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What's your favorite caliber for deer and why?

R

relaurain

Member
Not about tractors, but with deer season coming soon, thought I would ask!
ie: .243, .30-30, .270, .30-06, .300 so on
 
To me, its a lot more about ballistics and bullet size than caliber. I've killed deer with everything from a .222 to a .50 cal. Look at the terrain where you are hunting and range you will typically shoot.

The group I hunt with has strict rules, head or neck shots only (or you buy breakfast all week), whoever kills a deer has to buy steak dinner for the whole group that night, etc.

Personally, I like a 110 grain hollow point out of a .270 or .30/06 loaded with 57 or 58 respectiely grains of H4831. Its a low case pressure, fast load. With the hollow point it will deliver a lot of hydraulic shock, fast take down, and very accurate. Its effective at ranges from 10 feet to 400 yards but worthless in heavy cover. Where we hunt its either a close clear shot or a long clear shot with dense cover adjacent to the area. I want to find the deer where I shot it.
 
Kyhayman has it right. Here in Colorado for long, open shots I liked my hand made 7MM mag. Then when I got tired from walking it was my neet little 243. If I was in close range county I would have liked to try my 7MM bench rest pistol. Proper bullet is every thing.
 
.270 with a 120 grain slug. High muzzle velocity, flat trajectory, and kills without too much damage to the carcass.
 
A lot depends on where you hunt. In my area there are few and far between shoots at 100 yards plus so a gun like an SKS works great. Now if you hunt where the shoot is 100 yard plus a 270 is good.
Hobby farm
 
I've killed deer - one shot - with a 22 rimfire - but that's not exactly a wise - or legal choice.

If I'm shooting from a distance - 200 yards plus - I'll take a .270 or 30.06 over just about anything. If you make a bad shot, 99% of the time, the poor deer is knocked down flat anyway. I've hit some that went down so fast - I thought I missed - and found them laying flat down in the brush. That will rarely happen with a low powered gun like a 30-30 or an SKS - unless the shot is very well placed and you're close.

That all being said - I once shot a goose from close range with my .270 - and the bullet went right though it and it kept flying. Close range, it just made a pin-hole with no expansion. I did later find the goose, still alive but not feeling too well. I felt kind of bad, I don't like wounding animals.

Years back, my area of New York during regular big game season was shotgun only for deer hunting, and it was a mess. On opening day, there were wounded deer running all over the place that had one or two 12 gauge slugs in them. I'm glad those days are over now.

Once nice thing about having farm land is getting off season nuisance permits to shoot deer and turkey with any sort of gun you want.
 
Most shots around here are 100 yards or less, but every once in a while you get a chance at 200 to 300 yards. I still like to carry my Marlin .30/30 every now and then... 170 grain Remington loads. Good clean kills at reasonable ranges for the caliber, and fast follow up shots if needed (or for a 2nd or 3rd deer). Most often carry a Remington 700 Mountain rifle in .25-06 with 120 grain bullets. Flat shooting, accurate, plenty of power for whitetails, not very much recoil.
If I'm one of the drivers, I carry a Ruger Super Blackhawk with a 10 1/2" barrel and 300 grain Hornady XTP handloads. Accurate to 100+ yards, but I'm only comfortable shooting it to 50-60 yards. Absolutly deadly, even if shot placement isn't perfect.
 
If you are going to purchase one, buy a 30-06. It is reliable for any game North America has to offer and is my favorite round. Here in SWMO a 30-30 is a very good deer gun and I would have to say my Marlin is my favorite.
 
The .270 is the official West Potsdam Volunteer Fire Department caliber. Everyne in my fire department who hunts deer uses a 270. The right ballistics and punch, yet not too big.
 

anything from 6 mm on up in a centerfire is pretty much capable of taking deer if you us a bullet constructed for medium sized animals and you can put the bullet where it needs to go.

Me personally? 280 Remington and 35 Whelen AI... The 280 doubles as my varmint / coyote killer in the warmer months...
 
20 gauge shotgun, I like how they carry as opposed to a 12ga... and they still have enough omph to do the job. 100yds is luck though, especially with a smoothbore barrel like I have.

Gonna try a .50 cal muzzleloader this year though to mix it up. Normal rifles are only allowed for a late doe season here.
 
