My Brother's All Purpose Hunting Rifle

My brother wants to get a rifle for hunting with me and our dad.
We mostly hunt deers and hogs but hope to one day go out west for elk, antelope, etc.
My father and I have safe full of rifles in various calibers for different purposes.
My brother will be getting his first and most likely his only hunting rifle.

He has been looking around and decided on a Savage 11FX rifle in 308 Winchester caliber.
His decision was based on Savage reputation for quality and accuracy, price and caliber.
He feels .308 Winchester will do anything that is needed in the lower 48 states.
For sight I'll give him my spare Nikon Monarch 4-16x42SF scope.
I think it will be damn versatile rifle/caliber/scope combo.

What do you think of his decision on the rifle and caliber?

Can't fault him on the choice, though a 7-08 would recoil a bit less. Regardless, I would pick a different round if your brother was going larger game (over 500lbs) consistantly. Other than that, he is right on track.

The scope is a bit much though.

A 2-7 (or 2.5-8) would be more inline with the concept, though I could see where a 3-9 (because EVERYONE makes one) might be appealing.

Also look at the HOWA's (aka Weatherby Vanguard). Foreign, but nicely made for its price point.

07/01 - ETA:
As long as you keep your shots at 250yds to 275yds, the .308 (or the .270/.280 for that matter) is fine for elk.

Nothing wrong with .308 for those applications. On the other hand, nothing else says "all-around large game getter" quite like a .30-06. It would give him greater versatility in round selection, slightly better ammo availability and just a little more *oomph* for reaching out and touching the bigger critters.

If I was to have only one hunting rifle, it would be chambered in 300 Winchester magnum

I would go with a 30-06, or 7mm Rem mag if I could only have one rifle

30-06 only way to go if your going to have one gun to do it all. Great on deer and elk. All you need to do is pick your ammo/bullet for the game your after.

308 is a good but aint a 30/06

.280 Rem is all the gun he will need. Also, lots of game taken with a .270 Win.

308 is fine if you want to push a 180 at 2600. An ought six can push a 200 at 2700, but thats not needed for deer. Elk, perhaps, would be best shot with that.

All around can't go wrong with a 30-06

this 30-06 is a proven all around performer. It has taken all the critters you list and then some.

Savage...good choice the accutrigger is a huge plus and you cant beat the price. Dont do the package gun buy the rifle you want and then get a good quality scope and have it mounted. As for the Caliber, .308 is my baby I LOVE that round for about anything I would ever do. There is a huge choice in bulllet weights and types, recoil is manageable for about anyone. If recoil is an issue then drop down to the 7-mm08 or maybe even the .243 if you not going to go after anything larger than whitetails. If recoil is not an issue and you want to step it up abit you can get the Savage in .300WSM. I have a custom bulit on a Remington 700 short action and even though I love my Savage Weather Warrior in .308 and have hunted exclusively with the .300WSM for the last 5 years. Just that when compareing the two I shoot my .308 at least twice as much. (two reasons cost of ammo and a sore sholder).

The 308 is my choice as well and if I were to ever find the money to go on an Elk, Moose, or Griz hunt I would add another gun in 338 Win Mag to my collection. The 308 is a fine choice for anything smaller and it would work on bigger big game too but on a hunt of a lifetime I want more gun myself.

Good Luck!

7mm Mag


.

.308 still holds military sniper records. it is underestimated because everyone thinks they need a cannon to kill bambi.

If only one all-around hunting rifle, get it in .30-06. There's not a hunting camp in North America, nor a sporting goods store carrying firearms, that doesn't carry .30-06. Heck, half the fishing camps I have been in have .30-06.

.30-06 loads vary from heavy weight moose loads down to light deer and antelope loads.

I would also go with the 300 win mag. It is accurate, flatter shooting, and can be used on large mule deer, elk, bear, moose, etc.. anything in North America. Also the ammo is fairly common. I like the 30.06 as well it is a good all around bullet. However, I would be somewhat hesitant to use a 30.06 on Alaskan Brown Bear but I have heard of people using it on those too.

Not what I would (or did) choose. I'm not a big fan of Savage rifles and the .308 doesn't have the muzzle velocity I would want for an out-West gun. You're on a forum where people worship .308 though, so I'm not surprised that most people here think it's a great choice. Have him put on a winter glove and try to operate the Savage safety before he buys it.

