280 vs 30-06
Posted: Fri May 20, 2011 1:36 pm
Howdy,
I have a commercialized BRNO military Mauser that I intend to rebarrel. It has a nice 22" barrel chambered in 30-06, but I am wanting a 24" barrel with no dovetails or screw holes forward of the receiver for this particular gun.
Maybe a slightly heavier contour too... I like front-heavy guns for standing up ( unsupported ) shooting, and of course for shooting off of the bench, which I do the most of by far.
Re-barreling means a chance to try out a different cartridge...
An old big-bore fanatic ( my first rifle was a Marlin 1895G ) I of course thought of the .35 Whelen, and .338-06, both interesting rounds for a long action. In the past I have owned an 8mm-06 that I grew to be very fond of, and ( story of my life ) foolishly traded away.
But - the big-bore stuff is too pricey for my budget these days, all of that lead. Also, deep south Texas doesn't honestly have any critters that require a big slug to put down. Another factor is that my big-bore addiction has made me lonely... None of my family members and few of my friends want to go out and shoot my cannons with me.
So I have drawn the line at 30-06, and am seriously considering the .280 Remington!
I already have a .243 Winchester, so I'm wanting something to handle occasional situations that the .243 might be marginal for. It is doubtful that I will ever hunt outside of Texas, so a mule deer or a black bear are about as heavy as the game gets here, exotics excluded.
Like most of my center-fire guns, most of the time it will be shot from the bench, so it and I will be ready for those rare, sometimes sudden opportunities to take the firearm afield.
Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
I have a commercialized BRNO military Mauser that I intend to rebarrel. It has a nice 22" barrel chambered in 30-06, but I am wanting a 24" barrel with no dovetails or screw holes forward of the receiver for this particular gun.
Maybe a slightly heavier contour too... I like front-heavy guns for standing up ( unsupported ) shooting, and of course for shooting off of the bench, which I do the most of by far.
Re-barreling means a chance to try out a different cartridge...
An old big-bore fanatic ( my first rifle was a Marlin 1895G ) I of course thought of the .35 Whelen, and .338-06, both interesting rounds for a long action. In the past I have owned an 8mm-06 that I grew to be very fond of, and ( story of my life ) foolishly traded away.
But - the big-bore stuff is too pricey for my budget these days, all of that lead. Also, deep south Texas doesn't honestly have any critters that require a big slug to put down. Another factor is that my big-bore addiction has made me lonely... None of my family members and few of my friends want to go out and shoot my cannons with me.
So I have drawn the line at 30-06, and am seriously considering the .280 Remington!
I already have a .243 Winchester, so I'm wanting something to handle occasional situations that the .243 might be marginal for. It is doubtful that I will ever hunt outside of Texas, so a mule deer or a black bear are about as heavy as the game gets here, exotics excluded.
Like most of my center-fire guns, most of the time it will be shot from the bench, so it and I will be ready for those rare, sometimes sudden opportunities to take the firearm afield.
Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.