Whats Your "GO TO" Rifle ?

[thermaler]

My fav for headed out the door into the woods is my modified Axis 308 win--though I have many many other rifles. Reasons are as follows:
1. The gun cost me $270 and I put about another $150 into it (including new trigger) and I made it into a consistent sub-MOA--and with the right hand-load; sub .5 MOA shooter.
2. There are many other flavors of 30 caliber--but in my book 308 win is the all-time winner when it comes down to ultimate versatility in widest range of load possibilities. And it's one of the easiest to reload for; at least in my experience.
3. It's my "bash around baby" and I'm not going to sweat the indignities I visit upon it.

[bflee]

Depends on what I am "going to".
I have an old savage 135 that has shot a million bullets and is still accurate.
I have a model 93 for a little larger stuff that shoots .5 moa.
I have a 308 for the stuff a little larger, and
I have a 12 LRP 6.5 creedmoor on the way for the stuff that is a little further out!

[squirrelsniper]

My "go to" for little stuff is my Marlin 880SQ. I have no idea how many Mini-Mag HPs have gone through it, I stopped counting at 6,000 and that was a long, long time ago. It's one of those guns that shows the wear and scars of love and feels like a part of me.

For centerfire stuff, my "go to" actually started out as something I bought on sale as a coyote rifle. Back when the AccuTrigger guns were first coming out, one of the local Wal-Marts were having clearance sales on all their "old" flat rear Savages. So, I picked up a "new but old" 10FXP Package in 243 Win for $250. At the moment I didn't have any 243 dies, so I picked up one box of Winchester 100gr Power Points while I was at the store. Being a package deal with cheap scope and all, I went through my normal new gun routine of cleaning everything up and remounting the scope to my own specs. Tried out the cheap factory Power Point ammo. Not bad, after zeroing, 1.0-MOA and 1.1-MOA 5-shot groups were fired. While waiting on dies and varmint-weight bullets to come in, I bought some factory ammo with a bit better reputation for accuracy. Hornady Custom with 95gr SSTs averaged slightly less than .75-MOA for 5-shot groups. When I got all the components together and spent a few days working up some loads I found its real potential. 87gr V-Max with near max charges of Varget stay almost down to .5-MOA. But the really sweet load is a HOT charge of Varget pushing a 70gr Ballistic Tip that holds an honest .5-MOA or sometimes a bit better. This is all with the rifle still wearing the cheap package deal 3-9x40 scope, aluminum rings, and bases that I had planned to change soon after buying the rifle, but I figure why mess with something that's working just fine. The only thing I've found the rifle can't do is shoot 105 A-Maxes, but then again, I'm at 700ft ASL, the baro stays above 30.00 a lot, and I do a lot of shooting in cool temps. You can't have everything I guess.

[thermaler]

As my first hunting season firearms use draws to a close I find myself wondering just how many denizens of this forum actually would take their precision tack-drivers out into the woods for real-world action. My style of hunting is to ground hunt going far and deep into the mountains where the hoards of stand-haulers are likely not to go. This means though, that I often climb up steep heavily wooded and rocky terrain--hard enough in light but very tough in the dark at the end of the day when most likely I'll be dead-reckoning bushwacking in the dark. My rifle has taken a beating--rained on, fallen on, slid through mud and leaves and the occasional bash--can't imagine doing this with an expensive custom rig.

[Onotajoe]

Savage 114 euro 30-06

[Maztech89]

As my first hunting season firearms use draws to a close I find myself wondering just how many denizens of this forum actually would take their precision tack-drivers out into the woods for real-world action.

Count me in. The 25-06 I listed earlier in this thread isn't my prettiest, most expensive, or best shooting gun in the safe, but it shoots darn good and took a nice doe Friday standing in the rain and sleet. It's a hogged out factory stock to be extremely free floated, spray painted camo, factory 22" sporter barrel with my trigger work and handloads. A 117 hornady SST vaporized both lungs, dead before she hit the ground.

[txbdyguard]

Savage 12 VLP in .308 with Vortex 4x16-50 Viper HS with a Hogue full bed stock.

[hunter1]

1961 savage 110, 30-06 i recieved when my dad passed away. Rifle is a tack driver and in very clean shape.

[116ssbl]

Savage 300WM w/26" mag contour barrel. Puts factory 180gr Rem CL into 3/8" 3 shot group at 100yds. My youngest son used this gun to drop his first buck at only 10 years old. Managed recoil ammo made it a great "youth" gun for him.

