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View Poll Results: If you could have only one caliber, what would it be and why?

Voters
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  • .45-70

    35 3.46%
  • .357 / 38 SP

    190 18.77%
  • 44 Mag / 44 SP

    108 10.67%
  • 41 Mag

    18 1.78%
  • 45 Colt / .410 Shotgun / 454 Casull

    59 5.83%
  • 45 ACP / 460 Rowland

    26 2.57%
  • 22lr / 22 Short / 22 long

    44 4.35%
  • .223 / 5.56x45

    19 1.88%
  • .308 Win / 7.62x51

    80 7.91%
  • 7.63 x 39

    13 1.28%
  • 300 AAC/Whisper

    8 0.79%
  • 9mm Luger

    26 2.57%
  • 10mm / 40SW

    5 0.49%
  • 22 Hornet

    3 0.30%
  • 20 Gauge

    8 0.79%
  • 12 Gauge

    87 8.60%
  • 6.5x55 Swede

    16 1.58%
  • 7mm-08

    5 0.49%
  • 30-06

    143 14.13%
  • 30-30

    34 3.36%
  • 22 Mag

    3 0.30%
  • Other

    82 8.10%
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Results 281 to 300 of 375

Thread: If you could have only one caliber, what would it be?

  1. #281
    Boolit Grand Master
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
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    Northern Michigan
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    8,901
    I do not recall how I voted originally.

    Now, with what is happening and could happen, harvesting game or “fun” shooting seems a lower priority. Being able to defend our homes and families is the priority.

    I live in a very rural area, so it must a rifle caliber. Being capable of engaging at 400 yards would be important due to my location. It must be available in a semi-Auto platform. It would be beneficial to have something with low enough recoil to be useable by ladies and children if the SHTF.

    Unlimited components means casting has no importance in the selection.

    The 5.56 meets those parameters. If I was alone, likely the .308.

    BTW, my little rifle arsenal is made up of 5.56, .30/30, .308 and .300 Mag. The .30/30’s are there in case AR’s are abolished, and I do not need the .300 Mag now that my dream of a western elk hunt seems less and less likely.
    Last edited by dverna; 10-11-2020 at 11:37 PM.
    Don Verna


  2. #282
    Boolit Master
    AZ Pete's Avatar
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    May 2005
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    For me, in AZ, .38 spl./.357 mag. Works well in revolvers and lever guns. If I lived very far north it would be .44 spl/.44 mag. for the same reasons.
    NRA Endowment Life Member

  3. #283
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Sep 2016
    Posts
    2,377
    Good question. For me it would be 30 caliber/31 caliber. This would include 30 M1 carbine, 308/7.62x51, 30-06. 30-40 Krag, 30-30,7.65x53mm Argentine mauser, 303 British, and 7.62x54r. And for grins and giggles 32-20. Frank

  4. #284
    Boolit Buddy
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    Sep 2020
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    The Lone Star State
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    291
    I'm not as young as I used to be and much older than I ever imagined being so with everything that has brought on I voted .357/.38sp. That allows a plethora of revolvers, and a few semi-autos, to pick from. Add in a Ruger 77/357 or a lever gun and you have a lightweight combo that is 75-100 yd capable. Easy and inexpensive to reload for and not too stressful on a bad shoulder or back.
    Cargo

  5. #285
    Boolit Bub
    Join Date
    Sep 2020
    Location
    Florida
    Posts
    45
    If I am voting from my "heart" it's gotta by a .45 Colt,
    vote from brain (or w/ common sense): .22LR - after all what won't it do?
    If I gotta grab and go and get the hell out of here: 30-06.
    And, the Sig 229 isn't on the list 'cause it's always with me.

  6. #286
    Boolit Master quail4jake's Avatar
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    Dec 2015
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    The North Woods of Pennsylvania
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    544
    .38-56 W.C.F. doesn't everyone have Marlin 1895 chambered in .38-56?

  7. #287
    Boolit Master RU shooter's Avatar
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    Nov 2006
    Location
    SW Pa.
    Posts
    2,928
    My one caliber would be my 35 Rem . This is based just off what I would hunt in the range limits in my area . I can kill anything in Pa with it , have the option to use light pistol bullets at low vel For small game .
    If you find yourself in a fair fight, your tactics suck!

