2 gun do-all battery suggestions?

[pilsner]

Ok so the wife and I are becoming Lifetime members of BHA and I’m hoping to take advantage of the Kimber rifle offer. My quandary is this: what two calibers to get to cover 99% of my North America hunting?
My first thought is to go 6.5 Creedmoor and .300 WSM
Thoughts and suggestions?
I already have several other rifles but I’m not afraid of duplication and generally feel that the more the merrier in regards to working tools/firearms.
We live in Arkansas but spend 6 months a year out west.

 

[fishing4sanity]

Not knowing what your choices are, those two seem like good calibers and would cover you on everything.

 

[Idahoarcheryhunter]

What are the choices? I'm a 300 wsm fan myself.

 

[BrentD]

The first one should be a .22 rimfire. After that - doesn't really matter all that much. But a .22 is my most important rifle.

 

[VAspeedgoat]

What are your game species. If large bears are out then that duo is as good as any. A strong case could be made for something like .243/7mm-08 and then a 7 mag/30-06/300win mag.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

Yep, given the calibers it’s available in that would be my choice. If you don’t handload maybe consider .300 win mag just to make things easier on yourself.

 

[VikingsGuy]

If the question remains narrowed to factory chambered Kimbers then I would go .243 and 300WSM as between them you can cover varmints, predators, 'lope, various forms of deer, caribou, elk, moose, bison and black bear (especially if you hand load).

 

[Gunner46]

If I had to reduce the one's I already have down to just two.....I'd keep the 223 and the 338 Fed. If I were starting fresh I think I would go with a 250 Savage and a 338/06. Easy, inexpensive re-bores and just damn cool to have in camp......

 

[spinal tap]

I think you've nailed it - 6.5 CM and .300 WSM or Win Mag would likely be my choices. Hard to go wrong with others, though. 7mm-08 and 7 Mag would work nicely.

 

[belly-deep]

I think you picked pretty good right out of the gate.

I have a 300 WSM. I don’t have a 6.5 Creed but I do have a .260, which is ballistically identical.

I could easily get by with those two.

 

[HighDesertSage]

7 Mag

 

[OhHeyThereBen]

If the question remains narrowed to factory chambered Kimbers then I would go .243 and 300WSM as between them you can cover varmints, predators, 'lope, various forms of deer, caribou, elk, moose, bison and black bear (especially if you hand load).

I'm with this guy. I wouldn't throw out the good old 30-06 either if you don't want to deal with as much recoil.

 

[Melman]

I'll be boring but probably cant beat this combo. .243 and 30-06. The 30-06 will do what the 300wsm will do but with a lot cheaper ammo. a 30-06 with 200gr bullets is " a fearsome killer of large animals" to quote David Petzal. The .243 would be awesome for varmints and even deer.

 

[375H&H]

25.06 and 375H&H. That will make you 100% covered.

 

[Dan O]

On the low end I think the 243 is a great choice. It covers gophers to Deer and with the RIGHT bullet even Elk under the right conditions. On the upper end any 7mm on up to 338 Winchester Mag. Depending on your ability to handle recoil and how far you feel comfortable shooting.
For me I would go 243 Win & 300 Weatherby.

Dan

 

[Big Fin]

I'm interested to see the comments you might have for this. Howa and I have been working on a project somewhat similar. We are trying to find a combination of cartridge, weight, length, barrel taper, etc that will be the most versatile option for the western hunter who is only going to buy one rifle, possibly two.

Right now I have these rifles we are working with for the test, along with the ammo choices I am using based on past experience with these cartridges. All have H-S Precision stocks and are topped with Leupold VX-5 or VX-6 scopes.

6.5 CM 22" barrel - 129 grain Nosler AccuBond Long Range

.270 Win 22" barrel - 130 grain Nosler AccuBond

7mm-.08 22" barrel - 140 grain Nosler E-Tip and 140 grain Nosler Accubond

.308 Win 22" barrel - 165 grain Nosler Partition and 168 grain Nosler E-Tip

.308 Win 26" barrel - - 165 grain Nosler Partition and 168 grain Nosler E-Tip

.300 Win Mag 24" barrel - 180 grain Nosler AccuBond

.300 Win Mag 26" barrel - 180 grain Nosler E-Tip


I'm finding the hard part is to find the balance of weight versus cost. Even the lightest of these is more weight than my Alpine Mountain Rifles. But, the cost is significantly lower. Some are willing to pay that higher cost, some are not.

All are cerakoted, which is a pretty low additional cost for the weather-deterring benefits. All have come with factory trigger settings at 2.75#. Not sure if that will be allowed in a retail rifle, due to liability concerns, but the Howa trigger is a really good trigger and even "gooder" when set below 3.0#.

With no compromise for accuracy, the traits we are trying to balance are performance for the widest array of western hunting, cost, weight, ammo availability, durability, and low maintenance. It is turning out to be a harder project than I expected, given how many different situations we hunt in and how many different species we pursue.

Interested to continue following the discussion. Thanks to the original poster for starting this topic.

So far the leader is the 7mm-.08 as the all-around versatile cartridge, but I fear my past biases is influencing that decision. We'll see if that changes when we start in the heavy part of our elk hunting calendar.

 

[noharleyyet]

25-06 and 300 Win Mag....both 26" barrels

 

[maxx]

.243 and 300 win mag if I could only get two.

 

[OhHeyThereBen]

If one were to have to pick one from Randy's list, it would be tough to not go with a .270. Although, you're probably right on with the 7-08 as well. Good luck with your research!

 

[VikingsGuy]

If I could only have one I would probably go .270 but only if I could get it in 24" barrel.
If I had to stick with the listed barrel lengths I would go 7mm08 22"
If I could have two I would pair the 24" 300WM with something closer to .243 for prairie dogs, coyotes and pronghorn.

Glad to see e-tip mixed in for some, but would be good to have lead-free listed for all.