Help picking hunting rifle

[ceyko]

Greetings all,
I'm currently looking for a rifle for sports shooting wild hogs around Texas, but also for buck/doe hunting in PA. I have experience with a bolt action 30-06 that my Dad uses for buck hunting - so I was thinking about that line of rifle. Other then that, I was prior military and don't have any experience with standard hunting rifles. :)

My current though is a 30-06, with a scope, pump action. My understanding is that hogs around here can get pissed off and you may need to pump off another round if the 1st shot does not work out - less chance of an error with the pump.

I'm wanting to have whatever I down butchered. But I don't care if the hog get tore up pretty bad. I'd just want the buck in decent shape.

Any input will be appreciated.

[ScottsMach03]

Greetings all,
I'm currently looking for a rifle for sports shooting wild hogs around Texas, but also for buck/doe hunting in PA. I have experience with a bolt action 30-06 that my Dad uses for buck hunting - so I was thinking about that line of rifle. Other then that, I was prior military and don't have any experience with standard hunting rifles. :)

My current though is a 30-06, with a scope, pump action. My understanding is that hogs around here can get pissed off and you may need to pump off another round if the 1st shot does not work out - less chance of an error with the pump.

I'm wanting to have whatever I down butchered. But I don't care if the hog get tore up pretty bad. I'd just want the buck in decent shape.

Any input will be appreciated.



I might have a 30-06 remington semi-auto that I will let go for 400.00

[Casper]

Probably a good caliber. PA deer tend to be larger and hardier than Texas deer. Pigs it doesn't matter, there are so many factors.

[GT98SVO]

7mm is ~ .284 caliber.

Remington 7mm Magnum. 140gr to 175gr can handle any deer.
7mm-08, non-magnum based on .308.
.308 Winchester.

These are very popular and common rounds.

I shot a .30-06 Ruger recently and felt it was more uncomfortable compared to my dad's .375 H&H magnum.

There is a huge assortment of deer calibers.

You can shotgun hunt as well. Some states require shotgun.

Recent G&A magazine article, the guy used .338 Federal.

Remington is great. Sako is expensive. Tikka isn't too bad cost-wise, but I never shot one.
Browning, Weatherby, Savage are other affordable brands.
I think Winchester is out of business.

I like the Remington 700 and 798 models.

I haven't bagged a deer before, but I have dropped caribou with 175gr 7mm magnum at 200 and 300 yards.

[Dacotua]

Probably a good caliber. PA deer tend to be larger and hardier than Texas deer. Pigs it doesn't matter, there are so many factors.

PA you have to use a Bolt Action rifle, semi's are a no no...

[Trip McNeely]

Look at a .300 Winmag also.

[usmcluke]

.270 is a good all around round.

I love my .300 win mag but it is often overkill. :D

[GT98SVO]

yea, .270 is good too. Brother uses that for hog and deer in east Texas.

Now, he is looking at .25-06.

Ya'll ever shot groundhog up there?

My gramps shot a turkey in PA.

What about a Remington Turkey combo?

I looked at the PA website for hunting. Looks like there are a few kinds of deer up there, plus turkey, and bear.

http://www.pgc.state.pa.us/pgc/cwp/view.asp?a=460&q=161003

[ceyko]

PA you have to use a Bolt Action rifle, semi's are a no no...

What defines a semi? I know my dad has bolt action, but his buddy has the same gun pump action. Semi just when there is no sort of pump/bolt action required? Just continuously pull the trigger?

1BAD06, I'll check out the .300 Winmag. Never heard of it, but that's why I'm here asking - have never heard of half the suggestions. :)

GT98SVO - There is a 7mm for sale in the classifieds which had me looking a little. I need to check these out. The one in the classifieds seems to only fire single shots, so it's a no-go for hog hunting - but still, I was curious of that was a good round. I tried to use common sense...5.56mm is good...7.62 is good...so 7 should be too. :) But I'll check out all those. I'm won't be a big enthusiast like a lot of you - just tired of turning down hog hunting trips (plus I want some pork for my smoker!) and want to get out there with my Dad...in the cold.

As far as the different game up there, my Dad/his friends only hunt whitetails (I think that's what they are). He's not real competitive though, never uses a tree stand...food...scents...etc. Just chills at the bottom of a tree with a good firing line for one that might come through. He's run into bear several times...cubs w/ momma bear and a couple of males on their own. So far no problems. Coyote, in Bucks Co. where he goes - you can just shoot them without a license. He does not though, he just lets them be. However, according to him wild pigs are becoming a problem there too.

ScottsMach03 - Send me a PM if I don't send you one please. I might be interested. Seems new they go for around that, just a bit more - we can talk about it though.

...I appreciate all the feedback. It seems a .30-06 is a good rifle to have, but there are other options I need to look at.

Take care,

[usmcluke]

.30/06 is a brush gun. In Texas it is better to have a "flat" shooting high speed round. Distance is the game down here. Up north you have to punch through a bunch of brush and the .30/06 tends to diflect less in those situations.

Get a .270 :D
.300 win mag is too big and very expensive.

[mightyp]

30-06, .308 and .270 are good calibers for just about anything, a .270 shoots a little flatter and recoils a little less. The 30-06 and .308 give you more bullet weight for more penetration.

[Trip McNeely]

.300 win mag is too big and very expensive.
Nah its not too big. Its a great overall round actually. He said he doesnt want it too messy when hunting buck so I think it will be perfect. Now it may be a bit too much for pigs, but you can always switch to a lower grain round.

