short barrel on 30.06

[RHC]

A local dealer has a Ruger 77 in 30.06.
The barrel is 18 or 20 inches.
It's one of those "Mannlicher" styles, with wood
all the way up the barrel.

I like the way it looks and feels. I live in a brushy area where a shorter gun and shorter shots for deer are common.

How much do you lose in velocity and accuracy with a short barrel like this? I would put a scope on it.

[JWR]

Not enough to matter if you're shooting under 300 yds or so. You REALLY won't tell a difference at woods ranges. Once you slap down the first deer with it you'll forget about it. Just a thought: accuracy has far more to do with the precision of manufacture and fit of the barrel and action than the barrel length.

[Payette Jack]

Say something leaving a 22 inch barrel at 2000 fps, I believe you lose something like 120 fps (approx) for each inch of barrel you lose. As noted previously, not a big deal.

[Paul B.]

RHC. Go for it. I have one of those beautiful rifles in .308 Win. and It is one I would not part with for a lot of money.
They are not the most accurate of rifles. It took me a while to fing a load that I liked in it, but when I can pop a deer at 250 yards with it, well minute of deer is just fine with me.
I cannot say just what you velocity loss will be in 30-06, but I get 2550 FPS from my .308 with it's 18 inch barrel. (Are you sure that your barrel is 20 inches?) My Win. Mod. 70 with 22 inch barrel gives 2610 FPS with the same loading. The 30-06 is supposed to give about 100 FPS more than the .308. The load I use has the 165 gr. Speer bullet. I get the best accuracy with the 180 gr. Sierra round nose bullet though. That bullet should be more than adequate for woods type hunting.
My wife liked mine so much, I had to go and buy her one of her own just so I could keep mine. I also bought a third one, just because I like them so much, myself. All three are in .308 Win.
Like I said, go for it. You'll regret it if you don't.
Paul B.

[Art Eatman]

For what you say you want to do, I wouldn't worry about anything but having the money. :)

It will do just fine out to 300 yards or so, just as fine as any longer-barrelled gun.

Same old deal: Sight in for two inches high at 100 yards. You'll be very close to dead-on, zeroed, at 200 yards. Odds are, you'll be about seven inches low at 300. Generally, if the horns look good to the nekkid eyebone, he's well inside of 300 yards: Point it and pull, Hell ain't half full.

Have fun, Art

[RHC]

Thanks for the advice, not that I need that much encouragement to buy another gun.

I checked again - the barrel is 18 inches. It really handles nice, and seems fairly light.

I don't have it yet, but it might be my Christmas present to myself.