Who else

[ncboman]

is gettin ready to do some serious deer huntin over the next few weeks? :)

[LampLighter]

Why me of course. Heading Nth. about Wed. or Thurs. Bowhunting on the Fed land opens on the 7th. State been open but I been working. Got to get a few days looking around in. Get the camp stocked so I don't have to go to town later. Will stay most of next week. I have to do something different this year. I am focusing in on a couple of the reforest areas. Only muzzleloader and bow are allowed in there, and not those new primitive 45-70's either. Red necks said they saw 3 rack bucks go in there off the highway last week. I saw the river slides labor day when I went. Since I don't have the lottery hunt this year, I'm pretty much going to scout until I find some big rubs- big. I may be on State land- we have about 35,000 acres of it in addition to the 80,000 fed land. All for me.;)
They have alot more muzzleloader and rifle hunting there. So I will have all 3 weapons at the camp- bow, muzzleloader, and my Ruger 44 mag carbine. No telling where I will end up. The muzzleloader on the Fed is not until 1st week of Dec. So, yeah, I'm fitting to get with it somewhere. Then I have to come home middle of Nov. and in December to complete two a/c installs. I have been non-stop installing new equipment. Treated myself to a nice scope for the muzzleloader, with steel Leupold base & rings. Should arrive this week from Natchez Shooter's Supply. I know, I know, lazy chee-wee eating Lamp needs a scope ...... :D

[ncboman]

sounds good.

Sitting here debating which weapon to take this morning. Although I've got a draw hunt on the refuge this weekend, I think I'll hunt my land this morning. Haven't hunted it yet and I've got 3 more 3 day draw hunts on the refuge in Nov.

Need to put some more meat in the freezer. Both boys are too busy with 'other things' to do stuff with me so I ain worried about saving em some. :D

I keep forgetting to pick up some extra doe tags. Maybe I'll get that done today too. :rolleyes:

[purple heart]

Just finished up the first part of bow season last weekend, no luck.
This weekend is catching up on yard work.
The weekend after is youth weekend. I'll be taking a hunting friend and
his 12 year old out. This is the kids first year where he will be able to
take a deer. In the past he's come along with us but without a weapon.
He hadn't passed the hunter safety course yet.
The weekend after that-Nov. 14-15 is the opener of our 2 week rifle season.
Muzzleloader season runs from Dec. 5-13. It's also the second part of
bow season. Ever try shooting a deer with a bow when the temp is -5.:p

[Altjaeger]

Next Saturday morning will find me in East Texas for opening morning of firearms season. The middle of the month my buddy and I will travel to West Texas to try to get in a state management hunt on standby. It is a good chance to put a few does in the freezer. If we don't get to hunt I am taking two of my kayaks and we will fish area lakes for three days. Either ay we can't loose!:)

I am also undecided on what arms to take. I am leaning toward the 8x57 or 30-30, but then again this is the first time in years I have had access to the model 88.

[LampLighter]

I am also undecided on what arms to take. I am leaning toward the 8x57 or 30-30, but then again this is the first time in years I have had access to the model 88.



As long as you don't take that dreaded .308 :p

[Altjaeger]

As long as you don't take that dreaded .308 :p

Aaaaaah, but that M88 is in the very efficient and deadly 7.62x51 NATO round. :D

[Bushman]

Alt, It reads like it talks like a duck and walks like a duck...

[Altjaeger]

Alt, It reads like it talks like a duck and walks like a duck...

Reeeeallyyyyy?;)

[Herne]

Does no one have a proper rifle- one chambered for a long slim effective cartridge?

I do like a rifle with a bit of shunt to it.


BTW can someone tell me why I keep getting mayo on the curtain when I write at the computer?

[Altjaeger]

Does no one have a proper rifle- one chambered for a long slim effective cartridge?

I do like a rifle with a bit of shunt to it.


BTW can someone tell me why I keep getting mayo on the curtain when I write at the computer?

Does the .30-06, 7x57, or 8x57 count?:D

[Herne]

30-06 - getting there but too fat at the front.

7x 57 Anaemic. Nowhere near loud enough. Slow.And short.

