I need some rifle advice for hunting in bad weather

[Swampman]

You don't need a magnum, but one of those needle guns would better off used as a tomato stake.

[Brithunter]

You don't need a magnum, but one of those needle guns would better off used as a tomato stake.

Is it time for your medication yet? seems like it to me. Say a hello to the nice men in white coats for me 

better off used as a tomato stake

Sorry but I don't have any Rem 700's and as far as I am concerened those and Weatherby MkV's are about the only rifles that should be Tomato stakes 

[Swampman]

I'd agree with you on the Weatherby MkV's and all the other foreign made junk.

[Brithunter]

Ahhh I take it that you only have American made stuff in your padded cell? difficult with most stuff now being made abroard  .

Oh it also appears that the MkV Weatherby is made in the US by some defence contractor, not by Weatherby as I don't think they ever made anything themselves.

Whilst I enjoyed this little bout and had a good giggle over it but it's getting time to retire now as I have a busy day at the range tomorrow.

[rickt300]

Although I call em pop guns as far as elk are concerned, many of my friends in Wyoming us 25-06's as their elk rifles and use factory Winchester or Remington 120 grain ammo. These guys shoot all year and they get every elk they shoot at.  I have never used a rifle smaller than a 270 on elk and guess what, killed elk just fine. The 150 grain Speer Hotcor or Hornady Interlok on top of 57.0 grains of H4831 worked perfectly.

[TRWalker]

The suggestions I've heard are good.  I suggest a polyurathane finish on the stock such as the one used  on Brownings. Apply some on the barrel channel and under the buttplate, then wax the stock well, also wax the barrel. Cut a piece of duct tape the size of a dime or nickle and press that over the end of the bore while the rifle is at room temperature. It will blow off when fired with no effect. If (when) you get your rifle wet, wipe it down good when you get back to camp. Spray the metal with WD-40 to displace any water, wipe dry and oil the metal.  Leave the rifle in a sheltered area in the cold to prevent condensation and to slow the rusting process. When you get back home, take it apart and clean it well. I don't take the stock off the action while on a hunting trip unless I can fire the gun to re-check the zero.  In bad weather I usually hunt from an old barn or covered tree stand.  I carry my rifle in and out of the woods in a case, arriving and leaving in the dark.

[rickt300]

Leave your rifle in the truck at night, let it stay cold once it gets cold. Let it transition from cold to warm in an insulated case.  If you use a nickel sized piece of tape it most likely won"t stay on and surely won't keep any snow or mud out if you slip and your barrel goes into the wet stuff.

[Brithunter]

On my only American hunting trip so far to Northern Missouri the rifles, there were four of us hunting, were brought into the tent every night. Yes we were camping and the tent was warm too. We brought the rifles in progressively, first into the entrance then inside and wiped them down with towling then after the got to tent tempreture oiled them. I took a cleaning rod and kit in my hard case and it got used quite often especially after opening day as we had real thick fog and that stuff is WET and gets everywhere. Stan had a so called bad weather rifle, a stainless synthetic Weatherby MkV, and he used my cleaning kit more than either of his brothers. Stewart had a Mannlicher Pro Hunter and Steve had a Sako L461 whilst I had a BSA CF2.

The weather was mild during the day and in fact the photos of my Buck show me in shirt sleeves but at night we had frosts so the tempreture change was quite dramitic every day and we had some rain. The day I left the Motel in St Louis had 2" of ice covering the parking lot as I spent the last night in a motel close to the airport rather than at my buddies as it meant a long drive for him to take me to the airport and he had put himself out enough for me as it was  .

  I do however have to watch carefully for rust when not in use here, never had the problem in my apartment, but here at Mum's place it must be a lot damper. Probaly due to the fact we are on the edge of the fens so I just have to check through the cabinets regularly and wipe them down. WD40 is not a good thing to use on rifles I use proper gun oil. It's Parker-Hale Express oil and it seems to work. If I had to store for a long time with out checking I would clean then apply neat Young's 303 oil which is what BSA used on their rifles new for shipping.

