Thread: Calibre, Rifle & Scope Sugestions For Longer Range Hunting

Did you end up sell the Sako 300wsm ? That would surely do it all if set up right

Tikka + VX5hd for rifle and scope.

Calibre is the hard one IMO, if you are planning to hunt to 500m then 7mm08 would be hard to beat, or 6.5CM/260. 308 will do the job but is more recoil than you really need and looses in ballistics to 7mm and 6.5mm cartridges.

Really the easy choice for long range hunting is 6.5PRC buy not sure what the factory ammo situation is like these days.

I can sell you one of my browning's in 300wsm, 22 BBL tackdriver for 750.

I assume your a new shooter with little experience in the field. If this is correct then please remember that shooting game at long range is not as easy as point and shoot. Once you get out past say 300m there are a whole lot of factors, such as windage, improvised rests, altitude, etc which start to make things a little complicated. Regardless of the rifle/caliber you choose there will be a learning curve which is best done on static targets and not game animals. With that in mind reloading for your chosen caliber would be a good choice with the cost of factory ammo up around $5 a shot. That rifle of Danny's is in my opinion a specialist long range rifle. It would be a good choice for what you are describing as your use. If you went down that path then the help and advice that he is offering you would be worth gold to a new shooter. One other thing I'll chuck in here. Recoil, everyone has there own tolerance, or lack of it when it comes to recoil. A well placed shot with say a 270 or 6.5 creedmoor is going to be far more effective than a badly placed shot from say a 300 win mag because the recoil is too much for you. If you have not had much experience with this then you unfortunately won't know until you try it, But if in doubt go for a slightly lighter caliber which will still do the job. The 270 Winchester for example would be a fantastic choice. As far as rifle choice goes, if you are buying off the shelf it would have to be a Tikka, their hard to beat for value, reliability and off the shelf accuracy. For a scope expect to pay around the 2/2.5 grand for something like a Leupold VX5, Swarovski Z5. The scope is just as important as the rifle for long range shooting.

Originally Posted by Gibo

Where do you buy the ammo from?

Any sporting shop can get it in these days, back when I had mine built one had to reload...I remember when the gunsmith said he didn't get the dies imported as they were expensive, so I asked him if he could cut a groove with the grinder about where the foresight would normally be...he said "what for", I replied "so I can use it to boil the billy over the fire, cos that is all it is fkn good for"....he got the dies in for me.

500m+ is interesting for shooting with a target shooting rig - long, heavy barrel and a big heavy scope, bipod and bag... For hunting at that distance, with a lightweight rifle, it will require significant investment to achieve if you want to do it ethically. Calibre choice will be paramount - plenty of energy to kill, even with marginal shots, every time, at the extreme long end of the range you intend to hunt at is ethically non-negotiable when shooting at living creatures.

Edit: that is my personal point of view. Your benchmark may be different and while I may disagree, at the end of the day, I only have to face my own reflection in the mirror!

7 rem mag is the way to go.
But really look at what ammo/projectiles are available at the moment. You will need to practice a bit to get proficient to 500m.

If you say 500yds once you have done that you will want to extend further. So a bit of grunt will be required. The 08 based cases might not hack it.

I actually think that one of the best cases for a balance of knock down and tolerable recoil is the 270wsm with a 140-150 grn bullet, zipping along at 3.1/3.2k fps. They go just fine with a 22" barrel and a suppressor and are easy to get to shoot. Tikka or Xbolt, take your choice. Always seems to be factory ammo available if you don't hand load. A really good middle ground cartridge.

Originally Posted by SDP

Looking to tap into the fountain of experience and knowledge that you other hunters and shooters have.

I'm looking to purchase a new rifle and scope setup for open country deer shooting.

I'm interested to get opinions on what works for other hunters.
I'm after a light weight rifle in a calibre that you can trust will do the job with one accurate shot at 500m+. As well as suggestions for optics that would back up this longer range shooting.

Thanks in advance for any advice and opions offered.

The guys just love threads like this.

At least you haven't said you want to do it all for under $5000. In reality, you will spend a lot on ammunition and travel to sparrowhawk and the like to do the testing and skills development needed.

But the "lightweight" business is a definite handicap. If you have another rifle for under 300m shooting (like an 18" 308) then you will find a bit of heft improves that chance of "one accurate shot at 500m+".

Unless you are already a past master, I suggest you gear up for 300m+ shots first and once you've got that sorted you'll have yor own opinion on what you need next.

