Handsome Rob

Well, either my GSR sucks like a $2 hooker, it's SUPER picky about ammo, or I just flat out can't shoot anymore. I tried Hornady & Armscor 55gn, green tip & Federal Fusion 62gn & Prvi 75gn match. My best 100yd 5 shot group out of that lot was 2½" I've tried other factory loads in the past & I've not found anything yet that this damn thing likes :(

Mines a 1942EG in .300 Beautiful gun, but a bear to work up a load for. It took me the better part of a year to figure it out!

It's just a little long for a woods gun & it's scoped way more than I would need for sub-100yd shots.

Skadoosh.... ;)

You got me! Yeah, that's pretty much my line of thought. I was just trying to figure out what I need to buy, before I plunk down a load of hard-earned. I'm as interested in accuracy as I am in weight.

Yeah, I know it's been done to death. And as much as it has, I can't find the actual answer, anywhere, that I'm after. I have a 1:8 twist .223 I know it will stabilise pretty much any bullet weight from 40gn to 80gn but I really want to know what weight it will stabilise best. My brain is saying sound 62-64gn, but I don't trust my brain. The sneaky bastard's let me down before. I'm limited to factory ammo right now & I'm looking at premium stuff, not green tip/fmj surplus. Oh, barrel length is 16½" in a bolt gun.

Dude, that's awesome! Sorry I couldn't be there :(

I'm starting to feel a little hot & bothered here....

lmao! It's a Savage 110 action. I traded an old crapper 30-06 Savage for a .22 I wasn't shooting much. The no-name barrel came from eBay for under $200. It's 25" 1¼" bull profile with a 1:11 twist. I polished & tuned the factory trigger to break at 1¼lb The extended bolt handle was $45 from some place I found in Florida. It's sitting in a Choate tactical stock with a home made Kydex cheek riser, 3lb of lead + ½lb of rice crammed up it's arse. The bipod is a Blackhawk until I can afford a Harris EGW 20Moa scope base. Oh, and a single shot tray from midway. Overall weight is right on 20 pounds with this scope. The scope is a Nikko Sterling, but will be replaced tomorrow with a Vortex Crossfire 4-12x50 & when it finally comes into stock with a Vortex Viper PST FFP 6-24x50 with MRAD reticle & matched turrets. That cost more than the freaking gun! When I'm done, it'll be a completely different caliber. I have a 6.5x55, 30" 1:8 stainless barrel on order with McGowen, but I was interested to see what I could do with a really cheap gun. I mounted & headspaced the barrel myself (I used a full length resized piece of brass as my 'go' gauge & stuck a piece of scotch tape over the case head as my 'No go' It sounds a bit shoddy, but actually gives a tighter tolerance than the Foster gauges. I'm still working up target loads, but Sierra Match King 175gn, seated 15 thou of the lands at around 2750fps are looking promising. Sub ½" at 100yds. I haven't shot it enough & the scope isn't near good enough to warrant stretching it's legs out past 300 & at that range the scope is so hazy that I couldn't hold a 5" group. I could barely make out the 6" target I was shooting at!

Oh my! I thought my 300s were big! Do you have any load data for those rascals, preferably with 2400?

Oh, I'm fully aware that any & every gun listed will be up to the job. It's just picking the right tool, so to speak. I'm beginning to think that there's no real wrong answer here! My shooting test kinda ruled out the .30-30 due to the stiff action (honestly, built in 1953 & I'd be amazed if it's seen 100 rounds!) & the .45-70 due to recoil & my inability to get back on target quickly. I'm now definitely 50/50 between the Rossi & the Ruger. I may have to take both. One for Saturday, one for Sunday & in case I'm not happy with the performance of Saturday's gun!

Chris, I'm more concerned about the meat than anything. I've done a ton of research in the last 24hrs, & I'm starting to lean very heavily toward the .223. Federal Fusion MSR ammo is getting spectacular reviews from hog hunters all over the country. 62gn bullets & designed specifically for 16-18" barrels, where most ammo is designed for best performance out of 22-24". I keep reading the words "lung soup", "jelly", "DRT" & "devastating" I had a quick 'field' practice last night, shooting at 5 coffee cans spaced from 80yds in to 20ish & shooting near to far, as fast as I could, only the Scout & Rossi scored 5 hits in under 10 seconds The 45-70 was devastating, but I could only manage 2 hits in 10 seconds The 44 scored 3 (one would've been a wound) The .30-30 was good for 3 in 10 seconds, but due to a stiff action, I only managed 4 shots. I know that it's probably all six of one, half a dozen of another, but it was a fun test & pretty realistic-ish for a sounder of hogs.

