New Guy From Texas

[enysse]

Don't over think things whether it's a 300 Win or 375 H&H...they pretty much all kick back very similiar in recoil.

The 35 Whelen is excellent caliber, you can buy the SUPER good ammo for $32 a box. If you become good with that gun, you most likely will be good with anything!

 

[Buff-Buster]

I like the 9.3x62. I am just starting out though and don't have a bunch of money so I want to get a gun that will be an "all-rounder". Something that will hit both the smallish Texas whitetails, stop hog charges, and take down nilgai. So for my first gun, I am thinking of the traditional "all-rounders" like the .35 whelen and the 9.3X62 minus the .375 H&H Magnum. The latter might be a bit too much for me for now. I actually heard the kick on the .338 Win Mag is worse than the .375 H&H Magnum because it is a sharp and brisk shot to the shoulder as opposed to the heavy push of the .375. Am I right? Is the .338 Win Mag not for beginners?

Svar,
Only you can decide what is "too much kiick". I was blessed with being recoil tolerant. I'm 6'-0", 195lbs. I know guys 6'-4 and 260lbs that don't like shooting anything bigger than a 243! By the same token, the late Greg Rodriguez was only 5'-6" can could shoot anything well. The key is to shoot the biggest caliber that you can shoot well. Never forget that and you'll do just fine.....The .338 isn't worse than the .375, is just that most were expecting the .375 to be "worse" than it actually is. If you want to try out a .338 before you decide to by one, let me know. You can shoot mine. I have a range at my house.

 

[Buff-Buster]

Don't over think things whether it's a 300 Win or 375 H&H...they pretty much all kick back very similiar in recoil.

The 35 Whelen is excellent caliber, you can buy the SUPER good ammo for $32 a box. If you become good with that gun, you most likely will be good with anything!

Right on Eric!

 

[BWH]

Welcome Svar,

I'm from up here in North Texas...... I'm 5'8 170. Not exactly a big dude by any stretch. Why don't you test drive some before you buy? I own guns from .223 to 30-06, and several in between. Plus I bust ducks/geese with 12 ga w/ 3.5" loads. Really just depends on you & what you hunt. Nowadays they make all sorts of things to offset recoil. Paddings, breaks, etc. Good luck, hope you get feeling better soon!

 

[Odinsraven]

Hey, this is Svar. I am 20 years old and thinking about getting into hunting. I want to get a .350 rem mag as my first rifle.

Welcome to the club what part of the Free Republic are you from ?

 

[Nyati]

Welcome to AH, Svar !

 

[enysse]

Svar,
Only you can decide what is "too much kiick". I was blessed with being recoil tolerant. I'm 6'-0", 195lbs. I know guys 6'-4 and 260lbs that don't like shooting anything bigger than a 243! By the same token, the late Greg Rodriguez was only 5'-6" can could shoot anything well. The key is to shoot the biggest caliber that you can shoot well. Never forget that and you'll do just fine.....The .338 isn't worse than the .375, is just that most were expecting the .375 to be "worse" than it actually is. If you want to try out a .338 before you decide to by one, let me know. You can shoot mine. I have a range at my house.

+1, I agree. There is big difference once you get up into 400 calibers....but lets not get ahead of ourselves. There will be a time and place to move into a .416 Rem, .416 Rigby, 470 NE, 458 Win., the recoil is more and so is the ammo!

 

[spike.t]

young fella reeling off all them calibres some one on here will try to adopt you.... ha ha
sounds like you have it all worked out svar

.

welcome to AH svar, i had better get in quick before Mr 35bore pipes up and starts on about something called a 35 whelen and say the 9.3x62 or 9.3x74r are the correct choice ....:biggrin2::beer:

 

[bluey]

good morning svar l see you have met the clan ,back to your question ,my favourite firearm is the 30.06 but I also have a 300wm and a 300rum
the 3oorum is what ive been hunting with on our deer specie of late
l to own a 375 HH but I havnt had the chance to use it bugger all

 

[Shakey]

Thanks for the welcome, Jerome!

Well, Bluey, the pigs are a huge problem in Texas. I'll have a lot of animals I wish to take in Texas: deer, hogs, nilgai, javelina, turkey, goose, teal, and sandhill crane. I'm especially stoked about the first two and the last one. The reason I decided to choose the .350 rem mag is because of this article by Robert Boatman, one of my favorite authors: .35 Whelen: overlooked, misunderstood, vastly underrated

I really like Robert Boatman and Gary Reeder. I have been reading for years and I am an Elmer Keith sort of guy. .333 caliber minimum with the exception of the .30-30 and the .300 Savage. I am looking at the .350 Rem Mag as my first but I would be happy with a 9.3X62, 9.3X64, 9.3X74R, .338 Federal, .444, .450, .45-70. or a .35 Whelen. Something in the medium bore to big bore range.

