Right now I'm looking for a new rifle for hunting. For the last 6 almost 7 years I've been using my Mossberg 800A .308. Great rifle no doubt about it, but it's getting pretty heavy to carry around with full winter gear. With a scope, bipod and it's wood stock, it's about 14lbs. I'm looking to drop down to a 7mm-08 with a synthetic stock to save a bit on weight. I've looked at Remington 700s, but their quality is not as good as it once was. Kind of looking at Savage 11/111 or maybe Tikka. I'd like a rifle with good aftermarket support, as in better stocks, and relatively lightweight, maybe 8lbs with sling, scope, full magazine. I also prefer detached box magazines over internal. Much easier to load and unload when needing to leave a tree stand, than having to mess with an internal mag and popping the spring hinged plate, whIle keeping the ammo fromy dropping to the ground.
My current bipod is a knockoff Harris from Rock mountain, 6-9". Doesn't weigh much maybe pound and three quarter. Mostly use it when sighting while prone. Where I hunt in Northern Minnesota, is woods, with clear shots up to 75 yards. To my immediate right in my stand, it's upwards of 140 yards of thick grass, maybe 2 feet tall. But I do plan on moving to South Dakota in the next couple years and I plan on hunting out there. Never done any there so I'm not sure what ranges I'll be working with. I'm not one for going out of my way at taking a shot much beyond 250 yards.
I'm kind of trying to work on a budget of not much more than $650 for the rifle itself, with maybe $300 towards a decent scope. My eyes are good, but I'm planning on hunting for quite a few years yet, so I'll probably go up to a 42mm+ objective, long as I can keep weight of then whole thing managable. If I end up taking my nephew out hunting, I'll let him use the rifle, he'll be 12 soon and he's scrawny. So while he uses that, I'll be using my old rifle, or by dad's 740 Remington .30-06.
I'm open to rifle and scope recommendations. I'm pretty set of using 7mm-08.
My current bipod is a knockoff Harris from Rock mountain, 6-9". Doesn't weigh much maybe pound and three quarter. Mostly use it when sighting while prone. Where I hunt in Northern Minnesota, is woods, with clear shots up to 75 yards. To my immediate right in my stand, it's upwards of 140 yards of thick grass, maybe 2 feet tall. But I do plan on moving to South Dakota in the next couple years and I plan on hunting out there. Never done any there so I'm not sure what ranges I'll be working with. I'm not one for going out of my way at taking a shot much beyond 250 yards.
I'm kind of trying to work on a budget of not much more than $650 for the rifle itself, with maybe $300 towards a decent scope. My eyes are good, but I'm planning on hunting for quite a few years yet, so I'll probably go up to a 42mm+ objective, long as I can keep weight of then whole thing managable. If I end up taking my nephew out hunting, I'll let him use the rifle, he'll be 12 soon and he's scrawny. So while he uses that, I'll be using my old rifle, or by dad's 740 Remington .30-06.
I'm open to rifle and scope recommendations. I'm pretty set of using 7mm-08.