What cartridge do you use for deer?

[Brickman301]

Recent advances in bullet technology have made 9mm as effective against deer as .45/70

 

[fabsroman]

What about a Browning? Their compact I think it’s the Micro stalker comes in 243 with a medium contour 20” barrel.

I swore off Browning about 30 years ago. Hence, Ruger, Sig, Beretta, Benelli. Usually what I buy unless it is an AR of some sort. Really debating the Sako.

Think I just solved my dilemma. What do you guys think about 220 Swift for a beginning deer hunter? I already own the rifle and it looks like it will produce 1,500+ ft/lbs of muzzle energy. Even have some rounds loaded with Barnes X bullets from 20 years ago. I know it has more power and speed than the .223, and there have been a couple people in this thread that have been using .223 on deer.

I was looking at the .204 Ruger cartridge in the Hawkeye and had an "I should have had a V-8" kind of moment.

.300 Win Mag is the top rifle. 220 Swift is underneath it. The .220 Swift is actually heavier than the .300. Definitely not something they would be carrying through the woods for a long time, but something I could set up with them to shoot from a table/bench. My soon to be 14 year old son could probably handle the weight, but I doubt my 10 year old daughter could.

Maybe the .204 Ruger in a compact version for hiking through the fields?

 

[Uncle Duke]

I swore off Browning about 30 years ago. Hence, Ruger, Sig, Beretta, Benelli. Usually what I buy unless it is an AR of some sort. Really debating the Sako.

Think I just solved my dilemma. What do you guys think about 220 Swift for a beginning deer hunter? I already own the rifle and it looks like it will produce 1,500+ ft/lbs of muzzle energy. Even have some rounds loaded with Barnes X bullets from 20 years ago. I know it has more power and speed than the .223, and there have been a couple people in this thread that have been using .223 on deer.

I was looking at the .204 Ruger cartridge in the Hawkeye and had an "I should have had a V-8" kind of moment.

.300 Win Mag is the top rifle. 220 Swift is underneath it. The .220 Swift is actually heavier than the .300. Definitely not something they would be carrying through the woods for a long time, but something I could set up with them to shoot from a table/bench. My soon to be 14 year old son could probably handle the weight, but I doubt my 10 year old daughter could.

Maybe the .204 Ruger in a compact version for hiking through the fields?
View attachment 391874

For varmints, a lightweight .204 Ruger is an excellent choice. It's not an optimal deer cartridge though, for a variety of reasons, to involve and include a lack of 20 caliber bullets suitably constructed for deer sized game.

 

[Derwood]

If there is one thing I've learned from this thread, it's that just about any cartridge above the tiny calibers will kill a deer! So many options. Seems like the best move is to use the rifle you like and can shoot well, keeping in mind the likely shot distance for the terrain, and you'll be fine.

 

[fabsroman]

For varmints, a lightweight .204 Ruger is an excellent choice. It's not an optimal deer cartridge though, for a variety of reasons, to involve and include a lack of 20 caliber bullets suitably constructed for deer sized game.

Just looked at bullet selection for .204. Ain't gonna happen for deer, and the .220 Swift I already have will work just fine on varmints. So, not going to end up buying a .204. Still going to ponder the .243, but I think I am just going to start them off on the .220 Swift. Guess I could also go .300 BO in an AR for the shorter shots where cover is around.

I am probably overthinking this. Just need to set them up with a rifle that they can tolerate the recoil from.

 

[Uncle Duke]

Just looked at bullet selection for .204. Ain't gonna happen for deer, and the .220 Swift I already have will work just fine on varmints. So, not going to end up buying a .204. Still going to ponder the .243, but I think I am just going to start them off on the .220 Swift. Guess I could also go .300 BO in an AR for the shorter shots where cover is around.

I am probably overthinking this. Just need to set them up with a rifle that they can tolerate the recoil from.

Or arguably better yet, perhaps lighten your bullet weight and drop your velocity, and load your .25-06 a bit closer to .243 Winchester specs and recoil.

 

[Bountied]

Right now I have a .50 Beowulf setup for Talbot county since it's shotgun or straight walled cartridge only.

 

[trickg]

If there is one thing I've learned from this thread, it's that just about any cartridge above the tiny calibers will kill a deer! So many options. Seems like the best move is to use the rifle you like and can shoot well, keeping in mind the likely shot distance for the terrain, and you'll be fine.