I went with a Weatherby Vanguard .300 WSM stainless. With my third handload I fired a 5/8" three shot group at 100 yds.
Next choice would've been a .300 Win Mag but I didn't want to use a belted cartridge and I wanted a short action.
If he's afraid of the recoil, then get him a .30-06.

.280 Rem??? Come on.

Any particular reason? I have two (actually, I have one and my son has one). Both are perfectly good rifles.


While it's true that .308 is a bit slower than your choice (.300 WSM), with comparable bullets (weight and BC) there are off-the-shelf .308 loads that are only about 8% slower at the muzzle than .300 WSM.


Granted, it could be easier. But I've never had any real trouble operating mine while wearing thick winter gloves.


A fine gun, no doubt. But a $600-$900 rifle isn't within everyone's budgetary reach.


5/8" groups are great, but not really necessary for this application. Even at 300-400 yds. (well outside the range most hunters should be shooting at to begin with) The ~1 MOA that most modern quality rifles and loads can deliver is plenty accurate for large game vital zone shots. I'm not saying that you shouldn't strive for every bit of accuracy you can...but it generally comes at a price.


What about .280 Rem? Have you compared it's ballistics with .308 Win.? It stacks up quite well. And with comparable bullets, isn't *terribly* inferior to .300 WSM out to, say, 300 yds. or so.

Unless he already has a stock of .308 ammo I would be inclined to pick the 30/06 for a one rifle guy. The nice thing about the Savage long action (30/06 length) is that you can swap barrels and bolt faces fairly easily giving him the ability to change his rifle to a more substantial caliber if his Western hunting excursion calls for it.

I paid $535 new for my rifle. For $400, you can get one of the basic blued models.

.280 Rem gets a because it's an uncommon cartridge being recommended for a first rifle.

.308's killed a lot of critters.

exactly why i picked up a rem. 700 bdl on friday. i love the 30.06 but think the .300 will fulfill the oryx/elk bill if it arises.

30-06, ammo from 115gr to 220gr allow the gun to be used for anything from varmint hunting to elk/moose.

6.8 SPC FTW. Everything from bunnies to bears.

21 years ago, as a 20-year old, I had to make the same decison. I did not expect to be able to buy multiple rifles, so I wanted to be able to get one that could do most things. I decided (just my personality) that I would rather be overgunned in some situations than undergunned in others. So, I got a Remington 700 BDL in 300 Win. Mag. Thoough I now have countless rifles, it was the only bolt action rifle I owned until I recently bought a .340 Wby for an upcoming Brown Bear hunt. I have lived an been happy with that choice (though I wonder if Remington's production quality has declined in recent years). As for the caliber (like any other of the 300 mags), it has been a great option for everything I have hunted larger than javalina (used my .223 on that). In facvt, it is goiing on the Brown Bear hunt with me––my dad is using it. He's been getting 3-shot groups touching at 100 yds with the Fed. Pr. 180-gr TSX loads. He has a .308, but (correctly I think) would not have brought that along on the BB hunt––too small. But the 300 WM is perfectly finie for it. So, hypothetically, if I could not afford my new Mk V .340 toy, I wold have brought the 300 WM. Or, otherwise if I wanted to be able to hunt the bigest bear, I would be much happier with a 300 Win Mag than with a .308. That was my thinking, and was always happy with my decision. The 300 Win Mag also has very good ammo availability. The 300 win Mag has its way with wind and carries significantly more punch at longer ranges than a 308. Some don't like the recoil of a 300 mag (I consider it fairly mild). If so, a .308 would be a good choice. Otherwise, the 300 mags hit harder and farther for elk or other western game.

The combo you are looking at will work just fine. That is a decent rifle with quality glass.

My $.02 on the caliber discussion going on here.......................308 will work on anything in the lower 48 like you want. 30-06 is another good performer. 300 Win Mag is a good choice also. I happen to have used all three. The magnum hasn't been out of the safe in two years. The 06 I might use next year.

The 308 will get used this elk,deer,and antelope season again,and no I don't feel under gunned at all.

My main rifle for the last few years has been a Douglas rebarrel in 6.5 X55 swede. I have a group of friends where ALL (ten or so)of them shoot .270s running 130 grn Sierra Game kings. I use a 140 Hornady SST in the swede. When the Elk get hit, they fall over dead. But what do we know,we live where the elk are..................

They are Elk,not an APC.

This is worth just what you paid for it.

270 Win / 270 WSM.

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