Is there any good materials on hunting calibers?

[The Exile]

Literally anything the people above have mentioned will kill a deer. My question for you is what did you not like about hunting last time? Was it the weight of carrying the rifle around for an hour, was it the recoil, were you just board?

Depending on what you want from your experience there are rounds with less recoil, rounds that shoot flatter, rounds that can help you reach out and touch a deer at extreme distances. All of these answers are just fine but they don't necessarily answer your question because none of us know why you didn't like it last time.

It was just really bad timing. I spent most of the time freaking out over grades, thinking about all the studying time I was missing out. I was either gonna walk out of that semester expelled for poor grades or with my 2 year degree and I had a huge math test the next week so there was a lot of pressure. We also never saw anything. There was nothing really about the gun that made things worse.

I was also just really poorly prepared, didn't have any snacks, wasn't dressed warm enough for the early morning or cool enough for the afternoon, and wasn't in layers.

 

[wombat13]

Just noticed the joke in your signature. Do you have a Garand? Is it legal to hunt with in MN or wherever you'll be hunting? It would be plenty powerful. I got a buck with mine. I'd be the first to tell you it's not an ideal deer hunting rifle, but if you've got one and you're not sure whether you'd like hunting, why not use it?

You might already know the following, but just in case...You have to be very careful about using modern ammunition in a Garand because it may generate too much pressure and potentially bend the op rod or crack the receiver. I have a Schuster adjustable gas plug for my Garand and it works very well. You start with the plug allowing most of the gas to escape and your rifle is a single shot. Then you slowly close off the vent until your rifle reliably cycles. Midwayusa.com has Schuster plugs in stock:

https://www.midwayusa.com/s?searchTerm=garand+adjustable+gas+plug&perPage=48

There are other aftermarket plugs that others have and they seem to work just as well, but I can't tell you anything about them. In NY, we can only deer hunt with semi-autos that hold 5 or fewer rounds. So I bought a 5 round clip. Midwayusa is out of stock, but a quick internet search suggests that other vendors have them. If you can't find those, you could also look for a 2-round clip. 2-rounders are used in matches that require 10 rounds fired per round. It also looks like there is a youtube video on DIY 5-round clip.

Good luck.

 

[KsSkaEnthusiast]

anything .243-30-06 is pretty much optimal. I can say i find the most ammo for 308 and 30-06 right now. Find something that fits you well and ask yourself how much recoil you care to take.

 

[daniel craig]

The round you have is infinitely better than the one you don’t. What caliber do you have?

 

[The Exile]

Just noticed the joke in your signature. Do you have a Garand? Is it legal to hunt with in MN or wherever you'll be hunting? It would be plenty powerful. I got a buck with mine. I'd be the first to tell you it's not an ideal deer hunting rifle, but if you've got one and you're not sure whether you'd like hunting, why not use it?

You might already know the following, but just in case...You have to be very careful about using modern ammunition in a Garand because it may generate too much pressure and potentially bend the op rod or crack the receiver. I have a Schuster adjustable gas plug for my Garand and it works very well. You start with the plug allowing most of the gas to escape and your rifle is a single shot. Then you slowly close off the vent until your rifle reliably cycles. Midwayusa.com has Schuster plugs in stock:

https://www.midwayusa.com/s?searchTerm=garand+adjustable+gas+plug&perPage=48

There are other aftermarket plugs that others have and they seem to work just as well, but I can't tell you anything about them. In NY, we can only deer hunt with semi-autos that hold 5 or fewer rounds. So I bought a 5 round clip. Midwayusa is out of stock, but a quick internet search suggests that other vendors have them. If you can't find those, you could also look for a 2-round clip. 2-rounders are used in matches that require 10 rounds fired per round. It also looks like there is a youtube video on DIY 5-round clip.

Good luck.

It's on my buy list, I just got my first AR but I could have honestly seen myself going for a Garand instead. Part of me kinda regrets going for the AR actually

 

[The Exile]

The round you have is infinitely better than the one you don’t. What caliber do you have?

9mm and .223; I assume neither are humane rounds for a deer

 

[illinoisburt]

It's on my buy list, I just got my first AR but I could have honestly seen myself going for a Garand instead. Part of me kinda regrets going for the AR actually

If you have an AR it will kill deer assuming you can find some 65+ grain soft points (223/5.56). The fusions, hog hunter, and whitetail loads from various companies all work just fine with a good hit. Have to check you local regs though as some states don't allow under 24 caliber and may require a low-cap magazine.

** definitely use a scope - a lot of the red dots and irons are hard to see in dim forested area against brown fur

 

[Gun4Fun90]

9mm and .223; I assume neither are humane rounds for a deer

Depends on the state... a 223 could defiantly take down a deer with a clean shot... but some states don't let you hunt deer with anything less than a 23 caliber round.

