RIFLE CHOICE

[CB on the run]

ORIGINAL: jyeomans

I am thinking about anew rifle,bolt action either a .308 or .338, also I need to pick a manufacturer. I have narrowed it down to winchester .308 lightweight, or ruger hawkeye. I would appreciate any opnions,also does anyone used the remington AR 25.  Thankyou John

Why do members start threads like this with so little information and then never respond back?
The 308 is an excellent 'deer' caliber. The .338 is overkill unless you occasionally hunt deer and often hunt elk,moose & bear and are opting for only one gun. Virtually any caliber from the .257 Roberts to the tried and true 30-06 will be adequate.
The 7mm-08 is an excellent whitetail caliber and is a short action, therefore, often offered in lightweight rifles. Browning Microhunter and Tikka T-3 lightweight are two prime examples both having removable mags which I consider a plus. Hope you're checking back on your thread.

CB

[CB on the run]

ORIGINAL: shaman

ORIGINAL: jyeomans

The AR-25 is a response (some would say penance) to Jim Zumbo's swan dive a few years ago where he got drunk and got on his weblog and called for all "black rifles" to be banned from hunting.
 

It also cost him his career initially. Ted Nugent re-introduced him to make amends.
The AR platform rifles have been slightly modified to the sportsman's needs and are a viable choice if semi-autos are legal in your area. They are a 'different' look on the Browning BAR, Benelli, & Winchester semi-autos. Could be fun.

CB

[shaman]

It also cost him his career initially. Ted Nugent re-introduced him to make amends.
The AR platform rifles have been slightly modified to the sportsman's needs and are a viable choice if semi-autos are legal in your area. They are a 'different' look on the Browning BAR, Benelli, & Winchester semi-autos. Could be fun.

What I am dreading is that the whole world is going to start trying to ram AR-style rifles down our throats, the way TC has been ramming single-shots.  If you turn on a random deer show, they all shoot Encores. Imagine if that all switched to mil-style semi-autos.  It could happen.  I also see these new mil-style cartridges being shoved at us like the 6.8 SPC.    Yes, I suppose if you're clearing your neighborhood of deer and are doing a house-to-house search, you can throw a couple of flash-bangs into the swing set and then start a sweep of the patio . . .

Don't get me wrong: the platform is great for a lot of things.  However, for a guy who hunts with rifles that haven't been made in 30 years or more, it's a bit jarring.  That's what happened somewhat in the same way with the wizzum craze that's now (Thank you, Lord!) sort of peetered out.  All of a sudden folks were painting 30-06 and 270 as belonging to a bygone era.  Then (Miracle!) there was a renaissance of these classic calibers and it was all so Retro and. . .  pass me another Evian!  I'm feeling so metrosexual just talking this way.

[rem700]

yes i said 308 win bassed on his info. but he did not give any info.

[CB on the run]

I don't think everyone will make the switch to Ar's. IMO, Thompson Center made a marketing decision to promote their product by giving a 'promo' rifle to all the TV celebs plus a single shot portrays sportmanship.
I was brought up in an era of Browning humpbacks and side by sides, however, have made the move to bolt action slug guns for more accuracy mainly due to a change in hunting style. I saw the very end of the era were you could drive down a dirt road, stop by a farm, and gain permission. Still hunting early on and deer drives later in the season were common. Now it's all stand hunting and everyone mass posts their 40 acre deer preserves. No longer is the season about deer camp and friendship but, IMO, individual success.
We are 'old school' Mr. Shaman but we cannot 'rain on anyone else's parade'.

CB

[shaman]

Oh, don't get me wrong.  I'm not going to go off the deep end like Zumbo and declare anything that isn't to my taste a "terrorist rifle."    I'm just cranky, because it's just a few more days until the Opener, and I'm well past ready.   Last night I went out and helped an old friend gut her doe that she ran over with the car, and I got that taint in my nose and it's making my neck swell, and I want to go knock over saplings with my forehead and I went outside this morning and dug a hole under the maple tree and peed in it.  I got it bad.

[rem700]

do not hunt in the middle of charleston wv. i hunt north of charleston 300a all to my self.

[rem700]

no i do not have any problems tranporting my kills.  it is 650 mil drive 10-12hr i use 2 or 3  cooler for the deer meet. What i do not take home i give to the food bank. as for tags i can get two buck and 4 doe. late year i got a 200bl buck and two doe.   

[mightyfofaad]

ORIGINAL: shaman

If I was hunting in the middle of Charleston, WV, I think I'd go take a stand at a Tudor's Biscuit World.  I was through there in 2006, and for some reason there were a bunch of deer hanging out by one.  You could have just kept pulling through the drive-thru and rolled down your window when the buck got in position.

. . . or maybe put a lawnchair on top of the dumpster.

Yes, definitely on top of the dumpster ... they never look up that high.[:D]

[Challenger]

ORIGINAL: jyeomans

I am thinking about anew rifle,bolt action either a .308 or .338, also I need to pick a manufacturer. I have narrowed it down to winchester .308 lightweight, or ruger hawkeye. I would appreciate any opnions,also does anyone used the remington AR 25.  Thankyou John

Which .338 are you talking about? There are about 10 to 12 .338's. They run from okay to absurd.