What caliber do you use and why?

[stalkincoues]

I hope this has not been beat to death on this site. Hello all, I started getting serious about Coues just recently. I have finally evolved and am very excited about it! Jan. 2006 was my first real whitetail hunt looking for a decent buck, and was archery. Have hunted them growing up but never for trophies. I am looking for the perfect Coues gun. Was wondering what you all use and why.

I want this to be non-controversial such as the other thread on here, I don't think I have to name posts. Just looking for info for the years to follow and open my mind instead of bashing, like "mine is better,and if you don't use this type of gun you are not a good hunter" and so on.

I have read most of the post here and only see them going back a month or so. Not sure if this forum is brand new or just does not retain posts after a month or so. Please help a newbie for the up and coming years. looking for a long range flat shooting gun with minimal wind effects. I am using a .300 Wsm this year. Have been considering a .270Wsm for the up and coming. What would you reccomend Cal. wise, and why? Thank you in advance.

Please keep it civial, just looking for useful info, not bashing by anybody to anybody. This is such a friendly positive site from what I have seen the last few days, except when it comes to stuff like this (mine gainst yours).

[firstcoueswas80]

cant beat what you have. load some 165/168s in the 300 wsm or some 130 or 140's in the 270wsm and your golden! It is really hard to beat either one of those calibers. shoot accubonds or TSX's and your golden!

 

 

welcome to the forum, what tag do you have?

[AzTrapper]

I use one of three guns for big game depending on different things which I won't get into First and favorite is a Remington 721 300 H&H Mag. It has a 26 inch barrel 10X leupold scope. I have shot this gun since 1972, had it rebarreled and added the 10X scope in 1973 It was built for shooting long range. The reason is it was a gift for my parents when i got out of high school and was built and refinished by Frank Wells who is going to rebarrel and refinish it after this years hunt seasons. will add another 4-inches to the barrel at that time and a muzzle brake and maybe a new scope it will still shoot 1 1/2-2 inch groups at 200 yards if i do my part. Part of the reason for the rebarrel is want to improve the groups with 150-168 grain bullets. Second choice a T/C 35 Rem handgun allows me to have a lighter gun to carry than the 300 H&H yet still have a decent range and allows me to put in for ham hunts. ( My favorite bear gun) Third choice is a Remington 788 in 22-250 this is my "back up" rifle so to speak.

What do i think is the best Whitetail gun thats easy- The one you like that will do the job and you shot the best, and you know the best.

 

AzTrapper

[m gardner]

I'm too old and feeble to shoot anything larger than the 270 win. enough to be deadly. That's why I like it and use it for everything now. Too much arthritis from living a wild adventurous life when I was younger. I like the 30 caliber magnums for long range because they have lots of power and there are many good bullets to chose from, but that's a thing of the past for me.

Mark

[az4life]

Welcome to the group from the land of "lurkers".

 

I think what you have are great guns for coues. Personally I have a 300Win Mag as my choice. I chose it about 15 yrs ago because.

This caliber is one of the flattest and longest shooting standard calibers with many options for factory loads if you do not reload your own.

You can get the right combo for about any north american game for the 300 win mag.

In the right hands, with practice it can reach out 800 yards or more and still have enough energy to be effective and accurate.

 

No arguments with your 270WSM, just preference.

[firstcoueswas80]

Friday, Gabe (Azpacknhorns) laid the hammer on a coues buck with his 270wsm. I glassed this buck up, and we got to within 354. He made a heck of a shot. this is what the 130 TSX from the 270wsm did to him. heres a "as he lay" pic

[Vbraley]

I shoot a 30 year old Winchester Model 70, Trigger set @ 3lbs, Bell and Carlson stock, Leuopold 4x9 scope, My buddy loads a 165 Accubond for me. Haven't used the 165's on Coues yet but took a few loaded with a 150 gr. Nosler ballistic tip. I am trying to get an "all-around" load because I would like to pass this gun on to my son, then purchase possibly a Kimber Montana or a Browning Rifle, I have been debating on the caliber, but either 7MM WSM or 300 WSM?

[Flash]

Not the coolest gun in the world with all the new choices these days, but I use a 7mm mag. and it has always preformed well at close and long ranges.

 

I do hear good things about the 25 WSSM for coues deer and the 7mm WSM. Good luck.

[ElSavior]

Rifle-wise, I like a fairly light rifle because of all the climbing involved in the country I hunt. It is really steep! Off the shelf, I'd buy a Remington 700 Ti or one of their mountain rifles and call it good.

