Hi voz,

I'm not certain that I trust my memory....but I believe I remember reading (mostly in the past) that energy between 900-1200 ft lbs. was considered a "minimum rule of thumb"....on target. You hear this much less than you use to. And I would venture a guess that an increase in "handgun hunting" had something to do with that. Why? Because many of the handguns that have proven their effectiveness on whitetails.....do NOT meet the "earlier accepted minimum figures". Which of course leads one to induce that kinetic energy as measured by ft lbs. does not adequately "answer the question".

What I find to be increasingly ironic about the entire issue is this. While today it is commonly accepted that handguns such as the .41 Magnum, .44 Magnum, .45 Colt (with proper loads), and even by some.....the .357 Magnum are adequate for the task of cleanly harvasting whitetails. (And a handful of others....some more powerful, and one or two.....not as powerful.) There seems to be a trend towards more, and more, powerful rifle cartridges in the same woods......after those same whitetails! Instead of the .30-30's, .32 Specials, and .35 Remington's ruling the roost......more and more hunters are turning to "magnums"....as in "mega-magnums".

So now we have as commonly acceptable that the .45 Colt is an adequate deer round.....but somehow the .30-30 isn't. (And the same person that has no qualms about using that .45 Colt, or .41 Magnum, also retired their .30-30's and are now touting .300 Remington Ultra Magnums.

Go figure?!?