Gettin my first deer rifle.
#51
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: NW Georgia, USA
Posts: 114
RE: Gettin my first deer rifle.
frizzellr,
No problems with that. The 7mm/08 is a great round that is for sure. The .270 probably adds 75 to 100 more yards range but that comes at a range 99% of all hunters shouldn' t be shooting at anyway. So you are certainly correct that practical differences aren' t very much – dead is dead!
When you start hot rodding the .270 with nearly 60g of powder and 150g bullets, the recoil will be more pronounced than the 7mm/08 if that is a concern. I do recall you saying you' ve torn your rotator cuff, so I would imagine you can certainly tell a difference in the two.
Heck, ballistics aren' t usually why I like cartridges anyway. My favorite cartridge is the 7.92x57 JS, or as it is more commonly referred to - the 8mm Mauser. Using European loading data I get about 2650 fps from 180g BT. That is nothing special but for some reason it' s my favorite. Even loading the 185g Remington Core-Loct to a modest velocity of 2400 fps just flat out hammers deer.
No problems with that. The 7mm/08 is a great round that is for sure. The .270 probably adds 75 to 100 more yards range but that comes at a range 99% of all hunters shouldn' t be shooting at anyway. So you are certainly correct that practical differences aren' t very much – dead is dead!
When you start hot rodding the .270 with nearly 60g of powder and 150g bullets, the recoil will be more pronounced than the 7mm/08 if that is a concern. I do recall you saying you' ve torn your rotator cuff, so I would imagine you can certainly tell a difference in the two.
Heck, ballistics aren' t usually why I like cartridges anyway. My favorite cartridge is the 7.92x57 JS, or as it is more commonly referred to - the 8mm Mauser. Using European loading data I get about 2650 fps from 180g BT. That is nothing special but for some reason it' s my favorite. Even loading the 185g Remington Core-Loct to a modest velocity of 2400 fps just flat out hammers deer.
#52
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: NW Georgia, USA
Posts: 114
RE: Gettin my first deer rifle.
I haven' t owned a Savage for almost seven years.....so my comments are in error for the last time....
They had the worst triggers and horrible safetys and didn' t feed or eject.....accuracy .....great.....but I wouldn' t give you a dime for a truckload of them.....I certainly hope they' ve changed in recent history!!!
They had the worst triggers and horrible safetys and didn' t feed or eject.....accuracy .....great.....but I wouldn' t give you a dime for a truckload of them.....I certainly hope they' ve changed in recent history!!!
I currently own 4 left handed Savage rifles that I have bought used and all feed and eject flawlessly. I have replaced the trigger on 3 of the 4. Even with the trigger swap I still have under $35 0 in all but one.
As a matter of fact the only 2 bolt actions I have had that didn' t feed well were older model Ruger M77s.
#53
Typical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 917
RE: Gettin my first deer rifle.
GTBuzz - A handloaded 8mm Mauser is just about perfect for hunting all North American big game. Try 170-180gr bullets for deer and 200gr bullets for elk. Under 300 yards...perfect!
#54
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Newport Maine USA
Posts: 389
RE: Gettin my first deer rifle.
Guess I buy my Savages at a different place lol.I have had over a dozen at one time or another and have NEVER had one fail to chamber or eject a cartridge so feeding has never failed for me even once.The tang safety is an excellant three way with a middle setting that locks the trigger but allows working the bolt to unload.It is adjustable for tension and can be made as easy or stiff to work as you desire,I have hit a couple times when someone was bad mouthing a savage safety or trigger and I popped it out of the stock and adjusted it in about 2-3 minutes and they were all smiles when they felt it adjusted properly.The safeties have to be adjusted WHEN the trigger adjustment is changed and a lot of people don' t do this.From my years of shotgun hunting I prefer a top tang safety to all other designs.The triggers are adjustable for weight and creep and easily set to good crisp hunting let-off(3-4#).Since the new accu-triggers are being phased in they will all soon have the best trigger in the industry over the counter(adjustable from 1 1/2# up).Accuracy is truly the best out of the box of any factory rifle as their floated button rifled barrels and actions are capable of very tight groups with no expensive aftermarket gunsmith work required.Their stocks if synthetic are flimsy and need the cheap viagra treatment to stiffen forends(epoxy or bedding jell with small tubes or rods) or should be had in laminate,wood,or one of the Sharp Shooter Supply versions($225) with the aluminum bedding skeleton.The bluing is thin and unless its kept well oiled can rust so I opt for the stainless versions that are still cheaper than most competitiors blued offerings.They are a bargin to buy and a joy to see what accuracy they are capable of out of the box with a trigger tweak.As Buzz said all the newer guns except maybe Sako and Tikka can use a trigger adjustment right out of the box as the lawyer weight trigger pulls are not unique to Savage only.To be able to buy a stainless weather warrior for $450-465 new and a laminate stainless fluted heavy barreled varmint gun with 1 1/2# accu-trigger for $550-575 is truly a bargin in todays gun market.
woods
woods
#55
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Williamsport PA. USA
Posts: 293
RE: Gettin my first deer rifle.
Man, I can' t believe that nobody mentioned the time proven .308 winchester! Nice, short action, and can handle any critter that walks in Michigan! And if you get to reloading, there' s a selection of .30 cal. bullets out there that will make your head spin! Can you tell that I' m a .30 cal. fan?
#57
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Bossier City LA United States
Posts: 2,425
RE: Gettin my first deer rifle.
the .270 gives you a little more room with bullet weights
#59
Fork Horn
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location:
Posts: 316
RE: Gettin my first deer rifle.
Several very good points have been made!
Don' t rule out the 308 Winchester. I' ve got the same delima as you right now (except it won' t be my first rifle), and I' m taking a serious look a the 308.
Also, the 30-06 would serve you well too.
The greatest advice was to get the best deal. Inside of 250-300 yds., all of these perform almost identically on deer with proper bullet construction, giving you very quick kills.
Furthermore, you can step up in calliber to the heavy 30-06, 7 Mag, 300 Win class of rifle for an all-around North American big game rifle. Recoil does bother some people, like myself, but you can get a recoil pad for around $30 that seems to cut felt fecoil in half. Pachmayer is a good brand.
I think bullet construction is just as important as calliber, and you may want to start a thread on that if you have any questions. All of these choices that have been mentioned are GREAT for your intended purposes, but with the wrong bullet choice, may be highly uneffective. Just look at the 270 and 243 topics which are going right now.
Good luck hunting whatever you decide.
Don' t rule out the 308 Winchester. I' ve got the same delima as you right now (except it won' t be my first rifle), and I' m taking a serious look a the 308.
Also, the 30-06 would serve you well too.
The greatest advice was to get the best deal. Inside of 250-300 yds., all of these perform almost identically on deer with proper bullet construction, giving you very quick kills.
Furthermore, you can step up in calliber to the heavy 30-06, 7 Mag, 300 Win class of rifle for an all-around North American big game rifle. Recoil does bother some people, like myself, but you can get a recoil pad for around $30 that seems to cut felt fecoil in half. Pachmayer is a good brand.
I think bullet construction is just as important as calliber, and you may want to start a thread on that if you have any questions. All of these choices that have been mentioned are GREAT for your intended purposes, but with the wrong bullet choice, may be highly uneffective. Just look at the 270 and 243 topics which are going right now.
Good luck hunting whatever you decide.
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