WampusCat

When full length dies are set up correctly for a proper amount of shoulder bump (minimal) I believe you will be hard pressed to glean any benefit from neck size only. Especially when considering the added reliability of full length sized cases in hunting or competition environments. Some may feel they have more precision control over the process when they are done in two separate steps (body die then the neck die) but few are the man/rifle combos who can shoot tight enough to tell the difference on a target at distance.

i got a nice 70k miler with your name on itI laughed cause he's serious. Standing next to it in his plaid suit right now.

For most places I hunt in AZ on of these would be worthless. For a guy in the Midwest they are pretty awesome though!

Haha, it is my favorite! On my current assignment I find myself comparing a lot of stuffy government folks to that line. And then I shut up and color of course.

If you like Ruark you should read some Gordon MacQuarrie. Especially if your a waterfowler!

Aldo has some great ones. I have read his "Sand County Almanac" a hundred times. I feel like this one speaks directly to Coues hunting. "The value of any trophy from the field depends not on its size, but on the magnitude of the effort expended in its pursuit" -Aldo Leopold

Looks good. I'll be interested in your thoughts on that brake.

Good stuff. I'd love to see the slugs you recovered out of him.

I have migrated slowly toward the floorless idea. Mostly just using different tarp setups with and without bivies. I like the idea of bivies more than I actually like sleeping in them. I always wake up in a viscous cycle of sweating from the lack of breathability most bivies offer then freezing from being wet with sweat while trying to dry out. At 5,000ish ft and above the nights get cool enough that I haven't worried about snakes and never had an issue with bugs during hunting seasons. Summer is a different story. Bear Paw is making nests for some of the floorless designs that will let you transition to floorless style easier. A a good tarp is more than capable of keeping the rain off your bag. It will also also shade you from the afternoon sun on those October hunts. The back (slope) is faced toward the prevailing wind direction and it sheds the wind and water just fine without the need for a bivy or fear or drenching my sleep system. It is my lightest setup and can be tied down to items I find onsite. Usually rocky places with no chance of staking down, I use rocks and anything resembling a pole to anchor the tarp in position. They can withstand some crazy wind if you put some thought into setup. This is my preferred method as I often glass as the sun is rising while still in my sleeping bag. I feel the only thing I am lacking is warmth in the full on winter. My next step will be to a tipi or Sawtooth with the ability to run a stove. Many times my shelter ends up being super simple and works perfectly like the picture below.

I am usually an angled guy but I really like the look/idea of the new Razor HD straight version. Cant wait to hear some reviews from people who aren't on the payroll or receiving free stuff. Very interested in how it stacks up to the old Razor HD.

Far more important than the final length you end up with is that you develop a system to accurately and repeatedly measure and record the data you build the cartridges with. Let the gun/bullet tell you what it wants as far jump to the lands. The book and SAAMI are merely a baseline to fit the masses. On occasion, some things like heavy for cal bullets confined to the internal dimensions of a magazine will limit or mandate your OAL or in your case it might be a short throat. In most cases I let an OAL gauge and the bullet I intend to use determine a starting point of touching or .010" off the lands regardless of where the book recommends, then compare to mag length constraints for final starting point. Also note that you will build pressure much faster as you increase charge weight if you are jamming a bullet into the lands. All this is assuming you are reloading to find and tune the most accurate recipe possible and not just making bullets that shoot.

I highly recommend H-1000 in the WinMag! Get you an 8 lb keg and tune a good load. Hard to beat Hodgdons extreme line of powders for temp insensitivity when shooting in AZ summers and hunting in the winter.

Depends on barrel length and maker but a 28" with a stiff charge of H-1000 will put you in the 3K ballpark.

I swear by the Berger 215. It has been my most reliable performing bullet. It is a match made in heaven for the 300WM. The high BC and short bearing surface are a couple of great things about it. You will not go wrong with the 215! That being said I have a few hundred 212 ELDX waiting for me at home to test out. Hornadys extensive testing and Doppler research has me intrigued enough to try them. I am looking forward to reading about terminal performance at distance on critters. I doubt they will achieve the same speeds as the 215s but I hope the gap is not much.

I think the SAUM is more effecient in the short action and the longer neck is a plus. The only way the WSM would appeal to me is if I already had piles of WSM brass laying around and building on a long action. With the OP's long action and low round count each year I would build a big fire breathing 6.5 and really scream those heavy pills.

