of salt.:eek:

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

That pretty much sums it up.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

I have been reading about guns and hunting since I learned to read and just looked at the pictures before that. After while you get to know where they stand and their basic beliefs. Learning from others is supposed to set us above the other animals. I take a lot of what I read then test it in the field. You can get a lot of good ideas from them and some of them do know thier stuff. Its not to hard to determin when they are reporting facts and when they are advertising. Thats part of how they earn the check. Its a job and sometimes, a very enjoyable job. I made my living selling my knowledge and wood working skills. They do the same thing, their knowledge and skill to write it iin a form that people want to read.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

its just a ploy to get to those men with "little man syndrome" to go out and buy WSM's and RUM's you know those salesman cartridges......

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

If you know any writers, they generally don't make a dime on RUM or WSM sales.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

define "real man"?????????????? cuz i don't wanna dump my .270 without good reason

early

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Hm. Goes something like.... takes 500 yard shots at mulies across the valley with nothing less than a .338, uses gun oil to comb his hair and when asked for ID, shows his belt buckle. (Mine is VFW life member.)

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Dam-it just when I was going to get my first 6.5x55 You all tell me this now I am really confused. Maybe I will just get a .50 bmg and have all the bases covered.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

I'll start looking to buy way too much gun for what I'm hunting when I start having the need for the little purple pills to perform in another aspect of my life. I personally don't feel inadequate about my equipment when shooting the little .308. Your milage may vary.[:-]

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

thats pretty good LOL......i'll keep my .270 though. if i run into anyone that fits that discription well im huntin i'll just say it's a 30-06 ta save face.

early

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

I will shoot the 45-70 now and then to keep my manhood intact.:Dand my 308.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Good Grief-----Here I've been killing deer for decades with a 7mm of some sort or another, and now I find out I should have been using .30 cal. or larger in order to keep "people" from doubting my testostreone levels !!!
PLEASE don't mention any of this to my wife !! She still thinks of me in a "manly" way...... Like Briman said.... Guess the next step is the "purple pill" and a 375 H&H. Off to see Dr. Bonkers...................

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

I do like the 300 magnums for elk and moose,but I consider the .257's plenty for even our large bodied Canadian whitetails.However since many people use one gun for hunting all species,they often carry much larger cartridges than necessary when deer hunting.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

For years I shot the .270 and since 1997 I have been shooting a Ruger 6.5mmSwede with Norma ammo. I could care less what writers think!

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Thats funny......LOL! My biggest cal is .30-06. My dream whitetail rifle is a .257 roberts and right now I shoot a 6.5x55mm at whitetails. I used to read gun mags like mad...... my collection is quit large and the wife hates it. I still go back to certain articles for info, but I stopped buying them b/c I found that I was only reading articles from certain writers. The L8 great Finn Aagaard(rest his soul) could knock anything off its feet with the 7x57 mauser and John Barsness, sure he shoots the .338 win mag but one of his favorite deer rifles was his grandmothers .257 Roberts.
I don't think gun writers are in the pockets of gun manufactures, they are just looking for material. You know something new, we would all get pretty bored reading about the same things over and over. They also write for a large audience and not all of us are alike...... I have magnumitis and shoot mostly smaller(adequate) calibers but will still read an article about the new RUM or WSSM..... try and tell me that the .300wssm will do anything that my .30-06 can't and I'll laugh. I hunt game. I don't look for the longest shot possible....... if you can't hit'em then get closer and I have no right to shoot at game over say 250yds so what is that magnum going to do for me? I haven't had any game question my cal of choice...... it always seems to end the same.
After this I think I'll hang up my .30-06 and shoot the ladies rifles...... just b/c I have nothing to prove!

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

I am glad that you recognize the limits of your shooting abilities.There would be a lot less wounded game if peoplelimited their shots to those that they have the shooting skills and equipmentto make.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Well, then I enjoy my "lady's rifles"fairly frequently and especially this time of year. Also, I feel theyplay a relatively important role in my overall marksmanship maintenance.

I remember the first time, whenas a willowy 14 year oldthat I took my new 270 prairie dog hunting.... it was the only centerfire rifle I had; and my brother's friends were all upset about it; however, it "red-misted" them just fine ---- couldn't see what all the fuss was about. Coyotes, antelope, deer all followed.

Then the 338WinMag came home one day (age 23) and after experimenting on coyotes, antelope, and deer it certainly was different. The best part was always the sound that came back from the far end when the bullet impacted.... sounded like someone whacking the pommel of a saddle with a 10 pound sledge and a full house swing (K-THUD); then followedthe game's nose dive for the dirt.From then on, there was just no comparison, always liked that sound of that bullet impact, followed bywhat immediately happened next.

