Zen Archery

Classic 30-30 or 30.06

Mr. Slim

the 308 is a good choice. if you get into reloading there are a wide selection of bullets that can be used in the 308. there are bullets for varmit hunting and bullets for deer and even bear. good choice.

REM_7600

OP,

I think an '06 or .308 a great choice. Not really familiar with the TC line but am quite familiar with the Remington and Savage lines. Blueing on the Savage is cheap, the Remington is better but I don't believe the barrel is replaceable which doesn't sound like it would be an issue. I own the Remington 770 in 7mm-08 and the .308 is just slinging out a bit bigger bullet. I have the Savages (.300WSM and .223 Bull) and LOVE the AccuTrigger which I thought was a hoax when they first put them out but they sure as he|| work! For the amount of shooting I do hunting, anything from a .243 on up to .45-70 without any barrel life issues. IMO, middle of the road is the '06.

REM7600, in you guessed it, .30-06!

buffybr

Good choice. Are you going to put a scope on it? I like the Leupolds that I have on four of my rifles. A 3-9x40 is good for all around use.

REM_7600

I wanted to toss this out there. If you're using your rifle primarily from a fixed position AND you find it IS a shooter, here is a very cool and relatively cheap upgrade. It WILL add a bit of weight to the rifle but compared to the original polymer/FG stock I love it, makes a lower end rifle look like a much higher priced version. Add a scope if it didn't come with one and you'll have something people will ask you about! Bi-Pod not necessary, I used it only for the pic of my REM770 (which is also a budget model I picked up for $220 new)

I believe the thumbhole, along with a little weight will also help to even further reduce felt recoil.

I looked up the gun and it looks to be a GREAT CHOICE as many have said...

REM7600

Alsatian

If you don't have a rifle suitable for hunting deer, then I recommend the .30-06. You can use that for deer hunting, pronghorn hunting, black bear hunting, and elk hunting. I have a .25-06 and a .243 I like to use for deer hunting, but these are too small for elk hunting. I also have a .30-06 that my dad made (sporterized a Springfield military .30-06 by making a walnut stock and dropping in the barrel and action of the military .30-06). When I started making out-of-state hunts I decided I ought to have a back-up rifle in case my first choice rifle were damaged -- fell out of the truck on the concrete. I got a .30-06 because this could be substituted for all of the hunts that I do.


You can get a cheap .30-06 that will do the job for you. My back-up identified above is a Remington 700 ADL with a black synthetic stock. I think I bought it for less than $300 at a Bass Pro Shop grand opening event about 10 years ago. This rifle is not pretty but shoots accurately. I mounted a $500 scope on it -- a Leupold VX-3. I thought about just leaving the open iron sights on it that it came with, but then I realized it really wouldn't fill the role of a back-up if it had a primitive sighting system on it that was inferior to my go-to rifle.


Don't over think it. Just get a .30-06 and be done with it. Every rifleman ought to have one .30-06 in the gun safe.

Murdy

I concur with the .308 / 30-06 being good choices, 2 of the most well-established calibers out there, plenty of affordable ammo available everywhere. I own a 7-08, also a fine choice, and getting more popular all the time. The .270 is nearly as well established as the first two. A lot of calibers will work for whitetails.

The gun itself depends on your budget and how it feels on your shoulder. Most modern manufactures put out a rifle that can shoot well. I was set on a Vanguard II until I put one on my shoulder--just didn't fit me. Go try some out for fit.

And, just as important, make room in your budget for a decent scope.

RyanT

This is a long-standing point of contention on lots of threads around the web. Honestly, all of the choices that you're mentioning here are good. My personal fav for power and availability (both on the shelf and in finding rifles chambered in it) is .308. Lots of rifles of all prices and styles in .308. Plenty of velocity and certainly heavy enough for deer, elk, caribou, and lots of other game out to 400 yards...

Hootie64

Thompson center venture 30-06 1moa guaranteed out of box. I just bought one of these on gunbroker for $290.00 nib.and I got a $75 rebate!

I believe the rebate is only good thru end of april

Bocajnala

I find that venture to be an unbelievably ugly gun. However I've shot two of them and they both shot as advertised.

A guy that hunts a property I hunt in PA ran into some financial issues and had to sell his guns. He ended up selling off everything and buying a tc venture and has been killing deer with it for a couple seasons now.

-Jake