Going from multiple rifles to just one

[Maverick1]

Lots of posts on this thread displaying an inability to count.

I only owned one rifle for about 20 years. Tikka 270. Have added a couple more over the last couple of years and kind of wished I hadn’t. KISS is often better for me. But I’m primarily a bow hunter and don’t rifle hunt much, if at all, so I don’t make it to the gun range much. Certainly respect those that do, though. Do what makes you happy, whether that is owning one rifle or six hundred of them!

 

[gtriple]

Lots of posts on this thread displaying an inability to count.

I only owned one rifle for about 20 years. Tikka 270. Have added a couple more over the last couple of years and kind of wished I hadn’t. KISS is often better for me. But I’m primarily a bow hunter and don’t rifle hunt much, if at all, so I don’t make it to the gun range much. Certainly respect those that do, though. Do what makes you happy, whether that is owning one rifle or six hundred of them!

That 270 to 284 range is about perfect for owning only one rifle.

2024 Edit: Since I've posted this, I've actually migrated to smaller cartridges. I'm now of the opinion that 6mm to 6.5mm would be the best caliber to have only one rifle.

 

[hereinaz]

One rifle. What is the maximum range for your hunting?

I would get the smallest caliber/case that will reliably keep the bullet in the vitals, all for the best precision with the least recoil. Bullet construction matters more than bullet caliber.

 

[StupidLightweight]

Good luck on your quest. In a lot of ways, I envy those with minimal rifle collections. For some weird reason, my rifles accumulate much faster than I can sell them. I wish my bank account worked that way. Come to think of it, these two phenomena may be related....

 

[Wildhorse]

I'm in this process currently myself decided it was time to sell all of them and have a custom rifle built while in this process though I'm also building one myself to hunt with while the custom is being built so I'll technically have two rifles primary and a backup honestly feel you gotta have a backup.

 

[Jktx0710]

270 is a great “do everything pretty well” round, from light weight 90-100gr bullets for coyotes or foxes, to 130-150 for deer/hogs/elk/bear.

 

[BXB77]

I'm thinking of doing the same thing, Im not going to sell anything, but I'm thinking about building a 7SAUM or & 7SS for everything

 

[Trogon]

I’ve limited myself to four rifles due to space constraints.
T1x 22lr
T3x 223
Custom 308
Tikka t3x 6.5-284

If I want a new rifle, something has to go to make room for it. So that keeps me in check. It also forces me to optimize what I have rather than spreading out too much.the custom 308 will get replaced with a 6cm as soon as I shoot up all my 30cal reloading supplies.

 

[Ajsomp]

I think this line of thinking is more common than you realize. I sold a bunch of expensive rifles, pistols etc because they weren’t doing anything my cheaper guns would do and I couldn’t see a need for all of them. When we added up the value of what was sitting in the back of the truck in rifles/optics/etc this year in Idaho, it really put it into perspective how easy it is to get caught up in the latest “best” option. I’d much rather have a cheaper no frills tool and a thermal than one expensive rifle set up.

As far as bolt guns - I’m in the 22, 223/556, and 300 wm camp (all tikkas). I couldn’t divest myself of all 30cal magnums (yet). I have two boys so I may honestly at some point “double up” so they have something to get passed down, but for now I like keeping it to what I need in the most basic and practical sense. Also moving every 2-3 years is a pain when moving guns, ammo etc.

 

[boardwalk72]

I'm somewhat into the process of this, but with a twist. I'm building a pair of switch barrel rifles set up with multiple barrels already headspaced to the action and a couple of stocks to fit the purpose. I can have 2 guns and 15 different calibers this way if I want. The problem is the market for used rifles right now is pretty weak so I'm slowly paring off what I don't want.

 

[NSI]

I'm somewhat into the process of this, but with a twist. I'm building a pair of switch barrel rifles set up with multiple barrels already headspaced to the action and a couple of stocks to fit the purpose. I can have 2 guns and 15 different calibers this way if I want. The problem is the market for used rifles right now is pretty weak so I'm slowly paring off what I don't want.

This is an attractive approach, but sacrifices the joy of having a rifle which you always know is dead nuts zero’d. Yes, most barrels will return near zero and you can use a calculator to bake their deviation into your system. But it’s not the same as having a rifle with a 30 round zero and trued data on which you’d bet your life.

I do have one switch barrel rifle for playing with components. But I ultimately moved away from this approach for the guns I need to work.

-J

 

[boardwalk72]

This is an attractive approach, but sacrifices the joy of having a rifle which you always know is dead nuts zero’d. Yes, most barrels will return near zero and you can use a calculator to bake their deviation into your system. But it’s not the same as having a rifle with a 30 round zero and trued data on which you’d bet your life.

