ConDaddy
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Sep 23, 2020
- Messages
- 1,164
Okay so I know allot of you folks are avid hunters. So I figured what better place could I go to get some advice. While I do enjoy shooting I've never done much in the way of hunting and I'm looking to start getting into the sport. This year I'm going to put in for Mule deer and potentially Coues here in Arizona so I'm looking to put together my first rifle specifically for hunting. However I'm also going to start submitting for Elk in next years draw so really I'm trying to figure out a good cartridge to go with that would cover all of my bases. Knowing me I'll eventually just buy 5 rifles but at the moment I'm trying to be conservative and see if there is a single cartridge I should be considering over the others.
Here is my thinking so far:
6.5 Creedmoor - Ammunition is easy to come by, should be no problem at all for both deer species however I have heard that it may be a little underpowered for larger game like Elk. For Western hunts its range and ballistics make it an excellent round for deer species and damn if every rifle manufacturer out there doesn't have something already chambered in it.
30-06 - Ammunition extremely easy to come by, has been used to hunt every animal in North America, lots of rifle options, but should I be worried that this has just a bit too much oomph for smaller deal species like White Tail or potentially Coues if I decide to venture out a little? Not as flat shooting as 6.5 but definitely not a slouch either.
6.5 PRC - I've read some great things about this cartridge just giving the 6.5mm a little more oomph compared to the creedmoor. However I'm a little concerned with ammo availability on this one.
7mm Rem Mag - Somewhat easy to find ammo, not as easy as 30-06 or 6.5mm at least around here. However more than enough power for everything I might ever want to hunt. Again might be overkill for me. I'm not sure how this compares to the 30-06 for recoil, though I'm not too overly concerned with recoil as I've never had any issues with shooting other high recoil calibers in rifle.
One problem with Arizona is opportunities for rifle tags aren't as prevalent as Archery tags. But at the moment really not interested in taking on learning to bow hunt. That discussion may be for another day.
Appreciate any advice, even if its telling me my thoughts above are garbage or if I'm on the right track with what I'm thinking. My father hunted many years ago and has said he's going to gift me 3 rifles that he currently has since he's just not mobile enough anymore to do it himself. He has an old Marlin 30-30, a 6mm lever action not sure on make/model, and a .222. His 30-30 was used specifically for California wild boar hunting, and his 6mm was his deer rifle which he did almost all of his hunting for California white tail. The 6mm might be perfect for me and make me decide to go with a larger bore rifle.
Here is my thinking so far:
6.5 Creedmoor - Ammunition is easy to come by, should be no problem at all for both deer species however I have heard that it may be a little underpowered for larger game like Elk. For Western hunts its range and ballistics make it an excellent round for deer species and damn if every rifle manufacturer out there doesn't have something already chambered in it.
30-06 - Ammunition extremely easy to come by, has been used to hunt every animal in North America, lots of rifle options, but should I be worried that this has just a bit too much oomph for smaller deal species like White Tail or potentially Coues if I decide to venture out a little? Not as flat shooting as 6.5 but definitely not a slouch either.
6.5 PRC - I've read some great things about this cartridge just giving the 6.5mm a little more oomph compared to the creedmoor. However I'm a little concerned with ammo availability on this one.
7mm Rem Mag - Somewhat easy to find ammo, not as easy as 30-06 or 6.5mm at least around here. However more than enough power for everything I might ever want to hunt. Again might be overkill for me. I'm not sure how this compares to the 30-06 for recoil, though I'm not too overly concerned with recoil as I've never had any issues with shooting other high recoil calibers in rifle.
One problem with Arizona is opportunities for rifle tags aren't as prevalent as Archery tags. But at the moment really not interested in taking on learning to bow hunt. That discussion may be for another day.
Appreciate any advice, even if its telling me my thoughts above are garbage or if I'm on the right track with what I'm thinking. My father hunted many years ago and has said he's going to gift me 3 rifles that he currently has since he's just not mobile enough anymore to do it himself. He has an old Marlin 30-30, a 6mm lever action not sure on make/model, and a .222. His 30-30 was used specifically for California wild boar hunting, and his 6mm was his deer rifle which he did almost all of his hunting for California white tail. The 6mm might be perfect for me and make me decide to go with a larger bore rifle.