Help to choose caliber.

[JeffRaines]

Hello everyone!

Im looking to buy a hunting rifle. So far Savage 11/111 due to great price/quality. Trying to choose in which caliber.

Oh boy. Im considering this calibers:

308 win 25$

270 win 24$
30-06 35$

7mm rem mag 37$
300 win mag 33$

6.5 Creedmoor???

Looking for this rifle to take longer range shots. Thats why more into long action and mags. Eventually want to get lever action in 30-30 for closer range.

Any suggestions on rifle and caliber? Thoughts? Thx!

Is this your first centerfire? or first rifle in general?

Everyones jumping on the magnum bandwagon, and magnums are great once you have really established the fundamentals of shooting. Thing is, most people go out and buy the biggest thing they can for their first gun because "I'm only gonna buy one so I gotta buy the one thats going to last me forever and do everything" or something along those lines. You will buy more guns later on.

If this is your first centerfire, starting with a magnum has a huge chance of giving you a flinch. Hell, you can develop a flinch shooting 243 for that matter. It doesn't matter how insensitive you are to recoil.

People also overestimate the amount of gun they need for animals. Sure, if you're hunting moose or elk buy a bigger caliber... for anything else hunt-able in Washington, you can go read tons of anecdotes on the smaller guns taking game just as effectively. A good site for this is called ballistic studies - go to knowledgebase and then go to cartridge research, they have a LOT of info on there when it comes to terminal ballistics.

If you don't already have a 22LR, I would suggest starting there. The fundamentals of marksmanship can be well established with a 22 - and not only that, you're looking at something thats a whole lot cheaper to feed. You can get 300 rounds of .22 for 30 bucks. Thats a whole lot of practice. Then, go and get yourself something like a 243 to start.

Honestly, I wish someone had told me the same thing when I started... actually, I wish I just would've listened to the people who told me this(there were a few). 

[Magnum_Willys]

300 wsm with a break, won稚 have to worry about developing flinch. Unscrew brake when you wont have time to put on hearing protection. 

[Angry Perch]

There isn't a cartridge on that list that won't do absolutely everything that 95% of hunters need it to do. If by long range you mean 200-300 yards, get a practical rifle in a caliber that you can find in a rural gas station.

[Tiger1358]

I have that rifle in 300 Winchester Magnum. Very good shooting rifle. You can always find the ammo for lower than that, online you can buy the Federal Power Shok for less than 25 dollars, and it does sub MOA groups at 100 yards. A couple dollars more won't break your pocket, just get what works best for you. Just for shooting targets I wouldn't recommend 300 Win Mag if you haven't shot a lot, just get 308 that's cheap and effective for both shooting and hunting. However, 300WM is a great caliber for hunting and you don't have to track your animals.  If you decide to get that rifle, let me know, I'll help you with tips to make the rifle even better.

[TimBaleia]

"I'm only gonna buy one so I gotta buy the one thats going to last me forever and do everything"

Did you some how got my dairy LOL

[SpurInSpokane]

On the buy-one-do-everything rifle thing:
I was of the same mind when I bought my first (not too long ago). I wasn't thinking super-long range or anything; ended up going with .270win. Since then, I've bought two more rifles, and probably not done yet. I've bought them from other guys on here; if you get addicted to the "Weapons/Ammo Classifieds", trust me, you'll find something that tickles your fancy eventually.
I started about in the middle, others have suggested starting at the bottom and working up. I don't really think it matters, but I think it's probably best to assume, whatever you get, that you'll find something another rifle would do better.
Anything on the list will probably do most of the jobs you need it, the key is get something and get started!

[Bob33]

Everyones jumping on the magnum bandwagon, and magnums are great once you have really established the fundamentals of shooting. Thing is, most people go out and buy the biggest thing they can for their first gun because "I'm only gonna buy one so I gotta buy the one thats going to last me forever and do everything" or something along those lines. You will buy more guns later on.

If this is your first centerfire, starting with a magnum has a huge chance of giving you a flinch. Hell, you can develop a flinch shooting 243 for that matter. It doesn't matter how insensitive you are to recoil.

People also overestimate the amount of gun they need for animals. Sure, if you're hunting moose or elk buy a bigger caliber... for anything else hunt-able in Washington, you can go read tons of anecdotes on the smaller guns taking game just as effectively.

 

I'd suggest a 270 or 308. Ammunition is readily available, is relatively inexpensive compared to others, and recoil is on the milder side compared to some others on that  list.

A flinch that throws a bullet even a couple inches at 100 yards completely negates the value of a magnum caliber for deer and elk sized animals.

[TimBaleia]

Guys! Thank you all so much for your input! Really appreciate it!

I like guns but I will no spend extra money for weapon from same class (a gun which will do same thing).
So I most likely will end up with one long range gun. Lever action 30-30 for medium distance.
And my Mossberg 500 with scope does fine at 100 yards.
I do own Savage Mark II 22lr rifle which is more than enough for small game and I知 practicing with it at least 2 times a month. I知 shooting 22lr and air rifles for almost 20 years, so I知 pretty good with guns in general and I知 fast learning guy. Lately got very exited about shooting traps and quickly getting better at it.

Once again thank you all for your input.

I知 not from US originally so I知 not very familiar with common calibers as in Europe I shoot what easy to get permit for (22lr and Air Guns).

