Ruger American Rifle caliber question?

[Thomas83]

Hey CGF,

I'm looking at picking up the Ruger American Rifle this coming weekend. Is my mind set on it, no. Problem is, which caliber? I know very little about the .243, .270, a bit about the .308, and still nothing about the 30-06. Anybody with experience in any of these calibers can give me a bit of insight or knowledge please?

I have .223/5.56 and 22-250 calibers for smaller game/varmit hunting and overall target shooting at the range. I have discovered with my 22-250 that longer range target shooting can be quite addicting, but I want a larger caliber and need your overall experiences. I'll probably end up using the rifle for hunting, but for now, it will just get sighted in and put away unless I pick up any tags this year. My budget is $400 with all fees & taxes taken into account. Is there any other rifle out there at this price point for a larger cartridge newbie like me to look at?

Which of the calibers will have a flatter trajectory, more energy upon impact, higher muzzle velocity, etc. This is a new unexplored field for me.

Thank you,

Tom

[Thorax]

Which of the calibers will have a flatter trajectory, more energy upon impact, higher muzzle velocity, etc.

30-06 obviously.
It also has the highest amount of available bullet weights.
From 55 grain accelerators from Remington up to (at least) 220 grain Barnes solids.

I shoot 180 grain Nosler ballistic tips and 208 grain Hornady Amax's in mine.

[Dannicus]

Might be more appropriate if you ask in the manually operated centerfire sub forum.

[Fjold]

Flatter trajectory has to do with velocity and bullet construction. Energy is defined as 1/2mass x velocity squared.

You're asking a difficult question, as we would have to know under what specific conditions that you shoot. At 100 yards trajectory doesn't matter and energy could be deceiving. The 22.250 could have more energy at 100 yards than the 45.70 but I guaranty that the 45.70 will hit harder. My 375 H&H shoots as flat as a 30.06 out to 300 yards and hits like the hammer of an angry god but it's not my choice for 600 yard shooting.

What distance do you want to shoot to? What are your targets at that range? Hunting applications for medium game, large game, dangerous game? How about long distance target shooting?

[NorCalFocus]

30-06 is a great round, but its a hunting round. Its not something you want to shoot all day long at the range.

.308 was built off the 30-06. Same bullets, but a little less slection or weights. 100g-200g. It also uses about 10 grains less powder than the 30-06 which means if you reload the .308 will save you down the road. The .308 can be loaded for any hunting you want to do, varmint, deer to elk.

.243 is a necked down .308. Winchester made the .243 and Remington made the 6mm. The 6mm is a better round, but it never took off due to not getting barrel twist right for larger weights. .243 will shoot about the same as .308 as far as distance and when it goes sub-sonic. The one down fall to .243 is barrel life is not as good as other calibers. High speed bullets just eat the rifling out fast. However if you use it just as a hunting rifle and plan on doing mostly varmint/deer its a great round.

.270 IDK much about it.


Here's a screen shot I took off the Sniper 101 videos. It was a really great chart, and I really recommend you watch the video.

[ar15barrels]

I'm looking at picking up the Ruger American Rifle this coming weekend.
Problem is, which caliber?
I know very little about the .243, .270, a bit about the .308, and still nothing about the 30-06.
I'll probably end up using the rifle for hunting, but for now, it will just get sighted in and put away unless I pick up any tags this year.

Which of the calibers will have a flatter trajectory, more energy upon impact, higher muzzle velocity, etc.

For a hunting gun that will mostly be carried a lot and shot from the bench very little with a flatter trajectory, look at a 270.
The Ruger American in 270 would be a nice hunting gun.

[TMB 1]

I would look at the Stevens 200 in 270 or 30-06.

[Varg Vikernes]

I wish someone made a wood aftermarket stock for the Ruger American

[tpuig]

I have two friends that bought an American in .30-06, but it's specifically for hunting pigs and deer. They are very old school, so they were set on that caliber before purchase. The other calibers were just simply not an option for them.

I brought 3 of my old .30-06 rifles to the range and one buddy brought his new American. The difference in weight was considerable, mine were much heavier. The felt recoil on mine were much less, but they all shot the target fine.

As much as I love the .30-06, if I were to buy an American, I would give a long hard look at the .270...

For a hunting gun that will mostly be carried a lot and shot from the bench very little with a flatter trajectory, look at a 270.
The Ruger American in 270 would be a nice hunting gun.

[Divernhunter]

The 308win with 150gr bullets will take anything you would want to shoot except for some DG(IE Africa, Alaska).
It can also be used long range.
The Ruger American is a great hunting rifle.
For much target shooting it is a poor choice. Light barrel, light rifle etc.
If you get one, in any cartridge, do yourself a favor and buy a PAST shoulder pad so you do not get your shoulder beat up.

[toby]

You want to step it up but not go big, look into a 25-06 great cartridge and better then most give it credit for.

[jakuda]

I was also looking into this question as well. For hunting, it really depends on the area where you will hunt and what you will hunt. My mentor gave me this example, hunting white tail in the northwest states usually involves shots less than 100-150 yards. Lots of crawling through bush and trees. A 308 is perfectly fine, as well as a shorter barrel 18-20". Just something to think about.

[DirtyDave]

Elaborate more on what you will be using it for. You mentioned hunting and tags, so I can safely say big game, but how big? Deer only? Deer and Pigs? Deer, Pigs, and Bear?

[Thomas83]

Wow, thank you all very much for your input, good, bad, or indifferent, I have one other question for you guys. Will the 270 & 243 cartridges work for deer or bear?

I will look for the Stevens 200 and something in 25-06 in the meantime.

[Thomas83]

Elaborate more on what you will be using it for. You mentioned hunting and tags, so I can safely say big game, but how big? Deer only? Deer and Pigs? Deer, Pigs, and Bear?

Well not too sure on the capabilities of each cartridge except for the .308. I know my 22-250 will take down a medium sized hog but not much more. I'm looking to step it up a bit. I'd like to try my hand at deer and/or bear eventually. It's kinda going to be a seasonal gun.