 

[AK Hunter]

It would depend on what is legal in your state. The 30.06, .308, .270, .243, 6.5 Creedmoor are all good calibers for deer rifles.
But if you live in a state that limits your use a straight wall case round may be in need so the 350 Legend, 450 Bushmaster, 458 SOCOM, .50AE, .50 Beowulf all are good deer calibers for limited states.
But then there are those states that limit you even farther by saying shotgun only, then you can hopefully go to a rifled barrel. Then It's the type of ammo you use that get the job done.

 

[Archie]

Dear exile. The reading material for which you ask is partially covered in the roughly fifteen feet of book shelves lined with good sized books in my office.
I would recommend Cartridges of the World to start and a recent loading manual as well. CotW will show you (nearly) all the current cartridges used in hunting and give an idea of their utility. A good load manual will give you a good idea of what can really be expected from them. But you won't be finished reading by hunting season of 2022 unless you're a fast reader and quick on the uptake.

The suggestions given above look all pretty reasonable. I don't agree with all of them, but they all represent what someone found. Most hunters start with the rifle their dad left them or gave them. Which is very similar to your position. Just pick one and go. Make notes to yourself - or in a notebook - about what was good and what wasn't and see if you can fix it by dint of your own labor or getting another rifle.

If your plan was to read enough to gain knowledge, you'll work this plan out and be up the pathway rather quickly.

 

[wombat13]

Midwayusa has .223 ammo with 55 gr Barnes TSX and Nosler E-tip which both would be good for deer. I wouldn’t use .223 mostly because I have more appropriate rounds, but I know people who do so successfully.

 

[d2wing]

If the .223 is legal in your state, it will certainly kill deer with a well placed shot and proper expanding bullets. I shot a 14 pt. very large buck with one a few years ago. But I do prefer a larger cartridge. 7-08, 308, 30-06.

 

[daniel craig]

9mm and .223; I assume neither are humane rounds for a deer

In my state 223/5.56 is perfectly acceptable for deer hunting. They make deer hunting ammo in 223 as well. I wouldn’t hesitate to use 223 if it was what I had. Get an accurate shot and you’ll be good to go.

 

[courtgreene]

given the bean field plan you're looking at having the possibility of longer shots. For that reason I'd go .243, 6.5cm, or 7mm-08 (that would be my choice in this category) if you want something without much recoil. If you don't care about recoil I'd look at 7mag, .300wsm (my choice in the harder kickers), or 300mag (similar to wsm but long action). The advice above about finding what's in stock and then choosing the rifle may be funny but it's also wise. It's hard to find loaded ammunition, and even if you were going to start reloading it's hard to find components right now. Actually, it's very rare for loonwolf to offer anything BUT great advice, even when he IS joking.
As far as the rifle, assuming you can find one that shoots something readily available, I'd say savage 110 is the best all around rifle. By that, I mean both accurate and relatively problem free for the price.

https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/savage-110-apex-hunter-xp-bolt-action-rifle

Something like that seems like a great starting point. It comes with a vortex scope, but I'd yank it out and make sure the bases are tight before sighting it in and practicing.

Most importantly, address the non-school-related issues you had. Get something to wear that'll keep you comfortable. Find something to stave off boredom. Eat protein to keep you warm and not hungry. All that stuff.

 

[CryptKeeper5]

Sounds like perfect 30/30 territory. There's always a butt ton of Marlin 336's online in 30/30. Mount a light 4x scope and you have the perfect upper midwest corn row/timber rifle. Buy a box(or beg/borrow/steal) of 150gr rounds for it and you're set. Little investment, lots of reliability and no issues with a deer.

 

[natman]

The two books I learned the most from when I was starting out were Popular Sporting Rifle Cartridges by Clay Harvey and Hunting Rifles and Cartridges by Finn Aagaard. The problem is that was a long time ago and both are out of print and collector's items now. Anyone have a more recent example of a similar book?

 

[stillquietvoice]

If it's anything like last time I'm just gonna be sitting in a little thicket of trees and watching into a soy field waiting for some deer to come pick

Sitting on the edge of a bean field. How long is that field? Farthest possible shot. For longer shots getting steady enough for a clean shot could be an issue. If shots are more than 375 yes 243 win starts running out of gas as far as retained energy for a clean kill.

The round you have is infinitely better than the one you don’t. What caliber do you have?

Very true

9mm and .223; I assume neither are humane rounds for a deer

I shot a doe at close range, under 40 yds with 223 rem, a savage m11, 2 years ago. Ammo was federal premium 60 gr nobler partition, very tough bullet, deer was quartering forward, shot broke inside shoulder exited out offside rib cage. The biggest thing with the 223 is that it's a 200 yd cartridge at best because it doesn't carry enough muzzle energy past that distance.

For shots 200 yds or less you could use just about any cartridge, as long as it's legal in your state, out to 400 or so a 243 would work, shots beyond that require more energy, 6.5 creed, 7mm08, 308 270, 3006or bigger. Will give the best results.