Would a Mauser 98k be a good rifle for hunting (deer and bear mostly)?
but also other critters like elk and moose... I have a Remington 700, 30-06 being shipped in but I've always like the Mauser 98k and was told that it could be a very good hunting rifle.
Why is the AR-15 a “military-grade weapon”, but the M1 Garand, M1911, and Thompson, along with various bolt actions and “hunting rifles”, are not?
Who would have believed that the Mattel Marvel would become the longest serving service rifle (in its various formats) in American military history. It was adopted by the Air Force in I think 1962.One of the realities of American life is the calibers and weapon types adopted by the U.S. military become popular with the American civilian population. They know that the ammunition for them will be available for the foreseeable future. Furthermore, those who muster out of the military often have a fondness for the weapon that they trained with. Also, until recent times, the government has sold surplus weapons that have been ruled obsolete to the Civilian Marksmanship program. I got a CMP M1 Carbine in the 1960s.An oft forgotten fact: The National Firearms Act in the 1930s made possession of a short barreled rifle or shotgun illegal without a tax stamp. Anything less than 18″ was ruled “short barrelled”. After WWII, the government had millions of M1 Carbines and a population hungry for them. The problem was that the M1 Carbine was made with a 16 1/4″ barrel and were therefore illegal without jumping through a bunch of expensive hoops. Congress changed the law for rifles and defined “short barrelled” as anything under 16″.The youngest WWII vets are approaching 90 yoa. The youngest Korean War Vets are in their 80s. Therefore, everybody who has served in the last 50 years or more used an M16 of some variety. It’s no wonder that they are popular. It’s what several generations have been trained on.
What is your "Mount Rushmore" of rifles?
4 separate rifles? You'd need a small caliber like a .22, a 12 guage shotgun, a battle rifle, and then a long range weapon.Here's my list…1. Ruger 10/222. Mossberg 590 (all steel because the militaryuses it, unlike the 500, which has some polymer/plastic in it)3. Colt 6920 (civilian version of the military M4)4. Savage 10 HS Precision with a Leupold MK4 (if i didn't have to pay)In my eyes; those are the best weapons, but they're all great at separate things. THAT'S my Mt. Rushmore of weapons… Why just rifles, though? Why not one handgun? If I had to choose a handgun; I'd love it to be the Sig 320 Compact 9mm. You can conceal that puppy with ease, and it still has 15+1 rounds!
Were military style guns intended for non military people to use?
Military style guns??? If that was true you couldn’t wear cargo pants and women couldn’t use tampons which were originally invented to plug up bullet holes in WWII….intention has nothing to do with civilian usefulness…. but I digress, the look of the weapon has nothing to do with its use. And often times most people will look at a “sniper rifle” or “assault rifle” that is painted matte black and looks “tactical” and a stock rifle and not realize its the exact same gun.
What sniper rifles were in the Vietnam War?
I'll just stick with the Americans. At the start of the U.S. involvement all they had were rifles leftover from WWII and Korea, principally the M1D Garand.The Garand was a great infantry rifle, but it didn't do as well for sniping. The enbloc clip ejected straight up from the receiver making mounting a scope problematic. The scope on the M1D was mounted to the left of the receiver; not an optimal solution. There were also some 03A4s available.The Marine Corps favored the even older Springfield 1903.Rifles that were used for sport hunting by off duty troops were even pressed into service. Here is a Winchester Model 70 with a Unertl scope like the one favored by Marine sniper Carlos Hathcock.All of the above rifles were chambered in the old .30-06 service cartridge. The U.S. service rifle at the beginning of the war was the M14, an updated version of the M1 Garand which fired the new 7.62 x 51 cartridge. Eventually these were mounted with scopes and used. The Army's designation for an M14 sniper rifle was M21.Incidentally, M14 based rifles are still in use today, not as sniper rifles, but as designated marksman rifles. Sometimes the extra range or penetration of a 7.62mm bullet is needed.But, back to Vietnam. The Marines, being first and foremost marksmen, preferred a bolt action rifle for its greater accuracy. Marine Corps armorers modified a version of the Remington Model 700 for their used and called it the M40.The M40 is also still used today, with better stocks and optics.The above is a Marine with a basic M40, they can get pretty extreme. Here's a proposal for one with all the bells and whistles.But I digress...again. The M16 was also used for sniping, but in a limited role and mostly at night with a Starlight scope.One last Vietnam "sniper rifle" deserves a mention, but it isn't a rifle. The M2 .50 caliber machine gun could be fired semi-automatically. Carlos Hathcock used one equipped with a Unertl scope for his record setting (at the time) 2500 yard shot.
Ok, the long debated question...?
The 30-06 has been around for over 100 years. And for good reasons too. It is very versitle. You can find cartriges for it any where ammo is sold. That is a big plus! For deer and smaller you can use 150 grain bullets. For black bears, moose or elk, you can use 180 grain bullets. And there use to be (and maybe still is) a factory loaded 200 grain bullet for the 30-06. If you are used to a 12 gauge, then the recoil from the '06 will be very managable. Also, if you or your gun shoots the Hornady Light Magnum rounds well, you will be very close to the 300 mag energy and velosity.