Need assistance with selecting a hunting rifle

[LLv34 Jarsci]

Itīs time to get a hunting rifle for me. My father got a new puppy so I have to get a rifle to be ready when the beast emerges from the inside of that lovable furball (Norwegian gray or something in English).

Marlin 45-70 is one of my choices, but how good it is at elk hunting I don't know. Trajectories / hitting energies with ranges would be nice to know.  Also theres a 444 , but would it be an overkill?

.308 would be cheapest to use, but theyre all around... also 9.3x62 would deliver a mighty punch , but the ammunition prices are ridiculous.

So is there anyone who has used/still uses 45-70 lever action rifle while hunting elk ? Tell me  your experiences with the gun and its good and bad points.

Also heard that you have to make your own ammunition because all factory made ammos are made for older chambers which cannot withstand heavier loads.

And how about .375 winmag?

[Raubvogel]

My grandfather had a 45-70. Had a trajectory like a rainbow.

[Russian]

I say go with SKS or AK47. :-)

[txmx]

300 win mag will do what ya want.
She still holds alot of 1000 meter records so she shoots nice and flat.

Lots of reload data out there too.

[Staga]

If Sakos are too expensive be a bad-ass and buy a Dragunov or Vepr.

[txmx]

Originally posted by Staga
If Sakos are too expensive be a bad-ass and buy a Dragunov or Vepr.

Ok sniper rifle LOL.
But he was asking about a hunting rifle.

The dragonov simply would not have the killing power for an elk as Its made to kill people.

[lasersailor184]

Remington 700 is what I propose.

[txmx]

Originally posted by lasersailor184
Remington 700 is what I propose.

Rem 700 is a model # what caliber?

[Toad]

Here's .45-70 loaded by Remington:

45-70 Government

Here's Remington .444 Marlin ammo:

.444 Marlin

[Dune]

What are you hunting?  What are the terrain characteristics?  What is the typical range of a shot?  What is the typical weight of the animal you're hunting?

Lots of questions here.

If you want a hunting rifle, you don't have to look any further than your own backyard.  Tikka and Sako make some of the finest hunting rifles in the world.  

I wouldn't use a 45-70 for a hunting weapon.  I wouldn't use a lever-action either.  Sure they work and lots of animals have been taken with them.  But they aren't the best tool for the job.  The 45-70's ballestics are the greatest and a good bolt-action will always be more accurate than a great lever-gun (and I own two of them, a Win M71 and a Win 94).  Plus, I wouldn't think that finding .45-70 ammo in Finland would be that easy.

If you're talking about taking animals ranging from deer to elk, any cartridge from 7mm-08 to .338 Win Mag would work well.  If you can put the bullet where you need to and use premium bullets, .270's, .280's, 7mm Remington Mag's, .308 Win's, .30-06's, and your 9.3x62 would work fine.  

If you're wanting something bigger, any one of the .300 Mags (I use a .300 H&H), a .35 Whelan (hard to find factory ammo for these), .338 Win Mag or .340 Weatherby would also work like a charm.  

Anyways, when anyone comes to be with hunting rifle questions, I send them here: Accurate Reloading.com  I have never seen anyone not be able to find someone who can answer their questions.  There' probably even some Finnish hunters (or people who have hunted there) on the board.

[Modas]

I personally would pick a 30-06.  I've shot this round exclusively for 18 years.  Its a "jack of all trades" type of bullet.  Good energy out thru 400 yard, relatively flat trajectory (not like a .223 or higher velocity round) but not bad.  I use a bronze point, 180 grain round and typically sight in for 200 yards.

Never had a problem with animals not going down when hit with it.

[LLv34 Jarsci]

Hehe , here in Finland Elks (or moose , whatever , dont know the difference) ainīt the size of a rhino..

308 is sufficient enough, but I usually go where the mainstream people doesn't  ...

have to check out the prices of the ammunition first..

[Dune]

Originally posted by LLv34 Jarsci
Also heard that you have to make your own ammunition because all factory made ammos are made for older chambers which cannot withstand heavier loads.

This isn't true anymore.  Most people who handload can make their cartridges run hotter.  However I load my handloads to match what the factory loads.  They are plenty fast enough.  And, if you ever lose or forget your ammo at home, you can buy off the shelf ammo and not have to resight your rifle.  

And any factory will show its ballistics on its website.

http://www.winchester.com/default.aspx

http://www.federalcartridge.com/default.asp?br=1

http://www.remington.com/ammo/ammofr.htm

PS, other rifles I would recommend are the Winchester M70, Ruger M77MkII and the Howa 1600/Weatherby Vanguard.

[Curval]

Just sneak up on the dog with a bat if it gets unruly and save yourself some cash.

[flakbait]

Depends on the terrain, mostly. Long range shooting at small (distant) targets requires a high-velocity bullet with plenty of energy. At a minimum I'd use a very heavy .308 round. Prefered medicine being a .300 Weatherby Mag or a .338 Lapua Mag. 7mm Remington Mag works, but doesn't have enough energy for my tastes. Close-range stuff, less than 75 yards, just needs a ton of energy; velocity doesn't matter as much. 45-70 works great in this realm, especially in a lever gun.

If you're going for a quick-handling gun try to stick with either a BAR or a lever gun. Bolt actions can be fast, but only when you practice a LOT. Lever guns are somewhat quicker to cycle than a bolt gun, especially if you're in close quarters i.e. less than 25 yards. And don't laugh; Olympic mountain-range elk are regularly taken at under 25 yards! The Marlin company makes an outstanding 45-70 lever gun for a rather reasonable price. Stick a fast-action scout scope half-way down the rifle and you've got a snap-shooting king on your hands. The .45-70 does have a rather big trajectory, though. It'll go +- 4 inches above and below your sight line at some point. Considering the average 45-70 prints 2 inch groups, you can see a minor problem.

As for factory 45-70 shells not cutting it; that's bull. Federal .45-70 ammo clocks in at 1653 ft/sec with 1,820 ft/lbs of muzzle energy. This is for a 300 grain HP bullet. Remington's 300 grain JHP round clocks in at 1868 ft/sec with 2,324 ft-lbs of muzzle energy. Both will punch through 10 inches of wet newspaper without a problem and retain 80-100% of the bullet weight. It's a fairly devistating round to launch at anything.

If I were you, get the Marlin lever gun with a scout-scope installed. Between the muzzle and 100 yards you'll have a fast-handling elk rifle that sights quickly, cycles fast, and can launch a pretty hefty round. The gun (Marlin 1895G) runs around $650, with a Leupold M8 4x scope going for $250. I've heard a few things about the Burris scout scope, but nothing worth noting. The only person I know who still has one just says "it works". There's a Weaver-base scout-scope mount out there for the Marlin 1895 that runs around $60 or so.




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Flakbait [Delta6]
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