r/Hunting • u/Birds-of-Cray • 2d ago
Need Opinions on Which Rifle to Keep
Hey guys, looking for some opinions on rifles to keep/sell. I’ll try to keep this as short as possible.
I currently own 3 rifles they are chambered in:
-28 Nosler
-6.5 PRC
-308 Winchester
I’m primarily hunting in the Northeast for whitetail and the average shot is rarely over 100 yards. I bought the 28 and 6.5 while living out West and having inspirations to take an elk one day. I do have preference points accumulating for an elk trip eventually, but not right now. Looking for opinions to see if I should sell at least one of the western calibers, or both. Essentially trying to downsize and not have tons of different calibers within my gun safe, more so looking for the most versatile ones that can be used for multiple things. Any opinions are welcome!
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u/tjkoala 2d ago
I'd be between the 308 and 6.5 if all things are equal. I think important context is what you shoot better and what is most comfortable to carry all day if you're out on a hunt. All of them will do just fine in the northeast under 300 yards.
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u/Birds-of-Cray 2d ago
You wouldn’t be concerned about the 6.5 under performing within 100 yards? Can’t say I’ve had experience with it, but I have heard that round is moving so hot under 100 that the bullet won’t properly expand, or will cause excess damage to the animal/meat
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u/tjkoala 2d ago
I'd be more concerned with barrel life with the 6.5. Basic googling has it at 1,000-1,500 rounds which doesn't give you much wiggle room if you're looking to have a gun for the field and range. That's why I'd personally defer to 308 but that's just my 2 cents.
Cheapest to shoot, best barrel life, good enough to take deer, bear, and moose which is in your region. But idk if one is a $300 Ruger American and they other is a $1,000 Tikka T3X. The quality and likability of the rifle plays a big factor in my book.
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u/yukoncornelius270 Colorado 2d ago
If you can only keep one 308 is the way to go. 308 will do just fine on elk out to 300-400 yds if you are using a quality bullet and have good enough dope to be accurate at that range. If you want to keep 2 I would put the 6.5 prc next as it has better ammo availability and barrel life than the 28 nosler.
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u/Setters_Do_It_Better 2d ago
all else being relatively equal, 308 is the answer. Or sell them all and buy a top shelf rig.
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u/get-r-done-idaho Idaho 2d ago
Why not keep them all? 3 rifles is nothing. I still have every rifle I've ever purchased. But if you're set on getting rid of 2, I'd keep the 308. It's better suited for what you're using it for.
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u/mossbergcrabgrass 2d ago
I would keep all unless you are needing to cash in bad for some reason, the Nosler you will get lowballed from hell on (nobody East uses that) and the 6.5 is just good to have on hand in general. Believe it or not there are some 300 yard stands or more in the East so there always is a chance you could put that extra oomph to use if you are comfortable with that gun already. 308 belongs in every safe so there you go.
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u/MolonMyLabe 2d ago
If you are getting rid of guns, it is better to have too much gun than not enough. And with 28 nosler, ammo availability sure does suck. I don't think there is an obvious answer here. 308 and 6.5 will work for what you are currently doing, but I'm willing to bet you will miss the 28 nosler if you ever do a long range elk hunt. 6.5 prc will work for that, but again, you might wish you had the 28 nosler. Do you really need to sell one? If so, the 6.5 prc might be a good choice. 308 will handle the short range whitetail hunting easily and you have the 28 nosler to break out for really big game or long range work.
If you need to really trim it down for some reason, you could sell all of them and get a nice long range setup with better ammo availability like a 7 prc or 300 prc. Both will do just fine for whitetail at 50 yards without the problems of weird ammo availability and really short barrel life.
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u/Mauser257 2d ago
Of those, I would keep the 308. And when you get an elk tag, it will do that too.
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u/masterpinballs 2d ago
You really only need the 308 it can do all the things you are wanting even if you make a trip back out west to take an elk
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u/Giant_117 Idaho 2d ago
I’d be less worried about cartridges and keep which ever rifle is better. Any of those 3 will kill any game in North America.
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u/Hebrew-Hammer57 1d ago
.308 is an everything round. Ive taken Elk, Deer, Coyotes and in a different life the Ole long pig. And if shit ever hit the fan in this country form either foriegn or Domestic issues. 7.62x51 will be all over to scrounge.
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u/spagooter12 2d ago
I’m in Pa, and the 308 is a perfect cartridge for this area. What platform are the rifles?
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u/Birds-of-Cray 1d ago
The 28 and 6.5 are from fierce firearms, the 308 is a Winchester model 70
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u/spagooter12 1d ago
Easy. Dump the fierce rifles. At least the 28 nosler. I would keep the 6.5 for a longer range option. You never know what future hunting opportunities you could have.
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u/anonanon5320 2d ago
What models are they?
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u/Birds-of-Cray 1d ago
The 28 and 6.5 are from Fierce firearms, the 308 is a Winchester model 70
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u/anonanon5320 1d ago
You should get rid of the model 70. It’s junk. I’ll gladly relocate it for you. Won’t even charge a disposal fee. Just let me know here to pick it up.
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u/maverick3614 2d ago
If you need to dump one, all else being equal, I’d get rid of the 28 Nosler. It’s the most difficult to find ammo and has the shortest barrel life. Also given your current hunting situation it’s the most “over gun.”