The rifles you buy when you're young and stupid

[Cossack]

My considerable yrs of being ridden hard and put away wet, not to mention a "football shoulder" finally led me to a Kimber Montana in 7/08 this past year. It weighs 6.5 lbs looded, scoped with Leupold 1.75-6 VX III and sling, 22" barrel, McMillen stock, controlled round feed and entirely stainless. Loaded with Barnes 140 TSX and Varget it gets 2950 fps. Recoil is not an issue. It's my current deer gun but would not hesitate using it on the "blue moon elk" with that load. Can't wait to work up 120 TSX's, shoud be pperfect for 'lopes.
Only problem: couldn't part with the 6/284, 260 Rem (handgun), 284 Win, and 280 Rem to make room for it. Since admitting I'm not so much a gun collector as a gun gatherer I no longer feel the need to justify the ones I keep. It's the ones I traded but should not have that give me fits.

[Builder45]

Mills I am in the same boat I too have one of the superfast 30s except it is a wildcat that not alot of people know about. I am currently having a browning a-bolt rechambered to 30-06 ackley. The regular 06 is just fine but I may be taking the rifle to Africa in April if it finished in time for plains game so I figured for bigger game the extra punch couldnt hurt. My reason in this is so I could go just about anywhere and get ammo for the 06. My big super whomping 30 is useless if I forget my ammo.

Worst case scenario I will have my big 30 rebarreled (again) to .458 Lott that way I can use the old 458 win mag and find ammo pretty easily, in africa at least. So I feel your pain brother. May it work out for the best. Builder45

[earschplitinloudenboomer]

Mills;
I have been where you are. Looking through these posts, I saw some very good advice. The one thing I would share with you...you probably will not get any younger or healthier, in a few scant years, not only will the weight of a rifle make a difference, the recoil will become more noticable. Some of the suggestions are of lightweight rifles approaching magnum performance, they don't do that gently. I suggest you keep one of your present rifles and use the other as a means to something a little more user friendly. Standard 30-06 really can't be beat, however, I opted for 7X57. I am very happy with that round. You may want to talk to some of your hunting buddies, maybe a group session at the range would turn up some good ideas. Actually shooting a different rifle/calibre is the best way to form an impression of it.

[Lycanthrope]

Disregard...reading too many posts at once.

[JBD]

You will come out better selling your rifles yourself rather than trading. I do it all the time. My best friend used to have an FFL and we ordered guns of all types almost weekly, shot them a while, and then sold them and bought something else. I don't turn them over so much now but still five or six a year. A few will stick but I don't get sentimental about any firearm though I have sold a few I wish I still had. Anyway, take them to a gun show, make your shooting friends a deal, or advertise them through Shotgun News. Last rifle I sold was a Classic Model 70 Super Grade in .270 about three weeks ago and it took one phone call to a shooting friend. Be realistic about the price and you can move your stuff pretty quick.

[Mills]

I sold the STW...moved it on GunsAmerica.com. Got exactly what I wanted out of it.

Going to use the funds to build a .280 Ackley. Gunsmith I'm talking to recommends a Rem 700 action, Lilja barrel (#3) and a Borden (used to be Rimrock) stock. Think I'm going to put a Leupold VX-III 2.5-8x36 with a Boone & Crocket reticle on it. Hopefully, that will be my "one & only" rifle...at least until I'm 50.

I'm currently in search of a BDL action...

Oh yeah, could use the action from the .25-06 Senderro, but won't. It's such a great caliber and Rem doesn't make em anymore. My son is 10 and that will be a great rifle for him.

Mills

[Evan03]

mills

i think your money would be better spend on the 3-9x40 vxII. i also think a #3 tube calls for more glass, because its not by any means a mtn rifle set up. with with moderate glass and fluted #3 or 4 it would be pretty close and still more than likly shoot better than pencil thin light weight barrell.

["yote"]

Keep the glass and sell the 2 rifles for the most that you can get.
Find a dealer that you trust or sell them to another party. You should be able to get enough out of them to buy yourself a nice semi-custom 30-06. Put that Zeis glass on it then you will have a go-anywhere, shoot most anything rifle. Find a good "smith" that you like and use the money to build a good "06" that you will like.

[Lilred]

I've always been bass-ackwards..it wont the stupid guns I bought when I was younger..somehow I managed to find awesome guns that was worth quite a bit and bought em for lil er nuthin when i was young...dummy always went and traded em fer somthin else ..but I wont all stupid..some I did keep. Unfortunatley in the state of VA, when ya git a dee-vorce..wether ya had it since you was 25 or 5..it gits split right down the middle. And in 1 week, my gun collection was down to nothin.

So..I was just stupid all the way round I reckon...

[Cal Sibley]

I used to be young and stupid. Now I guess I'm old and stupid because I'm still buying bolt action rifles that require glass bedding, barrel floating and trigger work to make then shoot as well as my guns from the '80s. That's adding about $200-250 to the cost of each rifle. Total that up for about 15 rifles, and momma and I could have taken a nice trip somewhere warm in the winter. It looks like stupid might be a lifetime affliction. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

[Evan03]

am i the only lucky one???????/

every rifle i have right now is plenty good enough for me right out of the box. pushing trigger tuneing aside i guess you could say.

vs sf will shoot better than i can

2506 walnut ruger will also outshoot me. its not bedding or anything and i dont plan to touch it at al.

27 shoots not quite as good as the above mentioned to but it shoots plenty good for deer and elk hunting out to 300yds.

ruger 22/250 vt that one suprised me. its 24 years old ans still shooting very very good. but someones already glass bedded it before i got it.

my 270win rerm 700 shoots facotry ammo not quite as good as the wsm but shoot good enough for bout 7 bucks and one bull elk

ruger vt 220 swift shot freakn good. but i let that one go wish i wouldnt have. it was untouched.

rem adl 204 shot some very nice groups the short while i had it. i adjusted its triger and free floated the barrel. so i guess i cant exackly say its out of the box acurate. id also like this rifle back.

out of those rifles ive yet to find one that wont shoot, with very little work envolved and no cash spent. i havent had to bed anything except for my 17hmr that the stock i bought didnt fit quite right so i used glass bedding to tightn everything up. even it shoots very good with the facotry barrel and stock.

thats bout it

Evan