Then came elk hunting, where we hunted in a "mixed company" of cartridgesfor a time, boy, that was where one couldreally see the differential. One too many tracking jobs later we instituted our 30-06 minimum for elk. However, I still love my "lady's guns" for other quarry and for high repetition sessionsat the range and for field practice. Just another set of tools.
================================================== ==

On a seperate note, just let a woman come onto the forumasking about an elk rifle and watch the general direction that the bulk of the recomendations go,mostly to the "lady's rifles." Perhaps that is what the gun rag writers are observing, thus the "tag". If the shoe fits, then may as wellwear it!

I like my lady's rifles, especially for specific tasks. Good term, kinda like "gallery rifles." Not concerned about the "manhood" issues being implied. Just a label todistinguish one group of rifles from another. No big deal.
================================================== ==

Personally, I think the ladies out their can shoot any damn cartridge they put their mind to; especially if they haven't been corrupted with the American recoil sensitivity/shyness crap. Connie Brooks at 110 pounds shoots a 500 Nitro Express, Jessica Treu shoots a 416 Rem Mag and our very own ChristineB shoots a 375 H&H from time to time.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Lucky I have my 350 Rem. Mag or I’d have to get a skirt when hunting...:D

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Shoot what you want and wear what you want...skirt or kilt! I'll stick to my ladies rifle because it does the job and does it efficiently. No more noise or recoil than necessary. If a guy feels he has to use a Howitzer..then go ahead.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

[quote]ORIGINAL: hardcorehunter

LOL...Tell that to this bear. Killed with a 6.5X55 swedish mauser. 1991 outside ofDryden, ON.My first bear and my first bear hunt. 350#



The 6.5 x 55SE is a sweet round isn't it?!! Its a little fussy on loading recipes but very much under appreciated. Too bad there are so few models offered in that caliber.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Yes, I should have never traded it; but it was going to be a hassle to put a scope on it so I traded it. It had a lymen peep on it when I shot the bear. It was my ist high powered rifle.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

I know, but some big game hunting TV persons are sponsored by say winchester or Remington and seems they do like to push the 300 WSM and 300 RUM a bit depending which show you are watching.

but as you know I do shoot a bigbore (45-70) probably wont ever use it on deer but will use it on my bison hunt this year, I might even use it on elk too if I get drawn this year.

Im not bashing any calibers, just really disagree with the title of this thread.....

It should be "Real Men hit their mark with the first shot" if you can do that then honestly it doesnt matter what size gun you are using just aslong as it is suitable for the game you are hunting.

honestly whoever came up with the idea that only real men shoot 30 cals or bigger is real childish. Darn it we are all hopefully adults..... but its beginning to feel a bit like second grade here.......

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

So, then, you aresaying that the deer/elk/whatever stood there for a little while after being hit by a mighty .338? Light travels significantly faster than sound, so if they went down immediately upon impact, you'd hear the K-THUD after the game was already down. ;)

Just curious... Who wrote the article that is the subject of this post, and what magazine did it published the article?

If someone is saying that you're not a "real man" if you use anything less than a .30 on deer, I would bet that he is overcompensating for one of his "shortcomings"...

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

in my best effort to keep this pot stirring, has anyone seen the crap boddington wrote recently about rifles with less than 1 moa being not good enough??!!!! now granted this guy has more expeirience than i will ever have....and has hunted far more places and for more game than im sure i ever will (unless i hit the powerball) but i have never needed more than 1 moa for anything....hell i dont even think half my rifles will come close to that...except my 300 mag....which at least i guess qualifies me as a "man"...albeit maybe a crappy shot

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

I haven't bothered to read anything that he has written in several years.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

I canceled my subscription to G&A. just didn't interest me. But I did read the first part of Craig's article. It definately wasn't about being good enough it was about there is no reason for a rifle not to be that good. More of a rag on gun manufactures not hunters.

Thats what I read.

Also guys, I have yet to read that gunwriters say anything below .308 cal is made for women. I challege a person on here to show that. I have read that guns under .308 usually has less recoil than the "standard" 30-06 that most guns are compared against, so it would be more ideal for women and children.

Guys are you all even reading these mags or just reading the titles? Or reading into it, which is what my exwife used to do, so that might make sense on why some are bent about thier 7mm-08 being a good gun for women. I guess some are thinking like a women or at least ones I was unfortate enough to divorce.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

???

