3 guns 6 loads all of N America
 

1. 357 magnum 158gn SWC cast 1100 fps.

2. 30-06' 100HP 3100fps,150SPBT 2700 fps,180RNSP 2100 fps.

3. 12ga .690RB,1 oz of B steel.

Seems to me that ought to do everything a fellow needs from gophers to grizz.
That steel might be rough on quail .
A hard12ga RB at 1300fps should cover everything the 180 won't .
I ain't Elmer Keith so 50-60 yrds is all I'm shooting w/a 357,if the bear is to close for me to get to my rifle/shotgun then I'm probably dinner anyway.

What are you going to kill with that 180 grain '06 load that you can't kill with the 150 grain load? Same with the 100 grainer.

You can add a small shot 12 gauge load for yer quail, and a medium shot load for ducks and pheasants, and bump the b shot up to T for geese.

And you still only use 6 loads.

Whats the sense of only 3 guns? I suppose you could try and get by with just three, but I rather have more! A 12ga, and a 20ga, just because you may not be in a 12 ga mood one day. An '06 is fine, but some days I want to know I shot something. Other days, I want the guy 3 tables down from me at the range to know I shot something,lol. Why worry about how few it takes to get by, and more on how to convince the wife into getting more!

Now for reloading, I do keep it somewhat simple, hate adjusting dies. 150gr for the '06, 180gr partition for the 300win, 200gr partition for the 300RUM, 160gr partition for the 7mm Rem Mag, 350gr FP for the 45/70, 260 or 300gr loads for the 375H&H, and 170gr for the 30/30.

Shucks

I've .410,20,16,12ga and 762-39,308,06 and 32 Rem 8x57 6.5x52 a few more,9mm 38 357 and 45s cowboy to casuall,a pair o Hawken 50s.

Id hate to waste 180 on bobcats an coyotes and I don't feel comfy with a 150 for a moose or even a little grizz.

I might trade off the 100 gr HP for 6s.

I'm currently working out loads for my 30s w/1 bullet ,a200 gr cast spire point paper patched for the x39, plain based for the others.

The B steel kills honkers and swans just fine , I expect turkeys would go out just as quietly , in my BPS all 115 pellets live inside the 30" circle at 40yds. W/lead it opens up to become a 25 yd grouse gun w/9s multiple quail hits are likely.

Yeah, but I don't know why a 180 at 2100 makes you feel any better. It has 665 ft/lbs less energy than the 150 at the velocities you gave. That's about 25% less. A 150 triple shock would penetrate about like a 180 lead bullet.


B steel is OK, but I like BBB or T for honkers, and 2 or 3 for pheasants and ducks. Most of my goose hunting is pass shooting so I want as much range as I can get. Over decoys, you'd be golden with that pattern. I like to get at least 1500 fps, and I pick a load that gives me that, I load 2-3/4, 3" and 3-1/2". What I load depends on what hulls I have, some I buy, some are given to me. The last few years I've shot mostly factory, because they were on clearance for about 5 bucks a box. I can't reload cheaper than that. Of course, that is slow steel, but with larger shot sizes it still does OK and tends to pattern decent.

It is good to simplify.

I think I'll keep more options :D

me to:happy0001:

Since you're willing to shoot quail with size B steel shot, I assume that this is all hypothetical and not based on what's legal. If I was in a situation where I had to consolidate for survival purposes, everything could be handled by a .22 and a 45-70. Take grizzly bears out of the equation and the 45-70 could be swapped for a 30-30 with 170 grain cast bullets.