What is your minimum rifle battery?

[PVL]

On topic:

My minimum rifle battery would be a good .375 H&H with a 1-5 compact scope.

You can always load them down.

[semi_problomatic]

I dunno why everyone is saying .22LR...can't reload it and it's scarcer then hen's teeth around here.... The stuff you find ain't cheap either. Guy's paying more for a 50 round box of CCI's than I pay for 60 tula .223 rounds.

Buttt...for Alaska....

.223 AR... cause a .22LR just aint gonna cut it at -20. Even if it's too cold for the action to cycle it's still a straight pull bolt action
6.5 creedmoor so I can AT&T critters
45-70 1895GS for them bigger onery critters
12 gauge for anything the above can't handle.

Luckily I already own them

[bmafg]

For me...

22LR
223
30-06
375 H&H

boring and effective. If you don't want the 22LR then add something in the 260Rem / 6.5x55 / 7mm-08 / 7x57 class as a smaller filler or a 338WM as a larger filler.

Of course, as everyone knows, 4 is way too few. 8 plus shotguns and handguns is probably closer to a 'satisfying' minimum.

Jim

[dodge]

For a few years after I got married all I had was a 22LR and a 30-06.I was reloading the 30-06 for what ever game I was hunting at the time (groundhogs to deer).No the 30-06 isn't a rifle you would use for a all day hunt on prairie dogs but for the groundhogs here in Pa. where you will get a shot maybe two in rapid session but most of the time it was one shot then wait awhile and then another shot it worked quite well. That would be my minimum rifle battery.

[jhgreasemonkey]

On a budget, I can relate to that. I like to find good deals on used guns chambered for the most common and affordable to shoot cartridges. Here is what I use down here in WA state.

Small stuff and just having inexpensive fun.
.22lr I have a nice little 10/22 that I tricked out. Everyone loves a 10/22.

Medium stuff. Deer, etc. and woods hunting. For woods hunting I like a small quick handling rifle.
.30-30 I got a sweet deal on a used Winchester 94. If I could only keep one rifle this is probably the one I would keep. It handles anything around here but I might be a little worried in dangerous bear country lol. You could always get those 190 grain buffalo bore hard cast loads though.
or
7.62x39 I have an SKS. I don't hunt with it because I have better choices but it would pretty much do what a .30-30 does. I only have around $200 dollars into this rifle and ammo can be had at $5 for a box of 20. I think this is a good choice for someone on a tight budget.
or
.44 mag. I used my father in laws Winchester 94 to take a deer last year and it did a LOT of damage. Too much actually, we lost good meat. It was a close range shot of about 25 yards head on into the chest and I was using the Leverevolution ammo. This is a great little rifle for woods hunting and the real world killing power seems to be greater than than what the ballistics charts say. My larger rifles don't do that much damage to deer. I think this would be a good back woods rifle where you might have a close encounter with a mean critter.

Bigger game and open country hunting where you might need to make a longer shot.
.30-06 I have a plain jane Savage 110 with the accu-trigger and a weaver 3x9x40 scope. I love it. It's very accurate and the trigger is nice.
or
.270 I picked up a very nice commercial grade mauser 98 for cheap. The original trigger was too heavy for my liking so I dropped in a bold target trigger for like $40 bucks and now everything on this rifle is just great.
or
7mm Rem. Mag. to me this cartridge is kind of like a .30-06 mated with a .270 lol. With 140 grain bullets it's basically got the range and trajectory of the 130 grain .270 and the power of the 150 grain .30-06. To me there's really not enough of a real world difference to pick one over the other though. I don't take 3 and 4 hundred yard shots over canyons. My 7mm Rem. Mag. was a Savage 110 with a Burris 3x9x40 scope. I ended up trading this rifle like a dummy. I later replaced it though with my current Savage 110 .30-06. I wanted another 110 and the .30-06 was the one that was on sale.

[Mohave-Tec]

10/22
AR15 in 223/556
223 Bolt action
270 or 30-06

and a semi auto hand gun and a 12 gauge shotgun then you're done.

[Raider2000]

#1 - .22LR bolt gun or Lever action, great for dispatching the fur bearers if needed & for small game that may happen.

#2 - .30-06 Springfield 03A3, 7.92X57 K98 Mauser or a 7.62X54R Mosin Nagant, general purpose rifle for most game out there at decent distances & can be very accurate out past 500 yards & lets not forget that being in the cold climate you want something that will work no matter what.

#3 - .45-70 Marlin 1895 for that heavy brush busting rifle that may be needed.

[rc]

An accurate scoped 22 LR, 22 mag, or 17 hmr, bolt gun a 12 guage with 24 inch barrel , sling and interchangeable chokes and a 30-06. 44 mag or 454 pistol.

[tdoyka]

20 vartarg for groundhogs, crows, foxes, and coyotes
257 roberts ackey improved for pronghorns, deer, sheep, and goats
30-06 or 308 for eveything else
the last one, i'll have to think about it

[trigger643]

1 - .22lr
2 - .243 AI
3 - .264WM

With these three I can confidently take any game in North America, including Bison.

[BoogieMan]

Minimum rifle battery.
30-06- Very easy to find ammo and capable of using for anything in NA. A little light on the very large game and a little heavy on the very small end. Considering the bullets available it can be loaded for almost any task from Moose to mouse.
Prefered:
22lr
30/30
375h&h
Got to top it off with a scatter gun. 12ga being my choice
and of coarse something to keep the hands warm. 357mag revolver

[Brotherbadger]

My minimum battery would be:

30/30 - easy to find ammo, relatively cheap and can take down almost all the large game native to my area. Something I've been shooting my entire life, so I'm familiar with what I can and can't do with the cartridge.

22lr - cheap and (most of the time) easy to find ammo that is great for very small game and plinking.

