HorseDoctor
PMA Member
Shooting nearly anything without hearing protection is just plain foolhardy!!! Really wish someone had beat that into my head 60 years ago!!! That said, shooting a big gun with a muzzle brake without hearing protection is the "kiss of death" to your hearing!!! I used to have a 30/378 Weatherby Mag (great gun) that had a brake. I religiously used plugs & earmuffs when shooting it for break in / load development/ sight in. Decided that hearing protection was a PIA to hunt with so I shot my first critter (a mule deer) with that gun without hearing protection. For the next 2 hours I could not hear a normal conversation in the front seat of a pickup driving back to the ranch house with the pieces of that deer. It did get better, but my left ear has not quit ringing since. That was something like 15 years ago!!! Unless you really enjoy saying "what", don't mess with your hearing!!! Any gun is loud enough to hurt your hearing, but one with a brake is damned sure gonna hurt you bad!!! Serious!
AZHunter
Iowa Boy At Heart
The 30/378 is a great round, but I stay away from all of the Weatherby rounds. They can be hard to find, but they are also expensive as all get out. As for you choice of the Vortex Viper HS LR 4-16x50, that is exactly what I put on my daughter's rifle and what I plan to put on my "06. Leupold is a great scope, but I'm pretty sure that their customer service has fallen a little in the last couple of years. I could be wrong, but a friend was telling me about customer service issues with Leupold recently. Vortex has the best warranty on the market, hands down.
As for the brakes, they really are worth the time and money. All you have to do is put simple plugs in right before you shoot or as you're getting ready to shoot. Like Horsedoctor said, you should be doing that anyway, but you can hear most everything just fine with the rubber plugs that slip in easy enough.
As for the brakes, they really are worth the time and money. All you have to do is put simple plugs in right before you shoot or as you're getting ready to shoot. Like Horsedoctor said, you should be doing that anyway, but you can hear most everything just fine with the rubber plugs that slip in easy enough.
I have a Savage 16/116 7mmM. Absolutely love it! Hell of a gun for the price, and shoots great, light weight, weather/field tough. Not overly loud if you like goin without muffs on. 7mm ammo is everywhere and not horribly priced.
I got mine at my buddies shop for around $580, sold the scope it came with and mounted a Nikon 4-12x50 (great low end scope). I do plan on upgrading the scope and will be going Vortex...
It was my first Savage, and liked it so much ive bought several others. 220 slug, 10ml2 muzzy, alaskan brush hunter in 338winmag.
I will take both the 7mm and 338 when i go west now. 7 when i hunt meadows and the 338 when i hunt more tight terrain.
Accu trigger is great, i wouldnt buy a savage without the feature (stay away from the axis models).
Havent fired a whole bunch of different 7mm, but the ones i have, cant say i disliked any, as far as actions/triggers.
I got mine at my buddies shop for around $580, sold the scope it came with and mounted a Nikon 4-12x50 (great low end scope). I do plan on upgrading the scope and will be going Vortex...
It was my first Savage, and liked it so much ive bought several others. 220 slug, 10ml2 muzzy, alaskan brush hunter in 338winmag.
I will take both the 7mm and 338 when i go west now. 7 when i hunt meadows and the 338 when i hunt more tight terrain.
Accu trigger is great, i wouldnt buy a savage without the feature (stay away from the axis models).
Havent fired a whole bunch of different 7mm, but the ones i have, cant say i disliked any, as far as actions/triggers.
isu22andy
Active Member
Thanks for the reply , was looking at this exact Savage setup . I figure by the time I can afford a hunt bigger than an elk , I'll have more than enough money to buy a bigger gun . 300 win mag might make my bones rattle in my little package . I already flinch occasionally shooting the bow
Bowtech84
Well-Known Member
I have several, come get one
AZHunter
Iowa Boy At Heart
I forgot to add that the Savage Accutrigger is awesome. I'm like Horsedoctor in that all of my serious hunting rifles all have either modified factory or aftermarket triggers in them set to 2.75 lbs. You'll love the Accutrigger. As for the Savage Axis line, when they first came out, their triggers were horrible. I ended up replacing my daughter's factory trigger with a Timney. The new Axis II comes with the Accutrigger, which helps. As for the Savage 16/116, you can't go wrong.