[Yale]

.30/06 is a brush gun. In Texas it is better to have a "flat" shooting high speed round. Distance is the game down here. Up north you have to punch through a bunch of brush and the .30/06 tends to diflect less in those situations.

Get a .270 :D
.300 win mag is too big and very expensive.

.30-06 is pretty damn versatile, and if his dad already has one, it might be better for them to both carry the same ammo. Also, .270 tends to lack some of the punch of .30-06, and that's always a consideration. You can get some loads for it nowadays that are about as fast as .270, usually with a higher bullet weight, resulting in better stability and retained energy. I would gravitate towards light-medium loads (140-160gr.) in HP, and you shouldn't have any problem with hogs or deer. Since you're new, don't switch back and forth between loads, find one that you like and stick with it; you won't have to resight the gun often that way. Make sure it's pretty common, and you won't have trouble finding when you travel.

[Dacotua]

What defines a semi? I know my dad has bolt action, but his buddy has the same gun pump action. Semi just when there is no sort of pump/bolt action required? Just continuously pull the trigger?


In Pennsylvania you are required to "Manually" eject and load the next shot.

You can have a Pump Action, Lever Action, Bolt Action, Break open, etc.. but you can not have a semi-automatic rifle for hunting deer. In otherwords, you can't simply pull the trigger and have the gun load the next round. Kind of silly if you ask me, but its thats states laws.

[ScottsMach03]

.30/06 is a brush gun. In Texas it is better to have a "flat" shooting high speed round. Distance is the game down here. Up north you have to punch through a bunch of brush and the .30/06 tends to diflect less in those situations.

Get a .270 :D
.300 win mag is too big and very expensive.


Depends on where you are at. In the piney woods of east texas a 30-06 would be better. I use a 30-06 150gr, velocity is in the neighborhood of 3000fps, with alot more energy then a 270. Thats plenty fast for east texas, or anywhere else in texas for that matter.

[92gt]

30-06 or a 270 all the way. Both of them you can load up or down. I have a 30-06 in a Ruger Model 77. I have killed deer, just a couple :D , at over 300 yards. Most of my shots are 50 to 200 yards. What I like about the 30-06 is you can go from a 110 grain excelorator bullet all the way up to a 230 grain I believe. Federal vital shocks work perfect for deer. I use 150grain here and 180 when I went to PA. I have used my Ruger for 20 yrs with not a single problem.
<------------head shooter

[1985GT]

all of these will work... really boils down to what sounds cool to you. the more common the caliber the easier it will be to find ammo and therefore usually cheaper. My main rifle is a Browning A-bolt 7mm Mag and I absolutely love it. Of all of the hogs and deer I have shot with it, I have only ever had 1 deer move after the shot (and he only went about 10 feet). Bigger rounds pack more of a punch but they kick harder too. I would go with a .270, 7mm Mag, or .30-06 if I was you. They are all versitale and common.

[ceyko]

Hey all, I really appreciated all the help. I ended up going very basic with a Mossberg 30-06 (Synthetic) from Academy. I decided to get that for the hunting in PA and I'll use it for the pigs here in TX. However, I concur that it might not be the best one if I miss (the pig) - thankfully up front I'll be going with 1 or 2 other people with AK-47s incase I miss the first shot. (I'll be bummed if I miss tough. :))

Assuming semis don't get banned, I'd like to pick up an AK or AR later this year. The Mossberg shoots straight, came with a scope and seems to fit the bill for me...for now. The Remington rifles were nice, but I have confidence this Mossberg won't fail if maintained.

The pump action 30-06s are cool too IMO, but they seem hard to comeby in a store and I wanted to hold the rifle to make sure it felt good. The 270 was pretty nice, but I talked with my Dad and he reminded me that he's run into bear and the 30-06 is a slightly larger rifle/round. So far he's been able to get away from the bear, but he's better at that stuff then I am - I might actually piss the bear off or something and have to shoot it. :(

Again, the input here was helpful to me and I appreciated it.

Take care,

[1985GT]

if I was in bear country, I would be packing more than a .30-06. A nice .44 mag revolver down the back of my pants or something.

[GT98SVO]

7mm Mag shoots very flat in its range of calibers.

Magnums have larger case capacity, so they take more powder, which ups the velocity and flattens the trajectory.

A 7mm Mag will shoot faster and flatter than a 7mm-08 or 7x57 Mauser.

My brother has several pigs off his hunting place in Jacksonville. He is trapping a majority of them. He is telling me killed pigs won't get processed anymore.

If you want to hunt Texas deer, get a rifle that can handle 100-150 gr bullets.
Bigger animals like Elk, Mule Deer and bear require a bigger bullet.
A .338 or .375 can handle those things. 250gr-300gr bullets.

If you gonna shoot varmint, .22, .22mag, .222, .223, .22-250 or .243 can run bullets 40-55gr that are very high velocity and accurate out to long distances except for the rimfires.

.243 is flexible in that it can shoot 55gr to 100gr bullets which covers a lot of territory. These are factory rounds, handloads, can prolly go to 115gr.

A .270 I think runs 85gr at the smallest factory.

7mm Mag we shoot 130gr to 175gr. The 175gr dropped the caribou, knees buckled with 200-300 yard shots. These were handloads, with Nosler bullets.