# First rifle for hunting



## Ether (Nov 20, 2006)

Hi, I am looking for a good starter .223 caliber rifle for deer/small game hunting as well as target practice. I have decided on this caliber because it is powerful enough for deer but the ammo is still cheap enough that I can target practice alot on my budget.

So I have 2 questions,

1) I've been looking at cheaperthandirt.com and found a case of 1000 rounds of Wolf 55 gr. copper HP for $160, this seems like a really good price, I was wondering if this would work for hunting? (Almost seems too good to be true.) www.cheaperthandirt.com/62703-8702-67.html

2) What would be a good starter rifle in the $400-500 dollar range, and are their any I should definitley not get? I'm looking for something that will last a long time. Scope included is a definite plus. Thanks in advance! -Ether


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## Burly1 (Sep 20, 2003)

I have friends who use Wolf ammo for prairie dogs with excellent results. Unfortunately, hollowpoints are not a good deer bullet for the .223. Practice with them though, it's all good for that. Use a premium spitzer, partition or bonded bullet for deer sized game, please. I recently read several reviews on package guns from Savage and am convinced that If I were looking for something such as you describe, that is the way I would go. Good hunting, Burl


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## SDHandgunner (Jun 22, 2004)

I have never used it but have heard horror stories about the Steel Cased WOLF .223 Ammo breaking extractors and the coating they put on the steel cases leaving residue in the chambers.

As per the Rifle there are a couple good choices. The Savage Package Rifles are indeed a good value. The Savages offer a lot of Rifle for the $$$. However the scopes they put on these rifles are not the best quality.

I think for the $$$ you are talking about you can pick up a Stevens Model 200 in .223, and get a better quality Scope in the bargin. I had a Stevens Model 200 in .223 last winter for a while. As you may or may not know the Stevens is actually produced by Savage and is a Savage without the AccuTrigger (which I do not care for) but rather has the pre accutrigger Savage trigger system.

I was quite impressed with the accuracy of the Stevens Model 200 .223 I had. I did the usual things I do to any new rifle, I tued the Trigger (found instructions on the net that walked me through the process), followed by hand lapping the bore with FLITZ Bore Polish after the initial cleaning. Once this was done I broke the barrel in shooting and cleaning for 50 rounds. Right off the get go this Stevens was printing 5 shot groups at 100 yards from the bench under an inch.

Everyone has their own opinions on what Rifles they like and or dislike. Personally I am a Ruger fanatic, but to say I was impressed with the Stevens Model 200 would be an understatement. I also happen to much prefer Stainless-Steel Rifles and if the Stevens Model 200 would have been made in Stainless-Steel I am quite sure I would still own it. Rather I sold it to a guy for his high school age son to start Coyote Hunting with.


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## Ether (Nov 20, 2006)

Thanks alot for the responses so far. I am a complete newcomer to rifles, and if I did not get this kind of advice from the net, I'd have no way to get it. Thanks again and keep the responses coming please. -Ether


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## Burly1 (Sep 20, 2003)

Re: the Wolf ammo; the friends to which I referred earlier both shoot Baer Custom Varminters and loved the performance of the Wolf 55 gr hp's. They have experienced no problem in their match grade chambers and barrels. No failures to feed, extract or fire. This is my only knowledge of the stuff, but seems to be a strong affirmative testimony. Burl


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## Bore.224 (Mar 23, 2005)

I have never used Wolf Rifle Ammo but have used it in Handguns, the only bad thing I can say is that it seems to really get your gun dirty after lots of shooting!


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## ac700wildcat (Oct 30, 2006)

I agree you should look at buying a savage rifle/scope combo. No they don't put the best scopes on them but they will do the job. Get the combo and save up for a later purchase of a better scope. .223 is a good caliber with lots of cheap ammo available and you will get a lot of practice with it. You might not be able to take the really loooong shots on deer like some people do, but then you won't be taking them anyways until you are a more experienced hunter and by then you will probably have graduated to a larger caliber.

Good luck hunting


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## Chestnut (Aug 9, 2006)

Ya know, some places .223 is not even legal for deer. I'd be inclined to suggest .308. If you're open to suggestions that is.


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## bwnelson (Oct 29, 2002)

Ether:

The Savage/Stevens rifles are excellent shooters for the money. For a first and only rifle I'd be inclined to go with the Stevens 200 over a package Savage. You can get a very good scope of your choosing that way.

Consider something larger than a .223 if you are going to be deer hunting with factory ammo. Seriously. Yes, a .223 will be adequate IF you use TSX's or Partitions, but a .223 and a box of Wolf ammo is a receipe for disaster.

Ammo costs are always a concern, however if you plan on doing any significant target/practice shooting look at reloading. While some of us have spent obscene $$ on reloading equipment you can make perfectly good ammo in your cartridge of choice with a $15 Lee Loader. One of those guys would pay for itself in NO TIME. You'll make better ammo than factory stuff too.

Loading your own will give you the versitility to load ammo suitable from varmints to deer (and bigger) in most any modern cartridge.

IIRC Stevens makes the 200 in 223, 243, 25-06, 270, 7mm Rem Mag, 308, 30-06, and 300 Winny Mag. For a "one gun guy" shooting varmints on up in NoDak, I'd go with a 243, 25-06, or 270. If you were going the Lee Loader route, you can choose between the 243 or 270 (don't make it in 25-06). If you are shooting more varmints do the 243, if you are practicing for deer hunting and/or are inclined to chase a "once in a lifetime" tag go the 270 route. If not doing the Lee Loader, but plan on handloading with a conventional press and die set up, a 25-06 is the perfect cartridge for hunting prairie dogs to mule deer and would be my choice for the "one gun guy" - heck it is all I carried for about 20 years.

If you are looking for a bottom line recommendation here is the "package"

Rifle: Stevens 200 in 243, 25-06, or 270 (~ $300 w/tax)

Scope: Weaver 6x38 or Pentax 6x42 (you don't need anything higher or a variable - trust me). (I can get a Pentax 6x42 shipped for $90, am reviewing one now and it is a lot of scope for the $).

Accessories: Scope mount bases, rings, sling, shooting sticks (~ $100)

There you are ... a complete rig for about $500.

Get a lee loader if you choose a 243 or 270 and your ammo costs will be minimized. Or, for any chambering, just find an experienced handloader where you live and mooch their equipment while learning the hows and whys of the art.

Handloading makes better riflemen.


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## Remington 7400 (Dec 14, 2005)

If you are shooting anything other than an AR, Mini-14 or .223 caliber AK the Wolf will not cycle.


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## Ether (Nov 20, 2006)

Well thanks for all the replies so far! Bwnelson, thanks for all that info too. I took a look at the Lee loader; that does seem like a good idea. My main interest in the .223 stems solely from the cheap ammo, as I like to shoot alot, and of course it would be powerful enough for hunting deer. But it seems that the ammo that is really cheap is the varmint shooting ammo. The deer ammo is pretty expensive. Is there a Lee Loader for .223? 
If not I may just go with the .243 as I would like to hand load my own ammo.

"Or, for any chambering, just find an experienced handloader where you live and mooch their equipment while learning the hows and whys of the art. "

Forgive my ignorance but what is chambering? Thanks again, Ether


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