Your 3 favorite hunting cartridges off all time

My vote:
223 Rem
243 Win
7mm Rem Mag

Honorable Mention:
338 Win Mag
375 H&H

Originally Posted by CK1

.257 Weatherby
.300 Weatherby
.375 H&H

I could be very happy with these 3 also...

We are talking about best calibers, but what do you take as positive in a caliber or not??
For example, for me a great caliber is a 270 wsm, is fast but a killer, all based on my experience, we now some calibers are good or similars to others in paper, if you look at balistic tables, but we realise that is a group of calibers with bery similars but work bether in the field, for example 308 and 30-06.( for me and for at least 80 % of the people I talk about this, think 308 is beter caliber on the ground) Another thing is facility to find in all countrys, for example, I now if I have to by my ammo in a diferent country than in Spain, for shure I wont find. Is imposible to find a 270wsm in Finland for example, 223 is not aloud in Spain, etc....

You post is interesting. Favorite calibers...infer people's preferences, gun restrictions, game that people frequently hunt, game that people wish to hunt, cheap rifles, cheap ammunition, availability of ammo....a whole lot of categories.

I do find it interesting to read peoples choices!

270 win. 300 WSM and the 375 ruger they will do it all for me. John

For me in NA
.22
.30-06
.45-70

The .30-06 is a pretty all-around cartridge for me. 165 grain for coyote & bobcat, 180 grain for deer & hogs.

@ Talisker: I owns a 7x57 since 1994, made by Musgrave Arms in South Africa. I shot from a Springbuck (45kg or 100lb) to and Eland (800kg or 1700lb). It never failed me. (The failed shots came from the operator behind the rifle). Recently I won the PMP Pro Amm (Local RSA ammunitions manufacturer) national group shooting championship with 6.25mm (0.24")group of 3 shots at 100m. The caliber's performance is outstanding when the application is correct. It is not realy a long range calibre but can do the the job very well up to 250 - 300 yards. I load 130gr GS Custom bullets at 2900fps and shoot easy up to 300m with only a 4 " drop. The heavier (150 -170gr)bullets drop quite a bit at 300m (8 -14 inches) if zeroed at 200. However, in South Africa not many shots are taken beyond 250 m with 120 probably the average. The long bullet of the 7x57provides a very good SD and penetrates very well. I don't recover many bullets from even large animals like Kudu and even Blue wildebeest; on most, you get an exit wound. You'll be happy with the calibre and its performans. CZ: a very good make and smooth performer. I owns a .375 H&H and a .458 3" Express of that manufacturer.

7x64
9.3x62
470NE

6.5x55
9.3x62
.300wm and .30-06 in a tie

.22 Hornet
.308 Win.
.375 Ruger

35Whelen
458 Win Mag
6mm Remington

In that order

Honorable mentions: 375H&H, 30-06 and 8mm Rem Mag

6.5-06 is my number one.
Then there is a tie between 223 and 375 Ruger.

If no wild cats, then my third would be 6.5x55.

Honorable mentions: 9.3x62 and 300 WSM.

But there are lots of cartridges I really like besides them

.270 Win
375 H&H
Bolt = my 460WBY
Double= 500NE

works fine for me and cover the whole spectrum.

If I could only have three...

22 WMR
30-06
375 H&H

With those three, you can hunt anything from rabbits to elephants.

My actual collection doesn't have a 22 WMR. Instead I have a 22LR, 243, 30-30 and 375. Will be adding a 30-06 next year.

been trying to work out which 3 for a while but couldnt, so sort of cheating but not really

bolt action
.275 rigby
.350 rigby/9.3x62(couldnt help myself!)
.416 rigby

double rifle
.22 hornet
9.3x74r
.470 nitro

definite mental torture trying to work this one out

25-06
.338 Win Mag
.416 Rigby

My all time favorites..
.308 Win, .375 H&H, .404 Jeffery

.375H&H
.270Win
.308Win

In that order ...a pretty standard list

Originally Posted by Jay Kelley

If I could only have three...

22 WMR
30-06
375 H&H

With those three, you can hunt anything from rabbits to elephants.

My actual collection doesn't have a 22 WMR. Instead I have a 22LR, 243, 30-30 and 375. Will be adding a 30-06 next year.

Definitely covers the spectrum. Maybe take the 22 WMR up to a .22-250...could still shoot rabbits and all manner of varmints and yotes

.243
.300 win mag
.416 rem mag

Think that about covers it...