[bilmac]

The worst place I've ever hunted is in Alaska for the Caribou hunt. The temperatures hover right at freezing, the wind is always blowing. and there is a constant drizzle or sleet. It is an airplane drop camp so you are very limited on the weight of the gear you can take in. No heated tent, just nylon that builds up humidity the whole time you stay until it is almost raining inside too. Hell on rifles and hunters too. See my earlier post if you have to endure that kind of weather. I finally put togather a bad weather rifle too. Mine is a Rem 78 sportsman with a bead blasted finish. Like parkerizing it holds the oil on the surface and never has tried to rust on me. I put it in a plastic stock, and actually this chiep rifle is one of my straightest shooters.

As said above don't use just any oil. Gun oils are designed to prevent rust, but probably the best of these is LSA. I don't know if the military is still using it or not but they developed it for conditions in Viet Nam.   

[Swampman]

"I have never used a rifle smaller than a 270 on elk and guess what, killed elk just fine."

In the hands of an expert the .270 can be used.  I consider it to be below the min. for grown bulls.

[rickt300]

Oh yeah I wipe all my metal work down on the outside with satin polyurethane except the trigger mechanism. I use Armaloy to wipe down the bolt, the inside of the action and the trigger mechanism  and put just a little Moly grease on the locking lugs. At night I put my rifle in a doskosil insulated plastic gun case and do not bring it in to a humidifier (nylon tent).  As for the 270 being below the minimum for big bulls I have to disagree.  I killed my last two elk with a 270 shooting 150 grain Hornady spire points.  If you warm your rifle to 70 degrees or so and get out of the tent with it being -10 degrees outside you may not be happy about your choice. Think of your scope!

[yooper77]

Wooden stock with blued finish, no problems, just clean and oil well before and after.  I don't tape my muzzle, I am keep my muzzle down and never had a problem in rain or snow.

25-06 Remington, 270 Winchester, 260 Remington, 7mm-08 Remington, 280 Remington, 308 Winchester, 30-06 Springfield are all good elk cartridges with the proper bullet and correct bullet placement within adequate yardage.

If a person wants something else, then that's their personal choice.

Stainless steel does rust!

yooper77

[wareagleguy]

I have seen it over and over.  The same here for all those magun "270 is too small" types.  Use a cannon cause I CAN NOT SHOOT.  May make a bad shoot so use a cannon.  On my last elk hunt I worked with a friend of mine to develop a load for his 270.  He ended up killing a 5x5 at over 350 yards.  One shot and the bull was down.  I can say without a dought (because I have seen it with my two eyes) that the 270 is MORE than enough for elk.

[Swampman]

You don't a cannon.  You need a .30-06.  Shooting cows, calfs, and spikes is one thing.  Shooting 1000lb bulls is something else.  The .270 & the 7mm-08 just won't handle heavy bullets.  The .270 in the hands of an expert, can make meat.  It has no margin of error.

[rickt300]

How much more margin for error does the 30-06 have .031?  I don't consider myself an expert but thanks anyway Swampman.

[Swampman]

It's not the diameter, it's the weight.  Weight is where the .308 calibers have it all over the also rans like the .284s & .277s.  They are ok for small bodied southern whitetails, with well placed broadside shots.

[wareagleguy]

Swamp,
Only way I can tell you is this.  You are wrong.  Flat out, wrong.  I would guess you have many things that I and others could learn but on this issue you are DEAD WRONG. 

The elk that we killed with the 270 had a quarter away shot that passed completely through. 

I wonder how many 270s you have shot and owned.  I would put money the fact is you have very little first hand knowledge on the 270.  I have put YEARS and loads through several 270 rifles.  I KNOW the 270 will kill any elfk that walks this earth and you don't need to be a sharp shooter either.  Period.  This is may last post on this because I know this will never change your mind because you know the 270 will not do all this.  Sometimes it is true, you can't teach an old dog new tricks. 

