Deer Hunting Calibers (And Doing My Part)
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Hangingrock
Member
I am told that farmers in this area use the .22RF on deer to minimize crop damage. The people I let on the property to hunt use center fire rifles. I've never questioned those individuals has to the cartridge designation other than my stipulation shots taken equate to deer taken or you no longer have permission to hunt here. Last week an individual took a eight point buck. We don't allow as much hunting on the property as we use to. There are now only a few selected individuals we allow.
JFrank
Member
Ernie is the man for sure.
Bcwitt
Member
It's kinda dumb when guys that live on western prairie & guys that live in the east coast woods get into it about what caliber to hunt deer with. In eastern PA, you cannot see much past 100yd. A caliber that reliably kills without danger of overshooting into someone's home is just what's called for. The ideal cartridge is based largely on terrain & realistic range of shot. A 44 magnum rifle (or pistol) is right at home in the brush & it will not " make you work harder" at all.
CryptKeeper5
Member
Having grown up in Wyoming and living out west....then moving to the northwoods of Wisconsin I'm IN that "boat". I still go hunt out west and take my long range bolt action rifles but here where unless I'm shooting across a corn field I can't only not take a shot longer than about 75 yards, I can't hardly see anything beyond that in the forest. My primary rifle here in Wisconsin is my .444 Marlin whereas out west it's either my .280Rem or .300WM. I still take my .444 with me though just in case I find myself in some thick timber.
It's like arguing Chili or BBQ....too many regional variations to even compare it in most instances!lol!
xphunter
Member
That is a Franken Ruger. Chris Rhodes @ Bayside Custom Gunworks builds those.
xphunter
Member
This is my 357 magnum Franken-Ruger that Chris Rhodes built for me. I just wanted to see how it would group at 500 yards on steel.
xphunter
Member
Chris not only builds some of the most accurate handguns I have ever shot, but he shoots them as equally as good himself-Total Package!
CryptKeeper5
Member
My father was the director of the Wyoming state crime lab many years ago. If they had the time, they'd do poaching cases for the Game and Fish dept. He said there were a LOT of elk poached with .22's while they were in their winter feeding areas out in the western part of the state.
CryptKeeper5
Member
You CAN shoot a LOT of things a very long distance....whether the average(or even above average) shooter should be taking those shots with average firearms is a different ball of wax. I'm a good shot with a .243 at 1200 yards in....doesn't mean I'm shooting at a big mule deer over about 400 with it though! Hell...the .223 is being used in Palma matches but isn't a long range hunting round either.Wait a min- A 357 magnum can only soot 50 yards… Not 500 yards!
Blood loss is 100% fatal. Everything that lives and breathes, make it bleed enough, and it stops breathing. A big through hole is good as the bullet is likely to shred something that carries, or pumps blood. I am going to say that if an animal is dead within 15 seconds or less, more or less, that is good. Longer than that, probably bad for the animal.
Take a look at animal anatomy, the cardio vascular system is centered in the chest area. Get a bullet in there, one that shreds lungs, causes massive blood loss into the body cavity, or cuts arteries or vessels coming from the heart to the brain, and the animal dies quickly. Break the spine and the animal may crawl before you kill it. Hit the animal in the gut, and it will die slowly. Head shots are risky, if you hit the jaw, instead of the brain, it won't be pretty, and the animal will suffer.
And example of non fatal head wounds from WW1. These are face casts of soldiers who survived these disfiguring head wounds.
The casts were made so masks could be fashioned around the wounds, so the individual could go out in public.
CryptKeeper5
Member
Judging by the number of hunters who miss even intermediate range shots....I'm not so sure. You won't see their pictures of a cloud of dust 2' under an Elk at 600 yds.
sarduy
Member
OK, please forgive the common question, but I simply cannot find the answer on my own.
Alright, lets find the answer.
A little background: I’d like to start deer hunting. I’m really a handgun guy, but I do have a few lever action rifles / shotguns for general cowboy action plinking fun. While researching between handguns and rifles and their many popular calibers for deer hunting here in the southeast, I keep reading, over and over and over, the phrase, “the [whatever] caliber will be great, as long as you do your part.”
By “do your part,” I assume that means hitting where I’m supposed to hit. But isn’t that the point with ANY caliber — to hit where you’re aiming?
Yes, you should practice with any caliber to hit what you aim and that’s doing your part, Nature does it’s part too by providing weather conditions like wind, rain, light, humidity, gravity…
It’s that single caveat that confuses me. It almost implies that there are some calibers where you can totally miss the mark, and it will still result in an equally dead deer. (Is that assumption true?)
Yes! and No! I’ll explain, if you miss the target completely you miss the target, it doesn’t matter if you miss with a .22lr or a 50bmg. But if you miss by a little but land in the target some calibers allow you to transfer some energy to vital organs and still get the kill. For example if you shoot a deer in shoulder blade with a 9mm but miss the organs that deer is just going to run away BUT if you shoot the same place with a 300WM you might kill the deer, if you do it with a 338Lapua that deer is going to die, if the same shot is taken with a 50bmg, you will find the deer dead and missing a chunk even if you didn’t hit its heart/lungs. The reason why is because transferred energy and temporary wounds channel the bigger the round the bigger the kill zone gets. That’s why smaller rounds needs better shot placement.