That's pretty much it right there, and it can literally be anything - even 223 gets the job done with the right bullet and a well-placed shot. My Dad built his dream "do everything" guy by sportering a Mauser Gewehr 98 into a 25-06. He shot deer, prairie dogs, and possibly even a coyote or two with that rifle.

With his loading for hunting, he was pushing a 117 gr Sierra bullet nearly 3100 fps - that smacks with nearly 2500 ft lbs, and that will certainly do the business on a whitetail.

But almost anything will work. Some guys LOVE the 35 Whelen because it hits like a freight train - a 200 gr bullet rolling at 2700 fps hits with nearly 3500 ft lbs - I've read story after story about the 35 Whelen where they employ the DRT acronym - Drop Right There - to describe it. Others will think that's overkill.

The 243 is loved out in the plains of Nebraska - lots of deer and pronghorn hunters like that.

I think it's less important what the cartridge is, and much more important in how the hunter employs whatever it is they choose to use.

 

[Pale Ryder]

IMO both 204 and 223 are marginal. I know, plenty of deer have been kllled by them though. I might consider the 22-250 as a choice, luckily I don’t have to settle for the lightest, fastest thing to get r done.

 

[Kimber45]

Shot all my firearms deer over the last 25 years with a 50 cal, ML with good results. Last Saturday shot a Buck a few minutes before dark with my new 350 Legend. He was quartering to me at 145 yards . 1st shot he just stood there, second shot same thing, then he slowly turned around and started walking back the way he came. Third shot broke his front leg with a shoulder shot. He was still walking away with A little limp from what I could tell. Got down right away as it was getting dark. Found blood, but not a lot in the field, found more in the woods. 35 yards into the woods It was dark by now, saw eye shine in my flashlight beam. He was beaded down looking at me. It was too dark to get off another shot he jumped ran another 30 to 40 yards into the field then laid down again. He was almost done but still alive. My partner walked up to him and shot him in the neck to finish him off. I was using Hornady 170 bullets. Small entrance holes only 1 exit hole. From where I first shot he traveled maybe 130 yards with a neck, shoulder and maybe a liver shot. I'm not a fan of the 350, thinking I might get a 450 Bushmaster. They seem to have much better knockdown power then the 350. Another guy
I hunt with killed 3 this year with the 450. All with 1 shot, I think one maybe went 50 yrds before pilling up.

 

[lazarus]

I swore off Browning about 30 years ago. Hence, Ruger, Sig, Beretta, Benelli. Usually what I buy unless it is an AR of some sort. Really debating the Sako.

Think I just solved my dilemma. What do you guys think about 220 Swift for a beginning deer hunter? I already own the rifle and it looks like it will produce 1,500+ ft/lbs of muzzle energy. Even have some rounds loaded with Barnes X bullets from 20 years ago. I know it has more power and speed than the .223, and there have been a couple people in this thread that have been using .223 on deer.

I was looking at the .204 Ruger cartridge in the Hawkeye and had an "I should have had a V-8" kind of moment.

.300 Win Mag is the top rifle. 220 Swift is underneath it. The .220 Swift is actually heavier than the .300. Definitely not something they would be carrying through the woods for a long time, but something I could set up with them to shoot from a table/bench. My soon to be 14 year old son could probably handle the weight, but I doubt my 10 year old daughter could.

Maybe the .204 Ruger in a compact version for hiking through the fields?
View attachment 391874

My two cents is something medium sized and slower would be better than ultrafast and small in this instance. The 220 would be better than 223 and 223 can get the job done. But shot placement is still going to be that much more critical. Right in the vitals doesn't matter a lot, so long as it's enough. A 22WMR could be enough if its right in the lungs/heart. More is better still, but it isn't surviving that point, just a question of a bang flop, 20yd run, 50yd run, 100yd run, or 300yd run.

But a .308 through one lung and the liver is going to drop them large fractions of a mile sooner than a .223 or 220 swift through one lung and the liver.

