To me long range shooting is a difference of were one lives.To some people 150 yds is a long way but if one is hunting in states that have shooting ranges to 400 yds and more that is different. If i was shooting at those type distances i would use one of the magnum cartridges. vangunsmith

I definately would not consider the .243 a long range deer gun. Definately long range varmint, but not deer. The .243 drops off quickly in power when you get out there. Like the other guys mentioned, the .270's and the like are great, but the 7mm-08 is also a great long range gun. Shoots pretty flat and good power for long range hunting.

So...is it narrowed dosn to 270, 7mm, 7mm-08, 30-06 and maybe 25-06? 257 Weatherby looked pretty good but no one has mentioned it.

I'd recommend a pass on any of the 25cals. (25-06 & 257Wthby.). They're good long range cartridges, BUT you did say deer "on up". For deer only these 25's are excellent long range cartridges, but would be on the light side for "on up" (elk & moose?). The heaviest bullet weights generally loaded are only 120gr., and no matter how you cut it, they're small (.257").

The 7mm-08 is a good deer cartridge, and has been used successfully on larger game also. However, here again the heaviest bullet weight normally loaded is 150gr. Anything heavier (160gr., etc.), and the velocity starts to suffer, and so goes the long range capability.

Again, good long range cartridges, and not having too much recoil, would be the 270Win., 280Remington, 7mmRem.Mag., and the old 30-06. Probably the best of the lot would be the 7mmRemington Mag. More power than needed for deer only, of course, but certainly capable of handling the larger game. And, in most rifles, recoil is on about the same level as the '06.

For primarily just deer at long range I'd go with the 270Win.

Another advantage of the 270Win., or the 7mm Rem.Mag. is that either are available in good selection of rifles, and ammo is easy to come by in a wide variety of loadings (as is also true of the 30-06).

THOUGH I WORK AT REMINGTON AND OWN REMINGTON GUNS I SHOOT A 300 WEATHERBY MAG. AND THESE ARE SOME HARD HITTING GUNS I FEEL LIKE THEY ARE A GOOD FLAT SHOOTING GUN ALSO.I CAN SAY THAT I HAVE NEVER AND I MEAN NEVER HAD A DEER TAKE MORE THAN 2 STEPS AFTER GETTING HIT BY ONE OF THESE WITH A 185 GRAIN BULLET. SO MY RECOMENDATION WOULD BE THE 300 WEATHERBY MAG.

Which 185grbullet are you using?If you were going to even consider the 300wby,you might just as well use the 300 ultramag as it produces even more velocity and factory loads are lower priced than weatherby factory loads.Both are overkill to the extreme ,produce considerable recoil,barrel life is not overly long,and 90% ofhunters don't possess the shooting skills to take advantage of thesuper flat trajectory.In other words either is a verypoor choiceunless you are a very experienced shooter,have access to a 400yard or 500 yard range,and are willing to spend considerable time and expense to develop and maintain the shooting skills necessary to take advantage of the super flat trajectory that these cartridges offer.

Ultra Mags probably wouldn't work for me. I'm definatly of a small build, about 5'3" now. Although I don't find 30-06 recoil that bad at all, I'm sure a 300 Weatherby or Ultra Mag would be a different story. I have been wondering about a Kimber Montana. I think the extreme lightness of the gun would be awesome for carrying around, but I bet the kick would be pretty hard. Has anyone shot these enough to tell me how much more they kick than a regular weight gun? (7-8 lbs)

When I was in theArmy in the late 50's, we were shooting M1 Garand .30-06 at 1000yds with peep sights!

Recoil is proportional to rifle weight.One of the most uncomfortable rifles that I have ever fired was a ruger ultralight in 270win.The recoil felt like a standard weightlarge magnum rifle and the muzzle climb was extreme.

Never heard of a 185gr bullet? What one is that? Sure you work at remington or the shaver company.