Looks like .270 is getting the most votes.
I have used the .270 on whitetail, coyotes, prarie dogs, antelope and stray cats. Can't beat it.

For brush and whitetails, I like the .35 remington. Not as easy to find ammo for, so you couldn't go too wrong with a 30-30. Again, that is for close in and in the brush.


Gene
 
Oh, forgot to say in earlier post, the .270 is nothing more than a necked down 30.06, with a .277 diameter bullet in it. Other necked down 30-06s' are the .280, the 25-06, the 7mm-06, etc.

I have actually taken 30-06 emptys and necked them down in the .270 die and made .270s out of them. Not really recommeded. Can be confusing, the head is stamped 30.06, but it shoots in the .270. A factory .270 case is a tad bit longer than one you get by necking down a 30-06.

All this is a bit much for the non reloader, but it gives you a reference to the size and powder capacity of the .270.


Gene
 
I will never understand what a brush gun is, one person said it was a short bareel so you swing it around in the brush. some say its a large bore that will not deflect when it hits something.
If the brush is that thick then maybe you should find another place to hunt, its for sure that you can't see good enough to know what you are shooting at in thick brush or where that bullet will go if you miss.
The size of the rifle depends more on where you live and the size of the deer. In Modoc county, Ca where a 3 pointer will dress out at 180 + you need something bigger also long shots are mostly the Norm. Around here I would use a small 22 to 25 cal. a 4 pointer can be put in the back seat floor boards on one side of the car. years ago us kids went to the Ca. coast mountains to hunt i saw a 4 pointer in the back of a 41 Chevy coupe it head and horns were just above the seat. I asked if he skinned it and the guy chased me off like I was some kind of idiot. I bet that thing didn't weigh as much as medium size dog.
Walt
 
I agree with what others are saying about it depends on where you hunt and how big the deer. In Iowa, it's shotguns or muzzleloaders only. Where I live in Michigan, it's either a shotgun or handgun. When I go north to the rifle zone, I have a .257 Roberts that prints dime-sized groups at 100 yards with hand loads. I use a 100 grain bullet. Plenty of zip and very little recoil. It has limitations as to ranger, probably 200 yards at best. That's a long shot in Michigan.

Larry in Michigan,
 
Head or neck shot is irresponsible. I spent a long night tracking a deer with its lower jaw shot off because an otherwise good hunter had a belief that he could shoot responsibly and focus on the head or neck. You can't, and sooner or later game that would have been killed cleanly and responsibly with a shoulder shot will be unneccesarily maimed by a head or neck shot. Don't do it. Kill the game cleanly.
 
Up here in Maine, 30-30 and .35 carbines are known as bein' good brushbusters. That and they're a lot easier to drag through the brush than a long rifle. The Marlin lever action .44 mag was a late-comer to that party, but has gotten pretty popular, too.
 
In the film entitled ARMS which is alot of gun tests even the 50 cal round is deflected by brush.It dosent take much force to change the direction of a round trveling through the air.After watching that I concluded there is no way to accuratly shoot through brush with any piece.
 
You're right! Also nobody has mentioned the 7mag.
In the group I use to hunt with the .30-06 was the round of choice. We hunt farm land here in NW Michigan. I use a .243 -very flat shooting and have used the .35 Rem which shoots and arc like a rainbow but is a heavy hitter up close with 200g bullets. 7mag is overkill but can cover 400 yard fields with no problem.
 
I disagree, anyone who would miss the head and hit the lower jaw is just as liable to miss the shoulder and gut shoot one. Shooting a jaw off sounds like an amateur who needs more practice and shooting way too big a bullet (or a slug). Thats at least 3 inches below the brain. Thats the real benefit of shooting a really fast load, 3000 plus fps, with a light hollow point. The hydraulic shock will take down anything deer size or smaller.

With that said, I cant recall but two in our group ever taking a head shot except between the eyes (thats my dads favorite shot). Both of those were at the base of the ear. Its not a shot I personally like, I want the dense tissue about 6 inches below the ear in the neck. I've been with this group since 1982, never seen a deer wounded or that moved from where he was hit on anything but a shoulder shot, and few of those move far.
 
