deer ammo?
 

i use a bowning shorttrack .308 and am pretty new at it and was wondering what everyone thinks of the fiocci .308 165 gr or 150gr for deer in upstate ny, or the federal power shok in similar grain, i shot both at range and both work good but paper doesnt move so i was wondering if ok for deer. any input greatly appreciated

All I shoot is 165gr out of my 308. The knock down power is perfect and very accurate.

I preffer 125 gr. pointed soft points in my 308 Armalite AR-10. But I haven't found any factory loads anywhere. Have to have em specially loaded, to get the instant kill, zero tracking results I like for deer. The most common factory deer loads are 150 gr. bullets, which do an ok job if you like to track once in a while. I'm not sure why they load them so heavy, but they will do a decent job and are about the best you can get unless you experiment and load your own. Just my opinion after trying variuous loads for 30 years on over 100 deer. I know others have had good success with heavier loads too.
When I first switched from my first deer gun, a 30-30, using 130gr. accelerators, I was quite disgusted that my first few deer ran off 50 yds before dying. That never happened with my 30-30, so I was upset that my 30-06 didn't kill instantly too. So I looked into different loads and actually found 125 gr. pointed soft points for my 06 on the shelf. But only once, so 20 instant deer kills later I had to have them loaded. I find that my 308 does better with these bullets too.

Not familiar with Fiocci bullet but the Federal Power Shok and any similar design bullet in 150gr and up will kill deer quickly and cleanly.
Accuracy and practice are the key. Good Luck

Dude I need my hip-waders...

so there is no need to spend double the money on somthng like federal premium? and is there any prefered brand for deer hunting?

Most people have certain brand names or bullet types. IMO the best bullet for deer hunting, whether its a 308, 30-06 or anything else is a Nosler BT but....

In the real world, regular plain jane bullets work just as well when it comes to deer hunting. There is no need to spend the extra money.

For newbies, I always recommend going with the basic, time proven formula's that work. A filled deer tag will give you more confidence than any bits of wisdom you may or may not find here.
As you gain experiance and confidence, then you can branch out and try different things. It's part of the fun

Ive always shot hornady. The last couple years ive used the 150gr light mag and they work well both at the range and on game. The ballistics on that bullet are some of the best. This year I bought a box of hornady TAP 110gr but havnt shot them yet so I dont know how theyll do but that particular load has slightly better ballistics than the 150gr light mag.

No need to spend money on anything other than basic factory ammo for deer. The bullets you list would be fine. Remington core-lokts work good for many people. I use winchesters in 150 grain (30-06) and they work fine. As long as you are doing your job on the other end of the gun, you'll end up with dead deer with any of those shells.

What I'd do is get yourself boresighted and then buy a couple boxes of different brands of regular ammo and see if your gun likes one of them better than the other. You may discover you're gun is very accurate with one brand and/or bullet weight than the others. That's the one I'd use.

Or you can just buy one and see if it sights in well, and call it good. If not, try another brand and/or bullet weight.

I'll Second that! :hail:
Winchester has them and never had 1 do anything but fall over DEAD!

I could use hip-waders too, my boots are getting full!

I use 180 wincherster powerpoints out of my 30-06 I would think a 150-165 grain bullet of similar construction out o a 308 would be just as lethal. Oh and to avoid ever tracking a deer invest in an rpg.

165 wuld be perfect deer pill

as long as you know where its going, it wont matter.

Either bullet you listed is fine for deer. If both shoot fine, go with the cheaper Federal rounds and buy more of them so you can shoot more rounds at the range. the .308 is a fine round for deer. My .308 just shoots better with 150 grain rounds than anything else, although the 165 is close. Either is plenty for deer sized game if you do your job. Make sure that you familiarize yourself with the vital area of deer along with your time at the range. If you put just about any bullet in the vitals, you end up with a dead deer.

I prefer to handload my .308 165 gr. speers, but in all honesty according to the chronograph, I am shooting standard velocities. I have never shot hornadys in the .308, but have shot many from my 30-30 with excellent results. Thier projectiles are great quality, and it all boils down to putting the round in the right place. For bench rest shooting you may do better matching up certain bullets, but for field accuracy, what ever you find works. There is no such thing as any one round that will guaranteed put an animal down in its tracks every time (barring 100% placement in the brain). Accept that some animals even when perfectly hit will run a bit. It doesnt mean you have anything wrong in your round. Pay attention to where they run, listen, and track (usually very short distances). Part of the game. A 130 grain .308 wont cut it on heavy northern deer except brain shots.

The Fiocchi loads are made with Hornady SST's. That is a very good bullet for any deer sized game. I have used it in my 7mm mag, 25/06, and 300wsm with great results. All were one shot kills from 10yds with the 7mm to 398yds (lasered range) from the 25. I would recommend to all shooter's if you have not tried them on game.

What kind of numbnut hunts with an Armalite A-10? What the hell is this instant kill crap? Sounds like you got some major issues boy, and it isn't deer hunting.

if you are hunting relativly short range powershock in my opinnion is the way to go if you like long range find something with a boat tail