300 PRC thoughts for a new guy

Kind of new to the hunting scene, but have been shooting on and off for a good while. I want to buy a rifle (can afford only one at this point) that will serve me well for target shooting and deer hunting (tops ideally). Have been considering a 300 PRC which would be great long distance cartridge at the range, but I don’t know how it would be as a hunting round. Is it too much for deer that are, say, at 100m? Will it be too powerful to open up in the deer and just go right through and only wound? Advice and suggestions welcomed heartily.

Kinda new to the hunting scene?.... Maybe you should double check your reasoning for selecting a top end magnum round.... ?

As a hunting round, it will be the same as a 300 Win Mag (which has killed millions of deer big and small, at short range and at long range). Exactly which 30cal magnum it is that sends the 180+ grain bullet in the deer's direction at mach 3 is immaterial. And whilst you can't make a deer too dead, you can certainly destroy more meat than strictly necessary in the process.

I have heard of 215gr Bergers and zipping through hinds shot behind the shoulder - but only because that particular bullet does need to hit something quite solid to start off the expansion reliably. You aren't going to have that kind of problem with something like the ELD-X (which will basically start to expand if it so much as clips a blade of grass).

Would 300prc be a suitable pick for a first hunting rifle? It's a big cartridge. And hunting rifles tend to be on the lighter side. Light rifles chambered in big cartridges become a handful to shoot. Rifles that are a handful to shoot need a fair bit of practice to master. But paradoxically, the ammo being so expensive and the rifle wanting to kick the shit out of you every time you look at it makes the idea of lots of practice highly unappealing. This leads to a lot of people who buy magnums as first rifles into developing flinches, not putting the time in to develop their skills to manage the recoil, and as a result screwing up shots when it counts. Unless you have the first-hand knowledge of why you wouldn't fall into that trap, I would consider buying something like a 7mm08 or a 6.5 Creedmoor.

Buy something with cheap and plentiful ammo, shoot it lots to learn the rifle and ballistics, and be happy.

Hard to look past the .223 with a fast twist barrel.

A big, fast bullet won't kill deer any better than a small, fast one if it doesn't hit!

a 308 has plenty of ammo choices and is more than capable on the tops or in bush. Go for something you can actually get ammo for at decent prices.

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Originally Posted by Happy Jack

a 308 has plenty of ammo choices and is more than capable on the tops or in bush. Go for something you can actually get ammo for at decent prices.

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What he said

Another one for the .308.
Proven performance. Plenty of ammo and components. Easy to load for, no special powders needed. Get the long range flashy stuff later if you find you need it. With the number of new wonder cartridges that have appeared over the last decade or so many will dissappear in the future but the .308 will still be here.
Regards Grandpamac.

+1 for the 308.

I would be looking to buying a calibre that is "old school", "run of the mill". A 300PRC may be an excellent calibre, but its gonna hurt your body until you know how to shoot, and its gonna hurt your pocket cos it costs a bloody fortune to buy PRC ammo. And then you probably wont be able to buy it from many places, if it is available.

A 308, 30-06, 270, 7-08, 25-06, 243 etc etc certainly dont feature as much in all the glossy advertising any more, but they sure as hell will shoot every bit as good, for a lot less hassle. Buy a 7-08 or a 308 and learn to hunt, and shoot, and then shoot it some more until you're confident enough to take ethical shots consistently out to about 350 metres. Then spend time on the range to learn how to extend your shooting ability on targets.

As a good mate of mine use to say - "the only bullet/rifle combination you need is the one where the bullet and the target connect" And the 300PRC will cost you heaps to get that. There are so many other quality options available that wont cost you an arm and a leg.

Start off with something that has plenty of ammo available. Upgrade to a magnum round later.
30-06, 270, 308, 7-08, 243. Unless you desperately want a PRC then ignore all the advice and buy one.

And suppress what ever you get to give you the best chance of shooting well.

I work at the local deerstalkers range and anyone that asks what rifle they should buy gets exactly the same answer. a 308 tikka t3x with a leupold scope on it fitted and purchased off someone you trust. and its just the right answer. cheap to run in 308, not too much recoil, covers all bases in NZ, huge range of handloading options. and generally when fitted buy a trustworthy person its very reliable. As far as the scope once again just reliable, vx3 in the 4 to 12 power range will cover all bases really, vx5 if you can afford it and just get out shooting. i say the fact that you have to ask means you don't have the experience figure it out. and you'll always have that basic gun you can fall back on.

and as back up to that i shoot a tikka t3x in 308 (suppressed) with a vx5 3 to 15. and so does a mate, both shoot an inch all day long with factory loads and handloads.

and i learnt target shooting out to 1000yds with a 308 and a fixed 12 power scope so you dont need any more magnification.

308 will knock over a red at 600 yards if you know what you are up to. A lot cheaper to shoot too

7mm-08 tikka t3

3006 or 308 would be far better choices for all round hunting rifle in 30cal

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Originally Posted by chainsaw

3006 or 308 would be far better choices for all round hunting rifle in 30cal

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Or 30 06 Ackley Improved :yaeh am not durnk: ;)

I'd do what lots of folks here are suggesting and start with something more common and not as large. It'll be cheaper and easier to improve your shooting with.

Instead of .308, I'd get something that'll do the business on deer but won't be made redundant by upgrading to a magnum cartridge, like a .243. It'll push a deer over at shorter ranges and when you do upgrade to a magnum, it'll still have a purpose as a smaller deer gun, bush gun (lots of the magnums have long barrels), goat gun, something teenagers can get behind for their first deer, long-range rabbit plinker, or whatever is your fancy.

