Second Hunting Rifle?
ByI currently have a .270 that I use or coyote, deer, and black bear (350lbs and under generally). I may begin hunting moose this year if I can get a permit. I would like a second rifle that would offer me more options. I was looking at a .300 winchester mag. Would this be a good choice mainly for moose, bear, elk and maybe even deer? My .270 is a primary rifle, but I would like a bigger rifle for moose and bear, and for an elk trip that I am planning for a few years down the road. I know the .300 is hard to shoot by some peoples standards. Thats not what I want to hear about. I am looking for information about the caliber and effectiveness and such. Thanks very much.
Yeah, I have deer hunted with a 30.06 and its really too similar to a .270. But thanks for the suggestion.
16 Comments
March 11th, 2010 at 2:45 pm
Take a look at the 30-06……
March 11th, 2010 at 3:13 pm
Go for a .338 Winchester Magnum.
March 11th, 2010 at 3:24 pm
Here in Alaska, home to the world’s biggest bears and most massive moose, the .300 Winchester Magnum is one of the most popular calibers found. There are a number of other choices that can and will suffice in the field of BIG game hunting, but when you add them all up, you will probably find the majority of our “serious” hunters guns here in Alaska will be chambered for the .300. It is versatile and volatile. Load it up or down and you can hunt virtually anything that walks on the North American continent. If I weren’t already lugging a .338 with my “light” gun being in 7mm Mag, my alternative choice would be, without a doubt, the .300. I think you will agree after you have hunted a few seasons with it.
March 11th, 2010 at 3:42 pm
.300 Win Mag would be fine all rifles recoil and the .300 is not as bad as people say if you shoot your .270 and have no problems you will be fine, and yes it is a good caliber for deer,elk,moose, or bear.
March 11th, 2010 at 4:27 pm
30-06.
March 11th, 2010 at 5:22 pm
Ignore the people saying 30-06 even though they have the same cartridges the 300 is stronger. A 300 win is a good gun for moose elk bear and deer (contrary to what alot of people say) It’s not hard to shoot either. A 300 win will take your elk bear and moose down with one shot. Im sure thats what you want.
March 11th, 2010 at 5:24 pm
a 308 win mag is the way to go
March 11th, 2010 at 5:53 pm
It’s a great cartridge. No problems with a .300 Win. mag at all great accuracy(a friends old Savage 110 Win Mag shoots 3/4″ 3shot groups off the bench at 100yds) & power. You could and I think should consider a .338 Win. Mag. as well. They shoot pretty darn flat and hit like a semi-truck. Recoil is more then a .300 Win. Mag. or in straight numbers even a little more then .300 Weatherby but it is a slower recoil then the Weatherby so it doesn’t seem real nasty unless you get a really light rifle. Either way a rifle over 8lbs with scope that has a stock that fits you well all you need for it to have is a good recoil pad like a Limbsaver or Pachmayr Decelerator. For doing handload development shooting I’d get one of the wearable recoil pads by PAST or someone else you can get them at some gunshops and I think online from Midway.
I can honestly say that you need to use a premium type of bullet in a 300 mag to get best results on animals as large as moose. Nosler’s partition is generally my families go to choice followed by the Trophy Bonded bear claw. None of us has bothered much with the Barnes X-bullets but they have a good reputation especially in their latest forms.
March 11th, 2010 at 6:05 pm
You have a 270, so you don’t need a 30-06. I’ve hunted extensively with and around both rounds, and either of them will do the job of the other. The 300 Winch Mag however goes that step beyond the 270, and can do very large game. It kicks, but recoil has to be expected in trade for such power. If recoil and blast aren’t considerations you may do well to consider one of the 338 offerings. They shoot bullets of high sectional density hard and flat, truly a big game rifle for all occasions. I don’t think you could go wrong by selecting either the 300 or the 338. J
March 11th, 2010 at 6:54 pm
If you handload look at the 35 whelen. It is cool to be a little different!
March 11th, 2010 at 7:28 pm
Jim is right on the money you can’t go wrong with any of the 300mag’s or the 338 win mag but I would be careful of the bigger 338 mag’s as they are at best hard to handle (like the 340 Weatherby) and at worst (like the 338-378) brutal to shoot. You need the power that these cartridges deliver (the 300′s and similar) so you will have to put up with the blast and recoil and learn to shoot well despite of them (and they are not to bad if you don’t go overboard with cartridge choice). Here is a handy hint- in the field you won’t notice if you just touched off a 300 mag or a 22-250 you will just be concentrating on seeing the projectile strike where you aimed it.
March 11th, 2010 at 7:44 pm
Justin, in your question you mentioned hunting moose, bear, and elk. Given this I would suggest and highly recommend a 338 Win Mag as a second rifle. I own a couple of 300s and they are very nice rifles. They will take down every animal you listed, however I’ve had to double shoot elk and brown bear with a 300 in the past. I have two 338s and a 338 lupau now. Loaded with 180 ballistic tips they do a great job on white tail and mule deer. You can load up to 300 grain rounds for Kodiak and moose or bison. I use this caliber in Africa on the plains animals and have taken lion, crocodile, and hippo with it. Accuracy, and one shot kills are the history of the 338.
Recoil IS noticeable but with hand loading and a good recoil pad you can make it feel like a 30-06. Ruger and Remington both have excellent rifles with synthetic stocks to reduce the weight of the rifle. I read somewhere in a reloading manual once that if the 45-70 and the 7mag had a child it would be the 338.
March 11th, 2010 at 7:49 pm
Try the 300 ultra mag with a muzzle brake. More powerful then a 300 mag but with a muzzle brake about like a 270
March 11th, 2010 at 8:39 pm
I have a Remington 700 adl laminated stock and it’s my favorite rifle. I got it for $650 at wal-mart mine is in 30-06 but you could got up if you want to(I’d stick to 30-06). (close pics.here
March 11th, 2010 at 9:26 pm
Actually you have a fine moose and elk rifle with your 270. Jack O’Connor helped make the 270 a popular cartridge for African plains animals (non-dangerous), elk, moose and other game. Most of the moose in Scandinavian countries are taken with 6.5 x 55 Swedish Mauser, so it isn’t the size and weight of the bullet, but the quality of the bullet and it’s placement. I’ve seen elk and moose drop in their tracks with a 270 hit, and they are just as dead as if they were hit with a 458 Lott. Unless you are shooting dangerous game such as Brown or Grizzly bear, there is no reason to not use your 270. The best rifle to shoot elk and even bear with is the one you enjoy shooting the most. You might want to load 150 grain Barnes or Nosler Partitions, but do use a bonded bullet of some type.
Now, we all want a new gun, believe me, I’m out looking every other weekend it seems. To complement your 270, the 338 Mag or the 338 Federal are worth looking at. The 338 Federal is the wildcat 338-06 with some tweaks. The 338 Mag is an entirely different class of shooting experience too; it will get your attention even after getting use to the 270. Buy the best gun you can afford in 338 Mag and you would never be wrong.
March 11th, 2010 at 9:51 pm
338 min mag more punch