So Glad That I Tried Different Rifle Cartridges & Loads!

Guy Miner

Master Loader
Apr 6, 2006
18,129
7,821
The simple approach appeals to me. One rifle, one load, use it for pretty much everything! Love it. JY Jones took almost everything in North America with the 165 gr Nosler Partition and his trusty Remington 700 30-06, then bumped up to the 200 gr Partition for a couple of the bigger species.

USMC - everyone was issued a rifle and the same ammo. No advantage to anyone on the firing line for ammo or equipment but we certainly didn't all shoot the same!

Law enforcement - there were variations in firearms, but everyone had the same ammo for either 9mm, 40 or 45 - a bit of an advantage for some guys (like me) who sprang for their own higher quality handgun.

Hunting... My goodness... For years I hunted with one rifle, one shotgun. As time went on and my discretionary income grew modestly, I was able to try several different rifles. Learned to load for them and learned to hunt with them. Learned how to exploit the potential velocity advantage of slow burning powders. Learned to use long, high BC bullets for long range work. Learned that although magnums kick and roar more, I am not so convinced that they kill better overall. Learned that a well placed bullet is the key to quick kills.

It's been a hoot. I've hunted with traditional muzzle loader, only a bit with a revolver. Hoping to add to that over the next few years. Then rifles from 223 & 6mm up through the 30's and then the 375's and a bit with the 45-70 levergun. Lever actions, single shots, bolt actions...

Each rifle and cartridge taught me something useful. I learned to not fear the belt on a belted magnum, it can be worked around easily by a handloader. Quickly learned to love the single shot falling block Ruger. Still treasure the bolt action. For me "controlled round feed" means nothing in practical terms. I have CRF and push feed bolt actions - they all work great.

I've learned that messing much with the overall cartridge length doesn't make any sense in my short action Remington 700's. The mag accepts up to 2.8" and a tiny bit more. After that it becomes a single-load proposition.

Learned that crimping a straight wall case for leverguns is a great idea - and that loading them is much like loading a revolver cartridge. Conversely the crimp has proven pretty much unnecessary with my bolt action rifles - but I did crimp the 375 H&H's for my bolt action Model 70 to help hold those big pills in place during recoil. No reason to crimp them for the single shot Number One.

Learned gradually about mono-metal bullets and that they're not all the same. Learned that Nosler's Partition can be remarkably accurate in addition to the great on-game performance. Learned that the Ballistic Tip has become an excellent all-around choice for a hunting bullet with that heavy base & jacket.

So much more - and although it cost me more money than it would have to stick with one or two rifles for 50+ years of hunting, and I'd have gotten really good with those rifles... I'm glad I experienced all sorts of different cartridges, some of which weren't even available when I started loading and hunting.

Just rambling here I suppose. But it's been an interesting journey. Places like this forum have helped me learn even more as other loaders, shooters, hunters, share their experiences.

Thanks for sharing all your knowledge and info guys! Do you favor one or a few cartridges, loads & rifles for your hunting or do you bounce around a fair bit between cartridges, loads and rifles?

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As a younger man I wanted to try them all. But as wisdom replaced folly, I have tended to find a single “all-around” load in each gun and stick to it.

The guns I prefer are mostly utilitarian choices so that they could with a different bullet be used on different game or for different purposes than usual.

The endless shortages have gotten me to “standardize” so that I can easily acquire guns, ammo or components. I have a few that are obscure but mostly its, .22 LR, .38, .357, .243, .30-06, etc…
 
Delightful, and thought-provoking assessment of hunting/shooting, Guy. I enjoy working with a variety of cartridges and rifles, and this predilection has been permitted through my opportunity to work with a great custom rifle maker here in my home territory.
 
I always enjoy your ramblings and I always have at least two boxes of those same ballistic tips loaded for my 06. The Ar-15 resides in the master bedroom however if there is time or reason to open the safe in a hurry the 06 is the first rifle available, the Benelli right behind it. Behind those is a pretty good collection of #1s, Jarretts, and shotguns. The rifles all shoot under moa thanks to yours and others here information. It has been a hoot getting them to do so.
 
I think you put the nail to the wood with your observations Guy! And yet I can get bored with not having something new to make shoot like Scotty said. But you’re more right than wrong, isn’t usually nailing wood down a lot like hunting…. Use whatever you have to get the job done!?!

Sure, penny nails are not really any good for framing, pick the right one for the job and let’s go to work!

Maybe instead of use enough gun, it should be practice makes perfect!?! After all it’s the bullet that does the real work just like the nail….. put it where it belongs and sit back down to see your success.