8.57. Fat. Slow. And droops.

[Altjaeger]

30-06 - getting there but too fat at the front.

7x 57 Anaemic. Nowhere near loud enough. Slow.And short.

8.57. Fat. Slow. And droops.

:D

[Bill Gunn]

I know you won't approve my opening day caliber choices (.44 mag, .357 mag, or .444 Marlin all in lever actions), but you can keep the Mayo off the curtains by keeping the sandwich off the window sill while typing :p

[Herne]

Probably good advice - about the curtains.

As for cartridges - let us know how you get on.

When the deer see those lever guns, they can just be sure the bullets will bounce off, so they'll be certain to stand still for you. Load one a bit hot, and you might just play a blinder yet, and beat everyone. :)

[LampLighter]

my 44 magnum is semi-auto. And I load Nosler JSP 240 g on top of 24g of Hodgdon 110 :eek: My goodness you should experience that load.

[southtexas]

"....one chambered for a long slim effective cartridge."

Like the 25/06???:)

[Bill Gunn]

When the deer see those lever guns, they can just be sure the bullets will bounce off, so they'll be certain to stand still for you. :)

"One can only hope :p "

I have 270, 30-06, 6.5X55, .338 and a few more in bolt action, but to me the bolt guns are boring.
Nothing like a lever action center-fire, a new high power pistol, or a flintlock muzzle-loader to make hunting a little more exciting.

Their accurate enough (all at 100 yards (except the .22), which is a LONG shot in the woods in NY & Pa.)..

.444 w/240's

http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2250/777751/13525437/340390146.jpg

.308 w/150's

http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2250/777751/13525437/41293448.jpg

.444 w/270's

http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2250/777751/13525437/291397236.jpg

.44 mag w/240's

http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2250/777751/13525437/375649458.jpg

.357 Mag w/ 170's

http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2250/777751/13525437/367392074.jpg

.22mag at 50 yds..

http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2250/777751/13525437/377075417.jpg

Although I'm sure with the *super deer* that are being QDM'd these days, bullets frequently do bounce back and actually kill many a unsuspecting hunter (I may "Invent" a camo hardhat, and BP vest and get rich) , we never found that around these parts.
But just in case, you can see above I practice my "Texas Heart Shot" with my .22 mag.
Here's a deer my wife "Tree Stand Shot" in the heart with a .444. Notice the entrance hole behind the front leg...

http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2250/777751/13525437/213590231.jpg

The only "Bouncing" experienced was the deer off the ground right where it stood.
You ought to give a lever a try, I bet you would like it :)

[Herne]

That THS appeals.

To be honest, my only crib about the lever guns is that they are not really all round cartridges. IE, mostly they are of the carbine style which will suit some, but it wouldn't suit me, depending on the country. Here our average range is 150, for the roe, and mnay of us have a style of shooting which calls for considerable accuracy at close range - in heavy cover. (I sure that a lever could be made to shoot that well, but many don't, out of the box)

Also I don't like the idea of constantly swapping guns - I feel that one is probably better off sticking with one (or very few) and really getting to know them well.

On that basis the lever is not a lot of help when some shots can be very long indeed.

The fast follow up shot is IMO a falsehood, except perhaps if one were dealng with deer pushed by dogs. Any rifle which recoils significantly, or has a lot of drop at heel (see the levers) can be cycled faster than the individual can be ready to aim having assesed the effect of the first shot, and all the rest of it.

[Herne]

As for the 25/06. Bit skinny rally. If the good Lord had intended cartridges to be that skeletal, he wouln't have invented the 270.

Still , better skinny than short and fat.

I thought everything was bigger in Texas?

[RMP]

November 14th is opening day (firearms) here in Missouri and my two oldest boys and I will be hunting in Gasconade County. We've been doing this together since 1984 and this year looks very promising as I have many photos of bucks captured on my trail camera during the past four weeks. Two of the bucks are very nice, one ten-pointer with tall tines and another great looking big eight-pointer.

I know of course they could be five miles away come opening morning but there are plenty of does around to attract other bucks.

I do have a handicap.... and that is I'm using a sub-moa 308, and we know it's no better than throwing rocks.....but I'm going to use it anyway, cause I'm stubborn and bull-headed.