[Brithunter]

It's not the diameter, it's the weight.  Weight is where the .308 calibers have it all over the also rans like the .284s & .277s.  They are ok for small bodied southern whitetails, with well placed broadside shots.

mmmm let's see the 7mm has 175 or 173 grain bullets and the 30-08 180 or 200 grain bullets. As a lot of folks are recoil shy they go with the 190 grain bullet and errrrrrrrrrrrr the 7mm is 5 or 7 grains lighter  . Now the 270 has 160 grian bullets so yes thet's 20 grains lighter but as already pointed out they work just as well  Ole swampman is just missing his meds again 

[Swampman]

One dead elk doesn't prove much.  I went through the sub.-308 phase when I was young and impressionable.  They just didn't do the job like the .308+ calibers.  Those calibers were created to sell new rifles to those who didn't need a new rifle.  I don't mind buying one to get the action, stock, and other bits.

Anyway Remington makes several great (and great looking)all weather rifles.

[rickt300]

Well if your going to lump in the 7MM's then thousands of elk are killed every year with 270's and 7MM Remington magnums, I guess that doesn't prove anything either.

[Swampman]

The 7mm Mag is almost as good as the .30-06 if you can get it to handle heavy bullets & get the bullets to remain in one piece.  You get quite a bit more recoil for nothing.  Magnums are unnecessary in North America.

[wareagleguy]

Did you know that the velocity of a 150 gr 30/06 and 150gr of a 270 are the same?  According to Hornady the two are exactly the same.  This would hold true to any weight that is the same.

[Swampman]

As is the recoil.

Why carry an ineffective rifle of the same weight, size, & recoil?

The .270 didn't & doesn't make sense.

It was invented to sell new rifles & it did.

[bilmac]

I would agree that an o6 is a better elk killer. But for every elk shot I shoot 4 or 5 deer and antelope. A lot of these are shot just for the meat. 30s are quite a bit harder on them than my 270 with 110gr bullets. I have an 06 in the closet but I have way more faith in my 270 with 150s that I shoot all the time.

[Swampman]

Faith in what you use is very important.  I have zero faith in the .270, that's why I won't own one.

[mcwoodduck]

I use Boeshield T-9.  You can get it at boating stores and airports.  It's a spray wax that was designed for leading edges of airplanes to keep the wings from icing.  I have used it in hot weather and cold and it works well and makes wood stocks shine and look new.
Also works well to keep the guns from rusting in humid areas.

[Swampman]

http://www.nrapublications.org/TAH/RemXCR.asp

[Mr. Joe]

Just got off the phone with a outfitter in CO. and they said that a 7mm-08 would do splendidly out to 300 yards or so with good shot placement and a proper bullet.  Neither acted like the cartridge was a stretch either.  Looks like the biggest problem im going to have is going to be money on the guide!

  I have to say swap...a man by the name of Jack Oconner has proven you wrong time and time again.  Use what you like, but allow others to do the same. 

[Mr. Joe]

The 7mm Mag is almost as good as the .30-06 if you can get it to handle heavy bullets & get the bullets to remain in one piece.  You get quite a bit more recoil for nothing.  Magnums are unnecessary in North America.

Hmm, i push 175s @3050 over my chronograph with a load recommended by Rick Jammison in one of his many handloading articles.  Like to see a 30-06 do that. 

The fact that you just discounted the 7 mag and the .270 leads me to strongly question any experience you have with anything other than a .30-06.  I hate to break it to you, but just because you have one, doesn't make it the best. 

[Swampman]

Just got off the phone with a outfitter in CO. and they said that a 7mm-08 would do splendidly out to 300 yards or so with good shot placement and a proper bullet.  Neither acted like the cartridge was a stretch either.  Looks like the biggest problem im going to have is going to be money on the guide!

  I have to say swap...a man by the name of Jack Oconner has proven you wrong time and time again.  Use what you like, but allow others to do the same. 

Jack was a great salesman.  I'm sure Winchester paid him well.