Your choice of rifle caliber

Marlin 30\30 lever action or

Browning BLR in 300 win mag for long range. My favorite is the 629-1 6 inch barrel 44 magnum!!!Elmer Keith's, "Hell I was There" got me to start the revolver hunting!!!!
 
Rifle cal.

I really like a ruger 77 I have in 7x57. That cartridge shoots different bullet weights and brands to the same POA for some reason!

I love the 7 Mauser.

Many years ago, I bought a new Mark X Mannlicher in 7X57 that I thot I would rechamber to .280 Rem or 7MM Rem Magnum. A cousin of mine was a frequent corrersponder with P.O. Ackley. I wrote to Mr Ackley and asked his advice. He told me he could rechamber to either cal. but that, in his opinion, the .280 could do everything the mag did and "do it better." (His quote. I still have the letter somewhere.)

I never rechambered it since upon shooting it w/ factory 7 Mauser one day, it seemed to 'want to shoot.' I bought dies for it and soon discovered it was luckily long-throated (not 'free-bored') and would safely shoot handloads near or equal to a 280. It also shot the 140 Sierra and 162 Hornady with the same loads of 4350 since the Hornady had a sharper ogive and could be seated out a little further. It also shot them to the same points of impact @ 100 yards in 5 shot groups few would believe if I published them.

The two 700 7 Mag I had both seemed to require deeper seating that would mitigate their true potential. I personally favor the 721-725 series over the 700's.

((Did I ever sell the Mark X? Of course :( ))
 
I don't deer hunt anymore and haven't for years. If I did start again I'd probably take either a Rem 08 automatic in 30Remington, or one of the Mannlicher Schoenaurs.
It's more the rifle than the caliber. Others to choose from but those I've been shooting more lately. Unless the shots are extreme, most any decent centerfire caliber will do around here.
 
I've taken deer with my .30 carbine, 7 mm mag and a .308 .
FWIW and for my part of the woods..The 308 is my favorite..as others have
stated just about any mentioned caliber would work quite well in fact a 30-30
could be the all time game getter..
 
I have more 30.06 than any other calibre,( I don't know why, it just happened!). I also have 7mm RemMag, .243, .308 and a 500/450. But if I go wandering in the woods where I might have to defend myself from bigfoot, it'll be my pre-64 Mod 70 in 30.06 with express sights. It just fits.
 
Seems as if there is a lot here favoring the 308. Sadly that is one caliber I have never owned or even considered.

Looks like I will be on the lookout for a nice Browning or Sako in .308.

Sure wish some of those posting here would have described their hunting terrain and avg shooting distance.
 
In Ohio I can't use a cartridge rifle for deer, so I use a 54 caliber T/C Scout. For out of state it all depends on the distances and cover as to which rifle to take, but generally speaking the .30-06 will do pretty much everything I need.
 
I'll take my midbores ie 270 Win, 7x57,308 Win, 30-06 or 8x57 depending which rifle I'm in the mode to shoot. I also like taking my Marlin 1894 in .41 Mag. But I'll miss this season like last years by being down range.

CD
 
oldman45 said:
Seems as if there is a lot here favoring the 308.
Sure wish some of those posting here would have described their hunting terrain and avg shooting distance.
Click to expand...

Well, 99% of my hunting has been done in the hills and on the farms.

Short shots are about 50 yards, long shot about 250 to 300. It pays to anchor them in this country since the hills are generally covered with laurel and pine thickets and a lot the terrain is steep enough that if you hunt the ridges or near the tops of the mountains a wounded deer in full flight downhill can cover a lot of ground and find lots of places to hide before they bleed out.

As I said in my first post, I can only recall one hit with my .308 that did not drop the deer in his tracks; and that was because of my shot placement and not the cartridge.