My boys and I always have a good time sitting around the campfire, drinking exactly one beer each, and telling war stories the night before opening day.

So for all the deer camps everywhere......

Palace in the Popple

Written by George Augustus "Gus" Bixby, ca. 1905


Gus and Rob Bixby, lived in Trego, Gus having been born in St Croix County in August 1880, and died in Trego in 1969. Rob, born 1884, died in Trego in 1968. They were a couple of old bachelors that loved the great outdoors. Apparently Gus also loved reading poetry...and he dabbled at writing it, too. Here is a poem he wrote about their hunting shack north of Trego.

Palace in the Popple

It's a smokey raunchy boar's nest,
with an unswept drafty floor,
And pillow ticking curtains,
with knife scars on the floor.

The smell of a pine knot fire,
from a stovepipe that's come loose,
Mingles sweetly with the bootgrease,
and the copenhagen snoose.

There are workworn .30-.30's
with battered steel stocks,
And drying lines of longjohns,
and of steaming pungent socks.

There's a table for the bloody four,
and their game of two card draw,
And there's deep and dreamless sleeping,
on bunkticks filled with straw.

Ed and Lawrence, by the stove,
their gun talk loud and hot,
And Rob, has drawn a pair of kings,
and raking in the pot.

Harvey's drafted again as cook,
he's peeling spuds for stew,
While Gus, wanders in baggy pants,
receiting Dan McGrew.

Nowhere on earth is fire so warm,
nor coffee so infernal,
Or whiskers stiff or jokes so rich
nor hope blooms so eternal.

A man can live for a solid week,
in the same old underbritches,
He can walk like a man, spit where he wants,
and scratch himself where he itches

I tell you boys there's no place else,
where I'd rather be come Fall,
Where I eat like a bear and sing like a wolf,
And feel like I'm Bull Pine tall.

In that raunchy cabin out in the bush,
in the land of the Raven n Loon,
With a tracking snow lying new to the ground,
at the end of the rutting moon.



George Augustus (Gus) Bixby
Circa 1905

[ncboman]

Well, yesterday morning I finally settled on which weapon to use.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v50/ncboman/ncboman%2010%2031%2009/S5300001.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v50/ncboman/ncboman%2010%2031%2009/S5300003.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v50/ncboman/ncboman%2010%2031%2009/S5300004.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v50/ncboman/ncboman%2010%2031%2009/S5300005.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v50/ncboman/ncboman%2010%2031%2009/S5300006.jpg

oh yeah, 30-06 150gr powerpoint

:)

[Bill Gunn]

Herne,

IMHO about 95%, possibly even more, of the statements you make are 100% true. The problem is, is that your like trying to explain something to "Spock" of "Star Trek" fame...
"Interesting, but totally illogical, and entirely unnecessary".

I have bolt guns, one that took me 1.5 years to build. It has killed woodchucks at 725 yards, and shoots 3 shots like this at 100 yards...

http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2250/777751/13525437/318164788.jpg

Also a Mod. 7 in .222 with a Hart barrel that has taken Prairie dogs @ 556 yards.

I have also taken my .444 out woodchuck hunting, and had no great problem blowing them away at 250 yards.

Given all the deer you have taken, don't you ever find yourself "doing the same old thing over, and over"?
I keep my interest up by changing "something" once in a while.
To me, getting proficient with a different gun is 1/2 the fun. I actually once took a .458 Win. Mag. to a sport rifle shoot off. 20 rounds @ 100 yards offhand. Although I will admit that when after firing 7 rounds, and looking down at 13 more to go I honestly wished I brought the .222. I went on to win the shoot with a score of 174/200. (I'll never do that again, and even sold the gun :o )

I would never take a gun hunting that I did not think would do the job, or that I couldn't shoot, my wife has even drilled a deer through the lungs @ 110 yards with a 50 cal. flintlock with a patched round ball and 100 grains of fff totally off hand, due to all the practicing we do.

