[Ithaca37]

Okay, what is the best rifle cartridge for general use and why?

My vote goes 30-06 because it offers the best balance of power, trajectory and recoil. But an arguement could be made for anything similar to it: .308, .270, 7mm-08, 7x57, 8mm, .303, etc.

 

[sremington]

Well if you want to look at statistics the .308 is one of the best selling cartridges in the world.

 

[sremington]

I just did a search and found that the .30-06 is the leading cartridge in North America. No surprise there. I still like the .308 only because I am more familiar with it.

 

[Cap'n Jack Duggins]

Yeah Steve, we heard you were a "short action" man! :shock:

 

[sremington]

Well you ain't getting your info from the right sources. :wink:

 

[stweedie]

I use a .270 semi-auto right now, but my next rifle will be a light-weight .308 I think. The 7400 gets pretty darn heavy after lugging it around all day.

 

[Lil John]

Have I ever told you fellas about my little .308? :thumb:

 

[Ithaca37]

Have I ever told you fellas about my little .308? :thumb:

YES!!!! (it's okay though it is natural to like to talk excessively about your favorite guns I do it too, just not so much on here).

 

[Ithaca37]

Well if you want to look at statistics the .308 is one of the best selling cartridges in the world.

Being a good seller doesn't make it the best though. 30-06 has the edge when it comes to ballistics.

 

[sremington]

Yea, and even sales the 30-06 has the 308 beat. But popularity has to mean something. I am assuming people find it popular because of its performance. Marketing has a lot to do with it as well but if your product stinks time will reveal it.

 

[Ithaca37]

It works great, but 30-06 is better at doing the same job. The reason .308 is so popular is that a couple dcades ago it was THE round to use in benchrest and other competitive shooting events. And there are some gullible people who think the short action is quicker.

 

[Cap'n Jack Duggins]

The .308 is still the prefered round for SWAT & military snipers!
I personally like the 30-06 because of the .224 sabots you could get the would scream out at over 4000fps! (not to mention, no ballistics...)

 

[Guest]

The best caliber is the one you can shoot well with, is of reasonable size for the game and yardage you shoot, and the one you have trust in. That said, ammo availability can be an issue with some of the more obscure rounds and recoil tolerance plays in as well. My personal favorite is the .300 Weatherby, fast, flat, and a big enough bore for anything up here.

A clean shot with a .30/30 is better than a miss with anything else.

 

[Ithaca37]

300 weatherby :shock:

 

[Guest]

Yep. It's a bit more than most deer require, but it's the next best thing to a death ray.

 

[Ithaca37]

Yep. It's a bit more than most deer require, but it's the next best thing to a death ray.

:runforhills:

 

[Guest]

AAWWW C'MON! Y'all know recoil don't hurt none :wink: .

Besides, it'll put 3 rounds into .75" at a hundred. I bought it for an elk hunt in Montana, but when it shot better than the .270 I was deer huntin' with, I sold the .270 and put the money into ammo and better glass. Better to have a rifle bigger than necessary than one too small for the job.

 

[Cap'n Jack Duggins]

Death ray...LOL . . . yep, real close.
If I'm in the same county when you shoot, I'll die of a heart attack!

 

[sremington]

Canerod, no such thing as overkill right? Well if their ain't any meat left over then once the sense? :roflmao:

 

[Guest]

Loss of edible meat to bullet damage is not that bad. Where you hit one can have a bigger effect than what you hit it with. Some of the worst damage to meat I've ever seen was a RB from a flintlock, shot into a neck. That was a 179gr ball, probably moving at 1500fps or so, and the bloodshot area extended all the way down into the shoulders. By comparison, I shot a nice 9pt in Alabama with the .300, broadside, and the damaged area was about 6" in diameter.