What four calibres would you choose

I'm from the great state of NSW Australia and in their wisdom the government of said state wants to limit the average licenced shooter to a limit of four calibres.
I'm not entirely sure if that includes rimfire and shotguns, for this exercise we will only limit to centre fire.
My four calibres are

22 250
30 06
9.3x62
404j

Should cover anything I want to hurt anywhere in Australia and overseas

Let the fun begin

Rob

mine are:
20 GA Saint Etienne O/U
6.5x55SE Blaser Professional Success
375 H&H Blaser wooden Stock
300 Norma Magnum Blaser on Akila Chassis
These rifles cover my all hunting so far - from Africa trough Europe to Asia

Good choices,my make and style of rifle depends on what I fancy at the time lol.
Can't use straight pull actions anymore so hmmmm
I'm so lucky to live in the lucky country lol

7mm STW
.416 Rigby
.470 NE
.500 Schüler

.22lr - bolt action
.223 - bolt action
.308Win - bolt action
.375H&H - double

These cover everything.

FN

As a right-hander who shoots left because of a problematic right eye, I've always been fond of ambidextrous single shots (I have eight). I also prefer rimmed cartridges for these types of rifles. So my first choice would be a Blaser K95 with a neutral butt stock in 7x57r. I love my Ruger No. 1 RSI in 275 Rigby for deer hunting but if you're going to limit me to only four calibers, then I'm going to go up a notch on this selection.



Shooting left most of the time limits my bolt action selections a bit. But I love both my left-handed Sako & Steyr in the boringly dependable 30-06. My Sako is the most accurate rifle in my safe. Getting a Bavarian or an SM12 in this chambering would cover a lot of situations.





I really like my LH Winchester Safari Express in 375 H&H (seen below hanging out with some of my falling blocks). So it would stay.



The fourth choice is the wildcard: Do I keep my semi-auto Wilson Combat Protector Carbine (below) in 300 HAM'R for hog hunting? Or do I invest in a nice double that makes a big boom because I'm going to Africa a lot during my upcoming retirement? The left-handed Chapuis below for example is available in 450-400 & 470 NE. I might have to mull over this one for a while...or just be thankful I actually live in a place where I can own as many rifles as I want.

Honestly? I'd run your exact four if I was forced to pick today. They cover Australia end-to-end and give you proper overseas capability without too much redundancy.

At the moment, we are still unrestricted regarding the number of bolt action rifles, but sooner or later, this will affect us as well. Since I own far more than four rifles, I would have to choose between those still in my own.

In any case, I would keep the double shotgun 16/70, because it was my father's shotgun, the FN Mauser bolt action rifle caliber 340 Weatherby Magnum because it was built for me, the Mauser Magnum bolt action rifle caliber 500 Schüler, because it was also built for me and the double rifle caliber 600 Nitro Express, because it is for a lot of reasons something out of the ordinary.

With this battery, I could still shot any game worldwide, even if the cartridge 340 Weatherby Magnum, the smallest in the series, is somewhat oversized for lighter game species. It is but possible, just depends on the shooter who must be capable of hitting smaller game with larger calibers.

rob7mm08 said:

I'm from the great state of NSW Australia and in their wisdom the government of said state wants to limit the average licenced shooter to a limit of four calibres.
I'm not entirely sure if that includes rimfire and shotguns, for this exercise we will only limit to centre fire.
My four calibres are

22 250
30 06
9.3x62
404j

Should cover anything I want to hurt anywhere in Australia and overseas

Let the fun begin

Rob

Click to expand...

I am from the great state of Queensland in Australia where there are no limits on rifles or calibres . I’ve got 22 rifles ranging from 22LR to 600NE plus 6 shotguns . The question is academic for me but if I had to chose 4 rifles it would be :
300H&H ( tough choice over 318WR)
425WR ( easy choice over 416/ 404/ 450-400)
505 Gibbs
500NE - similar to 505 but I want a double on my list .
If you ask me again tomorrow I’d probably come up with a different list .

22lr
257WBY (runner up 25-06)
300WM (runner up 30-06)
375H&H (runner up 416RM)

I'D MOVE TO QUEENSLAND!

I need 3 for hunting:
.308
.300 WM
470 NE

.22LR - small game, plinking, training
My centerfire choices all rely on appropriate bullet selection at sane hunting distances.
7x57 - whitetail deer to elk in North America and similar plains game in Africa.
6.8 Western - increasing the distance when required on elk and elk sized plains game.
9.3x62 - not necessarily for moose but when you’re in moose country you’re in grizzly country. With proper bullet choice and careful shot placement absolutely adequate for the biggies in Africa.

.223 / 5.56 - Im not sure if this is true in Australia, but in the US there is a huge supply of ammo in this caliber and it is inexpensive compared to other .22 centerfires. While it might not have the same ability as a .22-250 or a 220 swift, etc its easy and inexpensive to keep fed and will do anything a 22-250 will do as long as you stay within the range/limits of the .223 cartridge

.308 - Similar rationale as the .223. The 308 is prolific and there are hundreds of millions of rounds of ammunition available, tons of reloading components, etc. It is the second most popular caliber in the US (only behind the .223) and when loaded heavy is capable of taking game up to the size of a moose/large black bear/etc

youre never going to run out of ammo for the first two choices unless you make the mistake of never bothering to stock up..

300 Win Mag - while I prefer 300 PRC performance, I look at the win mag the same way I do the 308 and 223.. its prolific.. reloading components are everywhere, ammo is everywhere.. and it gives you the extra range and the extra down range performance if you need to step into something bigger/heavier than a 308

375 H&H - while not exactly popular in the US (nothing above 30 caliber really is), its going to be one of the most prolific of the "big" calibers. Its fairly well carried in Alaska, and obviously guys that hunt Africa love the cartridge. I can find ammo at the big sporting goods retailers like Cabelas and Scheels, and its capable of hunting anything on the planet from the tiny 10 to the big 5..

If theyre moving to limit the number of guns you can own today, rest assured they'll try moving to limit your ability to feed your guns next.. I'd be choosing firearms that will be easy to feed for generations to come that are at the same time diverse enough to cover you for everything from small predators to big bovine..

I will do it in 3.

22 LR - Small game and my Florida Iguanas
300 Win Mag - North American game (Deer, bear, etc) + African Plains Game
416 Rigby - The Big Stuff.

12 gauge
.22 Long Rifle
7x57mm Mauser
.375 Holland & Holland Magnum

These are coincidentally the four calibers of long arms which I own on my firearms licenses. Instead of a 7x57mm Mauser, I’d be totally happy with a .30-06 Springfield too.

P.S: Even though you probably won’t succeed, it might be worth a shot in protesting your government’s draconian policy before it gets passed as official law. Get enough local shooters & hunters together and see if you can do a PIL (Public Interest Litigation) by chipping in together and getting a good lawyer. If you try, you MIGHT NOT succeed. If you don’t try, you WILL NOT succeed.

Being left handed. Let’s see…
223
300 WM
375 Ruger
416 Ruger
Could probably leave out the 375 but is so versatile.

I'd move if I were you-

30-06 and 404. Two rifles is plenty for me. Leaves room for a couple of shotguns if they are included in the four gun limit.

Not sure I need four for my hunting needs in Canada.

6.5 CM for all the little stuff.
.308 for almost everything else
.375 to take overseas or get a really big bear
9.3X74R because I just bought my first double in that caliber and I would like to be able to shoot the damned thing!