Like you say, "Hit them right" with whatever you shoot. Out west I use a 30-06 and have taken Mule Deer @ 350, & 425 yards. I wouldn't even think of taking the levers on a trip out to Wyoming, where it's common to hunt in an area where you can see 7 or 8 miles in ANY direction. I'm just saying that there's times when a little diversity makes it more fun, and just because my .44 mag. rifle holds 11 rounds from the factory, and with the removal of the factory installed plug will hold 13 rounds, I doubt it will ever see more than 4 or 5.

Here's an empty target to try your hand at the THS :) :) ...

[Bill Gunn]

RMP,

That's a great poem. You can smell the smoke in the room :)

[Herne]

bill - doing hte same hting over and over? Yes, thats why i rearely go out now.

Doing somehthing more interesting/for a change. - Perhaps it depends on ones objective. With me, with tree planting grants at stake and culls and numbers you have to get in a given time - reliablity and predictability and good equipment was an imperative. So I suppose one got very good at it - reading ground, second guessing deer, shooting neatly and withut too many mistakes. Also one had to do it for the client too - not the shooting but the finding and positioning.

The luxury wasn't "a change" , it was not having to go out at all. I am glad to have the freedom in my hunting now, that many of you gents have always taken for granted.

[Herne]

There is of course another issue.

You have in the hi -power bottlenecks, manageable rounds which will drive through any deer at any sane range - near or far. You have a gun that will work equally well near or far. It is topped with the finest optics money can buy, the rifle itself, while not top of the range, is of as good quality as you can get, without paying for decoration and shiny blue, it is more accurate than many of the so called custom jobs, and it has arguable one of the finest factory triggers ever made. It is of course absolutely reliable in terms of feed and ejection.

So why change and pay to use something that is sub optimal? I don't understand.

[Wapitibill]

Our regular deer season open in 3 weeks. I have a spot lined up at a nearby farm and will be watching over a 1.5 acre meadow surronded by woods on 3 sides. It's hit-or-miss. Many years I see nothing but 5 years ago I had all of my tags filled (4 deer, including a nice 9 point buck) in the first 15 minutes.

I am envious of those who have friends and family to share the hunting experience with, especially those who have a traditional camp style deer hunt. Hunting is like sex, you can do it all by yourself but having the right partner (or partners) makes it much more enjoyable.

As for the .270/bolt action discussion I can only echo Herne. In no way does my hunting experience compare to Herne's (it doesn't even come close) but having done a bit of deer control work has caused me to see things from a different prospective. Thankfully, I never had to rely on my skills as a stalker, hunter and marksman to pay the rent (I'd be homeless by now) but I do know what it feels like to be expected to produce deer carcasses "on schedule" with a minimum of fuss.

When the hunting become the focus the firearm ceases to be an object of special interest in and of itself. A rifle becomes a tool, a tool with a definite purpose, to put blood on the ground. The satisfaction comes from using a good tool proficiently. If you're wrapped up in the hunting experience and paying attention to everything that's going on around you there's no need rely on a variety of arms to keep things "intersting."

Selecting a rifle is like selecting a vehicle. A car represents one thing to a 16 year old who just got his license and something entirely different to a New York taxi driver. Fun, style and image are important to the 16 year while the taxi driver demands the utmost in reliablilty and dependability, under all condtions, day in and day out.

If you want to shoot deer a bolt action .270 is the perfect tool for the job. Why? It works under all condtions. Open country or deep woods. Near, far and everywhere in between. Just like a reliable car that will take you across the street, across town or across the country with equal ease. Killing a deer is not a highly specialized task. There is no magic. Deer have been taken by everything from BB guns to elephant rifles, fired from single shots to full automatics. Just about anything will work but a .270 bolt action offers an almost perfect balance of power, accuracy, rate of fire, convenience of use and economy.

Herne also has to abide by the laws of his land. Here in the States most of us can buy a rifle as easily as we can buy a pair of boots. Pay your money and take your choice. In the UK and Europe it is simply not feasable to own a collection of firearms just because you 'want to.' As I understand it you have to justify the ownership of a firearm (as well as the caliber) with authorities. "Keeping things interesting" is probably not an officially acceptable reason to own a dozen rifles in different calibers and actions. If you can have only one hammer in your tool box it only makes sense to choose the best hammer available.