I do have one switch barrel rifle for playing with components. But I ultimately moved away from this approach for the guns I need to work.

-J

I have 3 primary rifles set up that never change so I can just grab and go. The switch barrel approach lets me play with all the calibers I want.

I will say in my experiment with the switch barrel build a good optic that actually tracks removes any reservations I had with zero repeatability. Yes, if I switch the barrel I have to go to the range and shoot to re-zero. It will take a couple of rounds, but so be it. Half the fun is shooting.

 

[TaperPin]

I'm somewhat into the process of this, but with a twist. I'm building a pair of switch barrel rifles set up with multiple barrels already headspaced to the action and a couple of stocks to fit the purpose. I can have 2 guns and 15 different calibers this way if I want. The problem is the market for used rifles right now is pretty weak so I'm slowly paring off what I don't want.

So far a switch barreled rifle has been nothing but a lot of fun! I just have one receiver, but a second would be ideal. I’ve added barrels that I’d never be interested in with a complete rifle - it’s kind of addictive

So far it’s a .222 Rem, 22-250, 22 Creed, 243 win, 243 Super Rock Chucker (6mm-06), 6PPC, 6BR, 6.5-284, 6.5 Creed, 6.5PRC, 270 win, 7mm08, 7 Rem mag, 284 win, 30 BR, 308, 30-06, 300PRC, 300 RUM, 338, 375 H&H, 458 Win mag. I’m discovering the idea of a lot of new to me calibers is different from actually reloading for them all - some will sit for years before being shot, but I’m excited about them all.

 

[boardwalk72]

So far a switch barreled rifle has been nothing but a lot of fun! I just have one receiver, but a second would be ideal. I’ve added barrels that I’d never be interested in with a complete rifle - it’s kind of addictive

So far it’s a .222 Rem, 22-250, 22 Creed, 243 win, 243 Super Rock Chucker (6mm-06), 6PPC, 6BR, 6.5-284, 6.5 Creed, 6.5PRC, 270 win, 7mm08, 7 Rem mag, 284 win, 30 BR, 308, 30-06, 300PRC, 300 RUM, 338, 375 H&H, 458 Win mag. I’m discovering the idea of a lot of new to me calibers is different from actually reloading for them all - some will sit for years before being shot, but I’m excited about them all.

That's exactly why I went down the rabbit hole. I like to play with different cartridges but don't have the desire to buy/sell/trade rifles in so many calibers like I used to. This is so much easier and takes up so little space. I have a little rack built with PVC sleeves to keep my barrels in next to my workbench.

 

[SloppyJ]

This is an attractive approach, but sacrifices the joy of having a rifle which you always know is dead nuts zero’d. Yes, most barrels will return near zero and you can use a calculator to bake their deviation into your system. But it’s not the same as having a rifle with a 30 round zero and trued data on which you’d bet your life.

I do have one switch barrel rifle for playing with components. But I ultimately moved away from this approach for the guns I need to work.

-J

I'm doing a modified approach to this for that exact reason. I've built a long action and a short action off a Zermatt Origin which allows me to change the bolt face for extra modularity. Right now I've got them setup as a 300prc and a 6 creed. I'm playing with the idea of building a medium length 6.5prc.

With this, I can swap out a barrel in 15min and have it put back together. There is the issue of zeroing but with my caliber selection, I've got all of my bases covered. I even run a .223 barrel on the short action as a trainer which works well because it's the exact rifle I'm using during hunting season. It's not a switch barrel setup so much as it affords the option in the future to change cartridge.

 

[TaperPin]

That's exactly why I went down the rabbit hole. I like to play with different cartridges but don't have the desire to buy/sell/trade rifles in so many calibers like I used to. This is so much easier and takes up so little space. I have a little rack built with PVC sleeves to keep my barrels in next to my workbench.

I really need a barrel rack - I like the idea of pvc sleeves.

 

[HighDesertHunter]

My approach has also been to simplify and focus to 1. have a rifle I can count on that I know really well. 2. Make the component purchasing more streamlined so I am not trying to buy every powered, case, bullet, primer under the sun. I have ended up with three. 17 HMR, 7mm WSM, and 6GT. All in hunting setups.

 

[Arithson]

I am in the process of doing this very same thing myself. Two actions and two scopes with all different switch barrels and stocks. Seemed like the most logical to me

 

[WCB]

2 is 1...1 is none. I would never have just one of anything.


Except for a wife...

 

[NRA4LIFE]

I'm a Gemini so I need 2 of everything apparently. So I'm dedicated to that, including guns. I have never sold a gun, ever. I like having choices for different hunting situations. And as Wrench said, selling here in WA is a bit onerous.