9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Hey just taking opinions...what do you guys think of taking deer with a 9mm luger? I ve got a automatic 9mm rifle I was thinking i could use for taking deer at close range(50 yards max). I have other hunting rifles 3006,243,etc, but this one is small compact and shoots fast so it would be ideal for close range and quick follow up shots. I was thinking what deer could take a 9mm Hydroshok to the lungs and still live???What do yall think??

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

First of all you need to check your hunting regulations to see if it is legal. Second you need to look in the mirror and ask yourself why you would consider it in the first place. Use the right tool for the right job.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

frizzellr, dont get huffy, it was just a question..also i was considering it because of the before stated reasons "good for close range and quick follows ups", as my other two deer rifles are scoped and the area im hunting this year is max50 yards or so and I would like something with open sights.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Don't think I would do it. 357 mag is the smallest I would use. I use a 44mag myself. Even with follow up shots, you take a great risk of shooting things you don't want shot, like hind quarters. 9mm has verylitte energy needed. Shoot, I won't even use a 9mm for home defense. I would take my bow anyday over a 9mmluger. Just don't make any sense whatsoever.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Superman welcome to the forum......
No way could I ever recommend a 9mm for deer.I don't put much faith in a 9mm period.I put a 41 mag as a min.Like Frizzellr said check your states regulations.I'll be willing to bet it's not legal.In fact I would be shocked if it is.Even though you'd be using a rifle with better velocities it just isn't suited for deer.Buy yourself a short barreled rifle for heavy cover or take a scope off your other rifle and use the open sights.We all owe it to the deer (game) to make the most humane kills possible.I can't see nothing humane using a 9mm in any shape or form.

Ruger Redhawk

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

If a 9mm parabellum is to be used for taking a deer, I'd only see it as useful when it is the coup-de grace...once behind the ear. Otherwise, there are way too many other better choices. Even in a rifle barrel with a cranked up load there just doesn't seem to be a reason for it.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Not Legal in either of the states that hunt in. Not a deer gun IMO.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Its not legal where I live either.

I would be suprised if a .357 magnum revolver which is legal in my state for deer hunting, would have any more energy than a +P+ 9mm shot from a carbine however.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

".....What do yall think??"

I think it's a bad idea, and probably illegal to boot. 9mm has insufficient power, and you
have better equipment to use. If you persist in this, be sure to check your state's game
regulations ref. legal firearms before proceeding.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

You say your only hunting 50 yards max and that your other 2 guns are scoped. Why not just take the scope off of one of them and use it? You dont need a scope for 50 yards, and if you make the shot count you wont need more than one.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

I have some important questions in response to your 9mm inquiry. Where are you hunting and what size are the deer there? Florida has these tiny little deer that I would think a heavy (158+), maybe +P, or +P+ would do a nifty job on at close ranges you described and you can drill the hole where you need to. Can you get + ammo in your area or is it LEO only? Are hot and heavy handloads an option?

Another consideration....................

most everyone's got a shotgun around. Any 12 or 20 smoothbore with foster slugs would more than adequate - no matter the size of the deer. Just go get some Sluggers or something and there will be no question whatsoever as to whether or not there's enough energy available to deliver to your target.

Uncle Matt (in IL) "Where us boys shotgun em deer!"

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

i appreciate the inquirys guys, i felt that this would be the overwhelming response. I was only thinking of it and was wondering if anyone else had tried it. My line of thinking was in sheer grains of bullet...if you think about it the 9mm 115 grains is bigger than some small, but adequite deer rifles .243, 25.06,etc...The problem, however is energy, after looking at some ballistics the 9mm is pretty sad. I have no doubt I could do it , but to do it consistenly with good results would be questionable.Thanks for the imput guys.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

9mm seems to work fine for this woman and her deer... and it's a nice sized buck at that, here is the link:

http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=11&t=299936

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

As a 25.06 user you are a little off line with that comment. Although some may use 100g. rounds for deer most use 115-120g bullets. The 25.06 pushes a 120g. round at aprox. 3000 fps, very far superior to anything the 9mm could ever achieve. Adequite is not accurite as the round maintains 1200 ft/lbs at 400 yards. It is far better than adequite and retains more energy than many popular deer rounds such as the 30-30 for example.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

personally i dont think its a good idea, the otherday i was shooting my uncles 44mag which holds quite a bit more powder than a 9mm luger and when i was done shooting it i went to the sand pile behind my paper target and by just running my fingers through the sand an inch or two deep i found 8 of the 12 shots i took. I was shooting from about 25 to 30 yards. My point is that those loads just dont retain the energy they need.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Great suggestion. A pump, semi or double could crack off a quick follow up, too. If you want to spend a few bucks, get a Marlin lever gun in 45/70 or 450 Marlin.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

With heavy bullets and plus P pressures, I have no doubt that the 9x19 would work ok at close range, maybe 50 yards max. Trouble is, with the relatively low bullet weight and energy involved, you would have absolutely NO margin for error of any kind. Just because something can be done doesn't make it a good idea!

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Or maybe they dump their energy very efficiently. A SWC with a wide meplat or a jacketed hollowpoint has alot of frontal area and is going to stop short in sand.

Try this analogy- you are sitting on a beach, first try jamming your hand in the sand fingertips first, then try jamming your hand in the sand with a balled fist- which do you think will penetrate further?

Big slow bigbore bullets are just as effective as high velocity small bullets, but for entirely different reasons.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

yeah i see your point, i suppose it would, I was shooting round ended wadcutters, but the gun i was shooting has more powder than a 9mm, so i dont know how it would all even out, but i stand by my previous statement of it not having enough power for a clean kill

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

As said earlier in this thread I have a 25.06 but I also use a Ruger 96/ 44 mag. for dogging & close in shots. Have shot both bear & deer with the 44 mag. and yes it does have enough power for a clean kill. I use 240 g. semi jacketed hollow points and out to 100 yards they are deadly.