There are probably a lot of American deer hunters that are more intersted in their firearms than in hunting. This is most evident with handguns. For many handgun hunters the "handgun" is far more important than the "hunting." And there's nothing wrong with that. Firearms are interesting. Each type has its own history, personality and "aura." Who can pick up a front-stuffer Hawken without thinking of the mountain men like Jim Bridger? A '94 Winchester brings up images of John Wayne. The romantic image of the Old West as presented by Hollywood is in no small part responsible for the popularity of leverguns. I'm not immune to it - I own an 1874 Sharps "buffalo gun." It should come as no surprise that I'm interested in the buffalo hide and market hunting era.

But when it's time to stop daydreaming and start hunting deer, I'll reach for my .270 Sako every time.

[ncboman]

So why change and pay to use something that is sub optimal? I don't understand.

The best deer killin machine I have is an 06 ... but I prefer hunting with the less than optimal bow and arrow.

Why? Difficulty factor is much greater and therefore satisfaction levels are higher.

For freezer meat, the 06 is unbeatable. But that freedom you mentioned many seem to take for granted, isn't taken for granted by all of us. ;)

[Bill Gunn]

So why change and pay to use something that is sub optimal? I don't understand.

MAKES me HAVE to get closer.
I know I can hit them at over 400 with the '06, .338, or my 270.
I also know I have to get to 100 to take one with the .44 or .357.
Same goes with flintlock, and bow (25yds and under).

For me it's the difference between hunting them, and shooting them.
Although, there's a good feeling that also comes with seeing one drop at 400+ after you did your homework, and know your rifle.

It's just that "freedom" that I don't take for granted, and I think it's the only reason I still hunt at all.
I honestly no longer have any feeling that I HAVE to kill a deer to make my season successful.
I just love being out there...

[Sabre]

And shoot, a lever gun isn't "sub optimal" at all if you do all of your hunting in the woods.;)

[Bill Gunn]

So why change and pay to use something that is sub optimal? I don't understand.


Originally Posted By Bill Gunn
"Interesting, but totally illogical, and entirely unnecessary".

Thats what I was trying to say, Kinda like when your fishing "Just for the Halibut" :)


Sabre...

Just this Thursday, I received a second Deer Management Permit that I was originally rejected for. I guess with the increase of license cost, and now charging for extra permits, they did not get the request for permits that they thought they would. The 2nd permit I got was for area 9H, around West Almond in Allegheny county...

[Herne]

Bill -exactly - its jsut a tool. If I want to shoot at 30 yards, why I'll just stalk into 30 yards. With muntjac you are going to have to unles you are armed with a vapouriser of the whole woods.

I recognise the gun/ML/bow thing. You have different seasons. I was talking of guns only, because the others are outside my experience.

I don't agree about a lever being OK in the woods. You come stalking though after reds and there is a sodding great stag you want to shoot. Lets say its a spike because I very rarely shot trophies, but did take the culls. Most of the carbine calibre levers will not drive through that animal at 70-80 yards (with certainty) to leave a good blood trail. In woodland you may not have the choice of high neck for a drop.

I've had exactly that experience both with deer, and with pigs when someone nailed one with a 45/70 Marlin. 270 with the right bullets will go straight through. That made for interest.

If the animal is wet or large and the angle steepening the carbines can be marginal for an exit (not a kill) , and that can be a tad awkward getting to evening.

[Sabre]

I don't agree about a lever being OK in the woods. You come stalking though after reds and there is a sodding great stag you want to shoot. Lets say its a spike because I very rarely shot trophies, but did take the culls. Most of the carbine calibre levers will not drive through that animal at 70-80 yards (with certainty) to leave a good blood trail. In woodland you may not have the choice of high neck for a drop.

