What rifle and scope would you pick for all your Medium to Big Game hunting, in the lower 48 states?

Chiming in on threads like this one feels like peeing in the ocean and hoping it’ll turn a different color; it’s grossly ineffective, but I’ll do it anyway.
I just started saying this recently after spending years collecting many different rifles. If they were to all disappear, I’d go buy a Tikka in one of the calibers. 270, 30-06, 308, Etc…. Any one of those would work for anything, with the 308 seemingly a better tactical/practical advantage since it showed up on the shelves first when the ammo-geddon began to wane. I’ll not buy a 6.5, though.
 
Varminterror said:
Kind of a dream rifle. I build too many match rifles for my hunting fantasies to materialize. But if Seekins doesn't get my Havak lined out when it comes back from the mothership, it'll get a big headstart on becoming a reality - Glen will trade me a new rifle against mine, and I need another short action like a hole in the head now, so it'll get sold towards the AnTi. I am REALLY tempted to use a Seekins Element long action and bottom metal, however, since they do have the longest magazine footprint of any LA DBM on the market. But the AnTi's are a lot smoother.
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Most of your bolt gun stuff built around detachable magazines?

I admit to having to look up half the stuff you quote….I feel like a dinosaur for shooting single shot bolt actions (Pandas, Wichita, BAT, Hall, Shilen, Borden). It’s good to have options these days.
 
Savage 99 in 358 Winchester would cover the big game hunting I would do (deer/black bear/hog). Leupold 1.5x4x20 IF I was to scope it. I know there’s newer/faster stuff out there that will reach into the next time zone but I’ve always been able to get within 100 yards of whatever I was hunting.
 
Frulk said:
Savage 99 in 358 Winchester would cover the big game hunting I would do (deer/black bear/hog). Leupold 1.5x4x20 IF I was to scope it. I know there’s newer/faster stuff out there that will reach into the next time zone but I’ve always been able to get within 100 yards of whatever I was hunting.
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When I was still heavy into elk hunting, I thought a 99 Savage in 338 Federal would be a nice, all-around carrying rifle.

35W
 
Varminterror said:
Not all of them. No. Some single shots, some internal box, some hinged plates. Obviously my PRS rifles have to be DBM’s. Not all use cases call for that.

I have a big Bat single shot, and another one on the way.
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Back when I was shooting competitively it was far simpler, it seems. Benchrest and Palma were where all the action was. All this new gun game stuff is overwhelming. Different strokes for different folks!
 
Optics are a function of optical-greatness, weight, and cost. Optical greatness weighs a lot and costs a fortune. There is no trade-off. At a lower weight, the optics are modest at best and often just mediocre because people aren't willing to accept modest specs. Good optics always cost plenty. If modest specs are acceptable, it's possible to get a lower weight and for it not to cost more than the rifle.
 
Need more info if I'm going to help with this game. So, is that walking from state to state. If so count me out. This LAR-8 weights a ton.
 
huntersdog said:
What rifle and scope would you pick for all your Medium to Big Game hunting, in the lower 48 states?

Ruger Hawken in 30-06 and a Redfield 3-9x40 scope should cover me. Shots from 75 to 400 yards, pending on animal.
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What I have - CZ 600 Alpha in .308 Win, with SIG WHISKEY 3 3x9 scope. Of course, here in AZ "big game" is relative.

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I have four rifles.
My first is a Rem 700 chambered in 30-06 with a Leupold 3.5-10x40
My go to rifle and current favorite is my Tikka T3x compact in .308 Win. with a Vortex 1.75-5x32
The Tikka is the first one I would grab now.
It’s 6.5 lbs. unloaded, 39” long, and a pleasure to carry in the Big Woods, a mile away from the road (which is a long, long ways around here).
 
OK, I'll play. I have to agree with all the recommendations for 30-06. It's such a versatile choice and you can find rifles and ammo everywhere. Just to be different and give a little extra umph, I might opt for a 30 caliber magnum like a 300 Win Mag or 300 Weatherby Mag. Load up your 200+ grain bullets for bear, moose and whatever other big critters you like. Load up your lighter bullets for deer sized game and smaller. As for optics, its hard to beat a variable 3-9 or something similar. I'm not an optics snob so pick what you like there.

When I was 17, I shot a Rio Grande turkey here in Texas with a 30-06 using factory 180gr Remington core-lokts. All I can say is it worked.
 
I don't subscribe to the 1 gun mantra, while calibers have a lot of overlap, I prefer to set up a rifle to match the game and conditions. My open country setups are quite different from my woods guns, chambering, barrel length and optic. Even my woods guns are different based on stationary VS moving. A rifle set up for stands can utilize more magnification than a carbine set up for drives and still hunting.

IF I had to pick one for everything it would be the 300WM I had built last year on a Rem 700 SS Action that I had customized. It started out as a Rem SS Synthetic in an ADL stock that I bought in 93 and used as a back-up and loaner:

Action trued
M16 Extractor
Bot stop machined into the receiver
Bolt handle skeletonized and bolt fluted
24" Bartlein 2B with 3/4" shank
TriggerTech 700 "Special" Trigger (no bolt stop)
Graphite Black CeraKote
Manners EH3 bedded stock
Swiss Arca plate just in front of magazine
Leupold VX6HD 3-18x50 with illuminated B&C Reticle

Overall it's light enough for easy carry and heavy enough to shoot pretty well. It's going "somewhere" this year for elk (waiting on draw results) and possible Africa in 25.

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my answer was my 7mm-08 because thats what I've got, at the same time I would take that rifle in .308 or 6.5 creedmoor and feel equally well off, but my 2cnd and third choices would surprise a lot of people my #2 rifle is my Ruger American Ranch 6.5 Grendel...yep I would use it on anything in the country including brow bear again being aware of bullet selection and POA/POI for said bullet, deer size and smaller it'll haul the mail out at 400 yards if you are good enough to deliver it a big brown bear I wouldn't go looking for trouble with one but loaded with a TX or a monolithic copper and it was crowding my space I'm confident it will go through the skull or reach deep into the vitals.
choice #3 out of my rifles is definitely a 100 yard gun but inside that 100 yards its a match for almost anything carried in the old west and frontier days my CVA Scout in 44 mag, it is not perfect and dang sure not the first rifle I'm reaching for but it will do its part as long as I can do mine.
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My Browning 7 RM X-Bolt with Leupold 2-12 VX-6 with Firedot. In fact, the OP is the reason I originally bought it. It’s the only big bore center fire that I currently own and would work for anything from antelope to moose. Carries easily, quite accurate. Due to the stock design and excellent pad the recoil is quite tolerable
 
Were I starting over today, it might be something chambered for .257 Weatherby, with a fixed 6x scope. Dunno if I'd stick with the Mk V or go with something a bit lighter.

I guess it would also depend somewhat on where and what I was concentrating on. I'd really rather have something in the .338 class for elk, moose, and big bears. And if I'm spending a lot of time in the high mountains, then something like one of Melvin Forbe's NULA guns in .308 might be the ticket.

The real answer is my old Ruger "Express" in .30-'06. It began with a fixed 6x, progressed through a 4x, and finished up its career with aperture and post from NECG. It was a pleasure to carry and use, was accurate enough for my needs, and as long as I pointed it right, always did the job.

Rugerexpress.jpg
 
westernrover said:
Optics are a function of optical-greatness, weight, and cost. Optical greatness weighs a lot and costs a fortune. There is no trade-off. At a lower weight, the optics are modest at best and often just mediocre because people aren't willing to accept modest specs. Good optics always cost plenty. If modest specs are acceptable, it's possible to get a lower weight and for it not to cost more than the rifle.
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So what is an excellent, low-weight scope for big game hunting? I really like my Leupold VX-6 2-12, but I wouldn't say it is light. When I wanted a light scope for a Savage Axis II in .25-06 I went with Leupold VX-3i 3.5-10 because it is only 12.6 oz. The Zeiss and Swaros I looked at all were quite a bit heavier, unless I'm misremembering.
 
There are no excellent low-weight scopes. Low weight is a major compromise. Are there any scopes under 24 ounces that track? I have a Swarovski Z5 that is 16 oz. Swaros are notorious for bad tracking, but I don't dial so I haven't really evaluated it fairly to say one way or another. The optics on my 2.4-12X50 Z5 are bad at 12X. It's good at 9X or lower.

So, I'd say the lighter (16oz and under) Swarovski are not bad (not excellent but not bad) for lightweight hunting scopes, but a person would have to accept modest specs. They couldn't expect to have good performance above 9X or to have an erector that will track with precision. NF makes good erectors that track, but expect to pay 2 pounds. Kahles will have good optics, but expect to pay more than the rifle and they won't exactly be light weight. None of the alpha glass will be low weight.

A fixed-power S+B Klassik can be light (~16 oz), but again, modest spec has to be accepted. The optics are good, but not more than 6x42 or 8x56 and no dialing. How can we expect them to add all the glass for a variable, and an erector with repeatable tracking without adding any weight?

We don't have to be a snob. There's nothing wrong with hunting with a less than excellent scope. One of my favorites is the Leupold FX-3 6x42. It has a very modest spec, it's not high-power, it doesn't dial, it's low weight (13 oz), and it's cheap. The optics on the S+B 6x42 are better. The field-of-view is remarkably wider. But the S+B is 4-times more expensive and weighs 50% more.
 
If I ever make it back to Colorado to hunt then my Ruger MKII in 30-06 with Leopold 3x9x40 scope would be my choice. But for whitetail and everything else an older Remington model 7 in 7-08 with 2x7 Leopold scope will do. Like a lot of you I own many guns and I may just hunt with an open sighted 30-30 or a 50 caliber Hawken rifle. My last deer was shot with an open sighted model 94. My newest deer rifle is a wood stocked Savage 243. I ain't particular.
 
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