Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins
Phil Shoemaker, a Master Guide in Alaska, is on record as saying he would happily hunt the biggest bears in the land with his .30-'06. Mr. Shoemaker "gets it". Shot placement is far more important than caliber. No .300 wonder mag will ever make up for that. Too many that use them believe that they will, and wind up taking risky or poor shots with them
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I agree with this entirely, however, sometimes due to target aspect you need a caliber that can get through the thickest bones/hide on an animal and still get into the vitals. Will a .30-30 even penetrate the skull of a grizzly if it charges? (Charges do happen, even white tail will charge sometimes after they get shot)
A .30-06 is a damn fine weapon, and many people are of the opinion that it is sufficient to hunt any animal in N.America, and it is-
if everything goes right.
You can probably kill a Grizzly with a .22 WMR if you get the right shot. If you're a great stalker, you could probably even kill a bunch of them with a .22 WMR. But if something goes wrong...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins
I have never expressed any desire to use too little weapon.
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Never meant to imply that you did.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins
I was simply pointing out what others use, and how effective they are with their choice of weapons. I regularly hunt with the .375 H&H, .45-70 with my heavy hand loads, and the .458 Winchester Magnum.
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Those seem like damn good choices to me.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins
Alas, I also use calibers that guys like you would deem "inadequate", like the .30-30, 6.5 Swede (my favorite, actually), and round ball muzzle loaders. When used properly, all kill quickly and humanely, regardless the size of the animal. When we take the time to hunt them, and have the patience to wait for that one sure shot.
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"Guys like me" include the State game commissions of all 50 states that set minimum legal caliber requirements for the hunting of large game. I've hunted dear with .30-30 several times- it's a great caliber, especially in the terrain where i live, but i definitely would not choose that caliber to hunt Grizzly's with or to hunt on the open western plains with. I seriously, seriously doubt you would either. Then again i could just ask you- would you hunt grizzly with a .30-30?
Muzzle loaders due to their huge calibers are not really comparable to modern high velocity rifles IMO. Different animals entirely.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins
When used properly, all kill quickly and humanely, regardless the size of the animal. When we take the time to hunt them, and have the patience to wait for that one sure shot.
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When all goes well. If you get a bit of bad luck or a untimely wind gust or an errant branch in your way(which is a huge consideration here in Pa), it can totally ruin an otherwise perfectly good shot, causing a wound or even an outright miss. 99% of the time that just means the animal gets away. But with a large predatory animal like a bear, if you don't have more shots, things can get very ugly very quickly.
My point is that Murphy is alive and well and he is a hunter. So plan accordingly.
As far as you and your knowledge, i think you definitely know what you're talking about in all things gun. 90+% of the time i agree with your gun points entirely. In the time i've been posting here i think the only time we ever disagreed on anything gun related prior to this was the JHP vs Cast bullet conversation.
Still, even among people with dozens of years of experience opinions will vary, and often greatly.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Danimal16
Sniper,
I think you have made your point (about) RPEKSQ
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Roger that bro. He's back on ignore now. I should have never taken him off ignore to begin with.