I've had exactly that experience both with deer, and with pigs when someone nailed one with a 45/70 Marlin. 270 with the right bullets will go straight through. That made for interest

We don't have any reds around here Herne, just whitetails. I've shot a good many of those {many dozens} with a lever action .30-30 and have yet to recover a single 170 grain Winchester Silvertip from a carcass because they ALWAYS went through. I've never shot a deer lengthwise with my .30-30 but have put those bullets through the rib cage from nearly every conceivable angle with one and both shoulder joints being in the path on more than one occasion and still got complete penetration and an exit every single time. A 45-70 with the right bullet/load will shoot straight through a 1200 lb. Alaskan bull moose or coastal grizzly. I have no Idea what 45-70 loads you have experience with but I SERIOUSLY doubt there's any expanding bullet you could load into a .270 that would even come close to equaling the penetration of a stout 45-70 load.

[LampLighter]

I SERIOUSLY doubt there's any expanding bullet you could load into a .270 that would even come close to equaling the penetration of a stout 45-70 load.



I seriously doubt Herme would go hunt Alaskan moose with a .270. I wouldn't. I would just switch to a different rifle , say a 300 Win mag. Wonder what Sarah Palin uses ?

[Wapitibill]

"I seriously doubt Herme would go hunt Alaskan moose with a .270."

I have no doubt at all that Herne would hunt moose with a .270. (Where's that wildebeest?)

I'll have to agree with Sabre, the .30-30 has proven to be perfectly adequate for whitetails in the Eastern woods. The bullets do not bounce off a deer. Almost exactly 30 years ago I took my first deer (and first kill of any kind) with a Marlin 336 purchased at K-mart the previous year for $98.00. The bullet performed well, passing through both lungs. Truth to be told, the Marlin (and its Winchester rival) are inexpensive but servicable rifles that shoot an adequate cartridge at reasonable range. Nothing more, nothing less.

That said, leverguns are not known for exceptional accuracy nor are they convenient to use. Loading is a royal pain in the butt. There's no way to get that last cartridge all the way in past the loading gate without using the point of another bullet or key (unless you want to pinch your finger or tear the tip of your glove.) Once loaded, and after a round is chambered there is no way to empty the chamber without fully emptying the entire magazine. This, of course, requires that each of the rounds be run in turn through the chamber, placing the rifle in full battery on every one. The cartridges take a real beating; after only a few load - unload cycles the bullets and cases are marred and scratched up by the loading gate. Holding the rifle, working the lever while catching the forcefully ejected rounds requires 3 hands (watch that muzzle!) Maybe this isn't a big deal with a horse scabbard but in Wisconsin the rifle must be unloaded and cased before being placed in a vehicle. Even during our short season that can mean a lot of loading and unloading.

Once my hunting career got off the ground (and especially after I got interested in Western hunting) the Marlin was retired to the gun safe, replaced by a .270 Sako. I never looked back and have never felt the need for any other rifle for deer hunting. (I did, however get a .338 Win Mag for elk hunting. Taking elk with a .270 is an issue on which Herne and I will never see eye to eye.) Looked at from a cost-per-use perspective, the Marlin was expensive and the Sako was a bargain. There are probably a few million leverguns that are, like mine, sitting unused in closets and safes. I keep thinking about taking it out for the 30th anniversary of my first kill but it probably won't happen.

[Alan R McDaniel Jr]

I'm going to say that a 270 with 150 gr Hornady Interlocks will do anything that need be done to kill an Alaskan Moose. Of course this is being written by someone who has never shot an Alaskan Moose or any other kind of moose for that matter. Skin is skin, bones are bones and muscle is muscle. It may not be the perfect medicine for moose but it is perfectly adequate. A 45-70 would do just fine on an Alaskan Moose too.

I read a story of a guy who killed a charging polar bear with a 300 Savage. That is certainly a long shot from a 270, 45-70 or a 300 Win Mag. I guess you have to match your round/bullet not only with your game but with your purpose as well. That's why some folks shoot ballistic tips and others shoot solids and most shoot something in between.

The 30-06 has long been called the all around North American cartridge because of all the various loadings that can adequately be made for it. If you follow that reasoning to the "30-06 vs. 270" thought processes ad nauseam, then the 270 should be considered as or nearly as adequate.

i don't like the 243. Not because it's a 243 but because too many people use the wrong bullets for the wrong purpose too many times. With the right bullet the 243 is a fine deer rifle. But the problems start when someone buys one because he's heard that it's a good "youth" rifle and he get a "Green Box" of bullets on the way home to surprise the "youth". The Youth spends several seasons "missing" deer and then gets lucky, so see it's a great Youth rifle. They do the same thing with the 223.

