I'm sure some of the guys on here are tired of hearing me say this, but when you really think about buckshot, it's not about energy, it's about accuracy. Each pellet from a 00buck load has about twice the energy of a .22lr, or 2/3 the energy of a .22mag. Yes, a heart shot with 00buckshot at 50yrds (or more honestly) will probably do the trick. BUT, there are no guarantees. 00buck will have a dang big pattern past 50yrds, and there's no guarantee any of the pellets will connect with the heart. At best, you're talking about a lung shot. Then the problem becomes that it damages the near lung, but probably doesn't penetrate to damage the far lung. A deer can run a LONG way on one good lung.
There are TONS of deer wounded every year with buckshot. Frankly, I'd rather stay home than hunt a "buckshot only" season. Either use slugs (if legal) or buy a bow.
If I HAD to use buckshot, I would ONLY shoot at a range where my pattern guaranteed 2 or more pellets hitting the heart. In my shotguns, that's about 30-40yrds, maybe 50-55yrds with a well balanced load and choke. Even if I can guarantee 2+ heart hits, honestly, it's a push for me if I had any other option, because I couldn't guarantee that the rest of the 6-13 pellets aren't going to connect with the paunch. I HATE dressing paunch shot deer.
Patterning and sighting in will be critical.
Last edited by Nomercy448; 01-03-2012 at 04:27 PM.