bolt vs. pump action

[cajun47]

thinking about getting a high powered hunting rifle. i guess 30-06 or .270. i know bolt actions are way more popular in my area. why?

are they that much more accurate? im not a fan of bolt actions tbh.

[TAKtical]

I wasnt aware that anyone still made pump action rifles. Do you mean lever action?

[benay148]

Are there many lever action rifles in 30-06 or 270? Can't think of any really, seems dangerous

[8MM Mauser]

The browning BLR comes in a variety of calibers including ,30-06. Probably .270 too and it's a lever action.

[Spats McGee]

Originally Posted by TAKtical

I wasnt aware that anyone still made pump action rifles. Do you mean lever action?

Well, it looks like Remington still makes one.
http://www.remington.com/en/product-...odel-7600.aspx

I have never been able to get used to the idea of a pump action rifle, personally. To my mind, if it's got a pump action, it ought to be a shotgun. I have no clue as to how PA rifles actually perform as compared to others, though.

[Scorch]

Bolt actions are often cheaper than a pump action rifle.

Yes, Remington still sells the 7600 pump action centerfire rifle in 30-06, 270, 308, etc. They are generally very accurate rifles.

Pick what fits you best.

[gunloony]

thinking about getting a high powered hunting rifle. i guess 30-06 or .270. i know bolt actions are way more popular in my area. why?

are they that much more accurate? im not a fan of bolt actions tbh.

No clue why bolt actions are more popular than pumps in your area, especially as I have no way of knowing where you are ;-)

Bolts tend to be less expensive than pumps, as they are simpler, and generally tend to be more accurate. Pumps are generally plenty accurate for hunting, especially short to medium range woods or brush hunting. You should use what is comfortable for you and lets you hit your targets.

Lever actions have been made for high-pressure rounds since the Winchester Model 1895 which was chambered for 30-06 and some other powerful rounds.

[BIG P]

Cagun, seems funny that people in swamp country would favor bolt action,where fast action rifles would seem to be the ticket.I hunt in SO. GA alot hogs & deer and have enjoyed using a rem 7600 pump in 270 for many years.the 7600 is lite fast for a follow up shot & more accurate than most guys give it credit for.Look on the used racks sometimes you can find a good deal on a good pump. Give them a try.

[jmr40]

Bolt rifles are much more accurate, it is easier to put a better trigger on them. They are also much more reliable, they are lighter and easier to shoot with some sort or rest or bipod. They are also much less expensive. That said, a pump is no slouch. They tend to be much faster than a lever for repeat shots and much more accurate than levers.

Speed of repeat shots is closer than many think if you know how to work a bolt rifle. Practicing rapid repeat shots is something I work on at the range. It is possble to throw lead down range faster with a pump or lever, but not really that much. Put up a target though and add a requirement that the target be hit with all 3 shots and the times are almost exactly the same for all of them. I use a 9" paper plate at 50 yards. I can make 3 hits with a bolt gun in about 3.5 seconds. A lever is just over 4 seconds, a pump just under 3 seconds and just over 2 seconds with a semi.

[cajun47]

ha, thats it. must be because of the rest they use in their deer stand. and price i guess.

[AllenJ]

It's funny how bolt action rifles never really gained a huge following considering how well the pump shotgun has done. If a pump rifle is what you desire than I say get one. If it's not everything you were hoping for you can always pick up a bolt action rifle at a later time.

[TAKtical]

Thats the remington that I was thinking of but for some reason I thought they stopped making them. I saw one once where a guy had made a bunch of 870 aftermarket tactical parts fit somehow.

[L_Killkenny]

I've owned and used bolts, lever actions, SA's and pumps. Of the manually operated guns I find pumps fastest for me (in the field), followed by lever actions and bolts bringin up the rear. The difference is much less than some might think though.