I would love to hunt in Australia, Bluey, where I assume you live. I know a few people there and will one day visit. Would love to tackle kangaroos, pigs, goats, donkeys, scrub bulls, and water buff. Not to mention camels and chamois and tahr in NZ! All of which could be taken with my favorite caliber. What I love about medium bores is that they are not too big for small game and not too little for big game.

Welcome to the forum Svar. Hope you recover soon and start enjoying all this great State has to offer. You're one of the few who have expressed a desire to take sandhill cranes. As passionate as I am about turkey hunting, sandhill crane hunting is the best! The bird has remained virtually unchanged for literally millions of years, and for good reason. The sandhill has incredible senses and can be very challenging. Even when you happen to get it right and fool these birds, they are tough and surprisingly hard to hit and bring down. Try some 3" or 3-1/2" Hevi Shot Dead Coyote (T shot). Lead them the distance you think is appropriate, then double it. They are so big and have such a wide wing span that they are further away than what they appear, and they're moving faster than you think. Great table fare - they're known as "ribeyes in the sky" for a reason.

As for rifles, get a decent .375 and you can go anywhere for anything

 

[bluey]

l was gunna ask how big these sandhiull crane were if you are going to pop em with a w35

 

[BnC 04]

Welcome to the family Svar...Enjoy

 

[Svar]

Buff-Buster, thanks for the advice and the offer. I might take you up on it. Could you send me an email at svarragan@gmail.com so we can work it out?

BWH, I would like to test out guns before I buy! Just email me at the same address and I'll see if you're nearby my house. Thanks for the well wishes!

Odinsraven, thank you! I am from North Texas, in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex but I now live in Houston.

Thank you, Nyati!!

Enysse, I agree. I have not made it to the level of the big forties. I would like to try(and own) both the .405 Win and the .450/400 NE one of these days. Maybe the first one in a 1895 lever or a 1885 single and the second in a Ruger No. 1. A boy can dream can't he?

Spike T, thanks! And that is another one of my top choices. I might get a CZ 550 in 9.3X62. But I would love a Ruger No.1 or a Chapuis double rifle in 9.3X74R. Doubles are fun.

Bluey, I have and I like 'em! What a great bunch!

Thanks for the welcome, Shakey. I really am interested in sandhill crane hunting. I want to try my hand at it for both the sport and the meat which I heard is just like steak. I've got to try that! I am mainly interested in big game hunting but some bird hunting interests me. A .375 is nice, but too expensive. The rifles are usually in the $1200 dollar range. I can get a 9.3X62 for $800 and a Whelen for less.

 

[Buff-Buster]

l was gunna ask how big these sandhiull crane were if you are going to pop em with a w35

Shoot! Here in Texas they grow bigger than a Ostrich, got canine "fangs" and are on of our "Texas Big 5" list (along with Nutria, swamp rabbit, armadillo, cubracobbra and the dreaded East Texas Fying Squirrel) I usually go with my .470NE as a minimum.......:crazylol:

 

[Svar]

Bluey, these sandhill cranes are pretty big.... they are like 5' tall. And they can be vicious to the dogs that are supposed to retrieve them. No rifle hunting for these buggers though. We can use rifles for turkey here and I plan on using my big ol' rifle in whatever caliber for them. Some people use the .17 HMR and the .22 WMR and the .22 hornet while some people use the .308 and .30-06 going all the way up to the .338-06! For the sandhill crane, I've heard people using everything from little .410's to big ol 12 gauge magnums.

BnC 04, thank you!

 

[spike.t]

Shoot! Here in Texas they grow bigger than a Ostrich, got canine "fangs" and are on of our "Texas Big 5" list (along with Nutria, swamp rabbit, armadillo, cubracobbra and the dreaded East Texas Fying Squirrel) I usually go with my .470NE as a minimum.......:crazylol:

cubracobbra??

 

[Buff-Buster]

cubracobbra??

I knew that one would draw a response.....Urban legend...part coyote, part vampire some swear after copious amouts of Grey Goose that they have seen them...LOL..No offense Spike.

 

[bluey]

Shoot! Here in Texas they grow bigger than a Ostrich, got canine "fangs" and are on of our "Texas Big 5" list (along with Nutria, swamp rabbit, armadillo, cubracobbra and the dreaded East Texas Fying Squirrel) I usually go with my .470NE as a minimum.......:crazylol:

alright I asked for that ......
I just went and had a look at these feathery gourmet flying feasts
and if l ever get to go to the state where everything is big id like to try one of these for dinner

 

[Buff-Buster]

alright I asked for that ......
I just went and had a look at these feathery gourmet flying feasts
and if l ever get to go to the state where everything is big id like to try one of these for dinner

Sorry Bluey...just funnin ya! They are pretty dang big, just no fangs..lol

 

[spike.t]

I knew that one would draw a response.....Urban legend...part coyote, part vampire some swear after copious amouts of Grey Goose that they have seen them...LOL..No offense Spike.

dont know what you mean....:headscratch: must be scott your talking about :biggrin2::beer: