Looking for an Ideal Hog/Deer Rifle

[Jfreer22]

I am currently looking for a caliber that would be good for hunting deer as well as hog. I've been offered a real good price for a remington 7mm but im afraid that would be too good for a deer. Can anyone help me with a good caliber of gun? I'm lookin to spend about 700-900$

 

[Jimmie]

.243. 7mm would definitely work though.

 

[jmorris]

I don’t know where you are at or the ranges your shots will be but you should be able to take either with most any 7mm (some might be better than others).

 

[H&Hhunter]

7MM fits the bill just perfectly. For all intensive purposes it is a belted .30-06 performance wise.

It is a great deer/hog rifle. And no it isn't to much for deer. Unless you are worried about killing them too dead.

Go with 140 to 160 gr bullets and you won't lack for anything as far as deer and hogs go.

 

[TCB in TN]

Browning BLR in .308 will fit your bill. They are a reasonably quick handling lever rifle with a detachable mag that allows you to use point bullets. The .308 is a short throw cartridge, that is easy to find, easy on the shoulder, accurate at both short ranges and all the way out to a couple of hundred yards. Hogs WILL go out into fields, but tend to spend more time in fringes or bottoms so a short lever gun does have advantages, and again the .308 lets you reach out plenty far enough for those 250+ yard shots of deer. Also fits your price range and is just a nice overall rifle!

 

[alsaqr]

Buy an inline .50 caliber muzzleloader with a nice scope.

 

[Art Eatman]

Don't be in a hurry. Lots of guns out there, and lots of good deals will be coming along.

If it's a 7mm Mag, it's more than a basic "need", but there's really no such thing as "too much".

Cartridges like the 7Mag are more suited to open-country hunting. If the odds are that most of your shots would be inside of a couple of hundred yards, it's hard to find a centerfire that won't do quite well.

For what you want to shoot, anything from the .243 with 100-grain bullets on up to a .308 or .30-'06 would be plenty good.

 

[ranger335v]

Your ideal choice would be a Marlin 336 in .35 caliber.

 

[H&Hhunter]

Jfreer22,

I thought from your statement that you were asking about the 7MM in particular.

Given a choice I would always recommend a .30-06 followed by a .308.

 

[gmhamilton3]

We shoot on average about a dozen hogs a year off our deer lease although we could easily double that number, the 80-100lb sows are the most desirable since we do use then to make deer/pork sausage. There are a few big hog contests around and a 275-300 lbs boar usually takes the top prizes. Any deer rifle will do the job just fine. Of the 5 on the lease, two shoot 7mm, one shoots a 270, one shoots a 25-06 and one shoots a 223. I used to shoot a 243 and my buddy used to shoot a 30-06. The only thing that these guns have in common is that they are relatively flat shooters. If there is a possibility you will go elk hunting one day the 7mm would be a good choice for an all round gun.

 

[Dilbert]

Marlin 444

If talking 100 yardish and shorter I like the 444 Marlin. The 308 Marlin Express if you want to reach out more.

 

[El General]

I have shot Hogs and Deer with everything from .22 Hornet to .300 Win Mag. It really doesn't matter. Find a rifle that fits your hunting style, then choose a caliber that you can shoot well.

 

[MCgunner]

Hogs are probably taken at less than 100 yards 95 percent of the time. I really like my .308 winchester. You don't need a belted magnum with uber high velocity, and .308 is PLENTY of gun for the largest hog that has ever roamed the woods. Danged fine whitetail rifle, too.

Of course, I could say the same about the lowly .30-30, but whatever. This choice is really yours. Any deer caliber will work on hogs.

 

[Nathanael_Greene]

I use a .30-06 for the uses you name. Thanks to the incredibly wide variety of ammunition that's available, you can get a lot of versatility from the venerable '06.

For example, I load up with full-power rounds for hogs (in case, God forbid, I come across a big, mean boar) and use Remington's Managed Recoil for deer.

As for your budget, for $700-900 you can buy a plenty-fine rifle (like a Savage 110) with a plenty-fine scope (Bushnell Elite 3200) and still have money left over for practice.

Good luck!

 

[B.D. Turner]

I would go with a Marlin 336 in .30-30 or .35 Remington. With LE ammo you can reach way out if needed.

 

[LeonCarr]

.308

LeonCarr

 

[surjimmy]

I vote the 7mm mag (TIKKA) hint' hint..........

 

[CoRoMo]

Enough choices for ya yet??

I'll throw in the .270 because it has never failed me so far. I'll try in on some Texas hogs in May and let you know how it preforms, but I can already tell ya it will do fine.

Also take a look at a Marlin in 45-70. That would do nicely as well.

edit:
LOOKY THERE!! MY TWO HUNDRED AND SEVENTIETH POST IS ABOUT MY .270!!

 

[Marlin 45 carbine]

at least a .22 Magnum. I took small 1 w/10/22 all 11 shots. and 2 others 1 good sized w/BP revolvers. shot placement means a lot IMO. a body shot might (prolly) not 'knock 'em down'. I had to track the good sized 1 aways and it's lungs in the rear section were jelly. blood trail all over past about 100 yards. then shot it again when I found it. head shot.

 

[neal7250]

All of them are good, and I use all of them. If I had to use one rifle, I would use the 30-06.

 

[pernicus]

tikka .308 or .300 mag(but i'm a little biased)


if they made a .264 mag i'd buy that in a heart beat though

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

Don't forget the .351 Winchester. Dead reliable, quick and powerful.

 

[Reyn]

Dont pass up a good deal on the 7mm because you think its too much for . I know several who use one for deer. I mainly use a 30-06 but have hunted deer with my 300mag also.

 

[ojibweindian]

I use a 7 Mag for deer and I don't feel "over-gunned". I mean, dead is dead. If you're worried about blood-shot meat, well, most high velocity projectiles will probably cause a bit of that. It can be avoided, though, by shooting just behind the front shoulder.

I'd say, if you're getting a pretty good deal on that 7 Mag, go ahead and buy it.

 

[MCgunner]

If you're worried about blood-shot meat, well, most high velocity projectiles will probably cause a bit of that. It can be avoided, though, by shooting just behind the front shoulder.

I did that on the first hog I ever shot and wound up blood trailing the thing 350 yards on hands and knees in the rose hedge and taking it out when it charged me with a .357 magnum to the head. I found out, there's no vitals behind the shoulder. If you wanna hit the boiler room, you have to HIT the shoulder and penetrate through it. You'll lose some meat, so be it. Don't shoot behind the shoulder, shoot the shoulder.....or the head if you have a clear shot at it.