What type of bullet would you recommend?
 

What type of bullet would you recommend for whitetail using a 30-06. I am new to this but I used a soft point 150 grain to take my first whitetail. It didn't drop right away. I shot the thing at 180 yards. I see guys taking deer with 30-06 on video and the deer just collapses. I am new to hunting so please don't make fun of my beginner questions.

Deer are tough animals. Unless you hit them in the spine, neck, or the shoulder blade, most deer will not drop immediately no matter what you hit them with. A 150 gr. bullet is right for whitetails. I've used them for years. My opinion is that anything heavier won't kill them any deader and just tears up more meat. Aim well and you won't ever have a problem.

if you shoot him in the broiler room (lungs) he is more than likely not going to "drop dead" neck/spine shots and head shots will drop a deer in its track but it is not a shot i'd recommend...

the best advice i could give would be; practice with your rifle and get proficent, learn how to "blood trail" a deer, paying very close attention to where the deer was standing, and which way he headed when he ran off, also try to notice his reaction (if any)..when you shoot the deer take note of something he is standing close too, like an old log laying down, or a certian tree, when you arrive at that spot start looking for hair, bone, and blood, then proceed (SLOWLY!!!!) in the direction the deer was traveling, at this point you could be looking for specks of blood to a spray painted path, you could also be noticing leaves that are turned over, i have gotten on my hands and knees looking for specks of blood... go slow...

oh yea! after the shot give the deer around 30 minutes before you start looking, hard to do, but the last thing you want to do is push a marginaly shot deer. useally they'll pile up pretty close and bleed out fairly quickly... iknow i'm forgetting some points here which someone else will add.. but welcome to the forums and ask away.lot of knowledge here we all had to start somewhere:s4:

Good post and great answers from Wing and MTH. I have killed many deer with the 06 and used several different bullets. Deer are tough and most will run a short distance before going down especially on a boiler room hit. My buck this year was shot squarely through the heart with Federal vital shok 180 gr barnes TSX which is the best load I ever used especially for larger game like elk. The deer ran about 20 yards then piled up. I had a couple of boxes left over from my elk hunt and decided to use them on deer. The 165 gr load would have been a better fit for deer but I chose to use the bigger loads since I had so many left over and they are expensive. Shot placement is the most important but using a quality bullet is also good insurance that you are doing all you can do to put the animal down and keep him there. Some don't like the premium factory loads because they are expensive but I value the animal too much to take a chance.

Your 150gr. soft point will work just fine... assuming it's your basic run of the mill soft point Core-Lokt.

Like mentioned previous, most your shots in the heart/lungs are not going to drop the deer immediately. Besides just neck/spine shots to drop them, there's also the issue of shock trauma. Some bullets transfer energy better than others, thus able to drop a deer through the actual impact. I did this to a buck shooting him low in the front chest below his white patch, above his heart. Used a .270 130gr. SST. You will also often see deer knocked off their feet with broadside shots from .50 cal. blackpowder rifles. Today's muzzleloaders and sabots/slugs/bullets transfer energy well.

As for specific bullets, I recommend the Nosler Ballistic Tip 165 gr. or Sierra GameKing in 165 gr. BTHP. Now those NBT's can do some real damage, so keep the bullet in the boiler room or you'll be eatin' some burger without even taking out the grinder. LOL!

One last note: You will find, if you try it, that most guns have preference for one brand, bullet or bullet weight over another when it comes to accuracy. Like I mentioned the NBT's at 165 gr. Your gun may shoot more accurate with the 125 gr. You may be shooting and are not happy with your groups. After checking everything is tight on your gun, scope, mounts, etc, it may be time to try other shells to see how they shoot.

iSnipe

Any of the bullet weights between 150gr and 180gr make great deer medicine. Mine shoots the 168gr bullets the best. Then it's just a matter of bullet placement and practice. Pick the bullet your rifle shoots the tightest and go get 'em ....

