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to be able to kill a moose with. i am in the market for a new rifle. if there is one, it would also be used for black bear, whitetail and elk. i like the .270 for whitetail, black bear, and possibly elk, but im not sure it will take down a moose. i would think that if you loaded some 200 grain .30/06 bullets you should be able to take one. but what about a .308? or a 7mm. or maybe a 7mm magnum?
thanks the more info the better

2007-07-17 02:59:20 · 9 answers · asked by outdoorsman4life 3 in Sports Outdoor Recreation Hunting

9 answers

.308 will do the job on just about any game in North America. A .308 is just a .30-06 on a shorter cartrdige case. It has flat trajectory, high velocity, and is effective at up to 1200 yards. Personally, I like the 165 grain bullets myself, because they combine hitting power with velocity and flat trajectory. Hope this helps. A good choice for a rifle is the Remington 7600 pump action in terms of cost.

2007-07-17 16:13:31 · answer #1 · answered by super682003 4 · 1 1

All of these will work. What you need to be concerned about is bullet construction, you will want a controlled expansion bullet. Barnes triple shock, Swift A Frame as well as others, Federal loads many of these types as does Black Hills.

I watch a hunter take down a cape buffalo with a 300 Winchester using the Barnes triple shock on a OLN hunting show. Only needed one shot. So your 270 is more than capable.

2007-07-17 19:16:57 · answer #2 · answered by Jon 4 · 1 0

With adequate shot placement, your 270 would work. I would likely go with a .30-06, but I wouldn't be afraid to use my .308. A 7mm/08 would likely not be enough, but a 7mm Rem Mag would be great.

Also, .270 Weatherby, 7mm Weatherby, .300 Win Mag or Wby Mag, .338 Win Mag, and a host of other more powerful rounds could work.

2007-07-17 03:20:34 · answer #3 · answered by desotobrave 6 · 1 0

I’ve told many people….my father grew up living a subsistence lifestyle in Alaska when he was young. Before the days of bonded and controlled expansion bullets, he killed pretty much everything there was to kill in Alaska with a lever action 250 Savage, including moose and some pretty big brown bear.

As I am sure you have heard a million times, hunting is about shot placement. I’ve seen reports of people squirrel hunting in Alaska and they take down a brown bear with a 22 rimfire rifle out of fear or self-defense. I wouldn’t recommend it (personally, I think I would take my chances as a bear snack than I would shooting a 22 at one and really making it mad), but it has been done multiple times.

For a moose, I wouldn’t recommend using a 22 rimfire obviously. I wouldn’t recommend using a 250 Savage like my Dad did (but to each their own…nothing wrong with the 250 Savage, there are just better rounds out there).

I have two schools of thoughts on your rifle selection.

If you are strictly worrying about killing moose, black bear, elk, and whitetails, anything you listed would work fine. If you were opting for a 270 or 7mm Mag, or a 308, I would make sure to get a premium bonded bullet to ensure good penetration (Nosler Partitions are the standard controlled expansion bullets are measured by…you can’t go wrong with them. If you are a handloader, I like Kodiak bullets or Speer Grand Slams…there are other great bonded bullets on the market…accuracy is most important, brand name second). A 30-06 with 200 grain bullets would be an excellent choice for anything that walks in North America.

I don’t know where you hunt, but I used to hunt in Alaska around some pretty big bears. Brown/Grizzly bears have been known to claim animal carcasses and gut piles for their own, and they can be very defensive when it comes to their food supply. Given the dense growth in many places in areas like Alaska, it can be very easy to startle a bear who claimed your meat and moose guts for its food supply when you come out to pack out another load.

If you are hunting in an area where you have to worry about something will bite or kill you, I would opt for a little more gun. Most of the 300 Magnums with heavier, high quality bullets would make great bear defense guns. I used to carry a 35 Whelen with hand loaded 250 grain Kodiak bullets, loaded very hot when I hunted in bear areas. Some people will go up to a 375 H&H Magnum. I’ve even seen one moron in Wisconsin buy a 50 BMG for his bear hunt in Alaska (I tried to tell him Alaska is tough, thick , mountainous terrain and not the place to be carrying a 30+ pound rifle, but he wouldn’t listen to me…he was worried about bears charging…I always wondered how is hunt went).

If you are worried about big bears, you have to look for a compromise between power, recoil, and weight. Chances are very slim you will be attacked by a bear (I have seen few in the wild though I hunted and lived in an area which was considered to have a high density brown bear population). If you use your head and don’t startle a bear and don’t press a bad issue, you will be fine. A 30-06 with 180+ grain bullets of good quality would probably work fine. One of the 300, 325, 338 Magnums would make me feel better, but is probably a little overkill. I thought my 35 Whelen pump-action was a great compromise for rifle weight, power, and recoil (though it lacks the range of the 300 Mags…I never killed anything over 125 yards anyway). The large bore 44/45 lever actions would be great for shorter ranges.

Good luck. I hope this helps.

2007-07-17 07:58:26 · answer #4 · answered by Slider728 6 · 2 0

Any of the calibers you mention are capable of taking a moose if you hit a vital spot. One has more leeway with more powerful loads if his bullet does not hit the best spots. Consider which calibers you can shoot accurately. If you are sensitive to recoil, a standard .270 Winchester bullet that hits the spine will beat a .338 Magnum that gut shoots a moose. I use a .300 Winchester magnum for all North American hunting. For moose and Kodiak bear, I use a .340 Weatherby. For elephant, I use a .460 Weatherby. I weigh 360 pounds, so recoil does not bother me.

2007-07-17 03:28:57 · answer #5 · answered by miyuki & kyojin 7 · 0 3

Clients always as professional hunting guides "what gun should I use?" The answer is always the same: "The one that you shoot best."

The .270 is a touch light, but if you are competent and comfortable with it, I would recommend you stick with it.

I doubt that you will shoot a heavy magnum as well as your .270, very few people do, and the moderate gains that you would get from a .308 or 30.06 are probably not worth it.

Good luck.

2007-07-18 05:48:00 · answer #6 · answered by Napalm 1 · 1 0

My favorite caliber in .358 Winchester. It might be a trifle light for the big Alaskan Bears, but it is quite adequate for any other North American game.

BTW, you can probably kill your moose with a .270, but be prepared to do some tracking if you don't have perfect shot placement. Probably have to do some tracking even with perfect shot placement if the moose isn't in the mood to die quietly. (but that last comment goes for all calibers.)

Doc

2007-07-17 07:05:35 · answer #7 · answered by Doc Hudson 7 · 1 0

There was an article in a recent magazine about a 7x57 moose hunt. Considering that W.D.M. Bell killed over a thousand elephants with a 7x57 mostly, but some of them with a 6.5 MS, I don't think there's a rational argument that it's too little. There are also lots of folks in Scandanavia who think their 6.5 Swedes are plenty. But most people think of 308 as about minimum.

2007-07-17 11:37:36 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0 1

Kind Sir or Madam, it is possible to kill a moose with a 0.17 or a 22 short round. Heck, it's "possible" to do it with a bb gun. I would suggest a larger round, personally. I apologise for this useless answer. Just having a little fun. Have a great hunting trip!!!

2007-07-17 13:15:27 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0 1

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