A friend of mine has told me that he has actually fired a .30-06 at a deer and the bullet went through the deer, just making a hole. And he tells me that he has got more deer with a 30/30 bullet then all others.
I think that the real issues are:

1. Velocity of bullet

2. Damage the bullet does (mushrooming bullet) as it pushes deer flesh out in front of the speeding bullet.

3. girth of the deere, larger deer needs larger bullet to do more damage.

4. If you are hunting deer and you have an AR type rifle then you can fire a quick second shot without unshouldering the rifle. Put 1 shot in the lungs and another in the rear leg maybe. Be sure its legal to hunt with a magazine type rifle.

I have not heard of anyone shooting a deer witha .44 magnum. Ruger makes a lever action .44 and a semiauto called the deerfield carbine (at least they used to make this)
 
(quoted from post at 14:38:11 09/15/08) I disagree, anyone who would miss the head and hit the lower jaw is just as liable to miss the shoulder and gut shoot one. Shooting a jaw off sounds like an amateur who needs more practice and shooting way too big a bullet (or a slug). Thats at least 3 inches below the brain. Thats the real benefit of shooting a really fast load, 3000 plus fps, with a light hollow point. The hydraulic shock will take down anything deer size or smaller.

With that said, I cant recall but two in our group ever taking a head shot except between the eyes (thats my dads favorite shot). Both of those were at the base of the ear. Its not a shot I personally like, I want the dense tissue about 6 inches below the ear in the neck. I've been with this group since 1982, never seen a deer wounded or that moved from where he was hit on anything but a shoulder shot, and few of those move far.
Click to expand...

Deer move their heads around all the time, could have been a bug in his ear or something that made him move his head a little between the gun going off and the bullet getting there. Entirely plausable IMO, which is why I don't shoot there... it is always moving.

I know it is with a shotgun, but my chest shot deer rarely make it 10' from where I hit them. Just like an engine, take the oil pump out of the picture and things start shutting down in a hurry.
 
I have been using a 25 Winchester Super Short Magnum the past couple years and really like it, head or neck shots only and have not lost a single one. For red squrrels 45/70. Gordy
 
The season is fast approaching, opening day for archery is 10-18 in NY I believe. I use an older bow, but I can hit repeat bulls eyes at 20 yds until my arms get wobbly, so I am good there, very confident in the shot I take, I practice from my stand too.

On that note, I like my .308, though it's in a Springfield M1A, 4-12x56mm variable scope on a 3rd generation mount, weaver rings, can still use the peep sight, a little heavy to lug around sometimes, makes you appreciate a lighter rifle, but I shoot it well, and have gotten used to the weight.

I think the most important thing when hunting is knowing where your shot is, from whatever it is you shoot, everyone has a caliber and rifle preference, but you need to shoot that rifle well and get tight groups at the ranges you hunt, it's that simple. This M1A, is to me, what the .30-.30/.32 special, lever actions like Win. model 94 or Marlin etc. were or are to the old timers, more of a tool, that was inexpensive and found in most homes back then. Though an M1A is not cheap to buy, it sure is one reliable and accurate rifle that has served me well.

I like the .308 and or .30 caliber range for it's versatility, I have used an IMR powder ( forget which one ) and I think a 130 grain hollow point in the M1A quite successfully, it gave good groups, good velocity and when placed in the heart on a whitetail, is very effective. I have friends who use larger calibers, .338, 300 win mag, and those can be a bit overkill at close quarters, the .338 guy put that one back in the case for whitetails and the 300 win mag guy lightened up the loads, great for long ranges, but when they come here, it's overkill, poorly placed or hastily taken shot sure can ruin a lot of meat. We had a few army snipers at the range with those .300 win mags in heavy barrel rifles, they were dialed in to ttack drive at 300 yds, ( 600 simulated ), some of the best shooting I have ever seen, checked the targets myself, I'd not want to be in their crosshairs !

I'd like to get a heavy barrel tactical or full length heavy barrel, in a .308 similar to the Savage model I shot recently, those dial in nice and at the 200-300 yd ranges no problem to hit the target, though most of my shots are taken at 100 yds, the tight groups these shoot from factory loads are impressive. I shoot federal 150 grain .308's from my M1A and they hold 1" groups, like the military ball ammo which the rifle is designed for.

