Rifle advice needed

[ilmostro99]

Hey all, looking for a few recommendations on rifles.
Here is the situation:
We live on the central Oregon coast and are moving to a house on a lake - very remote location. House has access to a community boat dock, that I apparently will be the only one using (boat reference ).
Lots and lots of critters in the area - Black Bear, Cougar, Elk, etc. etc.
I have a 2 year old and a 5 year old. I need a little protection in case the bears, cougars start to become a problem. I'm not being paranoid, just prepared; they have had to dispose of 15 bear in our town already this year. We had a bit of a rough winter and spring berries are minimal, so they are scouring for food.
I have quite a bit of gun experience - Been around guns my whole life, Hunting, Target shooting, and law enforcement experience. I have 3 pistols and a 20 Gauge shotgun already.
Looking for something that can deal with troublesome bears/cougars, but that I can also take Elk/Deer hunting.
I am leaning towards a Win. 300 Mag., but would like some advice from the crew here.
Any sharing of experience with make/caliber is appreciated.
Thanks,
Erik
Please, no anti-gun rants. I don't want to start a thread war.

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Rifle advice needed

Hello fellow Coastal Oregonian!

A 300 Mag would for sure do the job, but you can arm yourself cheaper and nearly as well with a 30-06! You would be hard pressed finding a caliber that will do what you want it to in the Oregon area. You can buy rounds that will get you from varmit shooting to big game like elk!

Bear are for sure hard to stop with any caliber so do not let them get too close before you have to shoot. Don't leave food stuff out. Or for that matter in garbage cans in your garage, they will tear the door off your garage. No BarBq's either as they will smell of food! Buy a garbage disposal and use it. Take garbage with you to town every trip and dispose of it. Use your head! Get a Dog! These little Black bears are no joke, They are very dangerous when they are hungry!

 

[fdmsiv]

Re: Rifle advice needed

After my father passed away, we took his rifles out to the range to decide which ones to keep and which ones to let go. He has some modern hunting rifles along with some WWII rifles, just about all of them in the .30 cal range

By far the best I shot was the Mauser 98k. It accuracy with just the iron sights was unbelievable. It was a little heavy, but the added mass damped out some of the kick which was very minimal to say the least. This rifle was more than 60yrs old, but was a pleasure to shoot. There are plenty of them out there in the $300 ~ $500 range. I haven't taken it hunting, so I don't know about the stopping power, but I imagine that it would make a bear think twice. We have been to a couple of other ranges with it, and people always stop to ask about it. Down here you can get the 8mm Mauser rounds at Academy Sports (box chain store) so it is pretty easy to get.

The modern 30-06 we shot seemed to be light weight enough to easily carry around all day, but would kick like a mule. There was a British .303 jungle carbine that I thought would take my arm off. I was more worried about bracing myself for the recoil then concentrating on what I was shooting at.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Rifle advice needed

Two guns.....

The 300 Win Mag is good but IMO the 30-06 has a bit more versitility.

The other gun should be a 12 Ga shotgun loaded with slugs..... a nice auto or a pump but something with extra shot capability. They can be had cheap and work great...... you can even use it for home defense easier than a big game rifle.

 

[patrickray]

Re: Rifle advice needed

I like the 30-06 as well as the 308. Both have plenty of stoping power.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Rifle advice needed

If you can pick up a Remington autoloader in 30-06 they are short and very quick to handle.

I am of the opinion that a protection rifle is only useful when you are warned and it is needed. I get bears and coyotes here too but normally they flee when sighted. I have gone out in the middle of the night with my handgun and fired into the hillside to scatter a pack of coyotes. I am a hunter and appreciate seeing game around.

 

[i386]

Re: Rifle advice needed

Remington model 700 BDL or CDL 30-06. I prefer the .243 but there are no bears here. Gotta pick the right tool for the job. Good luck and let's hope you never need to use it in an emergency.

 

[gstanton]

Re: Rifle advice needed

I have a 12 ga. single shot and a 20 ga with (3)clip and a range of slugs to #7 shot. I'm thinkin of picking up a .22 pistol ( rabies, squirrels, skunks, coons) and a "big" pistol (bear mostly... and... well... intruders) just to be ready to go in a second. Quit hunting years ago and just not comfortable that I can still load and be accurate with a rifle, in a hurry.

Having said that, there was a time that our daughter might have considered suicide. That concept frightens me more than any critter or intruder.

Kids know where it is and can figure out how to load/unlock it.

 

[fishmen111]

Re: Rifle advice needed

If you can pick up a Remington autoloader in 30-06 they are short and very quick to handle.

I agree. I have an older 7400 Remington in 30/06 with a couple of 10 round clips. It will not shoot 2" groups, but it will unleash a whole heap of muzzle energy in a very short time.

 

[guy74]

Re: Rifle advice needed

If you can pick up a Remington autoloader in 30-06 they are short and very quick to handle.

That would be my suggestion for a rifle for your needs, lets face it, your talking about a "combat" type of situation not a sporting situation. A bolt action rifle would be too slow, you might not have much warning and will need firepowerin the number of shots, you may not have time for a well placed shot. My Barrett M82 would work good, if you wanted to carry a 50lb gun.

 

[fishmen111]

Re: Rifle advice needed

... just not comfortable that I can still load and be accurate with a rifle, in a hurry.

