Hello all. Here's one that I've been scratching my head over for a few weeks. This fall, I'm hunting with a muzzleloader. I've been searching for years for that perfect rifle. I prefer to have only one, as I like having a relationship with that one rifle. I have owned just about everthing. My list includes .243 Win, .270 Win, .30-30 Win, .308 Win, ..30-06 Spfd, .300 Win Mag, .338 Win Mag. .303 British, 8mm Mauser and various .50 Calibre frontstuffers. I cant find the right gun. All the rifles were bolt action except fo the .30-30 and .308's. They were either all too heavy to carry, to long, not powerful enough, or ill fitting. My delima comes from this; I want to move. Here on the prairies, a long range cartridge like the .270 is perfect. But I hunt almost exclusivly in the mountains. Long range shots that I hear about sound challenging, but most places I can see past one hundred yards are few and far between. And having a long, heavy rifle is cumbersome. I carried a .300 around for one season, and quickly got rid of it because it was too long and heavy there. I used to keep a .30-30 Marlin with me for the thick stuff, but there are alot of Grizzly bears there. The little .30 left me feeling a little uncomfortable. The .338 was great for power, but then size and weight became an issue. Down to a couple lever action .308's. Good size and power, but the accuracy stank, even for my minute-of-Bambi theory. It is true that I prefer a lever action, so the 45-70 comes to mind. Never owned one, and would like to. And for where I want to move, it could be perfect.

As you can see, there it's pretty thick too. A power house like a 45-70 or similar rifle would be great. There's bears there too, and long shots won't be that likely. Talking to a fellow in the local sporting goods shop, he said guys talk about shots as long as 200 maybe even 300 yards in clearings! I told him I was from the praries, and right away he figured I was shooting an Ultramag! But this rifle must also be called upon to hunt the prairies, where long shots are required at times. My fear is that the 45-70 won't give me that flat tragectory that I have become acustomed to shooting my other rifles. On the plains, I won't shoot past 300 yards, except on coyotes and other vermin. So, the Ultramag thing isn't necessary, as far as I'm concerned. I'm running out of options. I know the #1's are shorter than most rifles, but I wan't a repeater. Bolt, lever even semi's are an option. I will be forced to look for a used rifle, since due to other engagments, I cannot afford to buy new, nor can I continue buying rifles looking for that perfect one. This next decision will have to be it for a while, as I cannot affordto make another mistake. What should I look for? One last consideration is ammo availability. I do reload, but if I am in a pinch, I have been known to purchase factory ammo. In fact, I prefer it. An odd-ball like .35 whelen, while is available in loaded ammo, isn't available at the only store for a few hours. He keeps the mainstay stuff. BLR's out out, I do not like the accuracy, though they are available in magnum calibres. The key here is flexability. Power, compactness and cost. Any opinions will be much appreciated. Plus as a bonus: This should be interesting.

a friend of mine has only owned two rifles in his life, he's 47 now, the two rifles, a marlin 30-30, and when he thought he needed a little more umph, he bought a marlin chambered in 444 marlin, he loves its, like i said he's only owned two rifles, he's had the 444 for 20+ yrs and swears by it. little more weight than a 336 lever, but a lot more gun, and i don't think bears would be a problem

It sounds kind of like you want Dom Perion on a beer budget. The only one that can decide what's perfect for you is you.

It's obvious you aren't a newcommer to hunting or guns and you have experience with various calibers and rifles. All I can suggest is write down what you liked and disliked about every gun you have owned and look for the rifle that has more pros than cons on your list and chose that one.

Pharo,
I hunt some country that looks just like that,I have .450 marlin thats is suited perfectly for it.Then again 200 yds is a strech for,start getting in to the rainbow factor.
Taking the BLR's out of the equations,you lose the flat shooting magnums,so you are down to winchesters and marlins.
Now if you go with a bolt action,the 350 Rem mag come to mind,lots of power out to 300 yds,yet still flat enough shooting.
Now it is not very "main stream" so ammo is not that avalible.