Does that mean that either of these are not good deer rounds? No. They're great deer rounds but you gotta use the right bullet and place that bullet in the right spot. Just like any other round.

If I ever go to Alaska someday and get the opportunity to shoot a moose, I will probably choose my 35 Whelen, but if all I have is a 270 I'll use that without reservation.

Alan

[Alan R McDaniel Jr]

My 300 Savage is on a 99 action and is as accurate as any other rifle I own.

Alan

[Sabre]

Wapitibill, 98.00 is exactly what I paid for my first 30-30 back in 1977. I've gone through a bunch of different makes, models and calibers since then but still love the old "redneck AK-47" for hunting the woods hereabouts.:) I've never had any troubles loading the last round all the way into the magazine tube. Just shove it in with my thumb and never get pinched. Unloading is no problem either. If I'm hunting out back I just crank the shells out onto the bed or the couch when I get home. If hunting out of the truck I just open the door, stick the rifle in and crank 'em out onto the seat. My current Marlin has the crossbolt safety and I use it and like it for unloading without worry of accidental discharge. I like Winchester Silvertips for their great accuracy in my rifle {genuine MOA}, excellent terminal performance AND the fact that the bullets don't get beat up in the loading/unloading process like a lead nose bullet. Guess I've just used a lever action for so long all of this stuff has become second nature and seems no bother at all.

[Altjaeger]

My 300 Savage is on a 99 action and is as accurate as any other rifle I own.

Alan

The 6.5x55 was once the most popular round for Scandanavian elg. Thousands of Canadian moose have fallen to the lowly .30-30 and British .303 cartridges. I also know Herne has great confidence in the ,270 perhaps, considering it superior to the .300 Magnum based on his observations in Africa. I have no doubt he would as happily go forth after the Alaskan Moose wih his .270 as I would with my .30-06.

I dislike the .270, but for no logical reason. At the same time I am convinced the .270 with a 150 grain bullet is absolutely interchangable with a .30-06 with a 180 grain of the same construction. I am further convinced that if unable to read case heads and barrel stampings so as to ascertain th cartridge the shooter would never know the difference under field conditions.

[Sabre]

I wouldn't have any hesitation about using a .270 on moose. If I were going after a coastal grizzly, I'd personally be more comfortable with a 45-70 Marlin loaded with Buffalo Bore's heavy loads or equivalent handloads throwing a 430 grain slug at 1925 fps and 3500 ft lbs..

[dave-t.]

I had a last minute change of plans for rifle hunting this year. I won't be heading north to the farm that I've hunted for 12+ seasons, and it's a bit of a shock, but I had another place lined up within 30 minutes, and it should be a fun hunt too. Big family issues with openning weekend in the group I hunt with, and me schedule won't allow second weekend at all.:( We've turned it into a spring turkey/fishing visit instead of a fall deer hunting trip. Looking forward to that as well.:)

To commemorate the change, I'll be leaving the heavy 300wm at home, and relying on my 257 Roberts this season. It's the most accurate rifle I have, and after the workout I gave the big gun in the mountains (workout it game me is more like it! :o ) I'll pack the 257 this round. Why not, seems like change is inevitable this season.

I'll have 170+acres to myself, just about all wide open bean fields, but one patchy brush and creek choked corner. I know my spot, and know that there have been 120 class bucks killed there over multiple years. Not high end as far as midwest deer go, but interesting enough for me.

I'm grateful for my wife's extended family for the 'O.K.', and to be able to deal with an unexpected blow by gaining plenty of ground for a guy to hunt on openning weekend, on short notice, for free.


For bow season, I have 5 more days of hunting planned for a special draw hunt at a local county park. My bowhunting has been the pits lately. I hope 5full days of hunting spread over the next 11 days will change that. The timing is right wether I can get it done or not.:cool:

[Herne]

Course Id shoot a moose with a 270. Hundreds get shot every year with 6.5x55. Wouldn't hesitate. those who are handy are shooting eland with 270 30/06.

