oldelkhunter

The people I know that hunt with a 25-06 hunt with 100 grain on up and have zip problems with Deer and 200 lb deer not the small Texas Breed. The 243 ends at 100-105. The 25-06 may be the best Antelope round invented according to a lot of hunters. I know a lot of people out west that think 243 and 25-06 are all that is needed for 90% of the game they encounter.Both cartridges are versatile and can be used on Varmints thru Bear(which are more kill easier) then Deer. I wish I had starting using a 25-06 a long while ago instead of all the magnums I went thru just to go whitetail hunting.

zrexpilot

Dont get me wrong I know what 100 gr is capable of, or even an 85 gr. I kill deer with 45 gr on a regular basis. Some people are pretty @nal about things though.
A 100 gr in a .25 doesnt have the SD a 100 gr does in .24. Thats what I meant by a varmint bullet.
Some people feel an SDof 240 -250 or better is needed for W/T. I am not one of them though.

Retaks

I guess i should add that this gun will get most of its use in Alabama at my moms house where deer are alot smaller then here in PA. I do all of my deer hunting up here with a shotgun since i live in a shotgun only area.

rbullom

Anything a 243 can do......A 25-06 can do better! Except for recoil. Which is still on the low side of the spectrum. Owned both over the years. Sold my 243 since I started using it only on varmit size game after a few deer. Opted for 22 cal cartridges (mostly 22-250s) for varmit size game.Still have my 25-06 and can't imagine going to my grave without one in the quiver for my son's to fight over some day. The 25-06 will never be over shadowed by the 25WSM. Something that can't be said about some of the other short mags. The bar is simply set too high by the 25-06. If I had to give up all but one rifle this is the one I would keep. I have a hard time leaving it at home even when I'm going elk hunting even when I havelarger caliber options in the quiver. And yes it's more than satisfied my needs on the deer.Sometimes the urge has overtaken me and the 25 has done the job 4 or 5 times for me and my son's on cow elk. Just love it, as if you can't tell. Tika? Don't know, never owned one. I'm a Sako owner which tells me the Tika has theright up bringing.

Retaks

Rbollum,
I already have a Tikka T3 Lite Stainless in 300 WSM i just want a smaller cartridge for deer. I got the 300 because we go on trips to Canada alot and hunt black bear here every year. The Tikkas fit me extremely well. Ive never had a rifle feel so good to shoulder so im going to stick with them untill i can find a better fit.

rbullom

I've handled a few at the gun shops but never owned one. They are from the Sako family and have a good feeling trigger.

CamoCop

all i use anymore is my Thompson Center Pro Hunter in a .25-06 SS and it is by far the sweetest shooting rifle i have ever shot. i shot 2 deer with it this year and the combined yardagethat both deer ran after being shot did not exceed 20 yards. both shots were pass throughs using 117 grain bullets. i am comfortable enough with this rifle to shoot deer out to 300 yards. the .25-06has also been used to harvest many elkand anyone who thinks a .25-06 is not suitable to take deer probably does not need to be in possession of a firearm or at the very least giving firearm advice. i am by no means knocking the .243 BUT in my opinion the .25-06 is a much better choice for deer than a .243. after all the .25-06 is just a necked down .30-06 used to shoot a lighter projectile for a flatter trajectory.

zrexpilot

Bah humbug, a 30-06 isnt even a much better choice than a .243 much less a 25-06

after all the .243 is just a necked down .308 used to shoot a lighter projectile for a flatter trajectory.

Rammer

LOL

CamoCop

i can't even count the number of times i hear people bragging on how well their .243 did on their elk hunt

i'm not even going to continue to argue the fact that the .25-06 is a better all around cartridge than the .243. the whole point to my original post was to point out people's ignorance when they say a .25-06 wasn't capable or even proficient enough to down whitetail deer.