HuntingNet.com Forums

Quote:

ORIGINAL: remingtonshooter1

what are you talking about centaur 1i have hit a deer with one pellet before and taken it out . you just have to hit him in the lungs or an other vital

I agree that buckshot has the ability to kill, I even killed one once that was running and he rolled up in a heap, I never did find the first pellet in him. One pellet in the lungs will kill him, the problem is how fast will it kill him, and can you find him. Buckshot doesn't have true knockdown power unless you hit him with many pellets. A single 00 buck pellet has the same effect as a .32 s&w pistol round, this is something that nobody would even consider using. Unless shot at close enough range that all pellets pass througha deer shot with buckshot will leave less of a bloodtrail than almost any other setup. You have to think what are the chances of finding a deer that only had one pellet hit him? Most hunters aren't that skilled and most of these deer will be considered a miss. Most people agree that 40 yards is about the maximum effective range of buckshot, in the shooting world this is a chip shot. Why not just use a slug, the damage caused by a slug is immense, and if it doesn't drop within sight the blood trail is usually easy to follow. Check out the energy chart for 00 buck and you'll see what I'm talking about, keep in mind that for a rifle 1000 foot pounds of energy is considered the minimum for deer hunting, and that a .22 long rifle has 116 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle (the same as 00 buck at 40 yards).

Wnchester Super X 3" 00 Buck