best cal. for deer in the south

best cal.for deer in the south

  • 243

    Votes: 26 19.5%

  • 30-06

    Votes: 48 36.1%

  • 7mm mag

    Votes: 6 4.5%

  • 270

    Votes: 31 23.3%

  • 260

    Votes: 11 8.3%

  • 280

    Votes: 3 2.3%

  • 25-06

    Votes: 6 4.5%

  • 7 x 57

    Votes: 2 1.5%
  • Total voters
    133
  • Poll closed .
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My vote goes for the .30-30. Not that it's an outstanding, long range ctg., but for the rifles it's chambered in. One of the most important things for a hunting gun is one that carries well, shoulders quickly and is easy to shoot accurately offhand. The marlins and winchesters fit that bill to a tee.
 
I voted for the 06 because it is the perfect all around cartridge and like the others have said, the 30-30 and 308 were not on the list. Of course, I view a vote for the 06 as a vote for the 308 because they are pretty much ballistic twins with 150 grain or lighter bullets. As to the 30-30, it is the most successful deer round of all time so the question must be asked, are there more deer taken with 30-30's because there are more 30-30's or are there more 30-30's because more deer are taken with them than any other cartridge?
 
As to the 30-30, it is the most successful deer round of all time so the question must be asked, are there more deer taken with 30-30's because there are more 30-30's or are there more 30-30's because more deer are taken with them than any other cartridge?
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It's like asking which came first, the chicken or the egg.
 
30-30 will easily kill anything east of the mississippi and most thing west of it if it is out of 30-30 range you need to learn to be a better hunter It is popular because 30-30 rifles are light and handy and the cartridge has enough power. There is a reason the 30-30 has been around for 112 years .
IT GETS THE JOB DONE :neener::evil::cuss::neener:
 
Oh man... a poll, with a poor selection of choices. If I must... I'll opt for the .270, but that is only because there is no 30-30 there. The 30-30 will kill the deer just fine, and the ranges at which the vast majority of deer are taken - and at the ranges most peeps have any business shooting at game.

Killed a nice doe today, last day of deer season. Right behind the shoulder, at about 90 yards - long for me, in the woods - and the deer died right there. Heck, I thought I'd missed, because two other deer I'd not seen ran off, and I couldn't see her one the ground. I walked over as light faded, and another jumped up and left - way too fast to be wounded - and I figured she was down, and someone was waiting for her. Yep, there on the ground, big white belly... and holes through both sides, just barely behind shoulder.

A 7mm mag or 300 WinMag or 30-06 or (insert choice here) wouldn't have done any better, and all kick harder, hurt ears, and cost more to shoot.

30-30 should have been on the list.
 
Poster #16 hit the nail on the head.......
and others followed.....

I've used and/or use all on the list and many others...
except for the .260.

All around is absolutely the 7mm-08.

Does what all the others will do, including the ubiquitous .30/30.
Without either of the two here, the poll was "bogus".

The 7mm-08 also fits the bill for all-around for N.America, or 95% of the rest of the world.

Yeah, the ol' '06 is there also (killed my first deer with it, in Alabama!), but I much prefer the smaller, more compact, lighter rifle (Rem. M7) for getting into, and out of blinds, tree-stands, shooting houses, and general walking-around hunting. So far this season, I've taken deer at 90yds, and 290yds with the "little 7". Didn't blow away half the deer like the .257wbymag, And puts them down a little more solidly than the .257Roberts. Dosen't mutiliate the deer as bad as the .270/7mmMag (equal in my opinion), or the .30/06 or others. Has more reach than my beloved .30/30. (Acutually, the Rem M7 is NO-WHERE nearly as accurate as my "lowly Glenfield/Marlin M30" lever-action- or the M336 Marlin in .35rem- but thats another story for another day...).

Also, when my best friend needed a rifle to take on an elk hunt to Colorado in '05 which was going to cost him $7,000+, what did I loan him ????
The 7mm-08 !!! Killed the 6x6, 1,200lb elk just as dead as the other hunter's .300wbymags, with fewer shots !!!!! (Nosler 140gr Partition @ 2,800fps).

So, there you have it !!!
 
It all depends on where YOU hunt! Most of my stands are max 50-200yd shots, a 30-30 would work, however I have two stands on powerline cuts, max shot on one is 505 yds, on the other 380 yds. So I went with a 270 win. In all honesty I dont think I could make a 500 yd shot every time, but I have made shots up to 420 yds.
 
.243 is good for any Whitetail size animal (thin-skin non dangerous, of course).
 
Just for giggles I went back and my reading of the posts indicated there arer 10 votes for the .30-30. Not bad for a cartridge not on the list, and several of us voted for something else after stating our first choice was not on the list further sqewing the numbers.

Seems about five have meantioned .308 as their first choice and that was not on the list either. and they mostly chose somethig else as well.

Perhaps some folks are just not open minded enough about what seems to have the nod for "best" from most folks out there taking deer in the South East and just have to have a sports car when all they need is a pick'em up truck.

