TLDR at bottom.
I am in the market for two new rifles - one for myself and one for my wife. We both hunt deer and elk every year in CO and antelope when we can get tags. We currently share a Savage 12FV in 6.5 creedmoor which has served us just fine for our purposes but it is heavy (10.4 lbs scoped), long, unbalanced, and not a pleasure to haul around the woods (especially for my wife). I picked it up a few years ago on a great black Friday deal at Cabelas and for what it is and what I paid for it, it has been great, but now that we're in a different phase in life and have the ability to invest in something new for each of us. I have gone round and round with ideas of trying to modify the 12FV to be what we'd like it to be and keep coming back to the conclusion that I would be throwing good money at bad. With that, I am set on keeping it as a dedicated range/coyote gun.
My ambition is that both of our setups will ultimately be suppressed in the coming years, but we would hunt the immediate couple years unsuppressed. Compared to other rifles my wife has shot in the past my wife loves the recoil (or lack there of) of our current 6.5 creedmoor (reminder that it is 10.4 lbs). I started out hunting with an old 3006 which helped me successfully develop a flinch and after shooting the 6.5 I am pretty set on something with a fairly light recoil as well.
I would plan to keep shots under 500 yards, she would keep shots under 400 yards. The more research I do the less difference there seems to be between calibers under 500 yards. The more people I talk to that I know personally that have shot the most critters seem to fall in the 25-06/7mm-08/6.5CM camp, so I'm fairly sold on these calibers (or similar), at least for my wife. I am interested in stepping up a bit for my setup with the idea that once it is suppressed it would have tolerable recoil for my wife (thinking 6.5 PRC/7PRC/270) and give a little more confidence at longer ranges on elk.
I am fairly certain the most reasonable approach would be for us to each end up with Tikka Lites, or at least something in a similar weight class, recognizing that the felt recoil (unsuppressed) would be affected by this.
TLDR:
-Two rifles, each rifle will be used for antelope/deer/elk. Up to 400 yards for hers, up to 500 yards for mine
-Both on the lighter recoil spectrum, this being more important for hers than mine
-The plan to cut and thread barrels to use suppressed down the road. 20" +/-. If this meant her gun would no longer be an elk gun out to 400 yards that would be fine as she could use mine (suppressed).
-"Relatively" lightweight - thinking 8 lbs scoped max. Would prefer lighter if recoil was manageable. Maybe a heavier setup for her would be justified to help with recoil?
-Given sensitivity to sound and my inability to use ear plugs in the heat of the moment, I am not interested in a break for either gun
-Factory ammo. The idea of handloading sounds great, but realistically not something I see picking up until the kids are out of the house (15 years from now)
-We already own a 6.5 CM that would be a dedicated range gun. This provides a cheap option for practice if we ended up with a more expensive caliber to shoot
-I am not really looking for a "youth" or "compact" model for her setup as I like the idea of either of us being able to use either gun at any time. The adjustable LOP and comb stocks seem very intriguing but come at enough of a weight penalty that I think they are out.
Calibers I am considering:
Hers
25-06: Pros: Seems like a slam dunk ballistically. Cons: Ammo is pricier/hard to find. Seems like a poor candidate for a barrel chop.
7mm-08: Pros: seems ballistically superiors to the 6.5 CM under 400 yards (or very close match) Ammo seems similarly priced. Cons: Ammo is harder to find
6.5 CM: Pros: Already have one so I could share ammo with the range gun. She as been happy with the one we have. Ammo is cheap and readily available. Cons: Already have one - something additional/different is appealing.
Mine:
6.5 PRC: Pros: seems to be a nice step up from the 6.5 CM with minimal recoil. Cons: Too small of a step up from 6.5 CM? Ammo price and availability.
7 PRC: Pros: same as above. Cons: Same as above. Recoil?
270 WIN: Pros: Ammo price and availability. Under 500 yards, would I notice any significant difference in this and the two PRC calibers mentioned above? Cons: Recoil? From research I think this would recoil more than the 6.5 PRC for similar ballistics. Unsure compared to the 7 PRC.
Am I way too far down the rabbit hole on this? Am I slitting hairs between any of these calibers given the 400/500 yard limit?
Apologies in advance for another "which rifle" thread, but some real world input/comparison on those that own above mentioned calibers would be very helpful.
