Need help deciding on a caliber.

[Richard]

I hunt elk every year just haven’t done it with a rifle yet.

Realistically will you ever hunt elk??

The 110 is offered in these cartridges-


View attachment 464830
For elk I would go 300 wsm with a good muzzle brake and ear plugs!

For deer in a light rifle and no brake/suppressor you should go 6.5 cm

As a compromise I would say a 270

 

[Richard]

I’ll check that out. Thanks.

some more data to consider before making a purchase:

6.5 Creedmoor/260 for Deer, Elk, and whatever else.....

Seeing that the 223 thread is such a success, I thought maybe I would start one for the Creedmoor/260. Seems like people are asking a lot about using them and various bullets, especially for elk. I've used mine for the last few years almost exclusively. I have some pics of bullet damage, albeit...

www.rokslide.com

Also, since it's relevant I owned a savage 116 in 300 wsm, that experience moved me off of savage and the 300 wsm permanently. 8" groups at 100 yards were the norm, tried 2 scopes, made savage rebarrel it, never got it shooting right. I suspect the ~1/2 turn of thread engagement on the front scope base screws was the root cause. Pretty gun, just worthless.

 

[h2so4]

I’ve got a 110 UL in 30-06 with a can and really enjoy shooting it. My can is a hybrid, so it’s heavy- which eats up a ton of recoil. It’s very comfortable to shoot. Of the options you listed, I’d say 30-06. Mostly due to ammo availability and price- the the cartridge will perform well for you. If I were buying again, I’d look for a .308. Even better availability and cost of ammo.

 

[Thinkingman]

I have a Tikka T3 300WSM (6 3/4lbs) and recoil is...abrupt.
I put a Limbsaver recoil pad and last weekend was shooting 130gr Barnes ammo and the recoil wasn't bad. Move up to 180gr and it will rattle your teeth.
In spite of all that, I would NEVER get a brake.
My hearing is worth way more than a couple of Advil after a range session.
As mentioned above, .308 ammo is everywhere and relatively cheap.
That's your best bet for an all-rounder.

 

[SDHNTR]

I’d like someone to talk me either into or out of the 30.06, 280 AI, 28 nosler, and 300 WSM.

Those are cartridges, not calibers - .284 and .308 to be exact.

Take your pick, based on ammo/reloading component availablity, and availability of rifles you like in those chamberings. Put the bullet in the right place there isn’t much functional difference.

 

[3325]

Rule of thumb: If you don’t know what you want, you want a .30-06.

You may just stay right there forever. Or, you may decide to move up or down to something else later depending on your experiences.

The folks who suggested something else know what they want - and they’re not wrong. But you don’t know want you want, so you want a .30-06.

 

[Terrapin]

Every hunter should have one 30.06 issued at birth… then they can buy other cartridges to fill in needs and wants. It’s just such a handy all around cartridge. Easy and cheap to buy ammo and super easy to load. It’s certainly not the best at anything.


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[Adam Gibbs]

I'd look and see what's on the shelf locally, especially if you don't reload. Here (MI) 308 win is by far the most prevalent from what I've seen. Lots of 30-06 and 6.5 creed too. They'll all work. Any of those 3 are fairly light recoiling. Practice with it, not just on a bench, and you'll be fine. They all have appropriate bullet choices available for just about anything in North America.

 

[GAHunterJim]

I’m planning on buying a savage 110 ultralight and I need some help on picking a caliber. I’m going to be using this gun primarily as a deer rifle but want to be able to hunt elk with it as well. I’d like someone to talk me either into or out of the 30.06, 280 AI, 28 nosler, and 300 WSM.

I’m not worried about ammo availability for right now but I am concerned about recoil on such a lightweight gun. I do have a can on the way tho but not sure how much that helps.

Save yourself the trouble and get a 7mm Rem Mag, it intersects well with your options, I have two, a personal favorite cartridge and tolerable recoil.

 

[CoHunter1991]

280AI is the way to go. It is a great caliber and can take anything out there. less recoil and dam near same performance as the 7mag

 

[svivian]

If you don't reload I would go with a 6.5PRC as my first pick followed by a 30-06.

 

[TheGDog]

Maybe try a .308 Win... but for Deer do the 130gr Barnes TTSX, then for Elk the 168gr TTSX.

With the 130gr .308win it actually has better trajectory than the similar 120gr 6.5cm TTSX, as least to 300yds anyway

The BC's are .4 for the 130gr .308Win and .412 for the 120gr 6.5cm.

Though I'm "Ok" with those 168gr rounds. I don't particularly care for the recoil of them.

So I'm excited to try these 130gr because I already noticed a perceptible decrease in recoil dropping down to the 150gr already. So to find out that these lighter projectile bullets would actually give me even less recoil for the .308 and slightly faster fps than 6.5cm, I'm excited to try them out! Reviews by users seem very pleased.

 

[KenLee]

To me, the x-bolts with fantastic factory recoil pads are not bad at all in 300wsm. I kept going back and buying more.
I have had neck and shoulder surgeries and the recoil doesn't bother me.
My BLR 300wsm with hockey puck "pad" is a different story. There's a new limbsaver waiting on it to emerge from the safe.

 

[dreamingWest]

30-06.

A good way to select a caliber these days, especially is you don't reload:

Go to midwayusa.
Navigate to rifle ammunition.
Look at the caliber filter on the left.
You want to select something from the top of that list. Not the bottom.

 

[wildwilderness]

Save yourself the trouble and get a 7mm Rem Mag, it intersects well with your options, I have two, a personal favorite cartridge and tolerable recoil.

Not offered in the selected rifle per OP

 

[LightFoot]

280ai or 6.5prc would be my choice..lighter recoil and good bullet selections for each.

This.


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[Richard]

Hey Guys, I appreciate all the feed back. I ended up going with the 280AI and the gun should be coming in early next week. I have ammo ordered and it will be here in about 2 weeks.

 

[Sled]

Hey Guys, I appreciate all the feed back. I ended up going with the 280AI and the gun should be coming in early next week. I have ammo ordered and it will be here in about 2 weeks.

That's good to hear. Just don't expect the thread to end because you've decided. It could be weeks before people get tired of suggesting every chambering out there that's not available in your rifle.

 

[LightFoot]

That's good to hear. Just don't expect the thread to end because you've decided. It could be weeks before people get tired of suggesting every chambering out there that's not available in your rifle.

Hahahahaha.

I like when someone revives a thread that’s years old. Hell… I’m probably guilty of that.


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[Honyock]

270 WIN