 

Cartridge-wise, it doesn't take a lot of bullet to kill a 100 lb deer. Painting with a broad brush, I'd say any cartridge between 25 cal to 30 cal and shooting a bullet 2800 FPS or better with a BC of .400 or higher will net you superb results, even at longish ranges.

 

I like low recoil rounds. IMHO a 7mm-08 is a great choice, as is the 260 Rem. Long range is no problem with these cartridges because they shoot bullets with high BC's so they retain velocity at extended range. Learn how to employ turrets or a ranging type reticle with your scope and you're golden.

 

Thats my 2¢

[ac guy]

Keep the one you have, you can use it for almost anything. I only have one big game rifle. I know that rifle inside and out, and Iknow how it shoots in different situations. I think having too many rifles can be a bad thing for those who don't shoot several times a month. Like a teacher with too many pupils, can't give enough attention to each one.

[ajohunter]

Your 300 WSM is great coues medicine! That gun will put some deer on the ground. I like to use my 300 Ultra Mag. Its flat shooting and hard hitting. I hunt everything with that rifle. The only load I use in it is the 180gr Swift Scirocco.

[Coues Sniper]

I have a 300 ultra mag from Christensen Arms (built off a Remington action) and absolutely love it. I wanted an all around rifle that i could hunt Coues, carp, and elk with and also extend my effective range out to 700 yards or so and boy has this rifle delivered. I shoot 180 grains Nosler ballistic tips out of it and they perform really well for me. And since it has that carbon fiber barrel, it weighs less than 7 lbs scoped. Just an awesome rifle in an awesome caliber.

 

As far as your rifle goes, that is a great Coues gun. I used a 300 win for a lot of years before i got my 300 RUM, and I killed plenty with it. I changed because i didn't have the confidence in it to shoot as far as i wanted to, but that was the gun not the caliber. The 300 RUM has a little more punch and velocity than the 300 win does so i went with it. My dad uses a 270 short from HS Precision for Coues and it shoots lights out. He loves it, and has killed more than one Coues over 500 yards with it. What i found when researching for my last rifle is that most calibers are accurate and any of the ones mentioned will make great Coues rifles. I also found that caliber choice is a surprisingly personal preference, and many people are passionate about which calibers they like and dislike. But often times it wasn't for very good reasons. If you are confident with your 300 win, then i wouldn't change. If you aren't or just have an itch for a new rifle then the 270 WSM is a great choice. Shoots well with light recoil and will kill a Coues deer just as dead as anything else out there. I just like to shoot far and wanted one all around gun with plenty of power so that's how i settled on the 300 RUM.

 

Good luck with your decision, hope i helped you with it.

 

By the way, you can search back past 30 days if you change the option on the bottom of the page when you are looking at the list of threads for a certain topic from 30 days to 90 or "show all".

[elkhunter]

.300 win mag, it's killed 5 bucks now and all of em dropped in it's tracks or simply laid it's head down, I know it's an overkill but I feel great knowing the deer oughta drop in it's tracks when it's hit...I dislike tracking

[HUNTMUP]

Welcome to the site!!

 

I personally have been using a Browning A Bolt medallion with the Boss system in 300 Win Mag. It has been a great gun and has taken many animals. Only draw back is that it is a heavy gun when you put a bipod on it and carry it around the hills in Southern Az. On this years Oct. Coues hunt I was in a position where I had spotted a buck in his bed 505 yards away (laser range finder) with no option of getting any closer. My buddy was carrying his new Browning A Bolt stainless stalker in 270 WSM (also with the Boss system) and equipped with a 14 power Burris ballistic plex scope. After much deliberation (almost an hour) I decided to take the shot with his gun. First shot was just over his back which caused him to stand up allowing me to place my second shot right behind the shoulder. The deer traveled only about 10 feet before falling. I was VERY impressed with the gun, the 130 grain ballistic silvertip performed perfect and the scope made the shot all that much easier. What I liked most about the gun was it was much lighter than my 300 and it shot on the range and in the field very well. Although I have shot out to 500 yards many times during the off season at homemade deer targets, I would never have taken that shot on a live deer with my standard (single crosshair) scope. I do not think you would have any problems with your current set up, but you can be sure next year when I step into the coues woods I will be carying a new 270WSM Great Gun. Again welcome to the site!!

[TwoGuns]

For real long range coues hunting, nothing beats it. It is a bear to pack around though.....