Pumps and levers don't have to be inaccurate. I've seen 'em shoot 1-2moa and while a varmint guy would laugh at that, it is more than good enough for predators and big game. What I've found hard about pumps and levers is fixin em when you get one that doesn't shoot straight. There's lots of little things that a shooter can do to his bolt gun to shrink groups but IMO you get what you get with levers and pumps. If they don't shoot like you want than you're better off to send em down the road instead of messin with em.

The main popularity of lever guns is not in their action but in their carbine like handling. The Remington pumps tend to feel more rifle-like as do most off the shelf bolt actions. But either can be made to handle almost as well as a lever carbine. 1" off the barrel can change the personality of a gun, start looking at 3-4" and it's a BIG difference.

For ease of use and ease of ringin accuracy I've settled on bolt guns. But mine all where barrels shorter than 20". Favorite is 18.5". Handles like a carbine, shoots like a good bolt rifle.

[tahoe2]

All those actions (lever, pump, and bolt ), equal fast follow ups with practice.
It's a matter of preference, but the fastest is my Rem 7400 in 280 Rem.
I have at least one in each action type, but more bolt guns than anything else.

[SVTCobra306]

Most of the time hunting with a round that size you will want to shoot a spire point or hollow point round.. loading spire points and hollow point centerfire cartridges in a tube magazine seems like a pretty bad idea... I would, prior to buying one, read the warnings in the instruction manual. You might be limited to "Ballistic" or "Varmint" tipped, or maybe Round Nose rounds with a pump centerfire, which may add to the cost of shooting/owning it.

[handlerer2]

While lever, pump actions, semi-autos are perfectly serviceable for most hunting applications, bolt actions are IMO, more versatile especially if you reload. Semi-auto, pump, BLR, and 1895 Win are not as simple to service, more complicated and time consuming to disassemble. Pump actions and semi-autos require the reloader to use small base dies to prevent recoil from stripping the rims off of fired cases, especially in reloaded rounds. Factory ammo in suitable cartridges should be mild enough to reliably function in both if they are kept clean.

The Rem 7600 is not tube fed, but has a conventional magazine holding four rounds, as do the BLR and 1895 Win, so any bullet profile can be used.

I have owned and reloaded for Lever, Semi's, and bolt actions and prefer bolt actions for accuracy, I own 2 Weatherbys, 300WBY, and 340WBY, a Cooper MDl22 Montana Varminter 6.5-284, amoung others, but my first centerfire rifle rifle, that I reloaded for was a Marlin 336 30-30, that I bought in 1975. It was an excellent fun gun for shooting and perfectly suitable for deer at reasonable ranges, but can't compare with any of my bolt guns in accuracy.

You may find the entry level bolt guns more reasonably priced than the 7600 or BLR, and more accurate, as well as more user friendly.

[elDiabloLoco]

ha, thats it. must be because of the rest they use in their deer stand. and price i guess.

hey bra, i can ansa dat question, mais yeah.

If you out huntin' in da "bay area"[Chackbay], and you evah drop dat pump-m-up in dat swamp.....you gonna find out. Same story if'n you take dat pump-m-up out in da salty marsh down da baya.....

It's a heck of a lot easier to clean up a bolt action, especially the modern guns. Ask me how I know....pump shotgun took a dip in Lake Bouef once.

[GeauxTide]

Pump is no harder to clean than a bolt. A 7600 in 308 is also a pretty good defense rifle with 10 round clips. They can be had in wood or synthetic.

[Doyle]

You might be limited to "Ballistic" or "Varmint" tipped, or maybe Round Nose rounds with a pump centerfire, which may add to the cost of shooting/owning it.

Nope, the Remington pumps have detatchable box mags.

[Picher]

The majority of pump rifle sales have been in Pennsylvania because they don't (or didn't) allow semi-autos for hunting. If it wasn't for PA, we probably wouldn't have the option because there wouldn't be enough sold.

Often, pump shotgun shooters buy them because of the muscle (and head) memory. I'm a bolt-action shooter and had some trouble using pump rifles because the right hand wants to look for a bolt.

