Favorite Sheep Caliber

[MatheusB]

The sheep caliber recomended are 7mm or .300 magnums, .270 Win. or .280 Rem

 

[Blockcaver]

Sheep are thin skinned and relatively small animals that don't take a lot of punishment. I've taken 5 with my bow...none with a rifle but anything from a .243 on up will work fine. Good luck with your .270...it worked for Jack O'Connor and thousands of others.

 

[JP100]

Ive never shot a sheep, and only been on one hunt.
But id be looking at light easy to shoot calibers
Sheep dont seem big nor tough(thin horns anyway) and you want a nice light rifle thats easy to shoot.
.300 magnums and even the 7 rem mag are a bitch to shoot with out a brake in a lighter rifle.

Ive used a .243 alot here and taken animals I think are much bigger and tougher than sheep out to 400 yards with on with no issues, and a kid can shoot my rifle with ease.

.243, 6.5x55/.260/6.5Gaymore, 7mm-08, 6mm Remington or .25-06 would be picks.
easy to shoot, flat shooting and plenty of power for most game

but you cant go wrong with the good ol .270

 

[CTobias]

.243, 6.5x55/.260/6.5Gaymore, 7mm-08, 6mm Remington or .25-06 would be picks.
easy to shoot, flat shooting and plenty of power for most game

Hahahaha.

 

[luke moffat]

Ive never shot a sheep, and only been on one hunt.
But id be looking at light easy to shoot calibers
Sheep dont seem big nor tough(thin horns anyway) and you want a nice light rifle thats easy to shoot.
.300 magnums and even the 7 rem mag are a bitch to shoot with out a brake in a lighter rifle.

Ive used a .243 alot here and taken animals I think are much bigger and tougher than sheep out to 400 yards with on with no issues, and a kid can shoot my rifle with ease.

.243, 6.5x55/.260/6.5Gaymore, 7mm-08, 6mm Remington or .25-06 would be picks.
easy to shoot, flat shooting and plenty of power for most game

but you cant go wrong with the good ol .270

Its actually GayMOOR. You gotta get it right man.

 

[CTobias]

I'm bringing my .300 win mag on my sheep hunt. Why? Because I spent the rest of my money upgrading all my other gear and don't have anything left for a new rifle. Plus, I just got done glass bedding it. I don't think 8lbs with a scope is terribly heavy. Then again, I still need to get out and see how she shoots now that I've bedded it.

 

[Fjelljeger]

I will be taking my 308 on my first sheep hunt.

 

[luke moffat]

It makes for a better grizzly round anyways, especially at a grand

Haha this is true....or maybe just beyond that a bit. But you know you can’t kill anything unless it’s headstamped 300WM

 

[Stud Duck]

Haha this is true....or maybe just beyond that a bit. But you know you can’t kill anything unless it’s headstamped 300WM

Reminds me of a guy's sig line on 24HCF: Joe average is over scoped, over head-stamped and under bulleted.

 

[slick]

Have seen them killed with 308 and 300win mag... I used a 300wm and I wouldnt mind packing around a much lighter softer shooting 260 next time.

 

[Doc Holliday]

That’s what I like to use. There’s a sheepnhubting group on Facebook and somebody was asking the beat cartridge for sheep, I said 308 and all the sudden there were like 300 posts about why it’s BS. Al aye worked for me though. 270 too.

I wonder how many of those 300 have completed a sheep hunt...

 

[Brightwhite]

I'm bringing my .300 win mag on my sheep hunt. Why? Because I spent the rest of my money upgrading all my other gear and don't have anything left for a new rifle. Plus, I just got done glass bedding it. I don't think 8lbs with a scope is terribly heavy. Then again, I still need to get out and see how she shoots now that I've bedded it.

I would haul that 8lb gun of it shoots. That has been about the perfect weight for me to shoot constantly and accurately without being too heavy.

 

[Stud Duck]

I would haul that 8lb gun of it shoots. That has been about the perfect weight for me to shoot constantly and accurately without being too heavy.

I agree.

I know we all try to go as light as possible, but at the end of the day, it's all about one cold-bore shot.

 

[Larry Bartlett]

I've killed them with .30-06 (yep, the heavy mutherFrs) and .300 calibers. the best weapon is one that delivers accuracy and speed at the closest possible range. Try not to get hung up on calibers and weights. Pack what you can kill with without excuses.

 

[BRWNBR]

Larry don’t go adding practicality and logic to a gun caliber thread.

 

[slvrslngr]

My BIL and I are approximately 3-5 years out on an Alaskan Dall Sheep hunt. As he's primarily been discussing our hunt with a few different guides, there is a common opinion that a 270 Win is the recommended minimum caliber.

For those of you who have sheep hunting experience and not opinion; what is you favorite sheep caliber and do you feel a 7mm-08 with Barnes TTSX to TSX handloads is adequate?

Thank you.

A 7-08 shooting Barnes is more than adequate, I'd lean towards the 120 gr. TTSX if it shoots well. That said, use whatever rifle/chambering/bullet you have the most confidence in.

 

[Jimss]

I have a 300 WSM in Sako Finnlight and love it! You can tell when you first pick it up that it is quality made! It is pretty darn light for carrying on sheep hills and I shoot relatively tight groups for a 30 cal. It hardly kicks..which is another plus. The only thing I don't like about the 300 WSM is the shell is short and stubby....and isn't too terribly smooth loading. I've used it for everything from dall sheep, mtn goat, bighorn, deer, elk, antelope, to black bear.

 

[CTobias]

Finally made it to the range to get the rifle dialed in. I glass bedded it and put a Zeis Conquest on it that I picked up in trade.

I was shooting the 180 grain Barnes VOR-TX. I only had a 100 yard range to shoot on, but we are planning on heading to one shortly that you can reach out to 300 on. I will definitely be packing this in with me and not picking up another rifle. As I said before, 8lbs with the scope is plenty light for me. Especially in a 300 win mag.

 

[thinhorn_AK]

Finally made it to the range to get the rifle dialed in. I glass bedded it and put a Zeis Conquest on it that I picked up in trade.

I was shooting the 180 grain Barnes VOR-TX. I only had a 100 yard range to shoot on, but we are planning on heading to one shortly that you can reach out to 300 on. I will definitely be packing this in with me and not picking up another rifle. As I said before, 8lbs with the scope is plenty light for me. Especially in a 300 win mag.

View attachment 72588

8lbs all scopes up isn’t “too heavy” at all really but after playing with some ultra light setups my Winchester 70EW 30-06 feels like a brick at 8lb 1oz compared to my kimber Montana weighing in at 5lb 11oz

 

[CTobias]

8lbs all scopes up isn’t “too heavy” at all really but after playing with some ultra light setups my Winchester 70EW 30-06 feels like a brick at 8lb 1oz compared to my kimber Montana weighing in at 5lb 11oz

I'd love to buy a new lighter rifle, but it will just have to wait. Especially since I upgraded just about everything in my pack, to include my pack. It was all long over due. I had been using gear I had acquired over the last 10 years and it was not conducive to backpack hunting. It was great for hunting from my boat when I wasn't packing it on my back.