I was shooting between a gap in two trees about 50 yards away at the deer at about 75 yards, and the angle was such I only got one lung. He ran straight at me when hit and rolled like a rabbit about 25 yards before he got to my stand. I was prepared to hit him again about the time he dropped and he was dead when I got to him.

Like I said, a center-mass heart/lung shot and they've all dropped in their tracks. Having used many different rounds to take deer, at least to me, the .308 round with a 150 grain pill seems to have just the right shock power for an animal that size - turns out the lights immediately and doesn't blow them up. YMMV.
 
Hi, Steve here. I mostly use a 7MM O8 in PA. this cal. is so reloadable. I all so use a 7/30 Waters for the smaller mountain deer.
 
Been sued over NOTHING - Not taking any chances!
 
Last edited:
DeadAye said:
I might add that my 3 choices are because I'm color blind. The ground, grass and blood are all the same color to me. NO WAY I can track a wounded critter and MUST have them fall either DRT or a few steps away.
So far, so good.
Shot placement and distance/caliber all have an effect on a quick, humane, kill.
Click to expand...

You and I are in the same boat.
Unless I'm hunting in the snow (and it never snows in NC during hunting season), there is no way I can spot a blood trail.


Just about every deer I've ever killed has been with either a .243 or a .270.
I'll take either one any day of the week.
With GameKings, CoreLokts or comparable bullets, I see no reason why either one wouldn't work on nearly all North American whitetail (larger Canadian bodies may be the exception) with proper shot placement.

I believe there were 1 or 2 deer the last few seasons that I used a .300 Win Mag on.
For NC deer, I believe this caliber is overkill and it is likely I will not use it again in this state.

I've recently come into some new rifles and will hopefully be using a .308 and a .30-06 this year on some critters.
 
I've used quite a few cartridges through the years to hunt whitetail deer. For the past 11 years, the 6.5x55 and 7x57 have served me well. More thump, more come-back ain't necessary for deer.
 
My favorite rifle/caliber is a cut-down No 4 Lee Enfield in .303 Brit. It is smooth and after fiddling with the sights, it hits dead on with the aperture rear and post front at 100 yds. I've always wanted to own a 7mm Mauser, though.
 
I prefer the 30-06 that I have used for years....but have also used .270, .308, 7mm...and have a 300 magnum now. Too big for whitetail I would think tho.
 
I use the 308 quite a bit. It is my favorite General Purpose hunting round.
 
30/06 is my handsdown favorite rifle cartridge, preferably in an 03 Springfield. Close behind are the .308 and the 30-30. That said, my favorite deer rifle is my old Model 8 Remington with a Marbles tang sight in .32Rem. Model 8s are just too cool.
 
Winchester .32 Special fired from the Model 94
.41 Magnum fired from either pistol or Marlin 1894 Rifle
Winchester 32-20 and for a brush buster the
.35 Remingtion


grizz
 
I didn't start hunting deer until I was 30 years old and bought a BLR in .308. Then I couldn't stop hunting. After about 20 years I developed a sensitivity to the recoil and couldn't put my first shot where I wanted it. I had become a wus or something. Anyway, it was beyond my control. I bought my first Remington, a VLS heavy barrel in 6mm which is very accurate and have regained my composure. However, a relative recently left me a National Match in .308 in his will so I might have to put some optics on it and try to reach out across this oat field I can hunt on in Lampasas county.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

K
Entertaining stories I heard about hog hunting
Replies
26
Views
1K
ldausmc1369
ldausmc1369
D
  • Locked
FS: 3- Hensley&Gibbs bullet moulds
Replies
0
Views
461
Doug Bowser
D
PALADIN85020
The Ruger .44 Magnum semiauto carbines
Replies
18
Views
14K
Malpasowildlifer
Malpasowildlifer
Penmon
Wild hog hunting advice
Replies
22
Views
5K
bearman49709
B
Straightshooter2
Serious question on recoil.
2
Replies
38
Views
4K
amazingflapjack
A

Latest posts

Back
Top