I suggest a 12 gauge 3 1/2" mag pump with 18" barrel and alternately loaded #4 and 000 buckshot. Devastating short range weapon.

 

[Pierutrus]

Re: Rifle advice needed

30-30 Winchester with a 357 side arm....
Done.

 

[NW Redneck]

Re: Rifle advice needed

For protection AND hunting duties a 30-06 semi-auto as mentioned above would do well. Another one to consider is a 45-70 lever action such as the Marlin guide gun. If you handload or are willing to learn, I would lean towards the 45-70. They can be loaded from mild to wild with a selection of bullets from cast to jacketed, and levers are almost as fast as a semi with some practice. Nice to carry around too, especially with the 18-20" bbl. I would definitely prefer the stopping power of the 45 over the .30 cal, and it is still a good 200-250yd hunting rifle. Both bears and elk can soak up alot of lead if their dander is up, or the shot is not quite perfect so my choice would be the 'bigger is better' approach. No matter what you get, being proficient with your weapon of choice will make a bigger difference than the caliber. (to a point-I wouldn't want to try and thread a .204 ruger up a charging bear's nose! ) Just my .02.

 

[Nandy]

Re: Rifle advice needed

I would use what most Alaskan guides use. A shotgun. The 30-06 is a great all around rifle that you could use with a problem bear that you might ambush. But if you are the one ambushed, that 12 ga is the ticket.

 

[JB]

Re: Rifle advice needed

I think like NWRedneck.

A defense situation is close range and it takes a lot of energy to fix a big animal in position. I don't see High velocity .30 calibers doing that reliably.

My first choice as a short range bear stopper would be a 12ga. slug. Second choice handloaded .45-70-500 or .45-70-405. The .45-70 can be loaded with 350 or even 300 grain for a woods deer/elk. Winchester and Browning have offered repros of the wonderful 1886 and Marlin has several models in .45-70. I think my choice would be a Browning 1885 or Ruger #1 that can be loaded with pointy bullets, but you really have to be able to make one shot count.

Handgun? Make sure you have a .44 Mag or .45 acp. Again short range, big bullet. I used to load my .45-70 with 250 grain .45 acp bullets for plinking and varmints.

 

[xxxflhrci]

Re: Rifle advice needed

You are talking about two different uses and really need two different guns.

I'd get a 12 gauge for protection of home and family from bears, cougars, and thugs. You can get a Maverick 88 for under 200 bucks. They are simply a Mossberg 500 with a different safety.

http://www.maverickarms.com/pages/88security.htm

Then, get whatever 300/'06 rifle that turns you on for hunting. Personally, I prefer a Remington 700.

 

[aspeck]

Re: Rifle advice needed

To me it sounds like a good excuse ... "Honey, I need some added protection for you and the kids. That is why I need this Ruger SuperBlack Hawk .44, the Glock 9mm, the Taurus Judge, a new Model 12 3" mag 12 ga., a Model 70 30-06, a 300 mag, oh, and while I am at it, how about a .257 Weatherby Mag, and a .45-70 lever action. A nice H&H side-by-side wouldn't be a bad addition to the protection that needs to be done around here. Yes dear, that is all that is needed ... THIS YEAR!"

 

[xxxflhrci]

Re: Rifle advice needed

Then, you need something to keep 'em in. I prefer a shiny black 24 gun model for the living room and a more subtle black black 42 gun model for the den.

 

[BillP]

Re: Rifle advice needed

Being I live in Florida, I've never shot bears and really don't know what it takes to drop one. The brown ones that visited our camp site when hiking 20 mi out in the boonies in a CA nat park were rather scarey though. My first thoughts are the same as yours...300 Win Mag or 30-06. I'm not an autoloader type guy but with hot handloads an autoloading 30-06 would be hard to beat for quick multiple shots at range...but it IS an autoloader and I'd be darn sure to know what ammo it liked before using it in life saving situations.

A shotgun would be ok if you plan on letting them get up close and personal first. If he's coming though the front door I'd say short barrel shotgun, buckshot and headshots.

For ease of carry around the yard I'd probably do a 44mag (maybe a DA Ruger Redhawk) or 454 Casull with seriously hot and heavy handloads.

Like said already, placement of the shot is really the important part. Hitting a charging bear in the head or body with any rifle is going to be artful. You may want to also consider putting a few each of different type bullets in the same gun to deliver bone smashing penetration and shock type mushrooming.

 

[portagee]

Re: Rifle advice needed

My preference would be a 30/06 Ruger MK II with a 2X7 scope. The Ruger has controlled round feeding with a simple ejector and a strong extractor that shouldn't let you down. Being a bolt gun it is easy to clean and storing the bolt seperately effectively disarms the weapon around the kids. I live in SW Idaho and when out and about where I might run into critters that want to bite, stomp or claw I carry a Ruger Blackhawk 41 mag with a 4 5/8 in. long barrel. The 41 mag is a good compromise in power and portability. If you want a beater rifle a surplus VZ 24 Mauser in 8MM would have enough power to handle black bear, cougar or 2 legged beasts and later on you could have it rebored to 8mm/06 (a reloading proposition) or slip a 35 Whelen barrel on it. Norma produces ammo that breathes new life into the old Mauser. A 45/70 lever gun is never a bad idea unless shooting across canyons at Mr. Elk is in the plans. Browse around the forums at 24 hr Campfire.com for more ideas/info.