What Rifle should I buy???

[Barbwire]

Im looking around for a good rifle/scope combo for hunting all sorts of big game. I think I gonna buy a nikon monarch scope from the states but dont know which rifle to put it on. Anybody have any suggestions on a good all round rifle for under a thousand bucks?? Im looking to spend 1500 bucks total on this rifle and scope.

Oh and I was thinking a 7mm would be my best bet for caliber

Thanks

Barbwire

[Dick284]

Good luck with optics from the States, lots has changed in the last 5 years and legally getting a scope exported from the U.S. is a royal PITA.

Aside from that your calibre choice is fine, and your target amount should result in a fine purchase.

Being a lefty my selection of fireamrs is somewhat limited, but for less than a grand you can buy pretty well most factory rifle out there, and a scope in the $500 range should get you some mighty fine glass as well.
The only reccomendation I can make for a rifle to buy, is for you to go down to the gunshop and fondle and shoulder as many rifles as you can, the choice is up to you, what one person finds desirable my not be to the next guy.
Good luck.

Oh and I was thinking a 7mm would be my best bet for caliber

That is a good choice .

I cant understand why you couldn't or wouldn't order the scope from your local Sporting good store and save the hassle of custom's .Good luck

All my center fires are Remington 700's. I keep buying them for a reason.

[NS Beagler]

They have the Monarch at SIR http://sirmailorder.ca/show_prod.php...475319ff800030
Nice scopes, I have a few Nikon and really like them

Hey 700...I likely missed this somewhere before but how big is that ram in your picture and what the heck is the story. It looks like an absolute pig!

Dick is totally right about going and fondling a bunch of rifles. Find one that feels and fits good. Most factory rifles are pretty equal when it comes to accuracy and duability......selecting the one that suits you best is the key. The 7mm certainly is a good choice for an all-round calibre though.

[Stinky Coyote]

If you don't want to have to have the gun bedded/floated and trigger worked on then have a look at a Tikka T3...you can get the laminated stainless for about 900 i believe....or you can go right down to the blued synthetic for under 700. You just put your scope on and go...nothing else needed to be done to a Tikka. Remingtons are great guns but everyone i know bed/floats them and has the trigger done...and maybe a re-crown while they're at it and then the guys i know are more than happy with the remingtons. Not knocking a remington...just giving options. I like the detach mag on the tikka also. All Tikkas are shooters from the box....or maybe i should put it this way..... you have as high of odds of getting a good shooter as anything else out there for 1000 bucks or less....probably higher.

[Stinky Coyote]

Originally Posted by sheephunter

Hey 700...I likely missed this somewhere before but how big is that ram in your picture and what the heck is the story. It looks like an absolute pig!

Ha...curiousity was killing me too...i pm'd him the same question....what a whale!

[Rackmastr]

I think that ram is the one from the National Park that died a few years ago....down south...Colorado I think?

[Rackmastr]

Heres info on that ram in 700Ti's pic.....

http://www.boone-crockett.org/news/t...=2005&month=12

http://blog.kingsoutdoorworld.com/20...am-has-passed/

Ah...okay and here I was looking for a story how it fell to the Rem 700. Those are the kinds of rams that keep pushing you over that next ridge though.

[Stinky Coyote]

Ah...okay and here I was looking for a story how it fell to the Rem 700.

HA!

Zinger...

[harv3589]

You should take a look at the Tikka's, I haven't heard of one that did shoot amazing groups. But like what was said above if it doesn't fit you then its not the right gun.

My vote would be for the 30-06...I have had 7mm mags and the 30-06 is nicer gun to shoot.

[Okotokian]

Originally Posted by Barbwire

Im looking around for a good rifle/scope combo for hunting all sorts of big game. I think I gonna buy a nikon monarch scope from the states but dont know which rifle to put it on. Anybody have any suggestions on a good all round rifle for under a thousand bucks?? Im looking to spend 1500 bucks total on this rifle and scope.

Oh and I was thinking a 7mm would be my best bet for caliber

Thanks

Barbwire

Gee, I'm just a newbie to big game, and even I have a ton of questions one would need to answer... "All sorts of big game"... you mean like moose and grizzlies? LOL Then I think my "all-round" .270 would be out of the picture (as the ideal gun anyway). And how much recoil and noise do you want or can stand... how far you carrying it? what features you like? I'm surprised the more experienced guys here haven't put you under the glaring interrogation light.... must be Friday! LOL

[mulecrazy]

another vote for the tikka. I just bought a T3 Hunter chambered in 270WSM. So far it has been great. Very comfortable to shoot and feels great in the hands. I am not a big fan of there synthetic stocks as they felt weird for some reason. The T3 Hunter is a wood stock which I prefer. I feel that the most important factor is your calibre selection. Don't go for the higher powers if you don't like the recoil. My experience has shown they will give you a good flinch. It took a while to get rid of the flinch provided by my dads 300 Wthby when I dialed it in for him.

[Dick284]

Originally Posted by mulecrazy

another vote for the tikka. I just bought a T3 Hunter chambered in 270WSM. So far it has been great. Very comfortable to shoot and feels great in the hands. I am not a big fan of there synthetic stocks as they felt weird for some reason. The T3 Hunter is a wood stock which I prefer. I feel that the most important factor is your calibre selection. Don't go for the higher powers if you don't like the recoil. My experience has shown they will give you a good flinch. It took a while to get rid of the flinch provided by my dads 300 Wthby when I dialed it in for him.

