Best all around caliber for the Tikka T3x Lite in Montana

[AndrewS]

I’ve only done a small amount of hunting with a 270 (borrowed),but I’m moving to Montana and really want to get into it more and hunt everything there at some point or another. Elk, deer, bear, hopefully moose at some point. I’ve been looking at rifles and am probably going to go with the tikka t3x lite in stainless steel but I’m having trouble deciding the caliber. The 308 and 30-06 are what I’m stuck in between right now, but have heard the 7mm-08 isn’t bad either. It looks like the 30-06 might be able to shoot effectively further, but the 308 is easier to shoot better because of the lower recoil and less likely to develop a possible flinch. And I don’t know much about the 7mm-08. And if I’m wrong about any of that, please let me know. Recoil on my 12g doesn’t really bother me until I’m on the third box of shells if that’s any useful info on relevance to recoil.

Any input or experience would be greatly appreciated. Thank you all so much for your time.

 

[EYJONAS!]

6.5

 

[cwitherow]

I have one in 30-06, shooting factory 150 TTSX. I wouldn't hesitate to use it on anything on your list (despite what some recent threads have suggested). Frankly, if you already own the 270, I'd stick with that and spend my money on tags and new boots! Take my advice with a grain of salt, I'm a MN pheasant hunter who dabbles in deer and pronghorn.

 

[Deleted member 38069]

Although 7mm08 is a reliable round, you can't go wrong with the -06! Welcome aboard and best of luck in your Montana future!

 

[brownbear932008]

You couldn't go wrong with any of those 3. If you ever decided to moose hunt I'd lean toward the 30-06.

 

[Deleted member 16014]

All fine, out of those probably 7-08.

 

[TN2shot07]

Welcome to the site! Check out the search, this has been hashed out a couple of times so far this off season. Unless you are looking to buy a new rifle, save that money for your tags and use that 270. It will do everything you listed, just use a quality bullet. A 7-08 won’t offer any advantage over what you have. As far as recoil, I don’t think there’s enough difference between a 270, 308, and 30-06 for the average shooter to notice unless they are in drastically different guns.

 

[AndrewS]

I have one in 30-06, shooting factory 150 TTSX. I wouldn't hesitate to use it on anything on your list (despite what some recent threads have suggested). Frankly, if you already own the 270, I'd stick with that and spend my money on tags and new boots! Take my advice with a grain of salt, I'm a MN pheasant hunter who dabbles in deer and pronghorn.

Thank you! I unfortunately don’t own the 270, it was borrowed. But if you have suggestions for a good pair of boots, that’s also on my list, lol.

 

[Mainer207]

I have a t3x hunter in 30-06. It’s a bit heavier rifle than the lite so I can’t speak to the recoil, but that’s the caliber I’d choose.
I also have a 7-08 Remington that I love (super compact rifle), but the factory ammo options aren’t as variable as the 30-06. Honestly, my 7-08 with a 18.5” barrel has significant more muzzle blast and is less pleasant on the bench than my tikka 06.

 

[Brian in Montana]

You're going to get a lot of different opinions on a question like that. I have a couple of T3Xs - a .308 and a .270 and I find that that tandem covers it all. If I really, really was required to choose just one it would be the .308. it really does everything I need and doesn't break the shoulder or the bank to do it. I have a few cartridges I really like, but .308 Win is my favorite.

 

[AndrewS]

Welcome to the site! Check out the search, this has been hashed out a couple of times so far this off season. Unless you are looking to buy a new rifle, save that money for your tags and use that 270. It will do everything you listed, just use a quality bullet. A 7-08 won’t offer any advantage over what you have. As far as recoil, I don’t think there’s enough difference between a 270, 308, and 30-06 for the average shooter to notice unless they are in drastically different guns.

I should have specified that I don’t own the 270. That was my bad. I’ll have to dig a little deeper into the forums. Thank you so much!

 

[cwitherow]

Thank you! I unfortunately don’t own the 270, it was borrowed. But if you have suggestions for a good pair of boots, that’s also on my list, lol.

I would say go try on as many as you can. I have the latest uninsulated pronghorns and I love them FWIW. I wear them for all my hunting except deer stand, since I'm just sitting still.

 

[TN2shot07]

I should have specified that I don’t own the 270. That was my bad. I’ll have to dig a little deeper into the forums. Thank you so much!

In light of you not owning one, I’d throw in a vote for the 30-06 or 308. I’ve had both and for whatever reason like the 06 better. (Neither was a Tikka, but am strongly eyeing one of the laminate stainless in 30-06) Either one will cover everything in the lower 48, best of luck with your decision. When you get around to boot shopping opinions are good, especially regarding durability but if at all possible getting some on your feet will be better. There is just too much variance in people’s feet to go on what works for someone else!

 

[AvidIndoorsman]

One adult onset to another, you aren’t going to be shooting far enough for a lot of it to matter all that much. 250 is gonna seem like an super long shot.

7mm-08, I’d go with that... get good ammo, copper or some swift-A frames.

Schnees makes great boots, try some on at the store. Save up for a SG or Mystery Ranch pack.

Get your residency status going ASAP, drivers license, plates etc.

Apply for everything. Throw some crazy apps out and make yourself explore the state. Eastern turkeys and pronghorn, bears in the NW, elk in SW, and whitetails.

Get a 12 gauge, Remington 870. Go bird hunting.

You got some fun years ahead of you.

 

[MThuntr]

put the options in a hat and draw one...also get a shotgun

do a search up in the top right side of the screen for boots...there must be 7.5 million conversations about "best boots"

 

[Deleted member 16014]

I’ll sum up all the best boot threads. Wear something that fits your foot, might have to try several, it can cost a lot.

 

[Southern Elk]

30-06

 

[HSi-ESi]

.300 Win Mag

 

[buffybr]

@AndrewS, any of the 3 cartridges you mentioned will work fine for deer and antelope, and will kill elk. Of those 3 my choice would be a .30-06. My first rifle was a .30-06 that I had for 10 years, and it put a deer, antelope, and elk into my freezer every year.

Wanting to hunt moose and drawing a tag are entirely 2 different critters. I've applied every year since 1989 without drawing a tag. If you would draw a moose tag, a .30-06 would be a better choice cartridge than a .308 Win or 7-08, although again, all 3 have killed moose.

IMO there isn't much difference in the recoil between a .270 Win and a .30-06. I have or have had both.

You stated that the recoil of your 12 gauge didn't bother you until you were into the 3rd box. I'm down to only shooting about 5,000 12 ga shells every year, and I think the recoil of a .30-06 is about the same as a 12 ga, especially with hunting loads. I can't ever remember shooting 3 boxes of rifle shells at a deer or elk, although sometimes it sounds like other hunters are.

The 7 mm Rem mag is also another good all around North American hunting cartridge. It's recoil is on par with a .30-06. My favorite elk rifle now is my .300 Weatherby. With it's KDF muzzle brake it's recoil is less than the recoil of my .308 Win. They are both Weatherby Vanguard rifles.

 

[Frazier]

Just get a 300 win mag and be done with it