Pump rifles are more accurate than semi-autos, it's easier to clear jams, and like some semi's, don't change POI due to wooden stocks warping like some bolt guns. They can generally chamber a round more quietly than most bolt guns and if done slowly, more surely locked up. (I was always a bit nervous that a 7400 wasn't fully locked up when operated quietly.)

The 7400 is (or was) chambered for the .30-06, .270 Win, and .308 Win; some of the more powerful and flatter shooting deer cartridges.

That said, I've never owned a centerfire pump gun (though once had a .22LR pump), but have sighted-in many and they all have shot very well.

[Boomer58cal]

I have a Win model 95 in 30-06 that's a lever action but you're not likely to find one of for the price of a bolt or auto. My 7400 has done me well for 20 years. I have over a 1000 rds through her and she shoots as good as the day I bought her.

[Mauser8mm]

If you are looking for accuracy, this should help you...

Accuracy if effected by the amount of moving parts, and in a pump action there is a lot. In a bolt action, there are some but not many. In a break action, there are very few moving parts, therefore it is the most accurate. A bolt action is the SECOND most accurate, and a break action is the FIRST. Levers, pumps, automatics, etc. all fall under those two. If you are looking for accuracy, a bolt action is your best bet between the two. Plus they are more common, and generally cheaper than the pumps.

Choose wisely, and shoot safe!!

[cvc944]

The majority of pump rifle sales have been in Pennsylvania because they don't (or didn't) allow semi-autos for hunting. If it wasn't for PA, we probably wouldn't have the option because there wouldn't be enough sold.

Yep, I do believe it's us that's keeping them alive. Most of my relatives hunt with them. I'm a bolt guy myself, but can assure you that you will see plenty of pump action rifles while hunting in this state. They are called 'Pennsylvania machine guns' and 'Amish automatics' by some. By the way, we still can't use semi-autos or hunt on Sunday either.

[44 AMP]

First off, there are several generalities stated here that I do not agree with.

One of them is which action type is the most accurate. Each rifle and ammo combination is an individual, and sometimes, will perform beyond, or below the accepted "general" run. That being said, here's the way I see it...

Bolt action rifles, as a group, are the most accurate. This is because of the smaller number of moving parts, the simple trigger system, and the overall rigidity of the rifle.

Single shots are often quite accurate, but as a group, have a lower accuracy potential because of the two piece stocks, and some other factors. Again,individual rifles can be quite accurate, but as a group, not as accurate as bolt guns. Note that benchrest shooters, where accuracy is the prime consideration use bolt guns. Usually single shot bolt gun.

The bolt gun has the ability to chamber anything, and everything. Pumps, levers, and semis are much more resticted, with only a few models being able to take rounds like the .30-06. Bolt guns also have the advantage of very powerful primary extraction. If you are going to go the the max with your loadings, the bolt gun is the way to go.

I won't question how fast anyone is with their preferred action type, but my experience is that generally, for speed of aimed shots, it is semi auto, pump, lever, and then bolt action. For 5 shots, with someone experienced with each type, its only about 2 seconds or so difference between fastest and slowest. The primary reason being that for lever and bolt, one has to remove one hand from the shooting grip to work the action. With a pump, one does not.

The two main types of pump found today are the Remington (still made) and the Savage (long out of production). There are also old Remingtons and some other pump rifles on the used market, but if you are considering new, Remington is the choice.

Some pumps will shoot quite well. Most will shoot well enough. A few won't. This is an individual thing, just like any other rifle type. In general, pumps do fine for big game hunting, but are not usually good enough for varmint hunting.

An exception to this is the .22 cal, where the pump often does just as well as anything, and is faster than everything save the semi auto.

[243winxb]

In the Remington brand, one may be just as accurate as the other. A 700 can be rebarreled easly. Not so with a Rem 7600 pump.