At least for mine, I wouldn't be confident enough of pulling off the perfect shot. Granted, My oldest probably could handle a .308 and can certainly handle my 6.5G. He's shot my Garand from a bench okay. Though it would be way too heavy for him to carry around. He is almost 15, so not a good comparison. I am going to try to get him out hunting in the fall. He is finally showing some real interest, so I need to work on him over the spring and summer and figure out what works best for him. I've got a couple of 6.5G options Howa and AR (what I think will likely work best), that .308 Sako and an AR-10 in .308. Pretty sure the Garand and sporterized 1903A3 are not good choices...

I guess for me I think over some of the bad shots I've had, and even some of the goods ones, where the post-mortem is things like I didn't realize the deer was quartering towards or away from me as much as it was (often because it was standing twisted a little, not just at an angle). And just thinking on what happened and what the hit did and though they weren't, I've had one or two that would have ended worse with a smaller higher velocity bullet. Something bonded and smaller caliber still would have penetrated just fine, but the damage probably still would have been less and rather than finding the deer 300yds away, it might have been 500 or 800 and been gone.

Then again, if they have the discipline (better than me? Lol), or that bit of extra wisdom of Dad there, to make sure of things like only taking a shot if the deer is perfectly broadside. I guess I have so much invested with young hunters I never want their first harvest to be one that gets away, or ends after hours and hour or the next day. It'll always happen someday (or almost certain to). Same reason I won't let any of my kids first deer hunting be archery/crossbow in the backyard. Even with practice, IMHO the level of skill required to ensure a crossbow, and especially a compound bow, shot are good I want that first one to be something much more doable and likely to end well.

Not that we are knocking on neighbor's doors asking if we can search their property.

Howas are pretty fun and very cheap and there are a lot of customizable options...a 16.5" 6.5 Grendel Howa mini 1500 with a typical 3-9x40 scope and heavy barrel is only about 7lbs. Under 8 with a .30 caliber suppressor on it...

I do think, even my oldest is going to be doing more in-place hunting than still hunting. Or if doing the later, it'll be with the rifle shouldered. He is pushing 6 feet (jeez!) but athletic is not his middle name. But yeah, I need something on the lighter weight end of the spectrum for him, that won't beat him up too much. I have thought about my Sako and load some reduced recoil 120/125gr loads for him to practice with and then full power 150s for hunting. He won't have a problem with a full power .308 in a hunting situation, but I think the amount of practice he should really do there is going to be a flinch with loading some reduced velocity 120/125s.

 

[TI-tick]

5 gal pail of corn.

Not to be a Debbie Downer but from what I've seen the deer in my local area look poor; just trying to get by.

And they are easily shot but that's no fun and not much chow so WTH.

I'll feed them and the other critters.

FTW

 

[TI-tick]

5 gal pail of corn.

Not to be a Debbie Downer but from what I've seen the deer in my local area look poor; just trying to get by.

And they are easily shot but that's no fun and not much chow so WTH.

I'll feed them and the other critters.

FTW

 

[TI-tick]

5 gal pail of corn.

Not to be a Debbie Downer but from what I've seen the deer in my local area look poor; just trying to get by.

And they are easily shot but that's no fun and not much chow so WTH.

I'll feed them and the other critters.

FTW

 

[Choko]

My Winchester Model 94 in 30/30 is my go-to deer dropper. I've dropped deer out to 167 yards with it. Anything more and I switch to my







Patriot in .270.

 

[fabsroman]

My two cents is something medium sized and slower would be better than ultrafast and small in this instance. The 220 would be better than 223 and 223 can get the job done. But shot placement is still going to be that much more critical. Right in the vitals doesn't matter a lot, so long as it's enough. A 22WMR could be enough if its right in the lungs/heart. More is better still, but it isn't surviving that point, just a question of a bang flop, 20yd run, 50yd run, 100yd run, or 300yd run.

But a .308 through one lung and the liver is going to drop them large fractions of a mile sooner than a .223 or 220 swift through one lung and the liver.

At least for mine, I wouldn't be confident enough of pulling off the perfect shot. Granted, My oldest probably could handle a .308 and can certainly handle my 6.5G. He's shot my Garand from a bench okay. Though it would be way too heavy for him to carry around. He is almost 15, so not a good comparison. I am going to try to get him out hunting in the fall. He is finally showing some real interest, so I need to work on him over the spring and summer and figure out what works best for him. I've got a couple of 6.5G options Howa and AR (what I think will likely work best), that .308 Sako and an AR-10 in .308. Pretty sure the Garand and sporterized 1903A3 are not good choices...

