Help to choose caliber.

[Bob33]

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!

FYI the 270 and 30-06 use the same case which means they have essentially the same powder capacity and effectively the same energy. The 270 shoots a lighter bullet faster.

The 308 is a smaller case which means less powder, less energy, and less recoil.

All three are very common calibers and would work well on big game at reasonable distances.

[Stein]

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!

Pick one and go hunting.

[N7XW]

Have you looked at 7mm-08 Rem?  Although considered a lightweight, it is a good round.  1000 ft-lb out past 500 yards with the right bullet, low recoil and short action.

[NW SURVEYOR]

I am a big fan of 7MMs.
I shoot a 7mm Rem Mag accurately out to 400 yards, that's my distance comfort.
That said, I mostly hunt deer and elk with a .338 Win Mag.
If I were to recommend a single cartridge for north American big game it would be the .280.
Range, recoil, bullet selection, performance, hands down the best selection.
While not as popular as the .270, it is all that and more and outperforms the 06 it long range.
It has mild recoil and outperforms the .308.

I received a beat up Savage 110 as a gift about 6 years ago.
The rifle was beat to h$#@ so I had a synthetic stock and Shilon barrel installed.
Also, the gunsmith worked the trigger a bit.
This rifle is now my sons' and it shots lights out with an old 2x7 Vari-x-II.
 
The other option is the .280 Ackley Improved (.280 AI).

[JLS]

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!

If you are going to reload the price factor of 6.5 CM ammo is greatly negated.  I can load it as cheap as anything.

Long action vs. short action depends on how heavy of a rifle you want to carry.  Typically long action rifles have 24-26" barrels, whereas short actions will have 20-22" barrels.    Weight and handling will largely dictate your personal preference, along with what you desire for performance.

All that said, for an all around gun to 500-600 yards, I'd look pretty hard at the 6.5, 7-08, 280/280 AI.  Both the .264 and .284 bullets have very good external ballistics downrange.  If you compare them to the .30 bullets you'll be surprised at how well the retain velocity past 400 yards.  My 6.5 is shooting 2880 at the muzzle, and based on BC and bullet weight, it is still at 2080 fps at 500 yards.

Edit:  I left out magnum chamberings because I like short action/lightweight rifles and immensely dislike recoil 

[Bill W]

My rule of thumb is:  the more powder it holds the faster it's going to go.  Your best compromise cartridge for felt recoil on the shooter and whack factor on game is the 7mm Rem Mag.

[TimBaleia]

Thank you all guys for all your comments and suggestions!

I think im puzzled between 7mm rem mag and 300 win mag.

One of this should do the trick. Seems that both calibers are widely available.

Both can be reloaded fairly cheap. Both have plenty of killing/stopping power and will take down anything in North America with good shot placement.

Will have a trip to Idaho for 3 days this week. Will chat with my hunting buddies. Hopefully will get the rifle in 2018 and will thing thru everything again.

Thank you for great opinions!

[JLS]

Thank you all guys for all your comments and suggestions!

I think im puzzled between 7mm rem mag and 300 win mag.

One of this should do the trick. Seems that both calibers are widely available.

Both can be reloaded fairly cheap. Both have plenty of killing/stopping power and will take down anything in North America with good shot placement.

Will have a trip to Idaho for 3 days this week. Will chat with my hunting buddies. Hopefully will get the rifle in 2018 and will thing thru everything again.

Thank you for great opinions!

Yes, very similar between the 7 mag and 300 mag.  A 7 mag shooting the same weight bullets as a 300 will perform better balistically at long range because of better BC.  A 300 will give more frontal diameter and make a bigger hole. 

There is no free lunch, and it's a constant trade off between weight and handling, recoil, muzzle velocity, wind drift, etc.

[Wetwoodshunter]

Currently I'm shooting a 7mm rem mag (custom rem 700 built from a blueprinted action) and have a 150gr accubond long range load that is coming out my gun right at 3120 fps. I selected this gun as a good deer/elk/black bear combo and with this bullet and load I don't feel the need to change what I am shooting depending on the game I am going after.

One of the stupidest things that I did was sell my .270 that I grew up shooting.  The .270 is a great round that is fully capable of taking any north american big game although just about everything you listed will.

If I were in your situation I would take a good look at a .270, .30-06 and the 7mm rem mag. These three would be great choices, although there are many others you could choose. I think your on the right track, just go find a gun you like and make sure it fits you well. You may want to look at Tikka's you get a lot of gun for your money and I believe your better off spending more and use the buy once cry once mentality on a gun since its a tool that should last your lifetime.

[TimBaleia]

Currently I'm shooting a 7mm rem mag (custom rem 700 built from a blueprinted action) and have a 150gr accubond long range load that is coming out my gun right at 3120 fps. I selected this gun as a good deer/elk/black bear combo and with this bullet and load I don't feel the need to change what I am shooting depending on the game I am going after.

One of the stupidest things that I did was sell my .270 that I grew up shooting.  The .270 is a great round that is fully capable of taking any north american big game although just about everything you listed will.

If I were in your situation I would take a good look at a .270, .30-06 and the 7mm rem mag. These three would be great choices, although there are many others you could choose. I think your on the right track, just go find a gun you like and make sure it fits you well. You may want to look at Tikka's you get a lot of gun for your money and I believe your better off spending more and use the buy once cry once mentality on a gun since its a tool that should last your lifetime.

Great comment! Thank you for your suggestion on Tikka

[bobcat]

Tikkas are good rifles, but light. I would recommend that if you get a Tikka, go with the 270 or 308. A magnum cartridge in a Tikka is not a good combination for a beginner.

[Oldguy]

Tikkas are good rifles, but light. I would recommend that if you get a Tikka, go with the 270 or 308. A magnum cartridge in a Tikka is not a good combination for a beginner.

This is good advice. I sighted in a Tikka 7mm mag and then a Browning A-Bolt 7mm mag and there was a vast difference. Could have shot the Browning with a wood stock all day but the Tikka with a light stock was punishing to say the least. Great caliber.

[NRA4LIFE]

7mm is ghastly overrated.  I would avoid it.  Go with 300 WM.  You can shoot every creature on this continent with it.  If you want something smaller, .270 without a doubt.  I own both and could not be happier.

[Tiger1358]

If he wants to buy a Savage 111 Trophy Hunter, that's a solid rifle, doesn't have a flimsy stock and so forth. I don't think basic Tikka T3's are better than that, unless you go with Tikka T3X CTR or the new Tac A1. My Savage 111 300WM made a 0.5 MOA group right out of the box with a cheap Nikon Buckmaster 3-9x40 that came with it. You can get the Savage 111 for about 400 including a Nikon scope with rebates and stuff, that would work for any medium range hunting. You get a lot for your money. Tikka is great, but Savage can do the same for less $$$

[Blacklab]

The 6.5 Grendel is worth a look. Shoots if I remember 95 grain to 140 grain bullets. Long range short range anything you want with the right glass and no fatigue