[FrankenMauser]

I think the current count is only 8 rifles, but I try to sell or trade as little as possible.
Two of them went away. One was rebarreled from a useless cartridge to a more utilitarian cartridge (to replace a cartridge I liked, but it was stuck in a rifle I hated ...and sold). And one is currently transforming from a diminutive chambering I don't really care for, into a big bore I think I'll love.

I think I got lucky. As much as I complain about the weight of my Ruger 77 Mk II in .270 Winchester, it's still my favorite big game rifle - and the first centerfire rifle I ever bought.
I can hem and haw in front of the safe, all day long, trying to decide what other rifle might make a good backup; but the .270 is always the first on the "go" list. It takes a lot of effort to get the job done, should I have to talk myself into leaving the .270 at home.

It always does what I ask of it, without giving me any trouble.


The only rifle I ever borrowed for big game was a Winchester M70 Featherweight in .270 Win. I filled my first antelope tag with it, having practiced with it for a deer hunt about 8 years earlier. I made an amazing called shot on with the first trigger pull, but I'd never try that shot again with a borrowed rifle (and the owner's handloads). Hell... I probably wouldn't try that shot again, even with my own rifles.