Just starting out what calibers/rifle recommendations

[Dickie]

Uh, @JMinter said don’t break the budget.
I would like a Rigby but it’s hardly budget and it’s out of most budgets.

@JMinter the .275 is essentially a 7x57 but .275rigby is the same thing with pedigree where the 7x57 was basically a military cartridge but has been around the world as an excellent hunting cartridge with the appropriate hunting projectiles.

If Red deer are in the equation look at what the legal minimum is for the UK because I don’t know anything about of your rules.

The .270 is a legal minimum in some states of Australia for Red deer and larger.

The .308 is a great all around choice and easy to handle with 150gn projectiles. I have owned a few and still use one but I also say “it’s common as muck” but it does the job everyday on every continent.

European chambering are not common in Australia, some are like the 6.5x55 but 7x57 is not common in new production rifles on the Australian market. The ballistic twin the 7mm-08 is available but still rare and overshadowed by the .308 presence.

The .270 is popular here but 7x57 or even the 7x64 have a little more of a classic appeal to me.

I own a 7mm-08 and 7x64 and I like the 7mm calibre.

I’m not going to bash the 6.5creedmoor. If you buy that ensure that you buy hunting ammo with the appropriate projectiles for hunting purposes. That goes for all cartridges. There are factory .308 loads for target use readily available too.

I like Tikka. Howa are great rifles in a lower price point but slightly heavier.

A lot of factory rifles are hunting accurate from new. Howa, Tikka and Remington have various accessories and upgrades if you want to customise them.

If Tikka suits your budget it’s the easy button.

Consider allowing reasonable budget for optics. Probably from 300quid. Not sure on the exchange rate but £500 is pretty decent and £1000 might get you into some really nice glass territory but don’t be fooled a £200 scope should be serviceable and reliable for hunting.

To be honest I put the Rigby up as a bit of a **** take as we almost see the I just got my FAC what rifle should I buy posts daily and get the same answers.
Fair play though the OP asks for calibre suggestions normally it tell us what the FAC has on it so everyone suggests something else

 

[CBH Australia]

To be honest I put the Rigby up as a bit of a **** take as we almost see the I just got my FAC what rifle should I buy posts daily and get the same answers.
Fair play though the OP asks for calibre suggestions normally it tell us what the FAC has on it so everyone suggests something else

No harm done. I would like to have one down here in the colony,

I like the cartridge suggestion.

I think owning a Rigby is more about the prestige. It’s one thing to find the funds but another to truly afford it.

 

[cjm1066]

There are so many threads on this topic, visit a gun shop, all calibres work well appropriate bullets.

May God forbid but a few people I know have advised me if there's ever any crisis that causes a shortage of ammunition the one round suitable for deer that will be most available to the general public will be the .308

It's nearly harder to find a modern rifle that isn't accurate than finding one that is and you should be able to pick a well cared for secondhand Howa, Savage, Bergara or CZ for handy money.

That's an interesting thought, given the stupidly of our legislators it might be sensible to avoid military calibres as they might be banned one day.

 

[Rasputin]

.50 cal nothing less.

 

[Stover Rover]

Go to a gun shop, look what deer legal ammo they have the largest selection of, that would be a good starting point for calibre choice. Then buy a Tikka rifle.

 

[Scotty99]

Tikka T3.

6.5 X 55mm Swedish Mauser.

A decent scope of about 6X to 8X power, or a zoom that includes those powers.

120- (roe) to 140-grain (red) ammo to suit.

maximus otter

^^^^^^^^^ This. Simples.

 

[doric_prince]

.416 rem mag, from rats to rhinos- your covered! For Sale: - Sauer 202 416 Rem Mag

 

[LuckyEddie]

The problem is people don’t get to try different calibres / rifles.
Before I applied for my FAC I got a chance to shoot a 6.5x55Se and a .308.

The Swede felt better for me.
The photo below are the first shots I ever took with a centrefire and people wonder why I chose that calibre.
If it can take down a moose then it can take down anything in Britain including boar with the right bullet.

Rifles and calibres are very much a personal choice and you can get as much advise as you like, but in the end it’s what you feel comfortable with and have confidence in to help you put a bullet in the right place that matters.

 

[JTO]

All my calibre choices are based on barrel longevity, .223Rem, .308W and .284W, though I have got a 7mm-08 itch.

 

[EMcC]

I don't really see 30-06 in the shops, what the ammunition availability like?

I used to have cupboard full of guns but found my go to was the .308 but then I realised my 30-06 was the best option as all I had to do was change bullets for changing quarry from fox to wild boar, 125. 150, 180 or 220gn bullets but the best of all was the 180grn which worked for all species of quarry.
Incidentally I was told by a very reputable smith that he would not use a bergara barrel to re barrel my .222 as bergaras were cheap for a reason !!
and suggested he do it for me using one of his recommended barrels at £1k whereas I was quoted and went for it, using a bergara barrel at £600 fully fitted, threaded and ceracoated to length and colour of my choice. It shoots like a dream, not getting much use now but won't get rid for sentimental reasons, it was my first Remington .222 bought in Germany in 1975, it was used on Roe over there and didn't see why they weren't included over here when the law was looked at to include muntys etc.

