Is a 30 cal big game rifle needed anymore?

[Article 4]

So recently had a friend make the move into becoming a hunter and asked the age old question...if I bought one rifle and wanted to hunt nearly anything in the lower 48, what should I get.

The classic answer has been a 30 cal...300 WM, 300 Weatherby, 300 RUM, and now 300 PRC and a multitude of short and medium action 30's. We had a long discussion on that and wonder, is this still "the thing?" Do we always wanna tell someone to get a 30?

 

[roadrunner]

No, it's no longer required or needed anymore.

Downrange energy is no longer relevant. There is a thread titled "Enough Gun" in the Long Range forum that explains all of this.

 

[Huntindog45]

im pretty sure there is nothing in the lower 48 my .257 Weatherby cannot handle.

 

[CorbLand]

 

[JohnJohnson]

Probably not unless you want to go hunt Africa. If someone needs some oomph just get a 6.5 PRC I suppose.

 

[Geewhiz]

Everybody wants a 600 yard elk rifle. I tell them 300 wm. Give yourself a safety margin, especially a new hunter.

 

[49ereric]

Like the 30-30 will go extinct

 

[Boarmaster]

This is only my opinion from being around hunters and hunting for 50 years.
It hasn't been needed for very long time. But it always has been and will continue to be a safe bet.

When encounter a new hunter I tell them to buy what really works 100% for 90 of what they are planning to hunt in the next few years. If they insist on the one rifle for everything lower 48 then I may very well suggest a 30-06 or a 270 or 7mm mag.

I am suspicious that a new hunter will end up hunting every game animal in the lower 48 in the first few years of their hunting. By the time a few years goes by they may discover what they really like in a rifle set up and will buy another rifle anyway.

Most of us know the concept of getting into hunting and thinking you will only ever buy one rifle and only use it the rest of your hunting career is flawed from the get go.

 

[AntelopeEater]

Are there still some states that arbitrarily require a minimum of .30 caliber for centerfire to take certain big game species?

I know my state some years ago lowered the caliber restriction to just be any centerfire 22 or greater, but out of the 50 states I suspect there are some that may still have a minimum requirement of .30 or somewhere around there.

 

[MuleyFever]

 

[307]

I think the "safety margin" should lie in improved accuracy rather than increased power.

IOW, 6.5 creed is safer than 300 wm since the 6.5 is more likely to hit its intended mark more consistently over time. No to mention that with a new shooter, an easier to shoot rifle is very likely to lead to better overall technique and skills with the rifle.

 

[ReaptheHeat]

Everybody wants a 600 yard elk rifle. I tell them 300 wm. Give yourself a safety margin, especially a new hunter.

How many new hunters can shoot a commercial lightweight 300 wm unbraked with any accuracy? How much will they practice with that much recoil? Why is a new hunter shooting 600 yards at game?

Is their 300 wm load even carrying the same velocity and energy as a 6.5 prc load with half the recoil at 600 yards?

Just things to ponder..

 

[Geewhiz]

How many new hunters can shoot a commercial lightweight 300 wm unbraked with any accuracy? How much will they practice with that much recoil? Why is a new hunter shooting 600 yards?

You're right, maybe I should tell them 22lr.

I'm not promoting lightweight and unbraked, and 300wm isn't THAT much recoil. If you cant handle a little discomfort from recoil then maybe you should stay out of the woods, I'd hate to see you get a sliver from a stick you brushed by or get poked from a pine needle. The last guy I told that to bought a used rem 700 with a brake and all in it was around the 10 lb mark. He practiced with it and killed his first cow elk with 1 shot at 605 yards. I didn't assign him limits, he developed his own. Everyone isn't a complete lightweight and contrary to rokslide beliefs some people can actually manage a moderate amount of recoil with success.

Oh ya, and then he shot an antelope doe with 1 shot at the exact same distance.

 

[butcherboy]

My choice if I could only have one rifle would be a hard decision between these calibers. 7mm mag, 30-06, 270, 7prc, 6.5 prc. I love my 270 WSM but the loaded ammo is hard to come by. Mostly all hand loads and reloads.

 

[WCB]

Probably not unless you want to go hunt Africa. If someone needs some oomph just get a 6.5 PRC I suppose.

What normal plains game in Africa would be different than NA big game animals. Don't use the blanket "they are tougher" because that isn't a thing. Shot placement is different and that is it. Kudu and Sable are about the size of a typical elk 500 to 600lbs.

 

[JohnJohnson]

What normal plains game in Africa would be different than NA big game animals. Don't use the blanket "they are tougher" because that isn't a thing. Shot placement is different and that is it. Kudu and Sable are about the size of a typical elk 500 to 600lbs.

I mean I'm not an Africa expert but I meant if you wanted to hunt something like a cape buffalo or bigger.

 

[Hnthrdr]

Why is it always the same folks brining this zombie horse back to life? Horsey is wayyyy dead. We get it, you love magnum 30 cals, shoot them. Tell your nieces, daughters, wives, nephews to shoot them, man up! I’m not a man, I’m barely allowed to be in the woods with my 6.5 manbun, honestly I can’t understand how my boolets can penetrate elk armor it is a marginal coyote round at best.
Okay let’s move on.

 

[CorbLand]

Why is it always the same folks brining this zombie horse back to life? Horsey is wayyyy dead. We get it, you love magnum 30 cals, shoot them. Tell your nieces, daughters, wives, nephews to shoot them, man up! I’m not a man, I’m barely allowed to be in the woods with my 6.5 manbun, honestly I can’t understand how my boolets can penetrate elk armor it is a marginal coyote round at best.
Okay let’s move on.

 

[sndmn11]

30 carbine from the M1 out to three hundo.
#30calelkRX

 

[GSPHUNTER]

As far as I know, the 30-06 has killed more mammals, including humans, than any other round.