Most of the other calibers mentioned, I'd enjoy using any of them, as long as I was comfortable with the rifle, dialed in at ranges I hunt and know the groups it is getting, for me it's more about your shooting etiquette than anything else, you need make that 1 shot count. I think everyone botches one on occasion, it can happen easily, so your shooting habits, etiquette and discipline when it comes to hunting are paramount, more than anything, well besides safety.

I can recall 2 botched shots in 25 years of hunting, one I recovered and the other I did not, though the new neighbor who distracted me by yelling from her new home adjacent to the hedgerow in the midst of the shot I was taking certainly did not help, she helped me flinch and I grazed the chest, I did not get that 8pt buck, but he was not wounded either, got a good look at him before he ran and could have taken another shot, but this lady was screaming from her new porch, a few hundred yards away. People build houses next to your land in what was ag fields and then expect you to change, like not hunting, well that is another discussion altogether.
 
.308 legally and .22 illegally. The .308 works well in a variety of different bullet weights. The .22 doesn't make much noise and is just a deadly at close range.
 
.22LR is only legal if the deer happens to be standing between the headlight beams...

At least that is how I heard it...

Ended a huge argument with that one.

LOL,

Aaron
 
You use a 30-06 , and that's the whole story. I chased down many deer shot with a 30-30. Like the other poster said when you hit them with the '06 they hit the ground. Shot placement is critical no matter what you shoot. Your question though is what gun. The 06 does it all. Short of Africa or Alaskan Grizzilies , it is what you need and it is all you ever will need. And really that's all there is to say. 7mm mag is fine but the 06 shells are avilable everywhere and anything much more is overkill. I love deer hunting. I don't much enjoy hunting for wounded deer. Just my thoughts.
 
58 grains of 4831 is in a 270 is pushing 50,000 psi of chamber pressure. Not what I would call a low pressure case. And why the varmit bullits on deer ? Used something designed for big game, those light bullets often blow up on the flesh before going inside to do some real damage. As for the head shots,at our farm in ND we are always finding some poor deer shot in the mouth or jaw. It dosen't slow them down, you never will catch up with them.
 
Have to disagree. The kill zone for a deer brain is maby 3" X 7". A spine shot is real iffy. The heart lung kill zone is about 15" by 18". The deer I hunt never hold still, never tell me how far they are away, there is never a bench rest. Then the wind blows, often my lungs are heaving and heart pounding and my feet hurt. Grew up with my grandpaws Remington 721 in 270. Used Speer 130 grains loaded rather hot, nearly 3200 fps out of its 24 inch barrel.Weaver 6X scope. No better deer rifle setup ever. Others as good, yes, better no. Even a gut shot would give me a chance to recover the deer. One shot in the mouth its gone forever. I shot Highpower and Palma compitition for 15 years. I know something about what to expect when the trigger is pulled. Unless they are hunting (?) under feeders anyone hunting with a heavy match grade M1A with one of those Hubble Telescope computer sights is insane.
 
A brush gun around here is a 30-30 because the bullet will wade through twigs or maybe a stick that is in front of your sight path. It is considered a very good training rifle, for a beginner also. If I ever took up hunting again I would like to try a Bolt action 30-30 because you could use a boat tailed bullet in them. Yes they are usually shorter and when you have to get around in these Penna mountain Laural thickets, or the crab apple trees when you may be tracking one,they are the best to have with you.

On the other hand My choice is a 270 bolt action.good for long distance and a good varmint gun. I do think the two next most popular guns around here are 7.MM Magnum and the 308. several years ago the predecessors of these were 45/70, 25-06, 22/250 Savage,and the 30-40 Springfield. these were the choice of the fellas I used to hunt with.
 
Agree about the brush gun. The little Columbia Blacktails we have near the coast are easy 223 kills. If you hit them right. About the size of the big Jack rabbits I grew up with in ND. Can you still find any of those monster Mules is Modoc ? Mind telling me where ?
 
I am a hunter not a shooter. Sentimental favorite is Grandpas old Winchester 45 carbine, Works good from a horse and to get into the brush. My favorite is my old lever action Marlin 30-30, short and light for a quick but deadly shot. My favorite shot is no more than 25 yards and behind the shoulder. Dead on his feet. But I like hunting elk better. Walt, to get the big ones you have to get in the brush and push them to a good shot, Bambi is under the apple tree :) :? :? :wink: ....James
 
Depends on when and where.

