7mm vs 300 win vs 338 win

[Hotrod]

Hi, my name is Brett. I am 17, and I hunt mule deer in southern Oregon where it is pretty open and flat. I also hunt elk in western Oregon where there is lots of hills and thick timber. I want one gun for both. I have decided on either a tikka t3 lite, Sako A7 roughteck pro or a Remington SPS stainless. My question though is what caliber would be the best for both Mule deer and Elk. I know that a ton of you probably use a 270 and can bag an elk no problem. For my purposes I would like to start at the 3's and go up. I've used a 30-06 the last few years before this last year switching to 7mm Remington mag. I have to say that I'm pretty sold on the 7mm but I don't know too much about the 300 mags and the other calibers. Also there needs to be a good selection of ammo and be generally easy to find. So like no exotic calibers. What do you guys use, and what would you recommend?

-Brett

 

[Beartooth83]

Sounds like you may already own a rifle in the caliber you describe.

 

[Hotrod]

Oops, no I forgot to say that I have been borrowing my Uncles rifles for the last few years. This year I have saved up enough money and wanted to get my own.

 

[TheDudeAbides]

Calibers are personnel preference. You will get all different opinions.

Recoil is probably the biggest difference in the calibers that you mentioned. Each can knock holes in paper at long ranges and holes in animals at reasonable distances.

Most hunting calibers will have a point blank range out 300 yards, when sighted in at 200 yards. So, flat shooting is not that big of a deal unless you start to get out to long range - Though at long range you have to figure out the wind regardless.

All Magnums do is give the bullet more energy at longer ranges.

What matters more is how the gun fits you and how the gun shoots with you pulling the trigger.

I shoot a .30-06 and a .338 win mag. The muzzle-brake on my .338 makes it kick less than my .30-06, but the price of ammo makes me shoot my .30-06 more. In a hunting situation I use both for mule deer and elk.

The .30-06 is my hiking/still hunting gun. The .338 is my spot and stalk gun in more of open country. I could use either for both purposes, but I like both guns and like the set up.

I would recommend taking the money that you were going to spend on a new gun and put it into your existing 7mm Rem Mag. Get an upgraded stock or get your current action bedded or get an upgraded trigger or get an upgraded optic.

 

[JohnCushman]

I would say if you've used the 7 mag and are familiar with it, then go with it. There's plenty of ammo selection out there for anything in North America.

 

[mtmuley]

I'm a BIG Remington guy, but that Roughtech is a sweet rifle. There is one for sale on longrangehunting for just over a grand In 7mm Remington even. Me, I"d go SPS stainless, especially for the money. Take the extra and put it towards glass. mtmuley

 

[Hotrod]

The 7mm mag and the 30-06 that I used where both my uncles. I've bagged a deer with both but I'm not that familiar with other calibers. Does the 300 win mag shoot flatter? I've also heard that it doesn't create as big of hole.

 

[TheDudeAbides]

Both shoot comparable to each other. There is really no difference in flatness.

300 win sighted in at 200 yards . http://www.hornady.com/store/300-Win-Mag-200-gr-ELD-X-Precision-Hunter/

+1.6 @ 100 yards
0 @ 200 yards
-6.9 @ 300 yards
-19.8 @ 400 yards
-39.3 @ 500 yards

7mm Rem Mag sighted in at 200 yards. http://www.hornady.com/store/7mm-Rem-Mag-162-gr-ELD-X-Precision-Hunter/

+ 1.5 @ 100 yards
0 @ 200 yards
- 6.5 @ 300 yards
- 18.7 @ 400 yards
- 37.2 @ 500 yards

At 500 yards with this type of ammo, the 7mm only drops two less inches than the 300 win mag.

 

[Lawnboy]

I'm a recoil weenie and so would choose the 7 Mag. As long as you know were and how much it's dropping either of those calibers will work.

 

[HighDesertSage]

Any of the calibers you mentioned will work just fine. Iv'e killed elk with a 270 and a 300 with Barnes bullets. The performance difference between the two was marginal. If you like the 7 mag, it will suite you well. Shot placement and bullet selection are more important than caliber.I have a Tikka T3 lite stainless and love it.

