Calling all hunters: Looking for that "All-Around" round

[Letch]

Hey guys, my girlfriend's father posed a question to me today that I thought you might be able to help me with. He's a farmer who is having a bit of a varmint problem and, while he has just asked others to deal with them before, is now looking to take care of them himself. Based on his needs I figured a single shot break action would probably be the best option, but am open to suggestions. As far as chambering, he's looking for a round that could deal with anything from raccoon to deer sized vermin (theoretically, not actually). I was thinking 270 winchester but, again, was looking for some input from those with a bit more experience than me. Just for arguments sake let's say his budget is $1000 for the whole outfit (including scope), but of course anything below that would not be turned away. Thanks guys!

 

[throttletony]

On the smaller end - .223 or .243 woukd be great. Moving up from there, .308 (and .260 Rem, 7mm-08), 25-06, .270, 30-06 would all be fine.

243 would be my favorite all around do-it-all caliber (unless u need it for something dangerous or very large - pigs, bear, etc)

 

[throttletony]

And, just get a bolt action.
Savage, Thompson Center, Ruger, and Remington all have decent rifles for $400-500.

Make sure to play by the rules (follow the law) if considering this gun for deer --- aka don't use it illegally since deer still have restrictions. I would just think of this as a varmint gun and not worry about deer

 

[packard]

I'm with Throttletony on this. Any thing that will take a deer will surly take a varmint!! And 243 is a nice round.

 

[natdscott]

.243 is hereby thirded from me.

Loaded medium-hot with a hunting bullet in the 85-100 grain range, it will happily kill any mammal in this state, and gut many of them at the same time. Recoil is very low, noise is considerable but not worse than any other high-speed rifle round, and they can be readily had in compact rifles of 18-22" barrels if you choose. The ammo is readily available in most any gunshop or Walmart, and while the round won't win much in the way of tailgate expositions, it is accurate and adequate.

-Nate

 

[gunrunner0]

I would also vote .243 for those specifications, with .270 as a close second. The .243 is ideal in my opinion for smaller deer and varmints, .270 would be my choice for animals any larger than whitetails, but still small enough for varmints. .22 hornet, .204 Ruger, or .22-250 would also be adequate, but I think the .243 would have the edge for larger game. .243 ammo availability and variety would be superior, locally in my opinion. Also as previously stated, get a mid-range quality bolt gun and he would still leave plenty of room in the budget for quality glass.

My personal choice would be a stainless Savage, in .243 Win., with a Leupold VXII 4-12x50mm.

 

[diver dan]

I would say , go with a bolt 308, you can get cheap hard ball military ammo in bulk and practice very reasonably.It would be a good caliber for deer sized animals also..243 is a little ify on deer sized animals, but I know there always a discussion about it, its a personal choice, but I know if you dont reload, you can find cheaper 308 ammo.PS DONT BEAT ME UP GUYS,

 

[Spear Dane]

458 SOCOM or 50 Beowulf. Legal for deer and anything small you don't need concern yourself with carcass disposal.

 

[NyleRN]

Ruger american rifle or savage in .243 or .308 with a $250 scope of choice. Done

 

[BoilerWes]

Trapping would likely be the most effective method for true varmint control. Outside of using depredation type permits, having a larger bore high powered rifle for Indiana critters is probably not necessary. 22 magnum or 223 would take care of most farmers needs.

 

[avboiler11]

Definitely 243.

 

[Sniper 79]

I agree that the .243 is the king of the hill. If its only for shooting critters with. If he wants to also do some target shooting and hunting around the .223 would be more cost effective.

Don't overlook the .17HMR or possibly 204 Ruger if only for small varmints up to coyote size.


I would also recommend a Savage bolt gun with a decent 3-9 power scope.

 

[avboiler11]

223 kills whitetail VERY dead with proper bullet and shot placement (I've taken two deer in KY with a 223) but whenever DNR allows modern centerfire rifles for deer a 6mm bore minimum is probably a foregone conclusion.

 

[sugarcreekbrass]

I also agree with the 243 unless he ever has intentions of hunting out west sometime. Then I might go with a 270. If he is looking at a single shot, you could go with a T/C Encore or CVA Apex and just buy another barrel. In a sense he would have two or three guns. I did that with the HR Handi rifle in the 204 then got the 44 mag for deer hunting.

 

[6mm Shoot]

I would go with the 260 if it was going to be used for deer or larger animals. The only thing, ( as most know ) you can use for deer in Indiana is a 358 or bigger bullet. So in less you want to limit your range to about 300 yards you need two rifles. One in one of the hot 22s or 6mms for the vermin and a 358 or bigger for deer. Oh, max case length is 1.8".

I would go with a Ruger American in 243 and a Ruger American in 308 to have re-barrelled to 358 Hoosier. The two rifles would cost you around $700 then the re-barrel around $500. Or you could pick up a 44 Rossi lever action for deer. That would keep you under a grand. It will also limit your range on deer to 150 yards.

Good luck with what ever you go with. If I had to go with just one I would go with the 358 Hoosier. You don't care what kind of damage you put on the vermin and it will kill deer out to 300 yards with no problem. The only problem with the Hoosier is you must reload. I think there is only one gun shop that sells the round. I think it's like $3 a round from them.

 

[OutdoorDad]

It's the "deer sized" part that keeps me from saying .223.

 

[Hookeye]

If wanting a primary varmint, secondary deer.............243win.
If wanting deer primary, varmint secondary..........25-06.

Have been blasting varmints with various .243's for almost 40 years. Used to run 75 gr Speer and Hornady HP's with very good results.
Switched when Nosler BT's came about. Forget the 55gr stuff. Just run 70's.

Max charges of 4350 make short bbl flashy and loud, but damn it they still don't shoot good.

Buddy had .25-06...............whitetails with 120gr Hornady, Mulies and even pronghorn.
Another has fam out west, gone one so he and his wife could run the same rifle. Mulies and goats fall to it often.

I've shot their B78, Ruger 1B and 700's...........comfy. Little more than a .243..............but nothing bad.

IMHO if you can handle one, you can handle the other.

Personally, I'd like to score a MarkV in .257 WM...........a pretty one. Would like to try 85gr Nosler BT's on yotes.

Not looking for "boom flop"...................am wanting "boom ignite".

 

[Hookeye]

If wanting varmint and IN deer legal..............223 AR for varmint, swap upper for deer legal round.

 

[Mgderf]

I didn't see it asked, so I will.
What distances are you looking to use this rifle at?
If under 150 yards, why not get a lever-action .357mag?
You can always use .38spl on the critters and use .357mag for deer, or .44spl/.44mag.
For that matter, get a .45Colt and you can just load anything you want.
All (except the .38spl) is already deer legal in Indiana.

 

[Hookeye]

FWIW when shooting chucks w 70 gr Nosler BT

I don't get an exit, from 50 to 350 yards, if hits are in the body.
Neck shots will sometimes have a dirt puff beyond the critter (definitely opened up on way through).

85 gr and 100gr stuff may go through in one pc.

Tried a few way back, said "no way".

Chucking, the heavier bullets have more recoil too, so watching the hit gets tougher. Heck, in a sporter it takes over 150 yards to see a smack at 9X w my 70 grainers off bipods.

Heavier guns and ligher bullet/less recoil cartridges are certainly more fun in spotting the smack.

My one bud runs a 6mm .223 for yotes. Less blast, works great. Has me wanting to try it (if I don't get a .256 Win bbl for TC eventually).