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(Continued from Part 3.)

7×57 Mauser

Here is one good 7×57 Mauser load: Federal Power-Shok Jacketed Soft Point 175 Grain 7mm Mauser.  It has a muzzle velocity of 2,390 fps.

6.5×55 Swedish Mauser

My preferred roundnose 6.5×55 Swedish Mauser load uses a Hornady 160 grain RN at 2,400 fps.

Round nosed bullets are falling into disuse. I was only able to find one manufacturer offering loaded 6.5×55 round nosed soft point ammunition and it was at an excessively high price.

Reloaders have either Hornady or Sierra RN bullets to choose from. I have plenty in stock. Brace for sticker shock here. Consider buying this ammo instead: Norma Whitetail 6.5×55 Swedish 156gr Soft Point.

.308 Winchester

For .308 Winchester, look for a180 grain RNSP, and expect 2,450 fps.  For example:

Federal Fusion 308 Winchester Ammo 180 Grain Bonded RoundContinue reading“Hunting in Desperate Times – Part 4, by Tunnel Rabbit”

(Continued from Part 2.)

Two .30 Caliber Big Game Hunting Loads

My bolt action rifles are in two separate groups, precision rifles, and hunting rifles. All of my 6.5mm rifles are precision rifles capable of extreme long-range shooting. They will be handled with care and not bumped around while hunting. They are too valuable because of what they can do. Of course, the ammunition they use can also be used on deer out to 300 yards, and elk in a pinch with well-placed shots inside of 200 yards, yet they are not suitable for bear and elk when the angle is not just right. If they pass into the field of fire inside our perimeter and they are within the 300-yard limit then deer and black bear could be taken if a broadside shot is available. The .30 caliber cartridge rifles are much better for hunting in general and for mixed bag hunts since they are reliably able to take most of the various North American game.

300 Savage: Considerations for An Antique Rifle

The rifle in the photo at left is an antique Mauser rifle re-barreled in ,300 Savage and represents this category well. What works in this rifle would also work and be safe to use in other .308 to .312 cartridges when load to no higher pressure than 46,000 CUP (51,000 psi). The softer bullets used are a good fit or of suitable construction for many antique rifles that can fire brass-case ammunition using smokeless powder. The super high ballistic coefficient bullets that they are more than good enough out to my self-imposed range limit of 300 yards. These can expand at velocities as low as 1,600 fps and are a good marriage for lower in velocities cartridges in general and can kill quickly, flatten trajectories and buck the wind well enough to extend their potential hunting range.Continue reading“Hunting in Desperate Times – Part 3, by Tunnel Rabbit”

(Continued from Part 1.)

Every year I see lots of hunters hunting from their vehicles. This is more like drive-by shooting than hunting. Most modern hunters are seasonal hunters who mostly shoot off-hand and are lousy shots. Haste makes waste. It is best to use a rest or shooting stick if possible, and it helps to use a cartridge that is perhaps more than needed to help compensate for a poorly placed shot. I would rather risk losing meat than risk losing the entire animal.

Standard “cup and core” soft point ammunition is plenty for deer, yet some cartridges could use a premium bullet to ensure that they have adequate killing power. For deer, any cartridge with less power than 7×57 Mauser might need a tad more killing power. And that can be had if a premium bullet is used. In my opinion, it is better to have a tad too much power, than too little and potentially lose the animal. And not all commercial ammunition is up to the job. And if we can do better, then we should. There are other considerations to be made about particular cartridges that might be of interest to this audience.Continue reading“Hunting in Desperate Times – Part 2, by Tunnel Rabbit”

I hope that this article will serve as a starting point for novice hunters who should continue to seek more on the topic. Even after decades as a hunter, I continue to learn more.

Hunting will be a serious business in the near future. So I will do my best to present tried and true practices and advice, and attempt to describe what I believe hunting conditions and practices might be during the coming bad times. If we are hunting to survive, then losing a game would be unacceptable and perhaps tragic. High-quality protein during a famine or lean times would be very hard to get.

Lessons From The Past

I once had a neighbor who asked me to fix an old single-shot .22 rimfire rifle. The firing pin had been worn out from much use. It was a very old, battered, and simple single-shot .22 Long Rifle (LR) rifle. This was a Winchester Model 67A — a model that first manufactured during the Great Depression. The Model 67A was produced from 1934 to 1963. After repairing the firing pin, I know the bolt of the Model 67A quite well. After it had been repaired I attempted to return it. The owner then offered it to me as a gift. But after hearing his story about his experiences with the rifle, I figured that I should refuse, politely of course, since he was a friend. It would be better if it stayed in the family. This was no ordinary .22LR rifle.

Here is the gist of my friend’s hunting recollections: During the Great Depression, the folks in northwestern Montana were not at first all that aware that there was an economic depression underway, yet he said “…it was hard to get anything to eat”. He was just a boy at that time and one day the rifle was given to him so that he could hunt, and that he did. He hunted deer. One day the Sheriff showed up and had him get into his pickup and took him to a distant town in the middle of nowhere in western Montana. There were people there who were starving hungry so the Sheriff took my friend hunting and filled up the bed of his pickup with deer to deliver it to several families.Continue reading“Hunting in Desperate Times – Part 1, by Tunnel Rabbit”