Good choice on guns. I bought a XR last fall and hunted whitetails with mine. I use the powerbelt hp 248 grain, I think, with 150 grain of pyrodex pellets. Some say it is overkill for deer, I like the knockdown power. The gun will shoot this combo very well. I didn't shoot a deer, so I don't know about performance on game, but it places the bullets where i want them. I also tried the t/c cheapshots, shot ok, but harder to load.