Hunting rifle for my wife

[Bert]

OK i am looking for some opinions and i know you guys wont let me down. Here are the details wife hunts with me out west has been shooting a .243 win great rifle for her cut down stock 22" barrel overall fits her well. Has worked for her for the antelope hunts we have been on. This years deer hunt i think she is going to shoot my 300wsm (it has a break) she shoots it well but it is too much gun for her. And before everyone chimes in on that i know that 243 will put a deer flat and we may go that way. The problem is the 243 is a stock rifle that shoots OK the wsm is full custom and drives tacks, the wsm kind of makes up for a little there.
Anyway enough with this let get to where i really need help. In the next year or so we will be going elk hunting(pending tags) and at some point a trip to Africa plains game. Not back to back trips i cant swing that bill. So i would like to put a custom rifle together for my wife and the golden question is what cartridge? It cant be a wild cat because as i have read when going into Africa head stamp must match rifle. I would like to be able to use lapua brass also so that does limit it also. I will put a break on this for her. Hopefully you guys can chime in with a little real world kills. Thanks for reading my rather long post and any info you can help with.

 

[Phil]

My first thought,before i finished reading the whole post,was that a .270 WSM sounded good........

BUT with Elk and an Africa trip on the horizon i think i`m under-gunned..........

Sorry, but i`m NO help.....

 

[fredhorace77]

heres my opinion...and i base alot of my caliber choices and recommendations on confidence with the gun. I have found that when anyone has pure confidence in their ability to hit accurately with a gun that this will make up for so much. In my opinion i have seen so many people go to larger and larger calibers to try to make up for their lack of ability to shoot. I have several family members that are guilty of this same thing. I know it may sound crazy and im sure alot will disagre but I have killed everything from deer,hogs and coyotes with a .223. I really like this round and i have become extremely confident with it and accurate with it...The lack of recoil has alot to do with this. I started hunting with a .308 and its a great round but i found the more i shot it the more i started to flinch and my accuracy dropped...So I switched to the .223 and havent looked back. If I had to choose a caliber to recommend for your wife it would have to be a round big enough to get the job done with minimal recoil. My choices would be a .250 Savage, .270, 6.5x55. Now the other thing that i should mention is getting her a larger .30cal cartridge and a really good .22lr that is similar built and let her practice with it and save the .30cal for sight-in shots and hunting shots only. I have seen more younger shooters and women shooters ruined by recoil and a large bang when the gun goes off...Be sure to incorporate good ear plugs when she shoots anything...keep her confidence up and that will make up for so much in the end...a well placed heart or lung shot by a .270 or 6.5x55 is far better than a hip or gut shot with a .50BMG. Especially if a wild animal from Africa comes running at her...shes going to need that confidence

P.S. Also make sure, which im sure you will, that the rifle fits her extremely well..This will aid in her ability to hit with it and in the end build up her confidence.

 

[357Mag]

Bert -

Howdy !

Without any specifics as to likely ranges you'd shoot game at, my first thought is a 6.5 X 55.

Regards,
357Mag

 

[Bert]

Thanks for opinion guys. I have a 6br in a tactical rifle that weights 18lb she can shoot the light out with that. Great gun for her to shoot at range no recoil and it drive tacs. i plan on cutting stock to her for the up and coming build. Realistically she wont shoot past 500 yrds at any game animal . I am leaning toward the 308 but am very interested in the 6.5 options. and even the 7mm say a 284.

 

[AP2020]

260 Remmy

 

[Glenn Powell]

7mm-08 would do the trick. I have no experience with it, but have read good things about it. Bodington's daughter used that round with good results, in Africa. 284 is also a good choice, 7mm-08+p. If you are stuck on 6.5 and lapua, 6.5x284, recoil is not bad and the bullet selection is pretty good for hunting, 140 accubond comes to mind. 130's will go plumb through whitetail at 200, broadside behind the shoulder. 6.5 bullets have high sectional density, which means great penetration. Downside: long action. Hope it helps, good luck, good hunting, and good times.

 

[Cort]

I would recommend a 30-06; maybe one with a muzzle break to help with recoil. It has enough punch for most plains game and should work on elk and moose if the shot is placed well. Bullet weights from 100 to 220 grains should work for most anything.

Cort

 

[Miyka-el]

I love Lapua brass (so I take it you're handloading?) and have moved to it exclusively for my .308 hunting/target loads. I'm testing out the new Barnes LRX 175. Up to 300 yards (400 is pushing it) a .308 can take out most North American game (yes, large Brown bears notwithstanding but even that it's all distance and shot placement).

How far will you shoot in Africa and what game? That's the most important, as I'm assuming your guide will have other back up rifles for the just in case factor for dangerous animals.

If African game really have tougher hides, then I'm assuming the best option is a hard hitting 338. For purely hunting a 338-06 AI and 338 Federal outmatch the 30-06 & .308 BUT they're based on the 30-06/.308 cases! They come close to Magnum energy without the magnum recoil or barrel wear. You can also get head stamped cases for them, but not Lapua (but you can neck up Lapua .308/30-06).