I love hunting and exited about this privilege being so accessible in US.
Mainly looking for deer but will go for bigger game eventually.
I shoot only what I eat. I don稚 care about trophy.

I took a quick look on the shelf in the store and check prices and availability and came up with that list.
Also this savage 11/111 features nice price/quality relation and its available in this calibers.

I知 not reloading but eventually might start to do so.

I don稚 think that availability of the ammo on gas stations is a big factor for me as I will get ammo online and will stock up.

Talking about long range shots i mean up to 500-600 yards hunting and up to 1000 yards target/steel shooting.

I知 not planning to compete with this rifle so i will no cycle thru lots of ammo. Price of ammo is not critical, although I didn't include in this list ammo which is 100$ for box of 20. But difference f couple bucks for box will no affect my decision.

As I知 looking for meat magnums is less preferable as it will cause more meat damage.

Don't know will short action like 308 will be good enough in terms of ballistics and killing power etc.

Don't know anything about 6.5 CM so please share your experience. There is a very good reviews online and people calling this "best modern cartridge". I know its heavily used for target shooting but is it any good for hunting?

What is left is long action. 270 and 30-06. Any other calibers you guys suggest?

Seems to me that 270 is great cartridge which is hot and shooting flat, but no one mention it in the comments.

So I think that I have 3 options I知 thinking about and its 270, 30-06 and 6.5 CM.

Unless I知 wrong on my thought about short action and magnums.

[Bob33]

Talking about long range shots i mean up to 500-600 yards hunting and up to 1000 yards target/steel shooting.

I知 not planning to compete with this rifle so i will no cycle thru lots of ammo.

If you plan to shoot at game at 500+ yards, I would suggest that you will want to cycle through lots of ammo to become proficient. That's a long poke.

[TimBaleia]

If you plan to shoot at game at 500+ yards, I would suggest that you will want to cycle through lots of ammo to become proficient. That's a long poke.

Definitely will no take a shot like this the day I buy this rifle. I meant that i will no spend 2-3 days a week shooting 500 rounds a day as im not a professional competition shooter. I use to do this when i was competing in biathlon but its a rimfire rifle. My range have 300 yards lanes. I will no shoot my shotgun down the 300 yards. Lever action 30-30 would be what? 200 yards max? So Im looking for a rifle with which i will be able to take longer shots but not all of them will be 500-600 yards.

Thx

[Tiger1358]

Shooting at animals during hunting at 500 yards is not the same as shooting steel at 500 yards, sometimes you can't even find anything to use as a support, plus the wind and so forth won't let you make an easy shot at 500-600 yards. If you wanna hunt at those distances, I would strongly recommend 300 Win mag, 300 WSM, or 7mm Rem Mag. I think those are the magnum calibers available for Savage 111. With the scope that comes with it, I wouldn't make shots like that since the turret adjustment is horrible on those Nikon scopes(already sent one for replacement,still not satisfied). But it gives you an option to use the Bullet Drop Compensator, which says it's fine for 500-600 yards, but I never checked it.

For 308, you can go much longer distances if you start reloading and using Alco bullets, which gives you a lot better ballistics. For deer, you should be fine with all those calibers, but if you're going to use it for bear, elk, and so forth later, shooting a few hundred yards, I would definitely go with magnum, especially 300 Win Mag, otherwise you'll find yourself chasing wounded animals for miles, sometimes even loosing them because of poor shot placement. 

But since you said you're going to shoot a lot, get 308, it's cheap, effective, and powerful enough to kill anything here in medium range (long ranges also, with good shot placement). Just learn how to shoot accurately and you won't need a magnum. Precision beats power, all day every day!

[TimBaleia]

But since you said you're going to shoot a lot, get 308, it's cheap, effective, and powerful enough to kill anything here in medium range (long ranges also, with good shot placement). Just learn how to shoot accurately and you won't need a magnum. Precision beats power, all day every day!

Can you say anything about 6.5 CM?
As much as i understand its similar to 308 but have better ballistics.

Thank you.

[Tiger1358]

I've never shot 6.5 CM, but heard a lot of good things about it. If you want to start learning how to shoot long distances, it's better to get a 308 , since it's almost the half of the cost of 6.5 CM. You'll have more bullets to practice with for the same price. That way you'll learn more tricks and so forth.
There's a saying," Be afraid of the guy with only one gun." Just learn how to shoot accurately, that's all. If you start reloading and using Alco aluminum tip bullets for 308, your max effective range will be similar to magnum calibers. If the bullet hits the vital organs, the animal will eventually die, all you have to do is learn how to put the bullet in the right spot.
BTW I saw that rifle for $350 dollars with rebate, the link is below, in case it's cheaper than the one you wanna buy
https://www.cdnnsports.com/firearms.html#manufacturer=SAVAGE&price_sale=449,450

[OLYTAX]

I would go the 22 route first, then the 243 route (I've killed all South African plains game with a 243 on two different  hunts).    Now I hunt with a 300 WSM and muzzle brake.    I
I even hunted Africa and most Canadian provinces plus Alaska with my 300 WSM. 
The animal doesn't know that he's being shot with a 243 or a 30 caliber, its all bullet placement and bullet construction.

[TimBaleia]

6.5 CM we can set a side as its more expensive than other cartridges.

than i have a difficulty to choose between short action and long action.

308 or 270 or 30-06?

270win? anyone? 

Thank you guys!