What would be a good deer hunting rifle?

[HARLEY6LF250SDU]

I have used my Remington Model 700 ADL in 7mm Mag, since I was 12.
I hunt in Montana, Colorado, Missouri.
My first and only deer/elk/moose/bear/ram/mountain lion rifle.

I glass bedded the stock 35+ years ago, and I can place 3 shoots in a silver dollar @ 100 yards everytime. (with no wind)

In my opinion, you can't beat the ease and reliability of a Bolt Action, in good & bad weather.

BUT NOTHING beats practice, practice, practice with ANY Gun you own.

just my .02
randy

 

[Maxx2893]

I have used my Remington Model 700 ADL in 7mm Mag, since I was 12.
I hunt in Montana, Colorado, Missouri.
My first and only deer/elk/moose/bear/ram/mountain lion rifle.

I glass bedded the stock 35+ years ago, and I can place 3 shoots in a silver dollar @ 100 yards everytime. (with no wind)

In my opinion, you can't beat the ease and reliability of a Bolt Action, in good & bad weather.

BUT NOTHING beats practice, practice, practice with ANY Gun you own.

just my .02
randy

This..........

 

[ISFast]

Like most have said there is a fair amount of guns that will or would be good deer hunting guns. I personally run a 300 win mag Browning A-bolt, but really like the 30-06.

Also, check your state. I know in KS there was a rule about the caliber had to be bigger than an I think .24 which made the .223 and stuff like that not legal due to size.

Randy said it best practice is what makes it fun and enjoyable to go deer hunting. If you go out not knowing how your gun shoots or it isn't sited in correctly its not fair to you or the deer.

 

[babysilk]

The 30-06 is a very versatile round. That's my vote, although there are plenty of other round that'll get the job done!

 

[ninja man]

when i was living in wyoming we shot deer with a .270, 30-06, and 7mm.

 

[mikej]

Tons of good recommendations! All depends on what you wanna hunt and where you'll be hunting. I use a 30-06 but have used 270, 30-30, 7mm, 300wm.

 

[mopower318]

It's all about what else you plan on doing with your weapon. If you plan on predator or varmint hunting I would suggest a 6mm=.243. If you plan on hunting nothing over elk or black bear size game the .270 win can't be beat ( not even by the 7mm mag if you compare apples to apples). If you plan on hunting larger things than elk 338 lapua would be a good choice. But you have to get good optics cuz if you don't it doesn't matter if your weapon is sub moa. Another thing is recoil if you can't stand to shoot your weapon you'll never be proficient with it...

 

[mopower318]

Or if you can't afford to feed it. But we need more info on what else you wanna do with it.

 

[fergie]

You do start out with lofty goals. Maybe try something a little closer to home and see how you like it first. Just sayin'.

And I don't mean the elephant at your local zoo.

lol but why not it's so easy. They can't run anywhere.

 

[PeebsZ71]

Like stated previously it's all about the application. .243, .270, .30-06, .308 I think those are some of the most popular calibers. I shoot a .308 and love it my brother shoots a .270 tiny bit less knockdown but a really straight shooting bullet I also like the 270wsm(short magnum) and .300wsm are both proven long flat shooting bullets. I personally am not a fan of a .243 but I have friends that swear by them and won't shoot anything else. All in all it is just preference if it is your first one then just take some advice from here make your decision and I don't think that you can go wrong with any of these calibers for deer and other similar sized game.
When I got my first one I based my decision more on price than anything.
I picked up my weatherby .308 used for $470 didn't look like it had more than 10 rounds put through it.
Hope this makes sense and gives you some help

 

[Copeland_04]

I also use a 30-06, mainly for deer, but I've seen ammo for the 30-06 from 55 grain all the way up to 225 grain. You want something big enough to make a clean kill if your shot ain't perfect but small enough not to mess up any meat.

 

[oppo]

As far as ruining meat, caliber matters less than bullet construction. I have seen a 257 Roberts tear the heck out of them and a 7 mag not do a lot of damage. There really is a huge difference in bullets. I have even seen the aftermath of a deer shot with a 416 Rigby and their was very little meat damaged.

Bullet construction is key.

 

[GreatWhiteHunter]

^^^^I agree on the bullet construction, if the bullet fragments it just makes a mess. If you want a good bullet for meat hunting then go with something fairly solid, that won't break apart on impact and has enough weight and force behind it to pass cleanly through both sides of the game you plan to hunt. The reason for going through both sides it to guarrenty you a quick clean kill, if the bullet only gets half way through and damages only one lung that animal is going to travel a long ways and possibly not die. I also have a .30-06, and find with boat tail 165 gr bullets I have no problem dropping deer sized game with minimal damage to the meat and limited tracking as long as I did my job.

There are a hundred different opinions of what the best deer rifle is, but really caliber selection isn't nearly as important as bullet selection.

 

[Copeland_04]

As far as ruining meat, caliber matters less than bullet construction. I have seen a 257 Roberts tear the heck out of them and a 7 mag not do a lot of damage. There really is a huge difference in bullets. I have even seen the aftermath of a deer shot with a 416 Rigby and their was very little meat damaged.

Bullet construction is key.

Good point, the same bullet could cut through the vitals with a clean kill and very little damage, or hit a bone and tear the whole front shoulder off.

 

[PowellSixO]

My vote would have to go for the .243, 7mm-08, and the 30-06. All great calibers. An over looked manufacture is HOWA. They make a great gun for a good price. I absolutely love my Howa Model 1500.

 

[Mr.Downtown]

I am an avid deer hunter and would be glad to help if I can.
Do you own any rifles now? What kind of distance do you see yourself shooting.
You can use most any caliber for hunting white tail deer. Your bullet choice and shot placement are what is really important. l like heavy slow bullets at shorter ranges. Recoil is also a factor. You have to shoot whatever you end up with well. I really like 7mm guns, but you have to decide on your hunting style and go from there.

 

[IronworksTactical]

The Barnes TSX and TTSX are wry good hunting bullets as they retain 98% of their weight and deform very uniform every time. Which means less meat damage. This is also the reason I've moved to mostly shots in front of the shoulder and base of the neck now. It either severs the carotid or breaks the neck or both resulting in DRT and no meat loss.

This is from a Barnes 95TTSX .277 bullet being tested for the 6.8SPC development. Every deer we shot like this looked the same.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Txhillbilly]

There are so many different calibers that make good deer rifles.
In Texas we can use 223's,but it isn't the best choice.I've taken several with a 223 over the years,but you need to shoot the right type of bullet,and bullet placement is a must. I would always limit the shot range of a 223 to 200 yards or less for deer sized game.
I shoot a 65gr Sierra Gameking,and a 70gr Speer soft point in 223 for my deer loads. Both of these bullets shoot under MOA out of my 223 rifles,so shot placement isn't a worry to me.

My favorite calibers for deer hunting are the 7mm-08,25/06,6.5 Creedmoor,and I'm sure my new 260 Remington will get it's share. I also hunt with a 308,30/06,and 458 SOCOM.
I only use my 300WM for bigger game like Elk,it's a little over kill for whitetail's.

 

[Wilson]

I like my 30-06 but a 270 works well to. I with I would have had this forum a few year ago.

 

[blockdoc]

Up close I really like my Ruger Super Redhawk .44 Mag. This year I picked up a Browning Silver, 12ga 22" rifled barrel. Very pleased with the performance, and it's great out to about 200 yards easily.

I posted up a thread about the Hornady SST slugs through it.