08-27-2005, 11:04 PM
I never hunted elk, and all the deer hunting I've done has either been with a .50 sidelock muzzle loader, an 870 in 20 guage, or an HR Slug gun in 20 guage. I did some target shooting with a .30-06 Eddystone mfg. M1917 Enfield that was sprterized with Redfield peep sights. I have had the oppetunity to shoot other centerfire calibers
such as the .308 on an MAS 49/56, 7.62x39 on a Ruger M77 and sporterized Mauser small ring, .30 Carbine out of an M1, .223 out of an AR type rifle, and 8x57mm through a WWII K-98 as well as 7.62x54 in a M-44 carbine. Out of all of them, the .30-06 kicked the most, and that was with a heavy (i'de say) 8 to 8.5 pound gun. The ammo was not even hot hunting ammo - just 1957 military surplus ball. Remember you need to be able to place your shot well- or it does not matter what your shooting if it's bad enough. Even the puney 7.62x39mm (AK-47 round) will reliably take deer. The .30-06 is significantly more powerful. Remington 700's are very accurate as are Ruger M-77 and Winchester Model 70. There are countless moremodels too that are wonderful. The nice thing about the .30-06 is that ammo is cheap for practice (.25c/round) for GI surplus. If you buy a gun that costs $1/rd to shoot you will not end up practicing much. If you end up really wanting to plink with centerfire the 7.62x39mm is 10c/rd, czapable of being used on deer, and there are tons of neat guns for it (SKS< Yugo SKS, AR-15, Mini 30, Ruger M77 Ltd. edition used, and semi auto ak-47 looking guns (except in CT, and a bunch of other freedom hating places). Don't be afraid to consider a used gun. Sometimes you can get a good gun at a more affordable price that way.
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such as the .308 on an MAS 49/56, 7.62x39 on a Ruger M77 and sporterized Mauser small ring, .30 Carbine out of an M1, .223 out of an AR type rifle, and 8x57mm through a WWII K-98 as well as 7.62x54 in a M-44 carbine. Out of all of them, the .30-06 kicked the most, and that was with a heavy (i'de say) 8 to 8.5 pound gun. The ammo was not even hot hunting ammo - just 1957 military surplus ball. Remember you need to be able to place your shot well- or it does not matter what your shooting if it's bad enough. Even the puney 7.62x39mm (AK-47 round) will reliably take deer. The .30-06 is significantly more powerful. Remington 700's are very accurate as are Ruger M-77 and Winchester Model 70. There are countless moremodels too that are wonderful. The nice thing about the .30-06 is that ammo is cheap for practice (.25c/round) for GI surplus. If you buy a gun that costs $1/rd to shoot you will not end up practicing much. If you end up really wanting to plink with centerfire the 7.62x39mm is 10c/rd, czapable of being used on deer, and there are tons of neat guns for it (SKS< Yugo SKS, AR-15, Mini 30, Ruger M77 Ltd. edition used, and semi auto ak-47 looking guns (except in CT, and a bunch of other freedom hating places). Don't be afraid to consider a used gun. Sometimes you can get a good gun at a more affordable price that way.
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