My 2c worth is that you need a lot of retained energy at 500m, like 1500 ft.lb. You will not get a highly accurate shot at that range so you need a big hole. Yet average cartridges are dropping below 1000 ft.lb out there. You also need a respectable impact velocity (> 2000fps) to get bullets to expand properly. Wind is a big unknown past 300m and favours heavy bullets with G1 BC > 0.6 but also consider useability at short ranges and how far you might be able to shoot without using a range finder, which favours light bullets and MV > 3000 f/s. There is no replacement for displacement. After a couple of recent bad animal experiences with the 7mm08, I'm starting to be impressed with the value of a true magnum. My mate took 2 shots with a WSM (300+m) but at least he got his deer and I didn't.

Looking at the rifle, several have suggested the Tikka but if cost is no object there are other brands with better features (but no more accuracy ...). The 5 shot steel magazine of the Sako 85, its 3 lug bolt, greater weight and perfect ergonomics are definite advantages. There are others like the Browning X bolt, Bergara and straight pull Blaser that many consider more user freindly too.

For scopes, you have to spend the most and restrict yourself to the fewest features you can. The VX-5 is the lightest durable dialable scope at present. But, have a look around and see whether a S&B Klassik 4-16x50 or a Steiner or Kahles might be OK for you. They will likely be that much easier to set up and to use that you save a considerable amount of ammo and trips to the range. @Tahr has tried out a variety of more "price point" dialable scopes and could offer advice on their merits vs the benchmark Leupold VX-5.

Originally Posted by SmokeyJason

I can sell you one of my browning's in 300wsm, 22 BBL tackdriver for 750.

now there ya go SDP - that would do the job very nicely indeed a generous offer

dont turn ya nose up at some of Remingtons offerings for long range - yes some of the rifles over last few years the quality was not there but not always the case - some like their sendero and wilderness rifles were tack drivers and need a good look at - the new ones when they come out highly likely to be good

youre going to get a heap of different opinons here sorry mate,

but in your situation would do similar to beetroot, buy a tikka t3 in 6.5PRC.

I personally would put an element Nexus on it but a VX5 would also be spot on

As @kiwi303 said, your going to get alot of different opinions, none that are necessarily wrong but everyone has their own idea of whats best/what works for them. My thoughts are, projectile choice is equally as important as calibre. At 500m a 6.5prc with a good projectile could easily out do a magnum 30 cal with the wrong projectile. Reloading for yourself obviously negates this problem as you can load whatever you want to do the intended job within reason, but if your not wanting to reload going forward then the availability of factory ammunition thats loaded with projectiles suitable for the kind of hunting your wanting to do should weigh heavily on calibre choice. No use buying a rifle you cant find ammo for, or can find ammo for but its loaded with projectiles not really suitable for game.
@dannyb 's 30-06ai would be a great option, especially seeing hes already got a great load sorted for it/offered to load more for you/teach you, with a proven bullet that works great on game, and it will have plenty of juice to knock over any animal you could find in nz at 500m.

For what its worth, i run a element nexus on my 300wsm for long distance stuff and i rate it highly. No doubt theres better scopes out there, but value for money i rate it highly.

If it's your first center fire rifle then let's face it you will buy another in 12 months.
You will want to get out and shoot all sorts of shit from targets,rabbits deer goats and gongs.
So get something that you can afford to run and something that isn't going to boot the shit out of you.
I would buy a Tikka in 6.5 Creedmoor as plenty of ammo buy all the same brand to give you good brass to reload later.
Put a vx5 or a Z5 on it and a DPT and go hunting being a happy man.
Spend the big dollars and rifles once you have tried a few others.

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Originally Posted by 25/08 IMP

If it's your first center fire rifle then let's face it you will buy another in 12 months.
You will want to get out and shoot all sorts of shit from targets,rabbits deer goats and gongs.
So get something that you can afford to run and something that isn't going to boot the shit out of you.
I would buy a Tikka in 6.5 Creedmoor as plenty of ammo buy all the same brand to give you good brass to reload later.
Put a vx5 or a Z5 on it and a DPT and go hunting being a happy man.
Spend the big dollars and rifles once you have tried a few others. Z

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no no no no dont go down this route - you asked for good advice well thats not it - the 6.5 creedmore was developed as a target round - it is not a long range deer cartridge - it was never intended to be or designed to be - many young hunters will learn that the hard way - it has not been around in NZ hunting circles for long - basically what is wrong is that is just not have the knock down power at range simply as that - there will be forum users who will jump on here and quote chapter and verse about its credentials on paper but its basically a squaw gun - get a magnum for long range - that is what they were designed for - tikka yes very nice but others out there just as good -