I am in the market for two new rifles - one for myself and one for my wife. We both hunt deer and elk every year in CO and antelope when we can get tags. We currently share a Savage 12FV in 6.5 creedmoor which has served us just fine for our purposes but it is heavy (10.4 lbs scoped), long, unbalanced, and not a pleasure to haul around the woods (especially for my wife). I picked it up a few years ago on a great black Friday deal at Cabelas and for what it is and what I paid for it, it has been great, but now that we're in a different phase in life and have the ability to invest in something new for each of us. I have gone round and round with ideas of trying to modify the 12FV to be what we'd like it to be and keep coming back to the conclusion that I would be throwing good money at bad. With that, I am set on keeping it as a dedicated range/coyote gun.
My ambition is that both of our setups will ultimately be suppressed in the coming years, but we would hunt the immediate couple years unsuppressed. Compared to other rifles my wife has shot in the past my wife loves the recoil (or lack there of) of our current 6.5 creedmoor (reminder that it is 10.4 lbs). I started out hunting with an old 3006 which helped me successfully develop a flinch and after shooting the 6.5 I am pretty set on something with a fairly light recoil as well.
I would plan to keep shots under 500 yards, she would keep shots under 400 yards. The more research I do the less difference there seems to be between calibers under 500 yards. The more people I talk to that I know personally that have shot the most critters seem to fall in the 25-06/7mm-08/6.5CM camp, so I'm fairly sold on these calibers (or similar), at least for my wife. I am interested in stepping up a bit for my setup with the idea that once it is suppressed it would have tolerable recoil for my wife (thinking 6.5 PRC/7PRC/270) and give a little more confidence at longer ranges on elk.
I am fairly certain the most reasonable approach would be for us to each end up with Tikka Lites, or at least something in a similar weight class, recognizing that the felt recoil (unsuppressed) would be affected by this.
TLDR:
-Two rifles, each rifle will be used for antelope/deer/elk. Up to 400 yards for hers, up to 500 yards for mine
-Both on the lighter recoil spectrum, this being more important for hers than mine
-The plan to cut and thread barrels to use suppressed down the road. 20" +/-. If this meant her gun would no longer be an elk gun out to 400 yards that would be fine as she could use mine (suppressed).
-"Relatively" lightweight - thinking 8 lbs scoped max. Would prefer lighter if recoil was manageable. Maybe a heavier setup for her would be justified to help with recoil?
-Given sensitivity to sound and my inability to use ear plugs in the heat of the moment, I am not interested in a break for either gun
-Factory ammo. The idea of handloading sounds great, but realistically not something I see picking up until the kids are out of the house (15 years from now)
-We already own a 6.5 CM that would be a dedicated range gun. This provides a cheap option for practice if we ended up with a more expensive caliber to shoot
-I am not really looking for a "youth" or "compact" model for her setup as I like the idea of either of us being able to use either gun at any time. The adjustable LOP and comb stocks seem very intriguing but come at enough of a weight penalty that I think they are out.
Calibers I am considering:
Hers
25-06: Pros: Seems like a slam dunk ballistically. Cons: Ammo is pricier/hard to find. Seems like a poor candidate for a barrel chop.
7mm-08: Pros: seems ballistically superiors to the 6.5 CM under 400 yards (or very close match) Ammo seems similarly priced. Cons: Ammo is harder to find
6.5 CM: Pros: Already have one so I could share ammo with the range gun. She as been happy with the one we have. Ammo is cheap and readily available. Cons: Already have one - something additional/different is appealing.
Mine:
6.5 PRC: Pros: seems to be a nice step up from the 6.5 CM with minimal recoil. Cons: Too small of a step up from 6.5 CM? Ammo price and availability.
7 PRC: Pros: same as above. Cons: Same as above. Recoil?
270 WIN: Pros: Ammo price and availability. Under 500 yards, would I notice any significant difference in this and the two PRC calibers mentioned above? Cons: Recoil? From research I think this would recoil more than the 6.5 PRC for similar ballistics. Unsure compared to the 7 PRC.
Am I way too far down the rabbit hole on this? Am I slitting hairs between any of these calibers given the 400/500 yard limit?
Apologies in advance for another "which rifle" thread, but some real world input/comparison on those that own above mentioned calibers would be very helpful.
