Custom Hunting Rifle Project

[brant]

The encore can also be easily taken apart. This lakes a much smaller package for travel.

I like the 308 and 358 Winchesters.

[squigz]

One gun/caliber to rule them all? Wow, that's a hard question.

I'm going to lean in the 338 Federal route on cartridge, you can run anything from a 160gr Barnes, up to whatever your heart desires. Second would probably be 7mm08 again just due to the wide range of available bullet combinations.

And being that you're looking at a no1 to start out you can throat the barrel long to accommodate all the longer/heavier bullets and not have to worry about magazine length.

Being that you're looking at a no1, I'm partial to the RSI's.. but realistically speaking even one of the standard models just cut down to a 16-18" length would be fine. Personally, I would be going 18-20" minimum lengths because that works best for me.

[medicdave]

I know you said no bolt guns but my everywhere rifle is a Remington 7 threaded. 16" swamped threaded barrel, 308, Leupold 2-7, and tips the scales just under 7lb loaded. Adding a stockys carbon fiber stock will have it a good bit under 6lbs all up. With a 130gr Barnes TTSX and Ramshot TAC I'm getting a chronographed 3050fps and 1 moa out to 300yds which is as far as I've shot it. I'd have no problem taking anything in the continental USA with it. Handy as a pocket on a shirt.

[richard]

I have a SS Encore with the poly stock and a 20” SS barrel in .358 Winchester and a Ruger #1 with a 20” barrel in .44 Magnum. The Encore is slightly shorter and quite accurate, the #1 is decidedly more ergonomic, pleasing to the eye and more than accurate enough considering the caliber.

If I were in your shoes I’d lean towards a 20-24” #1 in one of the .308 family of cartridges

[aciera]

Merkel k1 or k3 or k5 stutzen are light and tasty ……. They are lighter than the k2&k4
K1 weighs 4lb 11 oz
Not a huge list of calibers……but if bought new a second barrel can be ordered

[bigbrowndog]

For ammo availability and bullet selection you are much better off with 308 first, and 7-08/260 second. The other 308 offspring while useful, are more niche type calibers, 33’s and 35’s. 308 is a Worldwide available caliber, the others are not. In the US you might be able to find 7-08 and 260 if you forgot or misplaced your ammo. I do not recall ever seeing 338Fed or 358win. in country hardware stores of our western states. There is nothing truly noteworthy that the over .30 short calibers do that cannot be done with proper bullets from the .308.
Heck the 308 is surpassing the 6.5 Swede for moose use, and general hunting in Scandinavia.

Trapr

[potatojudge]

Aug 26, 2024 10:06:27 GMT -5 bigbrowndog said:

For ammo availability and bullet selection you are much better off with 308 first, and 7-08/260 second. The other 308 offspring while useful, are more niche type calibers, 33’s and 35’s. 308 is a Worldwide available caliber, the others are not. In the US you might be able to find 7-08 and 260 if you forgot or misplaced your ammo. I do not recall ever seeing 338Fed or 358win. in country hardware stores of our western states. There is nothing truly noteworthy that the over .30 short calibers do that cannot be done with proper bullets from the .308.
Heck the 308 is surpassing the 6.5 Swede for moose use, and general hunting in Scandinavia.

Trapr

I think the idea of a 338 Federal comes up when reboring might be part of the customization. Smaller caliber re-bore shops are busy and expensive. JES is fast and cheap and very good, but he only does 338 up. 

So while generally I agree about other 308 family rounds, there is a reason to go 338- JES. Plus it's a good round, under $2 a shot for factory ammo, and easy to make at home for the reloader. 

IMO the best use of a 308 case is the 7-08, followed by the 338, then 260 and on down the line. 308 might be the worst use of the 308 case lol. 

[squigz]

Aug 26, 2024 10:06:27 GMT -5 bigbrowndog said:

For ammo availability and bullet selection you are much better off with 308 first, and 7-08/260 second. The other 308 offspring while useful, are more niche type calibers, 33’s and 35’s. 308 is a Worldwide available caliber, the others are not. In the US you might be able to find 7-08 and 260 if you forgot or misplaced your ammo. I do not recall ever seeing 338Fed or 358win. in country hardware stores of our western states. There is nothing truly noteworthy that the over .30 short calibers do that cannot be done with proper bullets from the .308.
Heck the 308 is surpassing the 6.5 Swede for moose use, and general hunting in Scandinavia.

Trapr

You're a smart feller. 

I didn't even think about the "world wide availability". 308 being one of my favorites and can easily do anything as well. 

[earl54]

Never owned a chronograph and I need to work out ballistics for a 308(307 Winchester case, cause a rimmed case is just what I want in a single shot) with the bullet of my choice.I have a NEF rifle action on hand so I am going to build up a 16" 307 chambered for it just to start working out what is possible verses what I want. I ordered a chronograph and a Green Mountain .308 x 10"twist barrel blank this morning. Now to choose a bullet to work with - at this point this is going to be a one load rifle. I have a impractical Ruger #1 that is chambered in 8mm magnum with an 18" barrel that may be the donor for this project- thanks for all the thoughts/ answers,it helps- Danny

[earl54]

I gave 200$ for the 8mm #1 about 15 years ago because it sat in a local pawn shop for a year and they had 200 in it and they offered it to me for what they had in it. Good blue, and wood was in good shape.

[blackmamba]

I'd say the Encore in 7mm WSM, but only if you can find enough brass to last you, as it's likely gonna be hard to find going forward. But also stay with a 21" barrel for the good balistics.

[jpw480]

Ruger made the No.1 RSI in 300rcm. but they come with 20" bbl's I have one in the M77 Hawkeye compact with 16" bbl

[x101airborne]

Aug 26, 2024 11:25:13 GMT -5 squigz said:

Aug 26, 2024 10:06:27 GMT -5 bigbrowndog said:

For ammo availability and bullet selection you are much better off with 308 first, and 7-08/260 second. The other 308 offspring while useful, are more niche type calibers, 33’s and 35’s. 308 is a Worldwide available caliber, the others are not. In the US you might be able to find 7-08 and 260 if you forgot or misplaced your ammo. I do not recall ever seeing 338Fed or 358win. in country hardware stores of our western states. There is nothing truly noteworthy that the over .30 short calibers do that cannot be done with proper bullets from the .308.
Heck the 308 is surpassing the 6.5 Swede for moose use, and general hunting in Scandinavia.

Trapr

You're a smart feller. 

I didn't even think about the "world wide availability". 308 being one of my favorites and can easily do anything as well. 

Since it is a military caliber, could it fall under the ban of no military calibers for civilian use or have most foreign countries done away with that?

[squigz]

Aug 30, 2024 8:40:53 GMT -5 x101airborne said:

Aug 26, 2024 11:25:13 GMT -5 squigz said:

You're a smart feller. 

I didn't even think about the "world wide availability". 308 being one of my favorites and can easily do anything as well. 

Since it is a military caliber, could it fall under the ban of no military calibers for civilian use or have most foreign countries done away with that?

Wouldn't this fall into a grey area since 308 Winchester is not a military cartridge but 7.62x51 is? 

[bigbrowndog]

Which countries utilize that ruling, Trey??? The only one I recall from recent past is Mexico, as squigz mentioned I don’t think it applies to “308win”

Trapr