$2000 to find the right rifle

[JimmyHoffa]

This thread will be filled with tons of opinions and a few facts

Well, this guy that knows my neighbor's friend kills elk all the time out to 1200 yds with his .243 Win and corelokts.

[mountainman]

This thread will be filled with tons of opinions and a few facts

Well, this guy that knows my neighbor's friend kills elk all the time out to 1200 yds with his .243 Win and corelokts.

or the person who kills deer all day at 500 yards, but can't hit a deer at 30 yards 

[Jolten]

One of the guys on here built a 6.5 badger that may be good for 1k elk hunting. If I had the money/ability I would build one.

[pianoman9701]

Hello all, generally a bow and muzzy hunter but I have a lot of plans to hunt some premier mule deer rifle hunts in the next 10 to 15 years and possibly some rifle elk hunts as well. I've chosen $2000 to be my limit( of course there is a little breathing room on that price) Looking for some advice on the best all around gun/ scope combination for me. Need it to be good for elk and deer, 700 to 1000 yd range, and a reasonable weight

Don't want to get off the couch or what? Marine snipers used the Model 70 Winchester in .308 for a decade before they switched to the Model 700 Remington in Vietnam. You could also build one and put half the money into a good barrel and trigger. The right glass for a 1,000 yard gun will cost as much as the gun, though. Wouldn't make sense to get a great rifle and put crappy glass on top.

[jay.sharkbait]

Hello all, generally a bow and muzzy hunter but I have a lot of plans to hunt some premier mule deer rifle hunts in the next 10 to 15 years and possibly some rifle elk hunts as well. I've chosen $2000 to be my limit( of course there is a little breathing room on that price) Looking for some advice on the best all around gun/ scope combination for me. Need it to be good for elk and deer, 700 to 1000 yd range, and a reasonable weight

Don't want to get off the couch or what? Marine snipers used the Model 70 Winchester in .308 for a decade before they switched to the Model 700 Remington in Vietnam. You could also build one and put half the money into a good barrel and trigger. The right glass for a 1,000 yard gun will cost as much as the gun, though. Wouldn't make sense to get a great rifle and put crappy glass on top.

Human beings are a lot easier to kill....just say'n.

[WoodlandShooter]

^^^ This^^^

[pianoman9701]

Hello all, generally a bow and muzzy hunter but I have a lot of plans to hunt some premier mule deer rifle hunts in the next 10 to 15 years and possibly some rifle elk hunts as well. I've chosen $2000 to be my limit( of course there is a little breathing room on that price) Looking for some advice on the best all around gun/ scope combination for me. Need it to be good for elk and deer, 700 to 1000 yd range, and a reasonable weight

Don't want to get off the couch or what? Marine snipers used the Model 70 Winchester in .308 for a decade before they switched to the Model 700 Remington in Vietnam. You could also build one and put half the money into a good barrel and trigger. The right glass for a 1,000 yard gun will cost as much as the gun, though. Wouldn't make sense to get a great rifle and put crappy glass on top.

Human beings are a lot easier to kill....just say'n.

I agree. Hit me in the toenail and I'll fall down and die right there. But building your own with a great barrel, you have a lot of leeway with the caliber.

[WoodlandShooter]

but if they are cranked up on khat or just cranked out in general...it takes more than just a little 5.56..it may take a tripple tap

[pianoman9701]

  elk on khat, oh God.

[rbros]

I think you need a little higher budget to accomplish what you want and have the accuracy that long range shooting needs.

There is the rare time that a guy can buy a remington sendero and put a Leupold on it and have all the stars line up.   But it is rare.

[WoodlandShooter]

elk on khat, oh God.

LOL....and we thought hoof rot was bad...

[Biggerhammer]

Hmmmmm, I have seen my share of Magnum Sendero's with Leupold or Nightforce optics and handloads crush big game animals at distance. May even recall  a couple myself.  It's way easier than most think, simple combo of Velocity, BC, wind and drop. Most deal with much more complicated issues in everyday life.

A .300 Win Mag Sendero's and a Leupold LR scope with a accurate handload is plenty to do what the OP is asking.

Some will tell you a Geiselle trigger is the answer to everything! Shame they don't make them for bolt rifles.

[jasnt]

This thread will be filled with tons of opinions and a few facts

Well, this guy that knows my neighbor's friend kills elk all the time out to 1200 yds with his .243 Win and corelokts.

or the person who kills deer all day at 500 yards, but can't hit a deer at 30 yards 

that happened to me in 2013 practicing all year at 300-500 and missed the buck of me dreams at 40 yards  never too old for buck fever
My opinion for the OP is buy the best you can afford and practice at all ranges. Work from there and upgrade as you can afford it. Spend as much as you can on glass to start.  Also a good trigger will greatly improve your results

[Kittman]

In the end the proliferation with individuals with less sense than experience seeking to get on the long range hunting fad or bandwagon and taking shots at targets 700+ because they saw something "move" where there previously was a critter spotted, looks to be the making of big trouble.  Ultimately, another hunting mishap again will only lead to a big black eye for the rest of us (hunters).

4th Commandment of Firearm Safety- Be sure of your target and what's beyond it.

[pianoman9701]

This is from a 78 year old friend of mine who was one of the early scout/snipers in response to my question to him on his opinion about this:

"My go to gun is a Rem 700ADL that I outfitted with a  "Brown GlasStock" and Leupold 3x9 glass. Lightweight and still does 1" groups if I do my part. It is 30/06 as one of the most versatile calibers ever developed. All around I prefer the 165grBTHP for accuracy and capable of anything we'll run into here. Built mine in 1975 and have yet to see any reason to change it for something new. For my Afrika hunts I have an older Brno .375 H&H. Both guns were sandblasted and then Parkerized, and I refinished the stocks flat. Of course the Brown is glass and it is left in a flat hot rod primer gray color that you may remember? The scope is flat matte. The Brno stock is oil finished with virtually no shine to it except where it gets handled like the grip or forestock?
Scope likewise done in flat black. I love pretty guns but none of my working guns look pretty except to serious shooters, and they appreciate dull.
I'll also say, with some experience in long range shooting, and as a guide, I limit my own shots to 200 yards on game. Just too many damned variables in the field and I really hate tracking wounded animals because of a poor shot. Can be a wind across a gulch, badly mistaken range estimate, game moving suddenly for whatever reason, a zero change because of bumping the scope, or a poorly placed shot with lousy conditions. Have seen too many of my clients way overestimate their capability and think they are Carlos reincarnated. One client last year told me he could drop an elk at 1000 yards with his latest whizbang gun yet he could hardly walk the FS roads with me! I was concerned he'd cardiac out and was stunned to find out I had 15 years on him! Never got to see if he was that good and have serious doubts he measured up.
Shooting "dogs" on the prarie is great and good for long range practice but it doesn't equate to shooting in the hills on big game. Plains animals like Afrika are a different story. I'd use the Brno for elk but the gun is heavy and up here the air is thin? And, I'm getting older. As long as the Rem 700 in 30/06 will do a one shot kill, why carry something heavier? Its all about shot placement as you well know from archery.
Semper Fi
Rocky
p.s. if you need a recommendation for a 'smith, let me know."

Not only was he all-Marine rifle, but pistol shooter as well, with several national titles under his belt in the 60s. He guided in MT for the last two years  after having done so back in the 70s. He's also guided in Africa extensively and has shot just about any animal there you can name. I obviously respect his opinion on guns and hunting very much.