[chainsaw]

I really dig my 111 in 338wm.like above,it shoots 3/8" groups with 250 gr partitions.A little too much gun for ground hogs,but still fun to shoot them with it!

[Dummos]

I have model 12s model 25 and various others but my GO TO is my axis youth in .243. It's light short and pointable, it shoots .3 grps at 100 with factory silver tips and it's a good all round caliber. And best of all I paid bugger all for it so scratches rain and dirt are non concerns

[cvrx4]

my go to no matter what is a Ruger RSI in 308. I have shot it since I was 13 and it has taken coyotes, deer and a Canadian black bear.

[Ishooter]

My go to rifle is a Remington model 7 that last year I had re-barrelled to 358 Hoosier with a magnum contour barrel. Before getting it I would pick up my 358 Winchester barrelled Encore. The big advantage to the Hoosier is that it is lighter and holds more than 1 round.

[Jetpig]

Which ever one is in the front row of the gun safe at the time!

[yobuck]

My favorite go to rifle is a my old school custom Mauser 25-06. I do also hunt with Savage Model American 14's in 308 and 270.

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f191/fyimo/Custom25-061.jpg (http://s47.photobucket.com/user/fyimo/media/Custom25-061.jpg.html)

now thats a classy outfit. nothing beats pretty wood stocks. redfield scope?

[yobuck]

As my first hunting season firearms use draws to a close I find myself wondering just how many denizens of this forum actually would take their precision tack-drivers out into the woods for real-world action. My style of hunting is to ground hunt going far and deep into the mountains where the hoards of stand-haulers are likely not to go. This means though, that I often climb up steep heavily wooded and rocky terrain--hard enough in light but very tough in the dark at the end of the day when most likely I'll be dead-reckoning bushwacking in the dark. My rifle has taken a beating--rained on, fallen on, slid through mud and leaves and the occasional bash--can't imagine doing this with an expensive custom rig.


nothing to do with you or your comments and current opinions.
do youself a big favor and start a diary of your hunts and opinions.
just a little note each day will suffice. years from now you will have
a book of things. some of which you had forgotten about completly.
it will also show how your opinions changed over time. possibly a better word
would be evolved rather than changed. it will also remind you that youve been
spending alot of time in places that didnt produce. good hunting spots can vary
from year to year due to food source more so than distance from other hunters.

[thermaler]

nothing to do with you or your comments and current opinions.
do youself a big favor and start a diary of your hunts and opinions.
just a little note each day will suffice. years from now you will have
a book of things. some of which you had forgotten about completly.
it will also show how your opinions changed over time. possibly a better word
would be evolved rather than changed. it will also remind you that youve been
spending alot of time in places that didnt produce. good hunting spots can vary
from year to year due to food source more so than distance from other hunters.
Great suggestions--thanks. It's been a frustrating year but a learning one full of adventures and more than one crazy encounter in the woods.

The other day I returned to a public hunting area that just re-opened to archery--there's a few locals that have the place wired and hit it hard the morning I got there. The main trail had lots of boot prints from hunters going in and out--since it had just rained and turned everything to muck it was easy to read the tracks. Towards the end of the trail near a stream were a set of the biggest deer tracks I've ever seen in the south Huge spread and sunk deep to dew claws. I now fantasize that there's a monster buck in there somewhere. I returned to a spot I last hunted a couiple of weeks ago where I had set up a ground blind between some trees. Imagine my surprise when I discovered the very tree I had leaned against in my conceal position had been heavily rubbed! : )

[FW Conch]

The same sort of thing has happened to me before, except it was a place where I had "taken a leak". Biggest scrape I ever saw! I guess "Bucky Buck" said "ain't no way your takin over my territory"! ;-)

[Apache]

Get back on topic guys!

[BoilerUP]

http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c381/avboiler11/IMG_2302_zps596aa173.jpg

Not my most accurate rifle...but it is sub-MOA with 77gr Noslers and 8208XBR, shoots very consistently, is pretty light and handy for walking around, and kills whitetail just as dead as my 260s.

HOWEVER, if I can get a load nailed down this winter/spring, *this* rifle (20" 260) will be my go-to, do-all, multi-purpose stick.

http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c381/avboiler11/null_zps43144a31.jpg