RE: Shooting from 50 or less yards
Corey, I load my own rounds for my sks and 30-30's. Although the ballistics are similar the hitting power of the sks is less than the 30-30. If you have a shotgun that carries more than one shot, think about using it with sluggs. It is a very effective deer gun with in the 50 yard range that you mentioned. I have brought down a deer with my sks and though a kill is a kill the shot gun would be more efficient (considering that the shot placement is the same). I love using my ML (it is my favorite season) and if you are confident with it (and it is sighted in), then that would be my second choice after the shotgun with sluggs.