So here is what I would do,I would find myself a good used .338 win mag.
take it to a gun smith cut the barrel down to 22",put a straight power 4x scope,cram that thing full of 225 gr slugs and WALLA problem solved.
One heck of a carbine.Probaly get the hole thing done for around 600 bucks.

The .338 idea doesn't sound too bad actually. But the problem there, is even with 4" off the barrel, that won't reduce the weight alot. But it is still a consideration. I am really leaning toward a 444 or 45-70. I suppose, with the right bullet, I could probably make a 250 yard shot. But I think, I would like to keep the gun open sighted. I took my .22 to the range yesterday, and ripped the scope off. I forgot how much fun it is to shoot a gun that way. There is more skill involved, and you have a rock-solid, reliable sighting system. My biggest concern, from day one has been scope reliability. I love the telescopic feature of modern optics. I hate resighting them when I fall. And I assure you, I fall. The smallest bump will damage them and knock them off. And everytime my rifles fall, they land scope side down. I'm thinking of a larger caliber lever, with a ghost ring rear sight. Or maybe, fibre-optics. I instaled those on my .300 and loved them. Also had them on a muzzleloader, they are awesome in the dark, thick stuff. I guess I could make due with something like that, and the larger hole in the end of the barrel is what you would call instant confidence. A Marlin, or Older winchester Timber Carbine would do the job. I'm not sold on the .450 Marlin yet, going back to ammo availability. Besides, I can get the same power from a good handload. I could go to a quick detach scope system too, which would be nicer for a little more range. What do you think?

Sniff around for a 35 Whelan, it may not be an easy find but sounds like it may fit.

Agreed, the 35Whelen sounds like a good choice for what you're looking for. Not long ago, Davidson's had some Rugers listed with the newer synthetic stock, and blued.

If you think the power of the .308Win. is sufficient, then suggest you look at the current
Rem. Mod. 7 - laminated stock, 20" barrel, and comes with sights. For me, I'd replace the sights with some from Williams, at least the rear sight. Get the Williams with the
shallow V rear blade, and change to a white front bead - fast combo and accurate.

Another option might be to look at the Ruger 77 RL, 20" barrel model. Light weight also.
Can be had in .308 or 30-06. Available in stainless with synthetic stock or go with
blued/walnut. In the latter case I'd have the action bedded, and the barrel free floated.
Will also need to install a set of open sights. Again recommend Williams.

Oh yeah, almost forgot, take a look at the Remington 700 ADL synthetic stock rifles.
Again, avail. in .308 or 30-06, and comes with open sights.

If you want to consider a scope, take a look at the Leupold 1-4x matte finished model.
I've had one of the earlier 1-4x models for nearly 25years, and no problems.
Good luck.

One last consideration I'm aware of is the Tikka Battue. 20" barrel, and comes with the
fiber optic sights, I think. But, as far as I know it's a special order item here.

You said you reload. I think you could cover a lot of bases with the 45-70. Put a sling on the Marlin lever action and head off into that beautiful country. You will be king if you see the bear first.

I have been trying to convince my wife I need a 45-70 to go after the mean ole feral hogs around here in South Texas. Maybe if there were bears she would let me get one.

C. Davis

two choices come to mind. the 444 marlin being one of my favorite cartridges is a good choice as well as the 350 rem magnum.The 350 is being made remington in the 673 and ruger has 2 models both bolt action.

Sounds to me like you have already made your choice. A marlin lever gun in 45/70 with a ghost ring and quick detach scope system. If you are serious about sticking with open sights then shooting past 200 yards isn't an issue anyway. You would be hard pressed to do better for a better rifle out to 200 yards anyway. If you weren't so sold on a repeater I would recomend an encore. Extremely versitile, and always shorter and generally lighter than a bolt gun with the same barrel length. I use my encore for most of my hunting here in alaska. This is a pic of it with my 24" 22-250 barrel. I also have a 30/06, 209x50, and 45/70 barrel for it.