Hello from Montreal, Quebec
Hi All,
Short story:
I own an American Classic LH in 30-06 and a 22LR.
I have become a member of this forum in order to gather as much information as possible for selecting my next savage rifle, which will be used for target shooting and hunting deer. I also want to learn about reloading.
Long story:
I live just south of Montreal, Quebec. As a kid, my grandfather and uncles introduced me to firearms. I remember falling on my butt the first time my grandfather let me shoot at an empty cigarette pack stuck on a tree 30 feet in front of me. It was in 1976. A M1 Garand in 30-06. The large cartridges and round bullets made quite an impression on me. Then I also shot my uncle's 30-30, and as a teenage I had some fun with friends shooting .223 and 10 caliber shotgun. But after the teenage years, with University, work, a move to new York city for a few years, getting married, a mortgage and all I only shot pellet guns at the cabin in the summertime. Then a ukranian friend visited at the cabin and we shot his russian rimfire rifle, can't remember the caliber, but we had a hoot shooting this very accurate little round.
Five years ago I purchased a LH American classic in 30-06 with an Elite 4200 2.5-10x 50mm scope on it as a gift to myself, thinking about going hunting moose like my grandfather used to do, and like some of my cousins still do. The 30-06 caliber sounded right, as this was what the other hunters in the family are using, and because I read lot on the internet that it is the ultimate versatile caliber. I love the looks of that rifle.
However, I thought I could also use this rifle for 100-200 yard target shooting, but it really that's not good as: the recoil for me is painful on my shoulder. Also, firing 50 rounds per session of 30-06 factory ammo is an expensive proposition and lastly, the sportster barrel gets hot quickly, and after a few rounds, I have to set the rifle aside and shoot the 22LR until it cools down.
So I will be purchasing a Savage rifle for shooting long strings of ammo in standing, prone and from the bench, and deer hunting. I will keep the 30-06 for moose, if I ever go on a moose hunt. I can go deer hunting in fields less than an hour away form home, and be back home at night. However I think it is less likely that I will go moose hunting, as moose hunts are more expensive, one week trips including lodging cost a fair bit more, and also I don't even own a freezer that could contain the meat from an entire moose anyway :)
I want to purchase a more accurate, low recoil rifle for 100-300 yards target shooting (for fun) and deer hunting. I am thinking about the Predator Hunter Max 1 or maybe a 12 Varmint Low profile in either 243 win, 260 rem or maybe 6.5 CM. I am interested in starting to reload ammo, out of necessity, as the 260 rem caliber is hard to find here and I would like to develop my own loads for the 30-06 as I am not satisfied with the accuracy of the commonly available hunting loads for that rifle.
Why Savage? For its reputation of accuracy, and also because Savage Arms is located in Massachussets. The province of Quebec and New England have a long trade tradition. I have worked for firms in NYC, Boston and elsewhere in the U.S. and I believe it is my duty to reciprocate by purchasing goods and services from the U.S rather than purchasing from foreign countries and contribute to the loss of manufacturing jobs in North America.