So what exactly does “as long as you do your part” mean?
By doing your part, it means that you have the right sighted, you can shoot the target and can compensate for gravity and wind in other words you have done everything in your power to hit what you aim at.
And if I “do my part” (hit where I aim), then does it really matter if I’m shooting from a new Colt Anaconda in 44 Magnum or a Winchester 70 Super Grade in 6.5 Creedmoor?
from those two calibers no, both have enough energy to kill a deer however the 6.5 Creedmoor will transfer more energy because it’s going faster and it’s a bigger round.
Thanks in advance for clearing up my confusion.
No problem, that’s what we are here for.
Regards,
Chris
I hope this helps.
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xphunter
Member
Your 357 Magnum will do plenty good on deer out to 100 yards, and even a tad further with 158 grain XTP's if you can put them in the vitals.
A good friend of mine shot a big cow elk at 680 yards with my center-grip 6.5-284 (clone XP-100) specialty pistol with 140 grain AB's on opening day of elk season.
One shot and down she went.
What someone else can do, doesn't really matter.
Be content to start where you are at.
Finding a mentor would be priceless.
I would recommend either a revolver or a single-shot specialty pistol to start handgun hunting with.
Where you will be able to hunt what distance would you like to be able to kill deer at?
Does your state have specific handgun restrictions for hunting deer?
Some handguns are easier to shoot in field conditions.
What handgun shooting experience do you have? Details please.
With a revolver I would suggest either a 357 magnum or a 44 magnum
Single shot specialty pistols have more versatility with chamberings.
I would encourage starting with a pistol scope, unless you are going with a break-open or XP-100 in a rifle cartridge that has a good muzzle brake on it.
Start hunting w a rifle for heaven’s sake and remember each deer has its unique will to live.
I’d go with a Savage 220 or 308 or 243
Or 44 out of a lever carbine/rifle
Get experience hunting first before handgun hunting or using small weird calibers
Nothing wrong w 300 Win Mag either
But it won’t turn a shot through middle of deer into a clean kill just cause it kicks more and drives a big fast bullet
This is a great thread with a lot of good knowledge and expertise shared by the members. I can't add much, but to say "doing your part" is basically being a disciplined shootest, knowing the range and capabilities of what you choose to hunt with. "Shot placement" is probably good a term as any for "doing your part."
Other than that, I do prefer 30 caliber, but there are a lot of successful calibers... too many to name that are proven in the field.
When I bought my Ruger Mini-30 more than 30 years ago, the 7.62x39 round was compared favorably to the venerable 30-30 Win. At the time the 30-30 had taken more deer in North American than any other caliber. I believe it still holds that record today. Over the years with new powders, 7.62x39 can exceed the 30-30 Win when compared fairly, both firearms being carbine length. My 18" barrel Ruger Mini-30 is easily a 225-yard deer slayer with 125gr to 150gr projectiles.. My 22" barrel CZ 527 in 7.62x39 is even better. Am I going to make a habit of reaching out that far for medium size game? Nope, but it's nice to know I can.
.308 Win is another of my favorites when you want to reach out and touch someone (or some thing) at greater distance. And I have full confidence in my Rossi 20" barrel 357 Magnum to ethically take medium size deer this side of 100 yards.
You don't have to be a long range sniper to be a good marksman. You just have to know the capabilities and limitations of your firearms for the purposes you intend to employ them. That's part of doing your part, along with critical understanding of technique... things like breath control, patience, and understanding the anatomy of the game you're pursuing.
~Beck
Other than that, I do prefer 30 caliber, but there are a lot of successful calibers... too many to name that are proven in the field.
When I bought my Ruger Mini-30 more than 30 years ago, the 7.62x39 round was compared favorably to the venerable 30-30 Win. At the time the 30-30 had taken more deer in North American than any other caliber. I believe it still holds that record today. Over the years with new powders, 7.62x39 can exceed the 30-30 Win when compared fairly, both firearms being carbine length. My 18" barrel Ruger Mini-30 is easily a 225-yard deer slayer with 125gr to 150gr projectiles.. My 22" barrel CZ 527 in 7.62x39 is even better. Am I going to make a habit of reaching out that far for medium size game? Nope, but it's nice to know I can.
.308 Win is another of my favorites when you want to reach out and touch someone (or some thing) at greater distance. And I have full confidence in my Rossi 20" barrel 357 Magnum to ethically take medium size deer this side of 100 yards.
You don't have to be a long range sniper to be a good marksman. You just have to know the capabilities and limitations of your firearms for the purposes you intend to employ them. That's part of doing your part, along with critical understanding of technique... things like breath control, patience, and understanding the anatomy of the game you're pursuing.
~Beck
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