Be careful you look beyond bullet weights! Some are meant for big game, while others are for competition, like the Sierra MatchKings. Others expand better than others too. This is more important than just considering the weight of the bullet!

iSnipe

I took a nice buck this weekend with a 150 grain soft point. Shot was quartering away, entrance was about halfway back the ribs, exit was just behind the far shoulder. Bullet expanded to about the size of a quarter maybe a little larger and the deer made it 10 yards before piling up and sliding down the sidebank he was on. Bullet was a Federal Fusion soft point 150 grain from a .308

Everybodies reply was right on the money. Get a deer atnomy picture and study it for shot placement. I took a slick head at 175 yards with a 7mm-08. The deer did move an inch. Bullet placement is very important where I hunt. On public land you dont want deer running off then you have to track them down. Just a rambling thought . Hey CI you are almost there!

Practice, practice, practice......and then practice some more! I shoot my thompson .30-06 religiously and so does my wife. I use either Hornady Custom 150gr soft points or the same grain in hand loads. I nor my wife to date have never had one move more than 20 yds from where it was shot. The key is to get those groups consistently tight toughing if possible at your max range. Aim for the pocket in the arm pit that is, where I have tought my wife to shoot upon gutting you should see a pile of mush where the heart once was. Knock on wood it has been flawless. Also if a deer is in close sometimes the bullet may not have time to perform to its full potential on a very high velocity round.

Bang-flops are impressive, but they don't happen as often as you might think. As said, the best ways to get a bang-flop is a shot through the shoulder blade (high shoulder), a neck/spine shot destroying the spinal column, or a headshot. The head/neck shots aren't a great idea because they are fairly small targets to hit, and relative to the body of the animal, they move quite a lot more (the head and neck move even when the deer is standing in one place). The downside of the high shoulder shot is that it passes through a large muscle/bone mass, causing substantial destruction of edible meat.

I would say that you'd be best advised to stick with a conventional cup/core soft point like the one you're using in 150 or 165 grains. These will rapidly expand and lose considerable weight (fragmentation). This will generally result in a better chance of DRT (Dead Right There) performance or at least shorter tracking. Just remember, shot placement is the most important thing. Any expanding bullet from a .30-06 will kill a deer effectively when the vitals are hit.

Mike

I'd say just keep using what you are using. There will be deer that drop for you and there will be some that run a hundred yards before they drop (assuming you hit them of course)

I have used 150 gr Soft Points in my .30-06 since I got it in 1994. Some deer have ran and some have dropped in their tracks. A bullet in the boiler room and they won't run far.

my view of the .30-06 has always been, 150grs on most stuff, 180grs on the big or dangerous stuff. However if you can't find a load in 150grs that shoots well perhaps a 165gr would be more ideal.

I think 150grs with the 06 is perfect though, its like the 130gr with the .270 IMO.

don't be suprised about animals not dropping/dying on the spot, hunting ain't TV!

as long as you can make a good shot don't worry about an animal running off, a good shot = dead animal.

so many guys I hear worrying about tracking an animal, no blood etc..., don't even let that enter your mind, make a good shot, be confident, and if you put the bullet where you're aiming, you'll be very successful.

150 ballistic tips do wonders on deer i imagine sst from hornady would too

anyone have any info on 45/70 ishot agood buck with 325grain levealutions no blood for 100 yards but my shot was probaly too blame

I shoot a 130gr spire point out my 30-06....we load our own and i find that the 130 gr bullet has plenty of knock down power....the key that everyone is bringing out here is shot placement...im sure the 150gr bullet will work just fine for you.....

Best to have your own thread for that so that you don't dilute the info here, but also so that you'll get more focused answers.

Welcome to the forum hdhunter!

iSnipe

Thanks for all replies. Yes I did aim for the heart but the day was windy. I did lot's of practicing the day before but still the wind blew the bullet more to the guts. I guess I will stick with this technique. The deer zigzagged for more than a mile. It took a while to find. I found it in some tall grass . There was blood 20 feet from the deer but nowhere else.

Thanks for the welcomes. :happy0001: