Page 2 of 3
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 19th, 2022, 12:18 am
by tobylazur
Just some background on me: I have a heavy barrel .308 and a short, ranch rifle type .243. Several years ago I tagged along on an elk hunt that 300 yards was a loning shot based on the terrain. Last year I tagged a long on a southern mule deer hunt that 400 yards felt like a close shot. This year I'm hoping to get drawn for southern white tail.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 19th, 2022, 1:04 am
by Drmark
.208?
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 19th, 2022, 5:48 am
by knockonit
awe the elusive cous deer, hunted the patagonia area and washington camp many decades ago, about the only place i ever encountered a cougar on a hunt. crafty critter he was, took me awhile was smelling his markings. they are typical cats, so dang quiet.
one would be smart to make a leather sling, to chuck rocks into canyons to perhaps scare the little deer outta hiding, throwing will kill yer arm
good luck, fast and smart little guys
rj
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 19th, 2022, 6:36 am
by Ballistic Therapy
I've hunted whitetail in southern Az ever since I started hunting.
That is all I even put in for any more.
I have probably killed more Whitetail bucks than most people have ever seen , and 99% of them were with a Remington 700 in 30.06.
300 yards is not an uncommon shot for these guys.
I don't like to shoot much farther than that.
They are one of the hardest animals to hunt in the U.S.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 19th, 2022, 6:15 pm
by tobylazur
Drmark wrote: ↑June 19th, 2022, 1:04 am.208?
Ha, .308. Sorry, edited my horrible, unproof read post.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 19th, 2022, 6:17 pm
by tobylazur
Ballistic Therapy wrote: ↑June 19th, 2022, 6:36 am
I've hunted whitetail in southern Az ever since I started hunting.
That is all I even put in for any more.
I have probably killed more Whitetail bucks than most people have ever seen , and 99% of them were with a Remington 700 in 30.06.
300 yards is not an uncommon shot for these guys.
I don't like to shoot much farther than that.
They are one of the hardest animals to hunt in the U.S.
I've got a couple of guys saying 300-400yards is about an average distance.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 19th, 2022, 6:52 pm
by Ballistic Therapy
tobylazur wrote: ↑June 19th, 2022, 6:17 pm
Ballistic Therapy wrote: ↑June 19th, 2022, 6:36 am
I've hunted whitetail in southern Az ever since I started hunting.
That is all I even put in for any more.
I have probably killed more Whitetail bucks than most people have ever seen , and 99% of them were with a Remington 700 in 30.06.
300 yards is not an uncommon shot for these guys.
I don't like to shoot much farther than that.
They are one of the hardest animals to hunt in the U.S.
I've got a couple of guys saying 300-400yards is about an average distance.
Some say 500 yards or more.
I have also seen these guys wound as many , or more than they kill.
Hitting them is one thing.
Making a clean kill is another.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 19th, 2022, 7:05 pm
by XJThrottle
I'd probably stick with my Stainless 700 SPS in 300WM. Spice it up or down to suit the game.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 22nd, 2022, 5:04 pm
by BigNate
One rifle / cartridge for AZ hunting... HMMM... If I'm limited to what I own it would probably be my Ruger 77 MkII in .300wmg. Why? Because when I think about hunting big game in AZ it starts with Elk and the other options in my safe today don't buy me enough of anything to make the cartridge downgrade from .300wmg worth it. That cartridge can let you shoot antelope at 500m+ it is plenty for elk, you can puppy load it and take deer at "normal" ranges without jellying 1/2 the animal. I'd have no concern hunting bear, cats, or any other AZ mammal with it if I needed to. It's certainly not "optimal" for smaller stuff - but again - you can load to the specifics of the need. So, it "can" do it all - with only two down-sides... recoil and wasted meat if you shoot smaller critters with hot loads.
If I were buying only one NEW gun for hunting in AZ I'd probably go with a quality bolt gun in 7mm rem mag or something with a similar bullet diameter and long legs - maybe even one of the 6.5s if I was committed to reloading for it. Again - "enough" cartridge for elk, flat enough for antelope out on the planes, and easier to load "down" for deer etc.
Neither of these are my "you can only have one gun for the zombie apocalypse" gun... that is the M1A in 7.62X51 with many many magazines and good glass.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 22nd, 2022, 6:48 pm
by 428cj
Old man still likes 30.06 then 308.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 25th, 2022, 4:14 pm
by Hammer 35
I didn't know they made those in 300blk.
I wonder if they made any PLR-16's in 300blk, would make a dandy suppressor host.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 25th, 2022, 5:04 pm
by Suck My Glock
Hammer 35 wrote: ↑June 25th, 2022, 4:14 pm
I didn't know they made those in 300blk.
I wonder if they made any PLR-16's in 300blk, would make a dandy suppressor host.
I don't know if they did either, but that's what I want.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 27th, 2022, 10:33 am
by mtptwo
Suck My Glock wrote: ↑June 25th, 2022, 5:04 pm
Hammer 35 wrote: ↑June 25th, 2022, 4:14 pm
I didn't know they made those in 300blk.
I wonder if they made any PLR-16's in 300blk, would make a dandy suppressor host.
I don't know if they did either, but that's what I want.
They don't do anything outside of 5.56. They said they were going to do the RDB in 6.5 Grendel, and they never did.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: June 27th, 2022, 10:53 am
by MTURBO
30-06 is all you need.
Re: If you could only have one rifle, and one cartridge for AZ hunting, what would it be?
Posted: May 15th, 2023, 1:42 pm
by 40-82RRB
308, I load mine w/120 to 200 gr. Bullets. Use it for varmint,turkey, big game ; deer to buffalo.....