RugerM77.270

For me I would have to say a 280 AI with 154 gr. Interbond.

fishinty

I think the best deer rifle is a 30 06 or a 25 06

driftrider

Why go wildcat if you want to go with a quarter bore? Why not consider the .257 Weatherby Mag? The difference between it and the .257 STW is not that great and the .257 Wby brass is available. And in a pinch there would also potentially be ammo available over-the-counter. If you have an "Oh, s**t" moment and forget your 257 STW handloads at the house 500 miles away, you'd be officially SOL with the STW.

I've got a very good load worked up for my 257 Wby that should smoke a deer out to way beyond any range I'd attempt a shot using 71gr IMR-7828 and a 100 grain Barnes Tipped TSX. It has printed under 1/2 MOA with my M700, ad while my chrony is still busted, the book says it should be running in the 3500's from my 26" tube. I've also cooked up some rounds with 7828 and the 110gr Nosler Accubond bullets, but I haven't had time to get out to the range and test them yet.

Mike

driftrider

I guess I'm just looking at it from a practical standpoint considering the drawbacks of wildcat cartridges. If, like you, one puts the time and effort into the wildcat and learning how to take advantage of that extra 400 fps, then I'd say absolutely go for it. I think it's important to weigh the options before venturing into a wildcat project when a very close standardized alternative is available. If you recall, I also considered exactly what he's wanting to do, but I decided that I didn't want to go the wildcat route and chose to stay with the high-performance standardized rounds like the 7mm STW, RUM and what I eventually settled on with the 257 Wby.

Mike

Colorado Luckydog

The ultimate deer rifle? If you are looking for a great deer rifle you can't go wrong with a .270, 25.06,or a .243.Any of those would be hard to beat. I prefer a .270. If your hunting the thick stuff,a 30/30 is the best in my book.If your lookingto shoot them from another county...well thats another story and is a sport within a sport. I prefer to get as close as possible. When they are just a few feet away it brings a lot of excitement tomy hunt. To other hunters the excitement comes from taking them at extremely long distances. To each his own and more power to everyone that is hunting legal and ethical.

Eddystone30_06

I really need to move to a state that allows deer hunting with rifles. This season I am going to use a 357 mag pistol instead of my shotgun.