  8. #288
    Boolit Master





    SSGOldfart's Avatar
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    Sep 2011
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    East Texas
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    38/357 it could do everything needed but it would be hard to leave the 1911 behind.I've seen how well a 45 and a 308 works first hand.
    Last edited by SSGOldfart; 11-26-2020 at 09:56 AM. Reason: Window's spell check thingy messed up the post
    I started out with nothing and I still have most of it left.
    Paralyzed Veterans of America

    Looking for a Hensly &Gibbs #258 any thing from a two cavity to a 10cavityI found a new one from a member here

  9. #289
    Boolit Master Baltimoreed's Avatar
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    Dec 2012
    Location
    NC
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    Chose the .45 acp as I have more revolvers, autos and sbrs in that caliber than any other. Great defensive caliber, accurate and in a pinch with the right load could be a close range hunter.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails E0672588-B9C7-484A-96AE-E6862E5F9D1C.jpg  

  10. #290
    Boolit Buddy BUFFALOW RED's Avatar
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    Oct 2008
    Location
    SW MO.
    Posts
    140
    44-40
    Fits my pistols& lever rifle
    NRA Life Member
    learn to make your own black powder collect bp arms as there presently not recorded
    smokless is a fad its fading fast, helped along by obama

  11. #291
    Boolit Buddy
    Dekota56's Avatar
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    Dec 2020
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    SW Pa. in the middle of the wooded hills
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    I think I would have to go with a 308, you can load it down to a ground hog load or beef it up to take deer ( that is if I could only have one )
    The Soldier that Volunteers, fighting for his Country and his rights,
    makes the most reliable Soldier on Earth.

  12. #292
    Boolit Master
    Daekar's Avatar
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    Dec 2020
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    Virginia, USA
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    614
    Another for 357mag here. I think it's the best compromise, letting you have a practical carry gun and a meaningful rifle with the same case. There is probably nothing I will need or want to do that it cannot handle with a proper handload.
    I'm a big fan of data-driven decisions. You want to make me smile, show me a spreadsheet! Extra points for graphs and best-fit predictive equations.

  13. #293
    Boolit Master 444ttd's Avatar
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    9.3x57 for me.
    Ad Reipublicae his Civitatum Foederatarum Americae, ego sum fortis et libero. Ego autem non exieris ad impios communistarum socialismi. Ora imagines in vestri demented mentem, quod vos mos have misericordia, quia non.

    To the Republic of these United States of America, I am strong and free. I will never surrender to godless communist socialism. Pray to images in your demented mind, that you will have mercy, because i will not.

    MOLON LABE

  14. #294
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Jul 2013
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    barry s wales uk
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    38/357 load them up or down ,light boolits heavy boolits .leverguns revolvers semi autos bolt actions .now thats adaptable.

  15. #295
    Boolit Mold
    Join Date
    May 2015
    Posts
    10
    I voted other. However, it is still in the 35 cal realm. For me it would have to be the 35 Whelen. It appears to be a cast friendly cartridge. It can use pistol or rifle boolits or bullets for that matter. It can be loaded light with pistol powders or TrailBoss for small game hunting, plinking or suppressed ninja shooting. It can then be loaded with heavy projectiles and turned into a real thumper capable of taking almost anything on the planet. Brass is readily available and can be easily formed from 06 or 270 brass.

    A close second was the 38/357 mag for all the reasons already listed in previous posts.

  16. #296
    Boolit Mold
    Join Date
    Jan 2021
    Posts
    2
    Soo many situations in life so I would go 300B/O, mainly because I can go super and subs 100gr-250gr. Good for quiet sub H.D., 0-250yd Varmint-med game hunting, low powder consumption, tons of bullet types, casting options, easy to get parts and more...I think in my case this would be an all around good caliber as it fills nearly every situation.

  17. #297
    Boolit Master curioushooter's Avatar
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    Jan 2012
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    Southern Indiana
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    906
    Pretty sure 357 magnum. It has an unbeatable combination of being cast boolit friendly, potent enough for deer in a rifle, works well in revolvers, and uses up less lead than bigger bores, and the ammo is more compact than bigger bores.

  18. #298
    Boolit Mold
    Join Date
    Jul 2018
    Location
    Northeast
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    29
    45acp

  19. #299
    Boolit Master
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    Feb 2007
    Location
    South Western NC
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    3,820
    Only one cartridge? Okay, but I'm not one dimensional person. So -

    shotgun: 20 gauge magnum
    rifle: .22-250, .30-06, .35 Rem
    handgun: .22 RF, .357, .45 ACP

  20. #300
    Boolit Buddy davidheart's Avatar
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    It befuddles my mind why this post is not a sticky yet! Haha, I created it in 2016 and it's still going strong in 2021!
    He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High Will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. -Psalm 91:1

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check