I had the choice of talking impact, then sound of the impact (since the two are kinda related) and then the crumple of the critter.
OR
I had the choice of talkiing impact, the crumple of the critter, and then the delayed sound of the impact.

The latter is by the order of events, the former grouped "like with like" and less likely to confuse (orso I thought) as I could imagine some smart arse commenting, "when they hit the ground they make the same K-THUD either way regardless what they are shot with." .... but looks like I picked up a s/a who wants to find an angle regardless.

In any case, got big, got small, got in between, shot stuff and K-THUD is what happens.
338WinMag is a nice medium, nothing superlative but nice.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

I was just messing with you, not trying to be a s/a... hence the ;)after my statement. Didn't mean to offend, andI apologizeif I did...

I've actually switched from a "manly" .30-06 to an apparently effeminate .243 for deer hunting. It's a bit easier getting in extended practice at the range with the .243, it hits exactly where I aim (so does the 06, but it kicks a bit more than I like for any lengthy practice sessions), andthe .243performsquite well on the relatively small deer we hunt in the Texas Hill Country. And, it's nice to actually be able to watch the deer at and after the shot with the .243. When using the 06, the recoil has always made me lose sight of the deerat the shot.

At some time in the future, I'm hoping to make a trip to South Africa for some kudu/gemsbok type hunting, and have thought about buying a .338 for use on such a trip. What's the .338's recoil like compared to an 06?

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

[:@]I guess my new 6.5-284 is "girly"

Thats Okay if it shoots like I think its going to....Crossing my fingers.

270 in a dog town...."red mist" I guess.:D:D:D

I don't care if its un manly or not I love shooting my 223, 221 FB, 20VT, 17 rem, 218 Bee, 22 hornet..... They are so much fun...No recoil, no muzzle blast, little or no heating, can see hits through the scope, Oh my! a unManly rifle and a dogtown is a recipe for a lot of fun.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

30-06 with 180s or 200s and a 338WinMag with 250s, more, a fair bit more, but not bad.
Just avoid feather weight rifles.

Play with it and watch not just recoil, but velocity of the recoil.

http://www.huntamerica.com/recoil_calculator/

3006's:
7.5 pound rifle 54-58 grains for 180-200's

338WinMags
8.5 pound rifle 65 grains for 250's

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Stock configuration/design has a LOT to do with felt recoil. It is sometimes hard to compare the same caliber's felt recoil between different makes and/or models, let alone between calibers themselves. Bullet weight plays a big role also. Just rest assured that the .338 is PROBABLY going to have a bit more felt recoil than the '06, but as stated above, it may not be THAT much more................

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

The bigger the gun the more flinch. I shoot a lowly .308 and love watching the guys at the range pretty much close their eyes when they squeeze off a shot from some cannon. Big manly men who just can't bare down enough tosight in and shoot properly. The more you shoot the better you get and it can be tough if you are afraid of your firearm.. Rock On.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

Agreed. I know a lot of guys who would be far better off with a 7mm-08 than the light anti tank weapons they are currently carrying into the woods. Especially when you consider that the average shot distance on deer in my area of Alabama is less than 100 yards and even a mature buck rarely weighs 190 lbs. I'm sure there are guys who post here that can shoot large magnums very well but most of the magnumitis infected individuals that have shot with me at the large gravel pit on my families land suffered from a bad recoil induced flinch. But despite the effect it has on their shooting ability they just can't let that magnum go. Theylove to talk ballistics andhow little their whiz bang ultra mag drops at 400 yards. Never mind that they couldn't hit a bull elephant in the @$$ at that distance so all that flat trajectory and retained energy at 400 yards is about as useful to them as t#ts on a boar hog.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

I played with the calculator for a bit and have a question... What does the "powder weight in grains" have to do with anything? How do they know what powder you are using? Different powders require different weights in order to achieve the same muzzle velocity/energy. I haven't had a physics class since 1976, but, it seems to me that, to calculate the recoil, the only things they would need would be the weight of the rifle, the weight of the bullet and either the muzzle velocity or the muzzle energy.

RE: Real Men shoot .30 cal or bigger!
 

The powderwieght in grains has a major effect. Thats why when people go to chuckhawks sight and think they got it all figured out on recoil, they forgot a major piece. The powder essentually is part of the load. Thats why you can have two different loads say for a 44 mag. One being 20gr H110 with 240gr bullet and one being 12gr of Unique powder, and they possibly will get the same muzzle velocity, but the H110 load is going to be much more stout.


I showed Doctor Death that with a 7828 load for his 270 win. He now complains its bruising his arm but its only a 2950fps 140gr load.