New dilemma in my quest for my first rifle

jlehman · #1 03-21-2008, 07:38 PM

I had pretty much made my mind up on a tikka t3 lite in a 7mm rem mag but after comparing ballistics on a few different calibers i'm leaning towards a .270wsm. I'm wondering if there is considerable difference in the amount of kick between the 7mm and .270 wsm as that was a concern brought to my attention due to the light weight of the gun. also any other differences the two have as far as ammo cost/availability etc.. thanks again for all the help

catnthehat · #2 03-21-2008, 07:47 PM

You won't notice much difference in recoil between the two calibers if using the same bulet weigh in the same model of rifle.
Most that shoot the 7mag however lie to use 150 to 168 grain bullets, and most fellas using the 270WSM use a 130 - 140 grain, so you will for the most part feel less recoil if using the 130 grain 270WSM and the 150 or 160 in the 7 mag.
Cat

savagewsm · #3 03-21-2008, 08:01 PM

Depending on what you want the rifle for you may wish to put a bit more thought towards caliber choice. These days good ammo with premium bullets can be pricey. Even the 7mm being more popular can set you back more than $2 a shot for good stuff. If you plan on shooting a fair bit it adds up.

Think about a 30 06 as round. I know its not as sexy as the mags or the WSM's but it will do the job on anything that runs around in this country. The ammo would be half the price.

Regardless though once you get into shooting/hunting I'd strongly suggest getting into reloading. That way you can play around with all types of rounds at a reasonable cost.

sbtennex · #4 03-21-2008, 09:56 PM

In the T3 Lite you'll feel (and hear) them both - substantially. If you're stuck on a 7mm Mag, one of the best big game flatteners there is IMO, stick with the laminated or the wood-stocked versions. A full pound+ heavier but weight will help you enough to thank it at the sighting in. As far as the .270 WSM goes, I'm not sold on it. The .300 WSM is a whole bunch more flexible as far as bullet weights go, yet still not as much as the .300 Win Mag., another great caliber. I love the Tikkas and of all the rifles we have and in spite of the fact that I always grab my (old-style) 7mm Premium grade just 'cause, if I had to have only one rifle it would be my wife's Tikka SS/Laminate .308. Amazing accuracy, no end to the power it can be reloaded to, and a beautiful piece of work. Beautiful trigger. Magnums in the T3 are a bit uncomfortable pretty quick on the range, and of all modern rifles I think their synthetic (plastic) stock is the best of the bunch.

Okotokian · #5 03-22-2008, 02:03 AM

IF you are quite concerned about recoil and or noise perhaps you don't really want or need either the 7mm or .270 WSM, especially with that light of a rifle. When I bought my Browning A-Bolt (which is within a couple ounces of the T3 Lite) I got it in plain .270. Recoil is quite mild and it's still a pretty flat shooting round and rifle. That might be just the ticket for you, or a .280 Rem. Not sure what you could hunt with a .270 wsm that you couldn't with either of those. Hope I didn't just complicate things for you LOL

jlehman · #6 03-22-2008, 02:56 AM

my concern with it being too much kick isn't something that is serious as i've been shooting my dad's 7mm for the last 5 years without any problem. I'm really just wondering the difference between the two more than anything. I mainly hunt deer but within the next couple of years i'll be hunting moose and elk so i will want something that will easily be able to take down either of these animals.

RUM · #7 03-22-2008, 10:22 AM

One thing to keep in mind is that there is a better selection of bullets for .284 than .277
As far as one being better than the next, not really sure that there would be a real noticeable difference in the average hunting situation.

Good luck

pika · #8 03-22-2008, 11:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jlehman

I had pretty much made my mind up on a tikka t3 lite in a 7mm rem mag but after comparing ballistics on a few different calibers i'm leaning towards a .270wsm. I'm wondering if there is considerable difference in the amount of kick between the 7mm and .270 wsm as that was a concern brought to my attention due to the light weight of the gun. also any other differences the two have as far as ammo cost/availability etc.. thanks again for all the help

My family has taken dozens of elk over the years and in that time we found 300mag and 338mag do put down elk more humanely and effectively on average than smaller guns. We don't even consider 270/7mm elk guns anymore although many would argue differently, I grew up in the best elk country in Alberta and have seen many elk wounded by 270win, 308win over the years and don't really consider 7mm much more than a suped up 270. Of course if you wait for a good clean shot like you should just about any rifle will work, sometimes those smaller bullets do strange things when hitting elk like deflecting, or if you get to hard of a bullet they just zip right through and the elk don't even act hit. The most impressive hits I've seen were with a 338 but my preference is the 30 magnums.

pika · #9 03-23-2008, 12:14 AM

h

catnthehat · #10 03-23-2008, 01:05 AM

Tomorrow I will show you a B&C bull that was taken with a single shot from over 400 yards with a 7mm Sharpe and Hart - oh ya, and with a 6X scope IIRC.
One shot, no range finder.....
Cat