What rifle to set up

[corkin it]

Ok folks...I have a long question. I have 2 rifles. One of which I would like to set up for long range. No more than 500 yard shots. heres my question. Which one should I set up and what scope to get. The first is a 7mm-08. Its my sons and is soooo light and easy to shoot. The other is a 270 with synthetic stock. Winchester I think. Its killed plenty of game as well.

 

I recently shot a sniper rifle...338 with a 300 grain bullet. 500 yard shot with the dial in scope was nothing. Simply amazing. I want to get one of those styles of scopes. Any advice would be great. Mainly for deer hunting. Thanks, jake

[firstcoueswas80]

Ballistically speaking, 270.

 

 

But the main thing to take into account is comfort level with the rifle. Which ever feels best, and your comfortable with.

[yotebuster]

where's Lark????

[oz31p]

where's Lark????

lol I was thinking the same thing.

[Pine Donkey]

where's Lark????

lol I was thinking the same thing.

where's Lark????

lol I was thinking the same thing.

 

That was my very first thought!

[ThomC]

You don't have to be lark to say .270. A 7-308 is a weak 308.

[deserthntr]

unless you are shooting the matrix bullets out of your 270, which are on the heavy end to get a good BC, shoot the 7-08. it has way better BCs and thats what is important in long range shooting. to be honest i would rebarrel to a different caliber if you are going to get serious into it. what caliber would be what sounds good to you. but there are some good calibers you could just do a barrel swap and be able to use the same bolt face, etc.

[roninflag]

first choice is the sako . next remington 700. caliber is a small consideration. the one that shoots 5 shot groups smaller than 2" at 200 yards.

[ruffcountry]

If you go with the 7-08 dont forget the bayonet lug .

[STOMP442]

For no more than 500 yards the 7-08 will do nicely.

[Antmo23]

Either rifle is deadly for deer out to 500+. Go look at nikon, luepold, vortex, and pentax scopes, and see which one you like best. You can get the turrets for almost anything. I think you should get a good scope and sight in both rifles and see which one is better out to 300. It sounds like you've got a good problem to have though as both calibers will do everything you ask of it out to 500. But the .270 does have a storied history with coues whitetails...

[rcdinaz]

A couple of things to consider:

In a factory rifle neither caliber is ideal for heavier bullets; factory twist rate, choices available (.270), barel length among the reasons.

You most likely need to spend some time on load development.

Don't go buy a scope until you determine what you really want.

 

All that said 500 yards and in should be no problem for your rifles if they already shoot well.

 

As Antmo stated first thing I would do is Invest in the scope and put it on the rifle that shoots the best with heavier bullets 160gr-180gr in the 7mm or 140gr-150gr in the .270. If you buy a scope you really like and learn to use it you can move it to any rifle. For a tactical (dial in) configuration I would look at Leupold, Vortex, Weaver, Sightron, or Zeiss. I think these have the biggest bang for the buck with Vortex & Weavers new scopes being the price point winners. You need to decide Mil, MOA, magnification, and which reticle you are comfortable with. Life is a lot oeasier if you get a scope with a reticle and adjustment system that match Mil/Mil, MOA/MOA. Don't cheap out on the base and rings, make sure you budget for these as well and plan on spending a bit of time making absolutley sure the scope is level, test the scope to verify it is level and the adjustment are in order at the range.

 

Next thing to do is to get a ballistics program for you smart phone, iPod, etc. I use shooter (lots of info and good service) but there are a number of good ones at different price points. Get all your load data and rifle info into the program, which will accomplish 2 things. First you will get a really good understanding of how your bullet is traveling, the second is that you will learn how your scope works for elevation and windage. This should give you a lot more confidence and help to set some standards for what you are capable of and comfortable with.

 

Last thing I would add, as someone pointed out, you can always rebarrel one of the rifles if you decide you want something with more speed or to match a caliber that one of your buddies has done most of the work on already to save time and investment on your part.

 

All of this sounds like a lot but if you spend one summer working it out it will pay dividends on your shooting/hunting for the rest of your life. I would guess you could work most things out on a single gun in 3-4 trips to the range if you keep good notes and do your homework. The danger is you will become like most of us an be a little obsessed after you get bitten by the long range/accuracy bug. As you arelady found out it is quite an experience when you realize you can consistently hit a target at 500 yds and beyond.

[elkiny]

Hello, I have shot both and for CW I prefer to use my 7mm-08 with Hornady 139 grain. It shoots flat and I'm comfortable out to 550 yards. I have a Nikon buckmaster scope.