If you are talking about deer hunting, I like the old 243. Theres hunting and then theres thining.

Mini 14 I kept in the truck before the wife took it to keep in the house while I work at night did pretty good with soft points. (she keeps tracers in it, call if you come by after dark!!!!!) FMJs out of it were about the same as a 22, just would make contact at longer range. 22 does the job if its what you got handy. If your thining a 22 or 223 are great if you know where to aim.

Wanting a PC9 for the truck after wife got the Mini 14, shot a slick head one time with a gold dot out of a 9mm pistol. They work as advertised if you were wander'n and that is what the P95 stays loaded with in the car.

Hope every one has a good Deer Day and happy shoot'n!

Dave
 
Round here a brush gun is one that is easy to carry round the woods. There are two types of hunters, field and woods. People who hunt in the woods don't need to shoot over 100 yards and they don't want a heavy long gun like most of the field hunters use. More common wood/brush guns are the old 30/30s, and 44 mag carbines, and shotguns.

Happy hunting.

Dave
 
There are spire type bullets with plastic tips that can be used in the 30-30.You can always use a 165 grain pointed bullet in the chamber of lever actions.Long range ballistics on the pointed bullet are much better.Hornady is loading the plastic tipped bullet in 30-30 cartridges now.
 
At one time I was seduced by all the new calibers/cartridges offered by the various manufacturers thinking how much better they would work than the "antiquated" rounds of yesteryear, 30-06, 270, 30-30, etc..............

That being said, I read an article in a Guns & Ammo magazine years ago written by Jeff Cooper that I found quite interesting so I began buying the magazine soley for purpose of reading his articles, later on I found he had a website where more of his "un-edited" writings are published.................

To make a long story short, he advocates that there is nothing can be done with any of these fancy new cartridges that cant be done with age old cartidges such as the 30-06 in terms of practical hunting, he goes on to say the majority of hunters are unable to use their weapon to it's full potential so what is the point of something more powerfull................

He passed away recently but his commentaries can still be read at: http://www.molonlabe.net/Commentaries/

Contrary to the beliefs of others you don't need a 338 Lapua to kill a deer and to rationalize that even if you hit a non vital area on a deer with that caliber the animal will still be dead is not only irresponsible, it's idiotic..............
 
Hey "Gun Guru", why don't you google "cast boolits' and read up on what some REAL gun gurus are doing. You NEVER heard of anyone shooting a deer with a 44 mag? Better pick a new handle pard.
 
Pretty much any center fire rifle above 6mm/.243 caliber will work fine given adequate bullet weight, design and velocity. The single most important issue is shot placement, not speed, not a super whiz bang name, not a big scope or a high price. 99% of the hunters in the eastern US would be best served by something along the lines of a 257 Roberts/6.5x55/270/308/30-06/35 Whelen. The best thing they could do for the deer is PRACTICE shooting at ranges they normally encounter deer at. When you can put 10 shots in a 9" paper plate at your max yardage then you're ready to go. The ATV riding, tree stand sitting, 338 Whizbangmagnum shooter with the 8x32 power scope that won't drag his fat butt out of the tree stand to see if he actually hit that deer at 250+ yards he shot at is no more than a slob hunter IMO. HUNTING involves more than just banging away at a deer and hoping for a hit.

As you can probably tell, I'm a bit fed up with many of the so called "hunters" in my area.
 
I grew up in OH where you could only use a shotgun and slug. First gun was a savage .410, then a 12ga mossberg 500. Never had to shoot more than 50 yards and never had to shoot more than once with a big chunk of lead punching them in the shoulder. Got a little older and had the opportunity to hunt in WV and was all excited to use a highpower rifle, bought a Marlin 44mag saddle rifle and took it to the same type of terrain and growth as I hunted in OH and shot a deer in the shoulder like I had been with a shotgun. I tracked it about a mile down a valley to a pile of guts and an empty 12ga shell. Ran into the guy later at a checking station and he said there was a clean hole right through the shoulders. Never used a rifle again. With the 12ga, you'd pull the trigger a see the belly almost at the same time.
 
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