 

[sbhooper]

I think that the 30-06 is your answer. Shoots more than flat enough and easy to find ammo. I love my 7 mags, but the 06 will do everything the others will do. I would ignore the 338 unless you someday want to hunt grizzles in Alaska or something! They are not necessary.

Due to your familiarity with the calibers, I would go with either the 06 or 7 mag.

 

[JohnCushman]

I think that the 30-06 is your answer. Shoots more than flat enough and easy to find ammo. I love my 7 mags, but the 06 will do everything the others will do. I would ignore the 338 unless you someday want to hunt grizzles in Alaska or something! They are not necessary.

Due to your familiarity with the calibers, I would go with either the 06 or 7 mag.

I totally agree with this. In my original post I advised the 7 mag because that was one of his choices and he was familiar with it, but my 30-06 is my all around go-to rifle for everything. There is a huge choice of ammo for it and you can go light for antelope and heavy for elk. I always bring my 300 win mag as a back up incase my 06 scope gets bumped or for a really windy day, but my 06 is the go to rifle. I have taken everything from elk to deer to antelope with it. And I know my rifle so well, I can still hit a gong at 500 yards with it.

 

[putm2sleep]

Go big kid! My son saved up for his first shotgun and bought it last summer. Killed his first big goose.
Pretty neat you buying your first gun !
I might trying buying that 7mm off your relative 1st. Next -
A 300 win mag will do it all, theDude is excellent at providing some insight on shot.
My elk rifle is a .338.

 

[VAspeedgoat]

Of your choices the .338 is the one that doesn't fit just because you mentioned longer shots. Just my opinion. Any of the calibers listed above would work fine but the 7mm would generally have a little less recoil. As mentioned earlier, it would be hard to discount the .270 or the 30-06 either. For my first rifle I think I would stay away from the .338 and possibly the .300 just for recoil. Your first rifle is one you like to use for a long time. Sometimes its not as much fun dealing with recoil as you get older.

 

[elkduds]

My first rifle was a 7 RM, which I bought to replace my dad's 30-06 I was using. Sound familiar? I was sure I needed that magnum "edge." I gained nothing important in going from 06 to 7 RM. In the last 20 years bullet technology has improved dramatically, so a lighter bullet performs on game like a heavier bullet used to. And the lighter bullet "shoots flatter." Recently I've gone to 270, because modern 150 gr rounds in 270 equal or better the 175 gr rounds I always used in the 7 mag for elk. The 270 weighs a lot less and costs less to shoot, and recoil/noise is less than the 7. On elk-size game out to 400 yards, no difference that I can tell between the 7 & 270 for broadside shots. If I were getting one gun to do it all, it would be 270 or 280, which is a 30-06 case shooting 7 mm bullets. Accuracy overrules power, and almost everyone shoots more accurately when there is less recoil.

 

[Gerald Martin]

So you need to ask yourself... Do I want to kill an elk dead? Or, do I want to kill an elk deader? That is the biggest question. Once you answer that question, you'll have the correct answer.

 

[Ben Lamb]

So you need to ask yourself... Do I want to kill an elk dead? Or, do I want to kill an elk deader? That is the biggest question. Once you answer that question, you'll have the correct answer.

You forgot deadest.

Get the 338. A medium bore will do everything you want and with a touch more class.

 

[belly-deep]

Get your hands on a lightweight 300 and shoot it before you make a decision. It might change your mind.

7mm is tough to beat. I carry a 300 WBY a lot, but it has to be a heavier gun due to recoil.

 

[ShootsManyBullets]

Might as well got with the 30-378 wby and get it over with

 

[Gerald Martin]

You forgot deadest.

Get the 338. A medium bore will do everything you want and with a touch more class.

Pardon me sir, I seem to have forgotten my superlatives. Sure glad he didn't include a .375 and .416 in the list of options.


I'd go with the .300 Win Mag over the 7 Mag personally. A little extra ft.lbs of energy never hurts when elk are involved.