O.K. Folks...30-06 vs .270 vs .308 vs 7mm mag..!

[Hokopunk]

I have chronic Fibromyalgia which is a painful muscle condition. I'm taking my 300win mag barrel back to exchange it with a smaller caliber of some type. I need a relatively light recoil caliber that will also stay flat for long shots as I seriously doubt I will be as stealthy as I would like to think I will be...once I get out there again..!
I should preface this by saying I have the T/C Pro Hunter Flex-tech stock set-up...so I have a nice cushion on the stock (reduces recoil pressure on the body by 43%). I also plan to install an aftermarket muzzle break to help reduce recoil as much as possible. I'll be hunting White tail deer, Elk and Caribou for now...maybe black bear, wolf and mountain lion later. If my wife doesn't stop smoking I may convince her to move to Alaska (by herself)...you know...so I can visit and take a brown bear as a relative of a resident...she'd shoot "ME" if she saw this post..!
My new friend "Bowhunter" seems to think I would do well with the 30-06, due to it's high diversity in loads etc....we've been conversing on this matter in the new members section. Here is a list of my choices based on the barrels made for my gun:


No. 4817 Stainless, 28", 243 WIN
No. 4819 Stainless, 28", 25-06 REM
No. 4823 Stainless, 28", 270 WIN
No. 4829 Stainless, 28", 280 REM
No. 4857 Stainless, 28", 7MM REM MAG
No. 4859 Stainless, 28", 7MM-08 REM
No. 4839 Stainless, 28", 308 WIN
No. 4854 Stainless, 28", 30TC
No. 4856 Stainless, 28", 308 MARLIN EXP
No. 4831 Stainless, 28", .30-06 SPRG


I'm not figuring on being able to get much closer than 100-200 yds, unless some deer just happens upon me as I will more than likely be somewhat clumsy and tire easily out there with my condition. Once I get any gun sighted in, I am a dead on shot though...natural gift I guess..! I'm looking at picking up a Nikon Buckmasters Scope with the BDC reticle or maybe one of the new Bushnell 600 DOA's for this gun.
Let's see...Oh yea, I'm in Eastern WA State. I'll probably be hunting open range lands and lightly treed areas for White tail. For the Elk, I would imagine I will be up higher in thicker treed areas. The Caribou will be in Alaska next Fall probably near a river crossing on tundra.
I'm not against getting two different barrels and calibers if that comes up. One for the White tail deer and one for heavier animals, but I'd prefer having just one barrel/scope that handles Deer and most everything else.

Lots to ponder..!

Anyhow, with the Flex-tech system and a muzzle break on my gun I should be able to handle a caliber with some mid level kick. Any thoughts as to which caliber mentioned above or on the list may work well for me..?

Thanks in advance for any help,
Krist

[Hokopunk]

I stopped by that store where I purchased the 300 win mag and told my story to the guy at the gun counter this morning. He agreed that the 300 win mag probably wasn't a good choice for me and said they would exchange the 300 win mag barrel for one that would be better for my condition. He suggested the .308 caliber...so let's add that one to the possible options.

Anyone want to chime in..?

Thanks,
Krist

[backwoodsman]

.308 is a good caliber, little less recoil then the 30-06 but I'd be leery of a brown bear hunt with the .308 but all of the other critters you mentioned it would be a good choice for. Any of the 7mm's and 30-06 are still going to have major recoil. Have you ever shot with a muzzle brake? Hearing protection is a must, even when hunting. Excepting the elk and caribou a .243 or .270 would be fine. Some like a .270 for elk and caribou but I believe that would be the bare minimum.

[Kaiser Hirsch]

.270 is plenty for elk and caribou. A well placed shot in the lungs and they go far. Since the .270 is also a pretty flat shooting caliber it is good for those longer shots on elk.
KH

[Hokopunk]

Have you ever shot with a muzzle brake? Hearing protection is a must, even when hunting. Excepting the elk and caribou a .243 or .270 would be fine. Some like a .270 for elk and caribou but I believe that would be the bare minimum.

Thanks BW,
I have not shot with a break yet, but I have heard that the noise will go up. My ears are already shot from too many years of listening to loud music and i don't want to lose anymore of my hearing. I will shoot the barrel I finally decide on first before I install the break to see how it feels. The Flex-tech stock may be enough reduction. I'll probably try that reduced recoil ammo as well...before going for the break.