The neck on a moose is the size of the chest on an ordinary deer.

Reds in your woods. No but you have have some very big northern whitetails which are getting on that way.

300WM/270. I think one should be careful - whats for sure is the the 270 with a 150 interlock will outpenetrate a 300WM with the wrong Partition. (150) despite the very high velocity.

270v 45/70. Don't know. Certainly a 270 with a 150g Barnes will penetrate plenty for any of the large deer - it will have a heavier projectile at the same velocity as a 300WM with a normal 180/200g. I agree that at 300 plus the Interlock is getting marginal in the 700 lb class, but with a monolithic expanding solid, I have no doubt that it would kill animals much larger than my wildebeeste.

[Twanger]

I plan to get out hunting locally as often as possible in the next 3 weeks. Mostly with a bow.

The deer are definitely rutting. I saw a young buck with his nose to the ground dogging a doe on Thursday evening.

[LampLighter]

The deer are definitely rutting


:eek::eek::eek: Ours won't be until mid December and again well into January.


Herne, I still would not hunt moose with a 270, and I love the 270. Probably a good 30.06 would be best on Moose. No, the 270 DOES NOT have the ft. lbs. of Wallop! that the 30.06 has.

[southtexas]

"No, the 270 DOES NOT have the ft. lbs. of Wallop! that the 30.06 has."

With comparable bullets (say 180gr '06 vs 150gr 270) the difference in bullet energy is about 200 ft-lbs....similar to that generated by a 22LR. No animal will know the difference.

[Altjaeger]

"No, the 270 DOES NOT have the ft. lbs. of Wallop! that the 30.06 has."

With comparable bullets (say 180gr '06 vs 150gr 270) the difference in bullet energy is about 200 ft-lbs....similar to that generated by a 22LR. No animal will know the difference.

I have related the story of Jack O'Conor before but still like it. When asked which was better he said he had three .270s and three .30-06s. He figured that was represenative of his opinion of their abilities..

He on another occasion opined that the .270 might be a better deer rifle and the 30-06 a better elk rifle, but there was no much difference in performance. We also know he killed a passel of elk with the .270.

[ADK Jakes]

For the first year since I turned 17, I am on the sidelines. I had a hip replacement in September and am having a second in January. I'm 45 years old and in good shape but just wore them out! I am missing my Adirondack trip which I would have left next Friday. I thought about going just to hang out but am just dumb enough to get out there and hurt myself. My rifles sit quietly this year and my gear is still stowed in the attic.

I will miss the peace and quiet of the woods the most. I am setting my sights on a spring walleye and pike trip to Canada!

[Herne]

I must go back to the original point about these monolithic expanding solids.

May are I beleive thinking like the old generation. It was assumed that you needed an expanded projectile of say 90 grains at an impact velocity of about 2800 FPS. Perhaps a bit less. Now you get that from a 300WM. So it got translated back, allowing for expansion and weight loss, that you needed to FIRE a proj of 180-200g to produce that expanded mass. Fair enough - it was a good enough approximation when all bullets performed similarly.

Along comes the (accurate and reliable!) monolithic expanding solid. All of a sudden weight loss is minimal. Your expanded proj is about the same mass as it was at launch. So the above approximation doesn't hold good any more because the bullets don't behave similarly.

You can get a 270/150 g expanded proj, with a higher SD expanded, than a 300WM launching 180-200g. And impact velocity is broadly similar.

So tell me then, if a 300WM with a 200g conventional bullet is OK, how come a 270 with the right bullet isn't, when that bullet has something like 50% more retained weight and a better SD in the carcass?

As for what a 30/0-6 may or may not do - I'm afraid I have little idea, since I did actually fire one once. I do know what a 270 can do, and if it can knock over all my African plains game at ranges of over 300, each with a single shot, I'm quite happy to take it out after any deer up to the size of a maral.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/Herne/PICT0122c.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/Herne/PICT0110.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/Herne/PICT0022cccc.jpg

There are some others a bit smaller, but in ths discussion, it seems that size matters. :)

All of these were taken with a single shot using a tikka M695 270/150g Interlock and 52g of H4350.

All you have to do is hit them in the right place.