Truth be known I cant stand the ergonomics of the T3 let alone the plastic magazine and teeny weeny ejection port.
I stand by the suggestion that he take a cruse to the guns shop and get what he wants.
Because
He's the one whos gotta own and shoot it.

The 7mmremmag is a personal favorite of mine as an all around cartridge.It shoots quite flat,with very manageable recoil for the average shooter.As far as the rifle is concerned,I like the tikka t-3 and the remington 700,but you need to pick one that fits you.

[haywire]

Barbwire...Definitely the T3 laminated stainless in 7 mm mag is the way to go. Listen to what your Dad says once in a while .. Don't be scared to spend a buck and get a Zeiss scope cheapy cheapy

[Barbwire]

Thanks everyone, I didnt know it was such a hassle getting a scope from the states Maybe I will look for something local.

As far as a gun goes, I think I will check out the Tikka, remington, and ruger as they also seems to make a nice stock gun.

Thanks for everyones input, gotta get this gun soon so I can play with it before moose camp!!!!

Haywire- I dont get good deals on zeiss like you!!!lol

Barbwire

[roger]

hey dudes and dudettes
IMO, if i had the 1500 budget, id spend a 1000 on the glass and mounts and 500 on the rifle
-the glass can move to a different gun,
-you can never spend enuf on optics
-at practical big game ranges, say 50-300 yards...a cheap gun will do as good as pricey one
good luck and get back to us with your outcome

[Supermag]

Don't let the price tag fool you! They can outshoot many guns that are twice the cost. The new models have the Accutrigger (try it out in the store), an improvement in the stock (still not exactly high-end, but I figure if it shoots great, I leave 'em alone) and a removable mag.

It would leave you a lot of cash left for a great scope!!

[catnthehat]

Originally Posted by roger

hey dudes and dudettes
IMO, if i had the 1500 budget, id spend a 1000 on the glass and mounts and 500 on the rifle
-the glass can move to a different gun,
-you can never spend enuf on optics
-at practical big game ranges, say 50-300 yards...a cheap gun will do as good as pricey one
good luck and get back to us with your outcome

X2!
However, my budget these days is a bit higher so i spend more on rifles - a lot more than I neeed to! ( I also prefer irons)
Cat

[ROM]

Join the 21st century with superior technology and engineering. The 300 wsm or 270 wsm are the obvios choices. Look at the effiecient recoil VS hitting power frontier. The 300 WSM shoots a 180 gr with the same recoil a 7mm shoot a 175 grain. The 300 WSM has way more knock down power.

Or, for less recoil the 270 wsm performs the same as a 7mm.

How does this happen? Less powder ejected from the muzzle with the WSM for the same energy due to effiecient design.

The nay sayers have said for the last 6 years "expensive ammo!!!!" "Can't find bullets!!!!" WA WA WA.. If you live in Iqaluit then MAYBE. All gun shops in the northern hemisphere now carry these cartridges and rifles in abundance.

If you have a gun then its probably not worth it. If you are buying your first do it right for the 21st century.

R

While I too am a fan of the short mags, I'm not certain about your recoil theories. There is a basic calculation that applies to determining recoil and from my experience with these short mags, the recoil is right up there with any similar calibre shooting the same grain bullet and the same speed.

http://www.siskguns.com/SISK%20RIFLE...alculation.htm

[willy]

buy a cheaper gun and scope and use the leftover $$ invest in quality binos. Why a person needs a 1000 scope is beyond me the 200-300 ones perform the same.

[albertadave]

X2 on the 300WSM. I bought one last year, a Tikka synthetic lightweight stainless. Would fit your budget leaving about half for a scope. Kicks a little but it would make a nice moose gun. Hopefully I'll put a hole in a moose with mine this fall.

[Lethalconnection]

For deer to moose to bear i think the best guns would be the 7mm or the 30.06

[harv3589]

Just don't be an idiot and buy a Kimber...if they start to interest you, hit your thumb with a good heavy hammer and get ur mind off of them.

[Pred@t0r]

I used to own a .30-06. Manufacturer stamped on the barrel was Midland. I couldn't get any info on it other than it came from England before a I was born. It would shoot the best groups out of any rifle I've ever shot. It was the best all around calibre too. It has a wide variety of bullet sizes that can take down any animal.

I've since moved on to a new Tikka T3 300 WSM. I love this gun. It shoots flat and far, which is the style of hunting I want to pursue now... longer range shooting.

I agree with the majority votes here, spend the most $$ on your optics as it'll determine where you place that shot.

Good luck and do your Ballistics homework.

[altaberg]

best advice you had already: go to all the stores and handle a lot of guns.
See what feels right to you.

I just went through that myself and bought a new 270 (won't tell what and bias you). So I have held a lot of different ones in the last three weeks.

As much as I appreciate guys loving their Tikkas they don't feel right to me. When I pick up the stainless synthetic it doesn't feel well balanced to me.

Guns that I liked when I looked at them were the Weatherby Vanguard and the Ruger Hawkeye. One guy at a store here showed me a Weatherby Vanguard stainless laminate with the new Leupi in gun-metal grey. Very fine looking setup. A bit heavier though.

Don't trash the Savage people. I'm keeping my old savage 30-06 too. All the deer in my freezer will tell you that it works just fine.

I also am biased towards Zeiss scopes.

Good luck