For the NI where hunting is fallow, sika, and where the reds are typically a bit smaller, this would be the go but I notice you're in the south island. Someone else might have to pipe in about the size of the deer down there and how well a .243 would go.

id agree with the rest of these as well

270 for the south island and 308 for the north
anything similar to either would be fine but a magnum will be very expensive to shoot and boot like a mule

300prc is bloody awesum full stop.
don't want to wreck all the meat? don't shoot it in the meaty bit, pretty simple. neck shots all day long!

i use mine for shooting anything and everything, best tops rifle cartridge money can buy.

get one, you will love it.

Just a Tikka superlite in 308. Does everything in NZ

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Originally Posted by WOPASS

best tops rifle cartridge money can buy.

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Correct. IF you have a lot of money

And are fit as fuck

And are built like a brick shithouse to soak up the recoil:thumbs:

Otherwise do what the plebs do and get yourself an accurate as buggery, cheap to shoot, common garden variety calibre and keep the PRC for range time.

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Originally Posted by wnoteboom

Kind of new to the hunting scene, but have been shooting on and off for a good while. I want to buy a rifle (can afford only one at this point) that will serve me well for target shooting and deer hunting (tops ideally). Have been considering a 300 PRC which would be great long distance cartridge at the range, but I don’t know how it would be as a hunting round. Is it too much for deer that are, say, at 100m? Will it be too powerful to open up in the deer and just go right through and only wound? Advice and suggestions welcomed heartily.

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Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the expertise. Today I got myself a Tikka .308 (one of the strata ones) and a Leupold VX-5HD. Stoked with it! May it serve me well for many years!

Greetings,
I bought my first new rifle in the late 1970's. It was a Rem 700 .308. It is still here and it is not going anywhere.
QED.
Grandpamac.
For these not familiar with QED, roughly translated from the Latin it says "All that was set out to prove has been proved".
Hopefully you still have yours in 45 years.

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Originally Posted by wnoteboom

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the expertise. Today I got myself a Tikka .308 (one of the strata ones) and a Leupold VX-5HD. Stoked with it! May it serve me well for many years!

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Well done , you probably brought the perfect rifle combo right there , do your ears a favour a get a suppressor when you can , now get into it , go hunting and knock some animals over with it .

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Originally Posted by wnoteboom

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the expertise. Today I got myself a Tikka .308 (one of the strata ones) and a Leupold VX-5HD. Stoked with it! May it serve me well for many years!

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Great decision

You cannot overkill a deer. The 300 will be fine if that's what you want to shoot. Just choose the correct projectile for the game and distance you are hunting.

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Originally Posted by wnoteboom

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the expertise. Today I got myself a Tikka .308 (one of the strata ones) and a Leupold VX-5HD. Stoked with it! May it serve me well for many years!

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Exactly what I shoot.:)

270

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Originally Posted by wnoteboom

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the expertise. Today I got myself a Tikka .308 (one of the strata ones) and a Leupold VX-5HD. Stoked with it! May it serve me well for many years!

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Well done. Great choice. The cheapest rifle you ever buy is the one you never sell:thumbsup:

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Originally Posted by wnoteboom

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the expertise. Today I got myself a Tikka .308 (one of the strata ones) and a Leupold VX-5HD. Stoked with it! May it serve me well for many years!

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Good choice, and nice to you've put good glass on it. Look forward to further updates and pic's of the animals you've shot.

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Originally Posted by wnoteboom

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the expertise. Today I got myself a Tikka .308 (one of the strata ones) and a Leupold VX-5HD. Stoked with it! May it serve me well for many years!

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back when I lived in the windy city the upper hutt NZDA arranged a shoot at the Trentham range out to 600 yards - the best shooting of the day was by a guy with a 308 T3! he put those of us with our 7 magnums and the like to shame :D:sick:

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Originally Posted by grandpamac

Greetings,
I bought my first new rifle in the late 1970's. It was a Rem 700 .308. It is still here and it is not going anywhere.
QED.
Grandpamac.
For these not familiar with QED, roughly translated from the Latin it says "All that was set out to prove has been proved".
Hopefully you still have yours in 45 years.

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45 years ago I brought my first rifle a .22 rimfire Toz - 17 it cost me $49.50 from Ian Ballangers Victoria St CHCH. Still at school so worked for my Dad on weekends filling up waste takers (called skips now - the big ones) rubbish on construction sites- $5 per ship.

Great wee rifle really accurate and I shot a lot of tree eating $%#$%#% goats in Marlborough sounds - when it came to tree planting mum used the point and dig approach - she would point and I would dig and plant the tree. Next time we went to the Bach the goats had turned the tree into a stick :pissed off:

So I got my 22 and declare war on the $@$@ goats and shot every single one I could find - 40 gn solids slipped into the ribs behind the shoulder right where there diaphragm is and they did not go far before tipping over. Sold the Toz sadly got one of those Chinese Jw15's now - Toz better in my view.

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Originally Posted by wnoteboom

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the expertise. Today I got myself a Tikka .308 (one of the strata ones) and a Leupold VX-5HD. Stoked with it! May it serve me well for many years!

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excellent- I have same in 300wsm, fantasteek setup.

Yea both of my magnums got the flick, now have settled with the 280ai and 284win as my two go to rifles. The mags kick the shit out of ya if it's as light as say a tikka t3. A 308 or 3006 would be great as a first hunting rifle and youl get more bang for buck behind the trigger. Once youve mastered that look at maybe having a crack on a mates magnum to see if that's the direction you want to go.