I guess for me I think over some of the bad shots I've had, and even some of the goods ones, where the post-mortem is things like I didn't realize the deer was quartering towards or away from me as much as it was (often because it was standing twisted a little, not just at an angle). And just thinking on what happened and what the hit did and though they weren't, I've had one or two that would have ended worse with a smaller higher velocity bullet. Something bonded and smaller caliber still would have penetrated just fine, but the damage probably still would have been less and rather than finding the deer 300yds away, it might have been 500 or 800 and been gone.

Then again, if they have the discipline (better than me? Lol), or that bit of extra wisdom of Dad there, to make sure of things like only taking a shot if the deer is perfectly broadside. I guess I have so much invested with young hunters I never want their first harvest to be one that gets away, or ends after hours and hour or the next day. It'll always happen someday (or almost certain to). Same reason I won't let any of my kids first deer hunting be archery/crossbow in the backyard. Even with practice, IMHO the level of skill required to ensure a crossbow, and especially a compound bow, shot are good I want that first one to be something much more doable and likely to end well.

Not that we are knocking on neighbor's doors asking if we can search their property.

Howas are pretty fun and very cheap and there are a lot of customizable options...a 16.5" 6.5 Grendel Howa mini 1500 with a typical 3-9x40 scope and heavy barrel is only about 7lbs. Under 8 with a .30 caliber suppressor on it...

I do think, even my oldest is going to be doing more in-place hunting than still hunting. Or if doing the later, it'll be with the rifle shouldered. He is pushing 6 feet (jeez!) but athletic is not his middle name. But yeah, I need something on the lighter weight end of the spectrum for him, that won't beat him up too much. I have thought about my Sako and load some reduced recoil 120/125gr loads for him to practice with and then full power 150s for hunting. He won't have a problem with a full power .308 in a hunting situation, but I think the amount of practice he should really do there is going to be a flinch with loading some reduced velocity 120/125s.

My son is only a year younger than your son. I don't have much doubt that he would pull off the shot and that he would be patient enough to wait for the perfect shot. I'll also be there with him. My 10 year old daughter, who will be 11 by next hunting season, will probably be a lot harder. She gets excited way too easily.

First time and every time I went deer hunting, my dad just left me in the stand. First time out, I killed my first deer within 20 minutes of getting in the stand. Dropped dead right there at about 10 yards. The button buck and the doe were so close that it took me 5 minutes to get the gun to my shoulder to make the shot. I had been hoping that a big buck would have followed them along, but nope. Then again, I probably should have just waited, but it was my first time out. I was using a 4x scope on my dad's Savage 110 in .30-06. The entire scope was filled with brown and I was looking down the barrel to sort of guess where the shot was going to end up. Ended up shooting down on him. Broke his spin and the Remington Core-Lokt split in two and went through each lung. He collapsed right there.

Second deer was almost the same situation, but with my .300 Win Mag. Same Remington Core-Lokt bullet. Again, it was a button buck and the shot placement was almost the same. This time though, there was no exit hole. The bullet completely blew up inside the deer and blood shot out of the entrance wound. The button buck dropped where he was.

Think I am going to go with the 220 Swift with a Barnes bullet and find a place where the shots are limited to 100 yards.

 

[Zaicran]

308 and 50 Beowulf

 

[Speed3]

For bang flop effect, I’ve watched my son when he was younger do it more times than I can remember, and it was with a .243.
All ways make me wonder if I use to much gun? Lol

I really think “bang flops” happen more often when the deer isn’t spooked or on hi alert.
I also read an article about the bullet making impact at the same time the hear is “mid pump”. If the timing is right all the extra pressure from the bullets energy is dumped right into its blood pressure, causing instant death.
Kinda makes sense why sometimes it’s bang flop, and other times it makes a short run. Maybe you just hit it between heartbeats?

I have a shooting buddy that swears by 90gr .243/6mm bullets moving fast. He said everyone of his deer DRT.

 

[delaware_export]

Various 12g slugs rifled and smooth bore rounds. 1187/870. The most.
3006. 150 in a 7400, 220 in 700.

 

[steves1911]

I have used the 22-250 with 62gr gold dots and it hammers deer for such a little pill. Does the 204 have suitable bullets for deer? Impact velocities above 3k fps warrant a bonded or mono in my opinion.