The other hard hitting option is 358 Winchester. This is another cartridge based on the .308 case and provides way more energy without having to go to a Magnum.

I was going to go 300 WSM (in fact got all the reloading gear and loaded rounds but was swindled out of the rifle This turned out to be a blessing, as I researched the mentioned calibers and now I wouldn't go the magnum route - EXCEPT 338 Lapua

It's the 338 Federal or 338-06AI for me (but have to wait until I can afford to custom build Also, the VAIS muzzle brake is the best I've seen. It not only cuts recoil but as advertised, there is NO increase in sound volume (something guides have an issue with). No matter what caliber you go with, I highly recommend the VAIS brake, it was night and day difference on my Ruger Laminate Compact; a .308 with a 16.5" barrel (not the new scout).

In recap, you will get near magnum performance, without the magnum recoil or barrel wear with these calibers:

338 Federal
338-06 AI (Ackley Improved)
358 Winchester

You can even neck up the best of breed Lapua .308/30-06 brass for North American use and get the proper head stamped brass for Africa. What custom builder are you using? Action, barrel, light weight stock? Hope you find what you're looking for.

 

[BigDMT]

The 6.5 Rem Mag is my recommendation. Faster and hits harder than a 6.5-284, but fits in a lighter short action that will appeal to your wife's need for a light and handy rifle. Excellent accuracy with low recoil that is roughly the equivalent to a 308 Win so a break won't be a "must" unless she wants no recoil at all. I hate breaks because you have to wear hearing protection while trying to hunt. Of course if you have a guide doing the hunting for you a person wouldn't have to worry about losing one of their senses.

I have shot a 6.5 Rem Mag for going on 5 years now and love it more than anything else I've ever used. I hunted with a 300 WM for 10 years, a 7mm Rem Mag for a couple, a 243 Win, 257 Roberts, 260 Rem 358 Norma as well.
Although those are all excellent rounds, when it comes to hunting any large game, I love the 6.5 Rem Mag more than all the others. With the 140gr Berger VLD it is one of the most lethal rounds out there.

 

[mattri]

First of all kudos to you for involving your wife in hunting, and especially for putting forth the effort to make it enjoyable for her.

My wife hunts as well, and also used a 243 with excellent results when we lived in WY, it is as you said an excellent round and easy on the shoulder. As well as she shot that rifle, a 270 was way too much recoil for her.

W.D.M. Bell used the 7x57 Mauser to down scores of elephants, and Eleanor O'Connor used a 7x57 and Jack praised it often.

The modern version of that round is 7mm-08, excellent accuracy and lethality, easy to build, great selection of factory ammo and not too hard on the shoulder.

Comparing a 270 shooting a 140gr bullet @ 2950 fps and a 7mm-08 shooting the same weight bullet @ 2850 the numbers look very similar- check it out.

 

[JRS]

The 7x57 would be a dandy
If you happen to make it to Africa, you'll find 7x57 ammo readily available. It also has the advantage of being able to shoot the heavier bullets 8)

 

[284driver]

I would also consider a 257 weatherby. It will turn them upside down pretty efficiently.

 

[articmp]

This should give you a good start as to what the legal is for Africa.
http://www.farrenglobaladventures.com/Caliber%20Minimums.htm

 

[dansig]

for most big game in Africa the .375H&H is the minimum caliber allowed, so if you are thinking smaller caliber then groundhog hunting in Africa might be fun

 

[JRS]

The OP referenced plains game.

 

[wvuredneck09]

Sounds like someone needs to build a savage based custom. The accu-trigger is fine for hunting and they reliably cycle the short fat magnums. If your stuck on Lapua brass go straight 284 for elk/deer or a 280AI. Then get a barrel chambered in something bigger for your trip to Africa. 10 minutes and you can swap the barrels, just start with a good long action and give Kevin Rayhill a call to build the rifle. Prefit barrels can be had from so many vendors for the Africa trip. If you don't mind sorting a little brass go WSM in the first place so that when you switch barrels you don't have to switch bolt faces or mag wells.

 

[areaone]

Jack O'connor used a 270 and 7mm rem mag on a number of African hunts, his wife, Eleanor, used a 7x57and took her fair share of plains game. 270, 280,284, 7x57 any of these with a brake should be comfortable to shoot.. 7mm bullets offer a good choice of tough bullets for plains game, most shot woulde be under 300 yds and any of these with a good bullet should suffice. Just remember of any of the above the 7x57 would be the most available if needed to be purchased in Africa. If she can shoot it and put the bullet where it needs to be anything from 270 on up should work.,,BULLET construction would be of utmost importance.

 

[MrMajestic]

If Lapua Cases are a prerequisite and you must match the headstamp then with your recoil restrictions you are limited. If you must stay with a 7mm minimun bullet diameter, per the link posted on some countries, then that really leaves you with the .308 Win. and the .30-06. Both great calibers for Plains animals!

 

[oldroper]

My wife started with 243 in the mid 60's and moved to other calibers 270,308,284 few of them had brakes.

One thing I've learned over the years fit is more important that caliber at less for my wife it has been that way. Her latest rifle is a Mel Forbes Model 24 in 280AI and has a muzzle brake.