Guy, I still want to see your gun Gavin Gear of UR built for you!
 
Do you favor one or a few cartridges, loads & rifles for your hunting or do you bounce around a fair bit between cartridges, loads and rifles?
Over the last severals years I do a couple project rifles or purchases. Then they wait their turn to head out on a hunt. This year there is a bit of extremes for deer , at the stand in the woods the Savage 30-30 Win takes their turn and on my big food plot my semi-custom 340 Wby.
Bear will be met by the 460 Wby.
I’m set this year and already thinking of option for the 2026 season.
 
I have always enjoyed playing with various cartridges in order to learn more about this past time, gain real world experience with each, for accuracy and on-game performance, and learning more about what each rifle prefers in terms of bullets, powder, primers, brass, and seating length. Just like people, each rifle and game species has its own personality, and it takes first hand experience to learn what works best for each.

While I may try a wide assortment of rifles, scopes, mounts, cartridges, components and factory ammunition, etc. there are definitely those amongst the variables that find a permanent place in my battery, and get used more than others.

Being a left handed shooter (due to eye dominance as I am right handed), and liking the less common cartridges, has led me down the road to custom and semi custom firearms, as most makers just don't offer quite what I am looking for. But this makes these firearms just a little more special to me, as I got to choose the components (or at least some of the parts or chamberings) that make up each. I have also been lucky that someone, somewhere also had a desire for some of what I was looking for, as I have been able to pick up a couple of custom rifles that had the features (or at least some of what) I was looking for.

As I get older, nicer wood has also become something that I am appreciating more. I have been lucky to find some very nice wood on some of the firearms that I have acquired in the past few years!

I can also say that I have learned a great deal from many of the patrons on this site, who have broadened my perspective and provided valuable intel on a wide variety of topics, form firearms and optics, to shooting and handloading, and on the subject of hunting a wide variety of game around the world.

Thanks Guy, you and others such as FOTIS, SJB358, DrMike, Gerry, RL338, Salmonchaser, XPHunter and others too numerous to mention have made this experience all the more enjoyable over the years. And I wish that April, Jamilla and Thankful Otter would rejoin the ranks, as their knowledge and experience was also greatly appreciated!
This is without a doubt the best forum online, and the respect and camaraderie shared here are unequalled anywhere else!
 
First of all, Guy, thank you for starting this thread. There is such a wealth of knowledge in this group that many times I just enjoy reading the threads and do not feel the need to interject on every topic I come across, whether it be minimal knowledge or many times someone has already touched on what I was thinking. This forum is one of the only sites I visit almost every day to escape my reality, even for five minutes.
I had the please are meeting Salmonchaser in his hometown when I was on a trip in April and I have to say that while I had just met him, it was like sitting down with coffee with an old friend. We chatted for about 20 minutes and chatting with Don was the one of the highlights of my trip back to my home state.
I really appreciate the candid feedback this group provides. I am not a social media fan in any way( this is the only place I frequent), but I will be in the background, learning as I go.
 
I wish I had a way with words such as you do!
I saw an article this morning. One of the many “which is the best caliber/cartridge for deer hunting”, and I thought about the saying that goes something like, “beware the man with only one gun”.
I, personally, have only four rifles, an inline muzzleloader, and a handgun.
I would love to have a lot, but it isn’t practical, especially for me. I usually have a favorite, and stick to one for the most part. If I had more, they would most likely just sit in the safe. That is just me, and I can’t seem to help it.
I guess I’m just a “one gun” kinda guy.
My current, I guess you could say favorite, is my Tikka .308. With my love of still hunting, and the thick woods, it is ideal for the way I like to spend my time.
 
Good assessment, Guy. It is amazing how conditions and things change over time. Once I thought I had the perfect combination of rifle and cartridge (for deer hunting), but then I had nerve damage to my shooting eye and had to switch to left-handed shooting. That sure changed things and limited choices. Then I took up elk hunting. Then I discovered left-handed model 70's. That changed things again. Then I discovered the 358 Win. BLR. My inventory of rifles (and cartridges) is completely different now than it was 10 years ago.

Overall, I think the more different things we work with, the more knowledgeable and proficient we become. The skills we learn working with a latter cartridge we can then apply back to the earlier cartridges we worked with.
 
Like Bikram, I really enjoy playing with a lot of different cartridges simply out of curiosity. I always thought I could get away with just five rifles and at some point in time I might. I realised my biggest error is having invested in shells, bullets etc for said rifles that it makes it difficult to move some of them along.

It really is a wonderful past time and I can’t think of too many others that generate such interesting campfire conversations.
 
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