Guns you’ve used to harvest game and your thoughts about it

This year I only had one good day hunting. And I mean that. But it was a great day. Tuesday of this week to be exact. Pulled another triple in the hills of Arkansas with my brother. Even added a coyote. So I guess that’s my first quad. Yote was first, followed by 3 deer in about an hour and a half. All from the ground. No blind. Just a turkey chair and the sun at my back. All taken with my 1960’s model 1894 in 44Mag. It’s so hard to beat that gun. Light, handy, boringly accurate, deadly. I didn’t kill a single animal over 50 yards. But the drag out, even with a dolly, was brutal.

I’ve killed deer, hogs, and coyotes with many different rifles. From 223 to 45/70. But I rarely take pictures with the firearm laying over the animal. So here’s a picture of old faithful with that yote. And a picture of the loaded dolly.

I think that I have taken deer with 16 different calibers plus recurve and compound bows. There for several years my go to gun was a Savage 10 in 300WSM. Light, accurate and good for any game that I will ever hunt. My favorite caliber for the last 5 years has been the 6.5 CM. I've had 4 and my favorite is the M18 Mauser. It is a lucky gun. Has not missed a shot yet.

I try to use all my long guns to bag something. Latest is a Walmart clearance Axis in .308 I'm going to take out in 8 days. Hopefully my 150grain soft points can bag a hog or a doe or an Axis. An Axis would be appropriate for harvesting with a Savage Axis

BigBore44: I only count 14 legs there

BigBore44 said:

This year I only had one good day hunting. And I mean that. But it was a great day. Tuesday of this week to be exact. Pulled another triple in the hills of Arkansas with my brother. Even added a coyote. So I guess that’s my first quad. Yote was first, followed by 3 deer in about an hour and a half. All from the ground. No blind. Just a turkey chair and the sun at my back. All taken with my 1960’s model 1894 in 44Mag. It’s so hard to beat that gun. Light, handy, boringly accurate, deadly. I didn’t kill a single animal over 35 yards. But the drag out, even with a dolly, was brutal.

I’ve killed deer, hogs, and coyotes with many different rifles. From 223 to 45/70. But I rarely take pictures with the firearm laying over the animal. So here’s a picture of old faithful with that yote. And a picture of the loaded dolly. View attachment 967195View attachment 967196

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Sounds like a great day to share with your brother. I took my brother with me hunting for several years, trying to get his first deer. I always put him places that I killed deer. The only one he got was a Saturday morning, had to force him to watch, accrossed an open field, at a tractor access road. The 6 point came out right where I told him it would, my brother took him with my primary rifle, savage m110 3006, at 100 yds drt

Let him use my primary cause it was more accurate thany secondary rifle, a savage m110 3006, but not by much. One would shoot into a nickle, the other into a quarter with the same ammo.

Deer
870s in various forms.
M500 and 835 as well.
Contender carbine in .35 rem.
My oft blabbed 760 in same.
ruger RSI .243
TC New Englander, Renegade, Hawlen Silver Elite and a couple Knights.
A few Ruger and Smith .44 revolvers, an old Python and a Ruger fingergroove .44 carbine

Have killed chucks and yotes w various .222.223 and 243 rifles.
Small game w Remington Ruger and Anschutz rifles.
Shotguns usually 1100 and 870 of some sort.
20 ga Special Field 870 a fave

Wet out. If i can shake this headache maybe take my Steyr PH out...30-06

Whacked a few deer w bow, change often there too.....but a half dozen were killed w same Blackwidow recurve.

Need a new one at a little less #. 1200.bucks says. Naaaaaaaah

• Taurus Gaucho SAA clone in .45colt. Took a doe this year with it, first deer with a revolver. 20-25 yard shot.

• Winchester model 88 in 243. Took my first deer with this rifle when I was 15, taken many since.

• Marlin 336 in 30-30. I’m taking this one out tomorrow, was my fathers. He bought as gift to himself the year I was born. I inherited it 12 yrs ago, great rifle. It’s taken a lot of deer between the two of us.

• Savage 110 in 30-06. I feel most comfortable shooting this one.

• One with muzzle loader. I don’t remember model, only shot it a couple times when I was 16 or so and didn't care for it.

took my first deer with crossbow last year.

next season I’m planning on taking out my Winchester model 94 in .45colt.

I just purchased and started carrying a S&W 686 When I’m in the woods and hope to take a deer with it if the opportunity presents.

for squirrel:
Winchester model 67
ruger 10/22
Mossberg 500c in 20g

I shot a couple groundhogs w 35 whelen 700 classic. 250s whistle through LOL

Grayrock said:

BigBore44: I only count 14 legs there

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Thats what I counted too. I swear they all had 4 when I shot them.

I have worn this story out on the threads of THR, but my best deer hunting was the day that I took this buck with my 3xgreat-grandfathers heirloom rifle, on the very farm that he purchased in 1852.
I had spent about two years getting this rifle back in shooting condition. I had the entire lock replaced, and work done on the triggers. I personally replaced the sights, and refinished the stock an freshened the browning. That is making a very long story short.
In the last moments of legal shooting time on the last day of firearms deer season 2015, I realized that the subtle movements that i had been seeing was actually the head of an 8pt buck bedded behind a log about 60yds from me. I steadied the rifle against a sapling and took the only shot I was offered, the head. My aim was true. The ball struck an inch below the bucks eye.

The mount is proudly on display in my workshop.