Back to the 7mm vs. 300WM debate, Ron Spomer just published a great article on the pros and cons of both and the age-old adage of "7mm vs 300WM". I highly recommend reading it.
Back to the 7mm vs. 300WM debate, Ron Spomer just published a great article on the pros and cons of both and the age-old adage of "7mm vs 300WM". I highly recommend reading it.
AZHunter
Iowa Boy At Heart
Yep. Its a great read on the two. What it doesn't say, though, is that you don't need a 200+ gr bullet to hunt elk effectively or shoot 500+ yards with a 300WM. If you're limiting your shooting to less than 400 yards, you can easily use a 170-190 gr bullet for anything in the west and have much less recoil and great performance. Whenever I finally get around to loading for my WM, I have 190 gr Barnes TTSX. Barnes loads 180 and 190 gr bullets in their VOR-TX line and its hard to ask for better bullets.
In the end, its ultimately what you are comfortable with. Like I said going into this thread, 7mag vs 300WM is just like Ford vs Chevy.
HorseDoctor
PMA Member
I have been surprised by the number of WY, CO & NM outfitters that would rather see a hunter with a 300WM than A 7mm Mag. 
Go figure... Maybe they tell the hunters with 7mm guns just the opposite???
Go figure... Maybe they tell the hunters with 7mm guns just the opposite???
Hardwood11
It is going to be a good fall!
30.06
Tikka
Love it
Tikka
Love it
AZHunter
Iowa Boy At Heart
I have been surprised by the number of WY, CO & NM outfitters that would rather see a hunter with a 300WM than A 7mm Mag.
Dead right!
I had one former outfitter here tell me he'd rather have kids shoot an elk with a .243 than a 7mm-08.
It was hard to argue with his logic about loss of meat and I've seen plenty of elk fall to a .243, but I'd still rather have more than enough than possibly just enough or just barely enough.
Bowtech84
Well-Known Member
I have quite a few guns and tikka by far is my favorite. I would reccomend anybody looking for a new rifle to check one out.
kwright
kwright
First and foremost, let me say how excited I am to see a centerfire rifle thread on this board!
As my native Oklahoma allows them, I've got several different centerfire rifles in several different calibers. In my experience, it's all about how much you want to spend. A 30.06 or a .308 would be enough gun for each of the western species, but where's the fun in that? I've had surprising success over the years convincing my wife I needed an 'antelope gun' or an 'elk gun.' My newest ploy is to tell her I need a 'doe gun.'
One option to consider is choosing a rifle with an interchangeable barrel system like a TC Encore. Of course, that would limit you to a single shot, but you'd also have the option of using that gun during black powder season. The draw back there is you have to pay for each of those barrels. I've got a Blaser R8, but the barrels for that gun cost as much as a new rifle.
As my native Oklahoma allows them, I've got several different centerfire rifles in several different calibers. In my experience, it's all about how much you want to spend. A 30.06 or a .308 would be enough gun for each of the western species, but where's the fun in that? I've had surprising success over the years convincing my wife I needed an 'antelope gun' or an 'elk gun.' My newest ploy is to tell her I need a 'doe gun.'
One option to consider is choosing a rifle with an interchangeable barrel system like a TC Encore. Of course, that would limit you to a single shot, but you'd also have the option of using that gun during black powder season. The draw back there is you have to pay for each of those barrels. I've got a Blaser R8, but the barrels for that gun cost as much as a new rifle.
isu22andy
Active Member
Makes no sense to me ? I figure an outfitter would want a more tameable gun like a 270 or 30-06 over a magnum rifle that most people are scared of the recoil and flinch when squeezing the trigger . I'm no expert , probably flinch a 270 myself ha !I have been surprised by the number of WY, CO & NM outfitters that would rather see a hunter with a 300WM than A 7mm Mag.