 

[grizzly adams]

6.5 Creedmoor ?

 

[guns 6br]

You won't beat the 30-06 in my eyes

 

[VSS]

.270

 

[finnbear270]

https://www.valleyarms.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/231219143459001-1.jpg

.270Win
Valley Arms, re barreled screwcut 14/1

 

[JMinter]

I used to have cupboard full of guns but found my go to was the .308 but then I realised my 30-06 was the best option as all I had to do was change bullets for changing quarry from fox to wild boar, 125. 150, 180 or 220gn bullets but the best of all was the 180grn which worked for all species of quarry.
Incidentally I was told by a very reputable smith that he would not use a bergara barrel to re barrel my .222 as bergaras were cheap for a reason !!
and suggested he do it for me using one of his recommended barrels at £1k whereas I was quoted and went for it, using a bergara barrel at £600 fully fitted, threaded and ceracoated to length and colour of my choice. It shoots like a dream, not getting much use now but won't get rid for sentimental reasons, it was my first Remington .222 bought in Germany in 1975, it was used on Roe over there and didn't see why they weren't included over here when the law was looked at to include muntys etc.

Amazing, thanks for the recommendation!

 

[Essexsussex]

I was reading a bit about Bergara recently and the feedback from owners really impressed me. I saw nothing but positives from guys that test them and write about rifles too but I'm always that bit more wary of those reviews as I think someone that bought and paid for one is more impartial. Can you expand on the horror stories you've heard about them?

I have a Savage .308 (10 FCP H&S stock, heavy barrel) and a Howa .270 for deer and foxes and am very happy with both of them but I was thinking of getting a lighter .308 because the Savage is probably better suited to shooting longer distance than I need.

I started looking at a Sako, a Tikka T3 lite, a Howa Alpine 1500 and then a Bergara B14 and the more I read about the Bergara the more impressed I was. There seems to be very little used Howa Alpine's about for sale which leads me to think whoever owns one is happy with it.

The only real life experience I had with a Bergara was when I had a friend visit me here for a mornings hunt and he had just bought a brand new one, he told me he had it sighted in perfectly but he missed a stag from max 150 yards and that immediately put them way down in my estimation. When I say he missed, the stag didn't even realise a shot had been fired in his direction and just meandered up the field and down into a dip without a care in the world. In hindsight there could have been a lot of different reasons he missed.

I only shoot deer when I or someone I know wants venison so the Savage and Howa should easily do me for the rest of my life but I'm thinking of treating myself to a lighter .308 next year. If you have any links to read I'd be delighted to learn a bit more.

I’ve got a savage model 16. It’s very light! Certainly lighter than any Sako or howa I’ve picked up. If I had to save one rifle that might be the one. Accurate and I love the accutrigger. In the very unfashionable 243.

 

[Sonicdmb73]

Depending on the attitude of your FEO I would suggest if you're limited to the lower end chambering wise a .243 or one of the 6.5's. If they are more open minded go look at rifles, find something you like that's deer legal. Check to see what ammo you can get for it preferably one with a good variety of lead and non lead (even if you're going to reload you might need factory for some places anyway).
personally I have a 6.5x55, .270 and 30-06 barrels and two Sauer 202 actions (currently 6.5 and the 06 fitted). But the 6.5 is the go to for most stalking, and if it came to it would be the last to be sold.

 

[Muntybuck5803]

All my calibre choices are based on barrel longevity, .223Rem, .308W and .284W, though I have got a 7mm-08 itch.

@JTO Get the 7mm08. I’ve recently got a 7mm08 in the form of a Sako 75, which I’m loving! I already have a 25-06, 308 and a 6mm CM.

@JMinter you could do much worse than the aforementioned Sako 75 although the aftermarket is very limited, and if you’re a ‘tinkerer’ a Tikka T3 is bombproof with awesome aftermarket backup.

The T3 being the uninteresting but fantastic and reliable workhorse option, I would say the cartridge to go with that would be the 308. Light bullets for smaller animals, heavier for the bigger. Or use 150gr for everything and give extra consideration to shot placement on smaller animals. Also, 308 in any reasonable twist will be fine for NLA in the future. I love my .25, my 6mmCM and 7mm, but factory ammo availability can occasionally cause issues if you don’t home load.

If pushed on a lighter cartridge, .243 is still awesome and with a fast twist can handle a multitude of tasks from hunting to target and cover the NLA base too, all with minimal recoil.

 

[Morkai]

Get any of the popular chamberings you like, just make sure there's a good supply of local(ish) ammunition.

Everywhere sells .308, .243 and 6.5CM, not everywhere sells things like 7mm-08.

 

[CBH Australia]

But the 7mm-08 is a great round if you can source ammo