7mm Rem Mag - A great flat shooting long range round capable of taking any large game in North America. Ammo is a bit more costly than 30-06, but it's what I am familiar with.

.223 Rem - A great varmit round.

[Rmart30]

.22
.223
7mm 08
7.62x39

[jaughtman]

But just because I like taking part in these things:

22LR
243
30.06
45/70

*You could probably drop the 45/70 as the 30/06 would kill anything that the 45/70 would, but a lever gun in bear country in Alaska in 45/70 just seems correct. LOL. I chose the 243 over a 223 because it would kill varmits AND deer (yes, I know a 223 would also, I just like a heavier bullet for deer).

J

[adrians]

Minimum ,,hmmm.

For me it's going to be these,,

22 Magnum.
308 Win
45-70 Gov..

That'll do it

[brucev]

Given the perameters you list, a minimum rifle battery for any animal in North America on a limited budget?

1. A good quality .22 LR rifle, probably a Ruger 10-22 or one of the CZ bolt-action .22 LR rifles.

2. A AR-15 chambered in 5.56mm. Barrel length and other options to suit you own particular taste/needs.

3. A Model 70 in 7mm Remington Magnum. This will easily handle any and all non-dangerous game animals in North America at any distance at which a responsible hunter would seek to kill a game animal under field conditions.

4. A Model 70 in .375 H&H or... .416 Rigby. This will settle the hash of any potentially dangerous game animal in North America. In fact, given the flat trajectory of the .416 Rigby round, it will work for anything from elk and bison right on up to any of the bears one might ever potentially encounter.

[Art Eatman]

Some sort of .22 rimfire; all manner of good options available.

A .243 for varmints and deer; I like my little Sako carbine.

A 26" barrelled '06 for serious work. Handloading, a fella can go from squirrels to elk.

[dgludwig]

Four rifles mininum? I'll pick from the ones I have:

(1) Remington Model 504 bolt-action, w/ Nikon ProStaff 4x scope, chambered in .22 rf

(2) Ruger Mini-14 semi-auto, stock peep sight, chambered in .223

(3) Ruger Model MKII International bolt-action, w/ Leupold VariXII 1x4 scope, chambered in .308

(4) Savage Model 116 SE bolt-action, w/ B&L 3000 Elite 1.5x 4.5 scope, chambered in .338 Magnum

[Pacman]

If you were to tackle this question from a prepper point of view, I would consider the following:

.22lr
5.56/.223
7.62x39
.308

Three of these are military rounds and availability would be easier in a squeeze. With these four rounds, I can't think of anything these aren't capable of bringing down.

[Bennyboy]

Semiauto 22LR-small game, cheap, easy to carry a lot

AR in 243-varmint, medium game, defense against two legged predators

Bolt-action 300winmag-medium and large game, open country

Lever-action 45-70. Big game, close range, bear defense

[bbqbob51]

My list is a little weird but would work, even in Alaska:
1. 22lr, I like lever actions so a slick operating Henry is my choice.
2. 357mag, like I said, I like lever actions and short bbl Winchester or Marlin can bring down lots of game and it is a handy and very reliable dense woods or brush gun. Besides you can also carry a revolver like a GP100 or my choice of a S&W 686+ and the revolver and rifle can share ammo like the cowboys do. Of course, you could go full cowboy and opt for a single action revolver like the overbuilt Varquero. Of course those out there who think bigger, you could substitute .44mag or .45LC.
3. .223, AR15 platform is my choice for higher capacity if encountering a pack of wolves but a nice bolt action would work too.
4. .308 or 30.06 in a bolt action for bigger game. A nice .270 would also work. I think a Savage with an Accutrigger and the best scope you can afford would do the trick.
I would feel pretty safe and well heeled if I had to go with the rifles listed above.

[Ambishot]

You could get away with three very easily. A 22lr, 12guage shotgun, 270 Winchester. Jack O'Connor killed everything from coyotes to grizzly bears and moose and lots of them with the 270.

I got to the discussion late, but I agree with Mystro. The variety of these three choices sufficiently covers the critters that you'll be aiming at.

[Sgt Pepper]

Ha! I did this for years and years and never wished I had anything else:

.22 LR
12 gauge
7mm Rem Mag


The 7mm Rem Mag could be interchanged with a .270, .30-06, or .300 Win Mag. There are tradeoffs for each, but they would be acceptable.

If you wanted a little more oomph, I could see substituting a .22WMR for the .22 LR.

If you wanted a little less oomph, I could also see substituting a 20 gauge for the 12 gauge.

I say keep it simple and short. If you have too many, then you frequently end up with the wrong gun in your hand.

[Clark]

22LR
223
7mmRemMag


And a 12 ga shotgun
And a 380 pistol

[dgludwig]

My grandfather was a Depression era hunter/fisherman and my mother reported the family partially living off game he shot and fish he caught during those troubled economic times. He was never a "gun enthusiast" in the least but I was always impressed with the utility of the three firearms that he possessed and used often, for everything and anything worth hunting in North America. All three were apparently purchased in the early fifties and included the following: a single-shot, Remington Model 514, bolt-action, .22 rf rifle; a Remington Model 760 "Gamemaster", pump-action rifle, chambered in 30-06 Springfield (a gun I have owned since the late sixties and which has taken more than a few whitetails. My grandfather had a Lyman 4x scope on it but I've always had a Williams "FoolProof" receiver sight on it) and a Remington Model 870 "Wingmaster", pump-action shotgun, chambered in 12 gauge (a gun now owned by one of my brothers).
I would argue that these three guns are everything you'd ever need to hunt any game successfully with in North America. My grandfather would never comprehend why I "needed" more (in my case, many more ) guns than he made do with. Of course, he'd never understand the concept of "catch and release" fishing either...