What would you do? Deer/Antelope rifle decisions.....

[C-Money]

The Mark V sounds like a good deal to me...

The A-bolt in 7mm-08 would be my next choice

[finnman]

The Mark V sounds like a good deal to me...

The A-bolt in 7mm-08 would be my next choice

I am having a hard time turning away from the Mark V. With ammo at $75-100 per box, and he has 250 loaded rounds to go with it.....yep its very hard to look away.

I did look at the Sako Finnlight ll, that rifle fits the bill for sure.
The Kimber Montana is a great one as well and about $1,000 less than many others. Only 5 lbs. 12 oz. too.
The Cooper looks amazing.....about $1,200 more than max budget though.

[HUNT JR]

I have sorted through this question myself multiple times. I think I would probably end up with a Tikka in a 6.5 PRC. The CM is fine, but the PRC is going to give you better results at longer distances.

For me the Tikka is an excellent starting rifle, but the aftermarket support is really good as well. I would eventually use the tikka action to build a rifle off.

[Taco280AI]

KISS

T3x (Lite or SL), 6.5 Creed, 127 LRX. More than enough for deer and speedgoats

[Bob33]

The Mark V sounds like a good deal to me...

The A-bolt in 7mm-08 would be my next choice

I am having a hard time turning away from the Mark V. With ammo at $75-100 per box, and he has 250 loaded rounds to go with it.....yep its very hard to look away.

I did look at the Sako Finnlight ll, that rifle fits the bill for sure.
The Kimber Montana is a great one as well and about $1,000 less than many others. Only 5 lbs. 12 oz. too.
The Cooper looks amazing.....about $1,200 more than max budget though.

You make a good point about ammunition. That's 12 boxes worth. At $75/box it would be $900. If the gun shoots well it might be a good way to go.

[bobcat]

In your situation, I couldn't resist the 240 Weatherby. Can't imagine a more ideal cartridge for antelope. But, I like older guns. It would be an easy choice for me.

[thinkingman]

I have 2 Tikkas and would absolutely buy another, 6 or 6.5 Creed for what you're describing.
In re the Weatherby, that cartridge is a barrel burner and if this guy reloads, you have no idea how smoked that barrel may be.
Plus, there is a school of thought that you should only shoot reloads THAT YOU'VE LOADED.
Not saying the Weatherby isn't a good deal, just be aware....

[finnman]

The Mark V sounds like a good deal to me...

The A-bolt in 7mm-08 would be my next choice

My wife shoots an older Weatherby mark V stainless standard carbine. It is a 7mm-08 with a 20” barrel. Very accurate, weighs 6 lbs dry. Excellent rifle.

[finnman]

I have 2 Tikkas and would absolutely buy another, 6 or 6.5 Creed for what you're describing.
In re the Weatherby, that cartridge is a barrel burner and if this guy reloads, you have no idea how smoked that barrel may be.
Plus, there is a school of thought that you should only shoot reloads THAT YOU'VE LOADED.
Not saying the Weatherby isn't a good deal, just be aware....

That’s always great advice. My first question is what load does he favor and how many rounds do you fire per year? If he is like most guys and only shoots 20 rounds per year, I am probably okay. But if your shooting max loads and shooting varmints and coyotes and targets, then some concern is needed.
I will know more this weekend.

[swampbear]

I have a Fierce Carbon Fury .300 rum, Christensen Mesa 7mm rem mag, and Kimber 84m Classic (wood stocked) 6.5cm. All are light (until you put a nice optic on them). All are sub 1 moa (recently zeroed the .300 rum at 200 yards and it’s 1/2 moa), and more accurate than the shooter. The Kimber gets hunted with the most. Just a great all around rifle. Comfy to hike with all day. The Christensen gets used the least for some reason. It’s a great rifle. We were easily shooting 8” steel out at 500 yards with it. The Fierce is fairly new. Really enjoy it so far.

[jasnt]

240 all day

[finnman]

The dangling carrot got bit. I picked up the .240 Weatherby yesterday. Took it to the range today. Easy shooter, my wife shot it and said it has less recoil than her 7MM-08. We got it sighted in at 200 yards. Not a great group but good enough to kill a buck at 400 yards. I really look forward to carrying it in the wilderness in about 3 weeks. Best part is I have ammo for about 6 years!
Thanks for all the opinions and advice. It’s appreciated.