I’m not a 223 , 308 or 06 fan . And I own Mannlicher Schoenauer carbines in 308 and 06 . As to case life I’ve never had an issue with case life or reliability in any cartridge I’ve messed with . I like the 243 , 260 , 7mm-08 and 338 Federal all based on the 308 case . I like the 25-06 , 6.5-06 , 270 , 280 and 338-06 all based on the 06 .

Got it. I like most of the old calibers like the 257 Roberts and 7 x 57. My two favorites are the 270 and 243. I use the 243 with 85 grain handloads for deer much of the time. The 270 comes into play in Saskatchewan for moose and bear and also deer up there. I would have no problem using the 243 on bear at reasonable range but I’ve always used the 270 for them.

MY FAVORITE CALIBERS ARE THE OLD ONES.....32-20 the 25-20 22 hornet the 222 rem the old 30-30 the 32 winchester special the 35 remington and the list goes on.....charlie

Back about 2002-2003 I was bear hunting in Wayne/Monroe counties in PA . We dropped by the bear check station one evening to see what they had gotten in 500 pound plus size . Seems a 13 year old boy was sitting there on a kind of cliff maybe 30-40 feet above the forest floor when this bear wandered by . The kid had a Remington shuckamatic (760) in 243 WIN shooting handloaded 90 grain bullets . So at about thirty yards he puts one behind the shoulder , said bear screams snarls whatever and proceeded to run around in a circle . Young man sat there and watched said he didn’t want to shoot again because he didn’t want to make the bear mad LOL’s . Anyway after a minute or less Mr Bear falls over and is dead when he gets to him . At the check station with innards out Mr Bear weighed 664 pounds .

Great story. I've never shot a bear with a 243 since I only take one rifle to Saskatchewan, the 270. Bears are now legal in Pawling, NY and so I might get a chance at one with the 243. But I’m not sure I would shoot it. After I got all three color phases, cinnamon, brown and black I decided to quit shooting them. But I didn’t stop like I thought I would since my Saskatchewan farmer friend Snuffy wanted them shot. They do a lot of damage to his oat fields in September. They roll on the oats for some reason while feeding and those areas can’t be combined. They don’t touch canola or any other grains but they raise havoc with the oats when they ripen. But I’d probably let a Pawling bear walk. I really don’t need any more skins and I like venison better than bear meat.

I'm right there with you Charlie. I am a traditionalist and those older calibers always interested me. I have taken a few crop damage permit deer with the little 222 and 55 grain handloads just for the hell of it. It's not a deer caliber per se but none of those deer went over 50 yards after being hit and one went only 10 yards. I used a bunch of different calibers for those crop damage deer just to see how each would perform. I even took one with my 32-20 Winchester model 92.

OTE=Bruce Day;261119]I’ll bet this rifle cost far more than an annual membership in the Parker Shotgun Collectors Association.[/QUOTE]
Bruce your math skills are amazing :bowdown: just a heads up it was more than a life membership BUT I'll get a lot of pleasure from this investment. Seeing it was you who made the comment that the annual member wasn't committed to the PGCA I ask What's your point!?

I have never been a fan of the 06 either. No real reason really I have a pre 64 FWT but have never shot it. My favorite caliber is the 7x57 (275 Rigby). Others are the 257 Roberts the 250 and 300 Savages. I have almost everything and can hunt anything on the planet with a rifle suitable for the game intended. This is my first 6.5x55 but I'm liking it a lot so far. I had a Creedmore in a #1 but it left me cold.

I suppose you might say I’m a hardcore fan of most any 6.5mm or 7mm . However I can’t get excited about the 6.5 or 6mm Creedmoor. Now just let me say I’ve shot a bunch of the Savage Model 12 LRP rifles in 6.5 CM and they ALL were tack drivers , those guns also come with the “Competition Accu-Trigger” all the new ones I’ve sold I checked with the gauge and they were all 10-14 ounces from the factory . Anyway the 260 and 243 are more to my liking over the two CM cartridges . Being a big Jack O’Conner fan the 270 has always been a favorite, however I gotta say I like the 6.5-06 and 280 more .

We used to go to a little tavern/lodge deal on the NY side of the Delaware River right before you get to Monticello . Doesn’t appear to be to far from you ! Had thoughts a couple years of getting a N.Y. license and hunt public land in that area until some friends informed me about the crowds .

Monticello is about 2 ½ hours from Pawling. I’ve never hunted public land in NY, never had a need to, but I hear that public land in NY is a zoo early in the deer season. I can’t imagine deer hunting on public land. I like to know who might be in the woods where I hunt. I don’t wear orange only camo and I sure wouldn’t feel comfortable doing that on state land. I also like hunting land where the deer are not spooked to the point that they change their daily habits. But a lot of folks aren’t as fortunate as I am so state land might be their only choice.