I built a 6.5 4S a couple years ago. There were two options for freebore, the original .120 (determined to be too long) and the now commonly used .081 which is preferred for shooting hybrid ogives. Also being able to fit in a short action detachable mag and still have a bit of room to chase the lands. Most RSAUM reamers I have seen the specs for were extremely similar but with the longer freebore Lance talked about. These will eliminate the possibility of using detachable mags. You could use a long action and maximize the boiler room potential by running one of the longer freebore reamers but there is a chance of experiencing feeding issues with the short cartridge in the long action. The goal of the 4S was to run high BC 6.5 bullets at 3100+ while using slower burning powders to provide conditions for a longer lasting barrel and fit in a short action with a detachable mag. It does this for me perfectly! It is my favorite rifle. If someone wants factory brass for the 4S I have 200 unfired still in the box from GAP I'd sell. Wont be able to use them a awhile. Shoot me a PM. If I was the OP in the situation he described I would pick the long action cartridge capable of slinging the 6.5 heavies the fastest. With extra points given to availability of quality brass.

I love fast twist .223's. They are very versatile with the right bullets. Plenty of gun for all you describe and more. I have put down several deer back home in KS (mostly meat hunting does) and even a AZ buck. I will always default to shot placement is key and a guy should keep his shots within a range that he can ensure a 100% shot to the vitals. There isn't a deer walking that can take a quality .224 bullet to the boiler room and live to tell about it. I will echo Lance's comments about the 69 gr projectile as well as Stomp's eluding to the TMK's plastic tip likely providing more reliable expansion. Nevermind any naysayers about the 223. Work within it's (and your) capabilities and it will perform for you perfectly. I put a lot more fur in the dirt every year than deer and my primary 223 fodder reflects that. After much testing on mangy coyotes one summer in pursuit of the perfect fur round (drop a yote but not turn a fox or cat inside out, no exits on dogs is a plus) I settled on a 52gr Speer HP. The massive hollow point looks like a flying soup can but makes short work of varmints with minimal fur damage. I do NOT recommend this round for anything bigger or thicker skinned than a coyote. See link for field test http://www.coueswhitetail.com/forums/topic/54014-from-the-hills-to-the-table/ For long range and bigger game my projectile of choice is the 75 gr AMAX. You will not be able to load these to mag length in an AR but they may work in your bolt gun. I use the 75gr BTHP from hornady in my AR simply because they fit in the mag and are cheaper than SMK's. My AR digests the 75 gr BTHP beautifully and has killed everything I have sent them towards. The deer in the picture was a few years back and out past what most would consider .223 range. He tried his best but couldn't shake the 75gr BTHP from his lungs. A good bullet capable of getting through to the good stuff will empty the air out of any deer in AZ! If you desire a "hunting" bullet specifically, it would be hard to beat the bonded 64gr offering from Nosler. http://www.nosler.com/bonded-solid-base-bullet/ I dont have any experience with them because the other two loads I shoot do everything I could ever ask of them.

Incredible, thanks for sharing!

You'll be fine sleeping in the appropriate layers for the season. If you are sweating you are wearing too much. The wind is your friend. Scent control products are no match for a deer down wind. There is no way I'm packing in a liquid unless I can drink it!

Great picture. Would be cool to stake him out and get some more live photos of him. Hope he can dodge the lions and bullets for a few more years.

I share the sentiments of enjoying the hunt alone but having a mutual camp to meet up at the end of the day. My hunts are always made better or worse by the people accompanying me in the backcountry!

I commend your self assessment and efforts to make positive changes. That drink looks slam full of good stuff, but does the liquid lunch leave you hungry or fatigued after a long day?

I'm never sure of the intent of these diets. On the surface the seem to be a way to get in shape, live healthier, or just lose some excess weight but I always wonder if they are some folks substitute for good ole fashioned hard work. If one couldn't eat tortillas, pizza, pasta, beer, or wheated bourbons I'm not sure i would have much to look forward too. IMHO the key to success is balance! Like when you eat a whole pizza accidentally then you gotta pay the piper a bit extra in the gym or on the trail the next day. oops I am a firm believer that your metabolism can be altered by your active lifestyle or lack of.

Super down in your size on sale right now in the Kuiu outlet. I'd also look at the uncompahgre puffy from first lite.