This would be a much simpler issue if I hadn't sold my .35 Lol!

Oh, and to throw another pickle in the pudding..... Ruger Scout in .223. 10 quickish shots with hardly any recoil & a forward mounted 2 power scope. Not too sure about a little bitty 77gn bullet though. I've never killed anything with a gun that didn't start with at least a '3' I know I can buy partitions for it, but I'd have to BUY partitions for it.

Tryin' to catch what now? :D

The big thumper was honestly my first knee-jerk thought, but I'm not sure whether the scope will be a help or a hindrance in thick dark woods. I've not seen the ground yet, but I know hogs & where they like to be. I'm definitely more accurate with it, but I ain't quick & if previous encounters are anything to go by, I'd expect to be jumping groups of 4+ small pigs during the day. Chances of a biggun would be slim.

Before.... After.... It's actually one of my favorite firearms. It's not too accurate, really loud, kicks like a mule & has low capacity, but it carries & handles soooo well!

My .44 is a long way of standard! As original with the 20" barrel it was an absolute tack driver. But I cut it down to 16". Like a dick. If you have the chance at one, grab it & hold on to it!

Don't laugh at me... I've been hog hunting for years. Texas, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, I've hunted & killed hogs pretty well east to West....with a bow. I'm going on my first gun hunt for them on Memorial day weekend at a friend's place in central Alabama. This isn't really a fun or trophy hunt, this'll be a straight up killing. Early morning & evening we're going to be shooting over bait at 100-300yds & I've got my scoped .308 sighted, loaded & ready for that part. No worries on that side at all. What I'm in a quandary over is that during the day my bud's going to be at work & I'll be left to spot & stalk them in their beds in thick pines & briars. I have 4 options to carry along with my .44 pistol): A) Rossi lever acton .45lc B) Marlin 1895 .47-70 C) Marlin 336 .30-30 D) Marlin 336 .44mag Here's my train of thought. The Rossi has a 24" octagonal barrel, iron sights, 15 shots & is loaded with 300gn hardcast, pushed as hot as safely possible. It'll drill a 2" group at 100yds & is heavy enough that backup shots are quick, but it's heavy to carry & I've not killed anything so just don't know how well the bullets perform. The 1895 is scoped with a fixed 4 power. It's short & handy & is about the most accurate 100yd & under gun I own. It pushes a 350gn round & will put 5 of them into one hole. However the recoil is brisk so a follow up isn't likely, however it shouldn't be needed. It is heavy though & only holds 5 The .30-30 is light, has a Williams peep & is Uber accurate. Fast follow ups are simple & accurate, but it's an old 'A' model with the long 24" barrel & only holds 5 rounds. It also prefers the 160gn gummy tips which I would say are maybe not my first ammo choice for hogs. Lastly the .44 is super light. At 4½ pounds it's a pleasure to carry. It's 'OK' accurate, 4" at 100 is about normal with the primitive irons. It only holds 5 rounds of 44mag, but follow up shots are quick & easy. It's really, really loud & actually hurts to shoot without protection. I'm not expecting any monster pigs, average is probably the usual 60-130 pounds sows & shoats so no shield busting is expected, but you never know. I'm guessing in the thick stuff my average shot distance to be under 50yds, but again...never say never, right? I'm leaning heavily towards the Rossi. On paper the ammo should be fine, but I've not seen it work in person, other than on the range. What would y'all do???

Just out of interest, I put this together for right around $700 + scope (it's wearing a cheap crapper in the pic) . . .

Not for me thanks! When I was looking for a Scout Rifle I looked at the MVP patrol & it felt like it was made out of the parts-bin castoffs. It put me off Mossberg for life. If you shop around, you can build a custom long range gun off a savage action for well under that price!

Check out pawn shops for older Stevens 200s & Savage 110s too. What're you wanting to build?

Bollocks. Forgot to add the distance from the tip to the ogive. These 122hr work weeks'll do that!

Confused: I just measured the camber length, bolt face to lands, on my .308 & I come up with a measurement of 2.5715" Every manual, website & discussion I can find offers a 'standard' OAL of 2.8" I was trying to figure out an OAL that would put me .0010 off the lands. Do I have an unusually short chamber? I set my headspace with a full length sized cartridge so that there is slight resistance as the bolt cams over. A piece of scotch tape over the case head stops the bolt closing, so I know that's good. I've been loading to 2.8" and my accuracy wasn't what I expected, although I've not started on development yet. I have no idea of the make of barrel, it was an eBay special.