Best Wishes

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

I've been avoiding this post all week because I don't want to come off sounding like I'd encourage a beginner to consider a 9mm luger for deer, or as a deer rifle. It isn't, but I after arguing with myself all week, I feel like I've got to comment.

Most people, when asked, will set the limit for a rifle at a .243win and the bottom limit for a handgun at the .357mag...I wholeheartedly agree that these two should be the bottom rung cartridges for their respective guns...which truth be told, I believe in energy more than I believe in bullet diameter for light skinned game like deer, so in all reality, the .243win is actually above the .30-30 in many loadings by a hundred-two hundred ft.lbs...either of which is leaps and bounds ahead of the .357mag, so we can tell already that the opinion set is a bit skewed....

Anyway, back on subject....

From a handgun, NO, the 9mm Luger should not be used. Not even in +P+ rounds. However, I have used a 9mm +P+ carbine before that did quite well. I bought it for plinking and for coyotes, a buddy challenged me one day while plinking that he'd give me $150 if I took a bigger deer than him that year using THAT gun...I really needed the cash at the time, so I took him up on it.

I took a 182# (dressed weight) doe with it at 47yrds (lazer rangefinder) with some +P+ handloads that I cooked up using a 125grn Speer Gold Dot HP designed to be used in the .357Sig...I was putting out slightly over 525ft.lbs. average from a 16" bbl, which is about on par with a typical .357mag round. He took a 179# dressed weight buck with his .30-30 and was good for his word, even if he wasn't tickled about it.

My loads were using a slower powder than typical 9mm loads, but in the longer bbl, it gave me higher velocity without the pressure spike that the faster burning powders gave.

I used it once more after that, just to prove that it wasn't a fluke, took a pretty nice 6pt buck at 38yrds (laser) with it, and sold it after season for more than I had bought it for...which I still regret for some reason.

The moral of the story is that the 9mm+P+ from a carbine is a valid choice for a deer hunter. I would never suggest it for a beginner or unexperienced shooter and even then it MUST be used with +P+ handloads.

It was basically equivalent to a .357mag handgun, only more accurate, which was nice. I was getting cloverleaf groups at 50yrds very easily using a fixed 2.5x glass. Some claim the .357mag is too weak for hunting as well, but hundreds if not thousands of deer fall every year to them, so I don't know how well that arguement holds water.

If a guy were to load the appropriate rounds, and practice a lot, and of course limit their range to a typical open-sighted handgun range, then it's feasible for an experienced shooter. But just to buy one to use specifically for deer hunting is not a good idea.

It's capable of killing deer in the right hands, but it's not a "deer rifle".

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Thank you Nomercy for your imput which i am sure you will receive flack for. I am not just a beginner or an average shot...I own quite a few guns and i shoot ALOT. I too agree in the hands of a capable shooter it could be deadly, but i would not throw it in the hands of a first timer. I have been at both ends of the spectrum. I have had a deer run just to never find him after taking a 30.06 to the shoulder, and I have in my younger days (not that Im pround of it, so dont anyone write and cuss me out) but Ive taken a deer at 60 yards with a single 22 long rifle to the head. At any rate...I was just thinkin on it one day and I never thought my first post would turn into this.

Thanks Josh

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

If the deer ran, and you didn't find it, you "really don't know" exactly where you hit it!!!

Wish i had a dollar every time i read something like that...

Drilling Man

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Actually DM i shot the buck at 25 steps and therefore seen the bullethole/entrywound as he fell on the ground right in front of me.



Wish I had a dollar for everytime someone made a dumb assumption..

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

I'm sticking to my previous answer, if you didn't find the deer, you honestly don't know "forsure" what really happened.

I've shot literally hundreds of game animials, and i've seen some odd things happen over the years!! But, the same thing goes for me, "If" i didn't open the animial up and see what actually took place, i'm really only giveing my best guess as to what happen!!

Especially when it all took place in the "heat of the moment!!"

Drilling Man

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

I have to agree with DM on this. If you did not recover the deer, you have no idea what exactly happened.

Are we to believe that this is a problem with the gun or caliber(30-06)? The problem here is with the person shooting and/or the person tracking.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Geez guys, Im not saying that there is a problem with .06,Ive killed plenty of deer with that gun.Just trying to make the point that alot can go VERY wrong or VERY right in the feild depending upon circumstances.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

ata boy superman, unintentionally you took the flack off of the quite elliquent and well thought out answer from Nomercy.

personally, i think it to be to small, But this is my opinion.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

not legal in ga. i wouldn't do it if it was

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

How about a .380 or a .32 acp in a 26" barrel....Just kidding. From what I have learned a longer barrel in a 9mm is useless because the small amount of powder is burned up in a 10" barrel or something like that. So anything longer than that would only decrease velocity due to friction.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

Camp, check out my post above...in factory loads, what you've "learned" is basically correct, the optimum bbl length for typical factory 9mm rounds is about 10-12" for maximum powder efficiency. However, if you load a slower burning powder to the maximum pressures that your RIFLE is rated to (typically considerably more than handguns), the 9mm +P+ becomes a much more viable round.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

9mm for deer I see no reason. If it is all you have sell it and buy a nice 44mag lever It is quick cycling and very pointable in small barrel lenghts.

RE: 9mm luger for deer hunting???
 

JMO. . . . .but I wouldn't do it . . . .the 9 just doesn't have enough juice. Law enforcment used to use alot of them, these days you hardly see any they all have moved up to at least a .40. If it is leagal and you must, not sure why, better be real close and make sure to hit him in the boiler room.