-Bob Hollingsworth
 
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picked .280 rem or 7mm express

Im a 7mm fan. I dont understand why the .280 is not more popular in the usa. seems people like the 30.06 or .270 but, if you compare ballistics and energy the .280 has less drop at range and has more energy at range than any of the non magnum calibers. It will hang close to the 7mm magnum with 140 grain pills but with less recoil. Sure other calibers get it done but the .280 just is the cream of the crop....in my opinion. :neener:
 
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I could say the same for 7mm Rem Mag, 270, .300 Win Mag, .338 Win Mag (add big bears), 8mm Remington Magnum, .375 H&H, most of the Weatherby mags, most of the 7mm and up short mags, the STWs, I mean, there are a lot of rounds that can do anything in north America. Some of 'em can do polar and brown bears.


True, but why pay the insane prices on some of those rounds when .30-06 is not only (relatively) cheap, but it is also very mainstream?
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First off, I've never bought much store bought ammo. I grew up with a reloading room in my shop. :D several of my rifles have never fired a factory load, not while I owned 'em anyway. www.midwayusa.com has everything I need. I don't have to rely on wallyworld, I have a computer, and my order gets here in less than a week. Great people there. Why rely on what is almost always inferior when you can tailor your own? If you want it done right, do it yourself. And, I can reload premium 7mm magnum tailored specifically for my rifle cheaper than I can buy bargain shelf store bought .30-06 or .30-30.

Also, sometimes I just don't like following the crowd. However, .308 and 7 mag are in my collection and they're pretty mainstream. It don't have to be an 06 to be mainstream, maybe on this site, but not in America. Lots of 7 mags out there, one of the top five selling rounds. .308, too. Not really any call to wildcat anymore, but wildcatting appeals to the "don't follow the crowd" in me. I do have a 7mmTCU barrel for my contender. I have to fire form brass from .223 for it. You can't even BUY factory ammo for it to my knowledge. That's a fun one and I might scope it and start hunting with it, but my .30-30 barrel does a fine job. I used that barrel in IHMSA competition for a while, but it's sat unused in the case for about 8 years now.
 
I voted for my all around favorite, the .270. But what happened to .35 Remington, 30-30, 300 Savage and all the traditional deer cartridges still doing fine duty in the rest of the lower 48 ? Essex
 
I have not lost a deer with a 308. Mosquits in SC are a challenge with anything smaller than a 243. And it depends on where you hunt. There are plenty of soybean fields surrounded by woods that are the perfect salad bowls for deer. And on a lot of these foelds, you need the reach that a 30-30 will not provide. A 243 will have trouble. But then, a 7mm Mag or 300 Mag and similiar loads are simply overkill. And what has a deer done that is so terrible that it p**ed you off enough to use a cannon on it. A 30-06 is plenty. My 308's are more than enough.

The deer are smaller in the south than the north due to heat dissapation(sp) and heat conservation. Big animals in the north retain heat better in the colder months and smaller animals in the south loose it easier in the summer months.. Also, look at the size of the ears of the animals in the south. They are like radiator fins. The big ears loose the heat. The size of the deer has nothing to do with the soil unless absolutely nothing grows and the animal starves.
 
My 1st choice would be the .243 Winchester, but then, that's my 1st choice for every state in the Union..
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agreed. .243 is great for deer as it is fast and flat shooting. Nothing wrong with an '06 or .270, but a .243 will drop deer no matter what state you are in.
 
South?

I know alot of people probably will rake me over the coals for saying this but I hunt in the southeastern section of Oklahoma. I consider it south. :uhoh: Heck, it's south of I-40!!!! :D Anyway, I will have to vote for the 30-30 Winchester Model 94. But that is only because where I hunt, a 100 yard shot is long due to the underbrush growth and hard oaks, scrub oaks, etc... I'm stationed in the western section of Oklahoma now and the 30-30 would not be a good rifle for deer huntin out here (prarie type terrain). I would say a 30-06 for this part of the state. I still will have my old 94 model 30-30 though.

The Dove
 
243, why do i say that? because deer in the south can get big, but mostly they are long and thin and muscular. So the 243 is plenty of gun, plus it is lighter, and cheaper than all the rest; except a milsurp in 308 or 30.06, which is way more than you need.
 
30-30 will easily kill anything east of the mississippi and most thing west of it if it is out of 30-30 range you need to learn to be a better hunter
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Wow, thanks for telling us all how we have to hunt. I like long range hunting. I practice weekly at long range so I can hunt that way. I'm actually disappointed if a deer walks out 50 yards in front of me. On the other hand, I totally respect the guys that shoot flintlocks with roundballs and hunt up close and personal, just not my thing.
And as far as a 30-30 west of the mississippi, sure it will kill stuff but it seems silly to limit yourself like that in wide open country. As competitive as trophy hunting is out west, and many areas have tough tag draw odds, it seems like you'd want every advantage you could get. I killed my best mule deer at 464 yards with a kimber Montana 7mag(which is less than a pound heavier than a model 94, yet at least doubles my effective range). That shot would not have been possible with a 30-30, and the situation was such that there was no option to get closer.
Since the original poster asked about down south, I'd opt for the 243. Not my choice if he said best all around for North America, but that was not the topic of this thread.
 
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