“magnum cartridges”

The time of the .30-06 has come and gone while the 6.5 Creedmoor rises to the top as the most popular centerfire rifle cartridge.

Metric cartridges have traditionally struggled in America, but even in the 1950s, the engineers at Winchester saw the benefits of the 6.5mm bore diameter. The 1958 release of the .264 Winchester Magnum in the Model 70 Westerner rifle saw a flat-shooting, hard-hitting voluminous case, perfect for medium-sized game.

If you’re market for a rifle chambered in one of these short-action magnums, which is more readily available and dependable? Contributor Philip Massaro examines the pros and cons of each.

That new hunter you've been tutoring may be in love with a lever-action rifle. Alternately, he may think he absolutely needs a .30-caliber magnum to "cover all the bases." But it's up to you to talk him into making a reasonable purchase when it comes to his first big-game rig.

The game could be whitetails in the East, elk in the West, or anything from duiker to eland in Africa; these five cartridges have been there and done that.

Newly formed Norma-USA is bringing top-shelf performance to American hunters at a very competitive price.

European switch-barrel guns are engineering works of art, and are extremely well-designed and precisely executed. They are wonderful additions to any gun safe. One good example is the Merkel RX Helix.

So, apparently some of you felt left out in the first installment of this piece, and the powers that be have allowed me to extend the party, so as to include you in the festivities. Still, there’s no way to cover them all, and if your favorite didn’t make the list I suggest you pick a new favorite. Kidding, kidding…

Is this the be all, end all list? Here are Philip Massaro's top centerfire rifle cartridges of all time.