A meat buck with a 130 year old Winchester-



Part of a limit of doves with a 1923 production Winchester-



35W

Not many pics of guns and game, but I have successfully harvested game animals with:
Diana 48 .177 air rifle
Remington 541T .22LR
CZ 452 American .22LR
Savage 24 E-DL .22WMR / 20 gauge
Rem 700 VLS .223
Rem Model 7 .223
Rem Model 7 .243
Rem Model 7 .308
Rem 700 VSSF .308
Rem 760 .30-06
Browning Citori 20 gauge
Mossberg 500 12 gauge
T/C Encore 50 cal muzzle loader
Lyman Trade Rifle 50 cal flintlock

And the handguns:
Browning Buckmark .22LR
Ruger Single Six .22LR/.22WMR
T/C Encore .243
Ruger Super Redhawk .44 mag

Those are the ones I remember, some of which I still own.

Small game I forgot.... handgun......

Ruger Mark 1 and 2
Colt Woodsman
Nygord worked Ace w Kart slide

First deer harvested at age 16 with the .270 Winchester Browning BAR my father gave me when I was 15. A few followed before we got invited to new hunting territories where muzzleloaders were mandatory. Dad then paid half of my .50 Thompson Center Encore muzzleloader as I was still studying in university. It has killed more deer than I can count on my fingers and toes. A regulation change this year allowed me to take my rifle out again, but I couldn't see any antlers, so no shot was fired. Dad killed his deer at age 74 this last fall with his own BAR in 30-06 Springfield (four shots all went into it, liver destroyed and funny evisceration for me...) ; I couldn't have asked for a better season. My twelve gauge Winchester SXP Defender has made a Canadian geese limit (wearing the 28" barrel for the occasion) with the help of an outfitter who could actually talk goose.

Deer
Savage 10
Savage axis
Ar15
Mini14
Remington 700
VZ24
Mosin Nagant 91/30
Henry bb steel
CVA wolf

Squirrels
Marlin 60
Daisy power line pellet rifle
Savage pump .410

Wing shooting/turkeys
Mossberg 500
Stoeger m3500 (I think?) 12ga

My .54 Hawken is my favorite deer gun, but this H&R ultra lite slug gun has been my go-to lately.
Our firearm choices are limited here in Illinois.

So many I probably couldn’t compile a complete list, but I’ll try.....

Deer Guns include:
Remington 1100 20GA(A lot of deer), 3 Remington 12ga 870’s(2 Wingmasters), cz 22 7mm Mauser, Remington 722 .257 Robert Ackley, Savage 11 243, Savage 99 243, 2 Savage 99’s 250-3000, Hungarian M95 Straight pull bolt carbine in 8x56r(Kicked like a mule), Marlin 1895 45-70 guide gun, Marlins 1894 .357, Mosin Nagant 91/30 7.62x54r, Bayonet on Mosin, Winchester 94 30-30, Winchester 94 32 Special, Rossi 20GA single shot(Kicked like a Freight Train), Savage Bolt Action 12ga(3 inch shells were like hitting yourself with a sledge, only scope that ever bit me), 2 Weatherby Vangaurd .257 Weatherbys, T/C Venture 25-06, Remington 600 .308, Savage 99 .308, Dan Wesson .357, Dan Wesson .41 Mag, Ruger Blackhawk .41 Mag, Smith 686 .357, Ruger LCP 380, TC omega 50, Pedersoli flint 50, TC .45 Caplock, and probably more I’m forgetting. Most only hung around for one season.

As you can tell I have a “Oh I can use that for deer season” problem when I visit gun shops.

Goose, Turkey, Ducks:
Remington 870, Mossberg 935, Grandpas JC Higgins 12ga.(First Turkey), Bolt action Marlin 12ga.
I like my Mossberg too much to change out for anything.

Only picture with game and gun is this 7 point with my Weatherby Vanguard .257 Weatherby.

No Harvesting here.....No penned animals, no caged Fur, no farmed fish, all hunted and caught running free.

We used a .22magnum to harvest Beef we shot, caged in the pen ,when I was a kid in Montana. That was Able's work.

Now I hunt wild animals, Canes job.

When hunting, fishing and trapping wild fish and game, and I use alot of different guns, .22lr to 12 gauge to Kill with.

Deer with 12 gauge, 6.5 Rem Mag, 25-05, 270 Win, 7-08, 308, 6.5 CM, 6.5 Norma, 6.5 Grendel & 6mm CM.

I’ve said it before here, but I could take my 30-06 to the zoo and never see an animal. Go figure.

Armored farmer said:

I have worn this story out on the threads of THR, but my best deer hunting was the day that I took this buck with my 3xgreat-grandfathers heirloom rifle, on the very farm that he purchased in 1852.
I had spent about two years getting this rifle back in shooting condition. I had the entire lock replaced, and work done on the triggers. I personally replaced the sights, and refinished the stock an freshened the browning. That is making a very long story short.
In the last moments of legal shooting time on the last day of firearms deer season 2015, I realized that the subtle movements that i had been seeing was actually the head of an 8pt buck bedded behind a log about 60yds from me. I steadied the rifle against a sapling and took the only shot I was offered, the head. My aim was true. The ball struck an inch below the bucks eye.
View attachment 967225
The mount is proudly on display in my workshop.View attachment 967235

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That's a great story. I have been hunting squirrels with my 3x grandfathers .32 Gibbins rifle and a .35 caliber Penebaker. I cleaned them up, and replaced the sights on both ( don't know how he saw the very low front sights on both guns). the .35 has a pretty rough bore but still shoots good. when i got it it was still loaded and had been for almost 75 years.

Robert said:

This year I killed two good sized whitetail does with a Winchester Model 70 in 308. Last year I killed a small whitetail buck with my Winchester Model 70 in 375 H&H. The photo is from this year and the 308.

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Nice, I like that M70, what are the details? New production SS Featherweight in a McMillan? Or is that a custom tube?