I was reading one of the posts on this site the other day and there was a link to a page that compared the trajectory and ballistics of every caliber. I'll try to find that post again and check out .308, 30-06 and 7mm mags to see if that helps me decide.

Thanks for your input. I appreciate it greatly,
Krist

[Hokopunk]

.270 is plenty for elk and caribou. A well placed shot in the lungs and they go far. Since the .270 is also a pretty flat shooting caliber it is good for those longer shots on elk.
KH

Hi Kaiser,

Thanks for the input I would think that a .270 in the "vital shock" or "hydro-shock" loads would do the job.

Sincerely,
Krist

[Hokopunk]

Alright...so I actually went to a new shop and talked calibers and optics. I even got to look through the scopes and see the differences. The salesman was awesome..! He spent allot of time with me and gave me quite allot of information to digest.

You know that Nikon Buckmasters BDC reticle I was wanting...well I didn't really like it once I had the chance to sight something across the store with it. I need reading glasses and I don't like wearing the glasses when I shoot...those BDC circles are damn small. I would imagine that scope is great for someone with 20/20 vision, but it was more of a distraction for me.

I liked the Leupold VX-3 4.5-14X40mm with B&C reticle. It has a 30mm tube diameter which lets in more light than the 1" tube. Spendy optics though..!

His first suggestion for Caliber was the .270. He also suggested the 30-06, but recommended a muzzle break for my condition.

I'm half tempted to keep my .300 win mag barrel and get a .270 for whitetail. Too many choices..!

Thanks for everyone's help.

Sincerely,
Krist

[Bowhunters]

Good luck in your choice.

Here is a list of that reduced recoil ammo that I told you about before and they do make some for the 300 win mag so you might want to buy and try some to see how much it drops the recoil from a regular round of that same grain weight.

The 300 win mags 150gr bullet will be good for both deer and Elk and the Core lokt bullets are excellent quality for big game.



Caliber Order No. Weight Grs. Bullet Style
Managed-Recoil™

260 Remington RL2601 140 Core-Lokt PSP
7mm-08 Remington RL7M081 140 Core-Lokt PSP
270 Win RL270W2 115 Core-Lokt PSP
7mm Remington Mag RL7MM4 140 Core-Lokt PSP
30-30 Win RL30301 125 Core-Lokt SP
30-06 Sprg RL30062 125 Core-Lokt PSP
08 Win RL308W1 125 Core-Lokt PSP
300 Win Mag RL300W1 150 Core-Lokt PSP
300 Remington Ultra Mag RL300UM1 150 Core-Lokt PSP


Good luck on you and your sons hunting.

[cjg]

.270 is plenty for elk and caribou.

I've never shot an elk, but I get the impression they are pretty tough, lumping them together caribou doesn't seem right to me. I've shot a few caribou and thought they were pretty wimpy, seems like a .22 magnum would be plenty for them.

[Kaiser Hirsch]

No...you are right...elk are quite bigger than caribou...what I was getting at by saying that is the potential long shot. Unlike whitetail hunting where most shots are fairly close.
KH

[cjg]

Gotcha

[Hokopunk]

Well, I got my .270 barrel today. Picked up a box of Federal 140 grain Nosler Accubond rounds. The salesman suggested 130 grain Noslers...stating that the .270 was designed to shoot a 130 grain bullet best. They were out of 130 grain rounds though, so I will look for some at another store.

I will get a box of the reduced recoil rounds and try them as well.

Working on saving for my scope next...then it's off to sight her in and shoot a few tight groups..!

Krist

[KwackWacker]

Well, I got my .270 barrel today. Picked up a box of Federal 140 grain Nosler Accubond rounds. The salesman suggested 130 grain Noslers...stating that the .270 was designed to shoot a 130 grain bullet best. They were out of 130 grain rounds though, so I will look for some at another store.

I will get a box of the reduced recoil rounds and try them as well.

Working on saving for my scope next...then it's off to sight her in and shoot a few tight groups..!

Krist

One of my .270s shoots 140 grains lots better than the 130 grains. Might just be the gun though.

[Bowhunters]

^
Yeah, my .270 Browning Bar loves 140grain Nosler Partitions and is just slightly worse with 150 NP's, I never have tried 130's or smaller with it.

Guns are like people, they all have different tastes but they also can like the same food.