Muzzleloaderhunter

I Never do head shots. I have a buddy that shot the jaw off a 11 point buck. It had a lot of meat to according to him so he wasted a deer

Topgun 3006

Gunplummer: "This year I had to shoot one in the head. I don't try to shoot deer only in the head, but sometimes it is the only option".

***There is always tomorrow and nobody made you do it!!! It was your free choice and the deer could have been passed on.

Sheridan

Don't take the shot you THINK you can make; only take the shot you KNOW you can make !

Every hunter SHOULD subscribe to the adage; "one shot, one kill" !!!

Gunplummer

Lot of guys that can't shoot on this forum. I see all you "Experts" at the range every year. Instead of nitpicking at hunters that can actually shoot rather well, why not jump on the guys that really do shoot up deer because of lack of skill with a rifle. Maybe that would be a little close to home. To read this forum there are hundreds of deer running around with their jaw shot off. I have yet to see one and I have found dead, or shot so many wounded deer I could not even give a rough estimate on the amount. I hunt public land and do a lot of walking. The guy taking a head shot is not the problem. The guys shooting at the the "Vitals" (What ever the hell that is) are the problem. The guy at the range with the special gunsmith built rifle that can only hold 4" at 100 yards is the problem. If you ever did see a deer with the jaw shot off, the chances are it was by some guy aiming at the "Vitals". I am not joking about that. If you would not take a front or rear headshot @ 50 yards, either your rifle is less than accurate or you are.

buffybr

In Montana, for the general season, "There is no rifle or handgun caliber limitation for the taking of big game animals."

Big10Hunter

I agree 100%... it doesn't matter where you aim, only where you hit. The only unethical shot is taking one that is beyond what your skills, equipment, and the animal/conditions will allow you to successfully make.

Big10Hunter

Yeah the only guys who are better are the ones that brush off the old "tirty-five" rem the day before deer season and take their first practice shots of the year at the paper plate fifty yards away off the bench and when two of their three shots cut paper they call it good enough.

redgreen

I have taken my fair share of head shots on big game, and they were all DRT. I totally agree that the fellow that takes out the 35 Remington, dusts it off and hits a paper plate at 50 yards 2 out of 5 times shouldn't attempt this. If I decide that I want the animal, and there is a broadside or quartering shot available, I will definately put it behind the shoulder. If there is a doe, bull or cow at 400 yards plus, I will do the heart lung shot, but at 300 yards, I have no problem with a head shot.

Topgun 3006

***Hogwash, as nobody on here is nitpicking at anyone who can shoot well on the range! Cutting one hole in a nonmoving paper target IS NOT shooting at a small MOVING part of a deer's head. You may be right and I wouldn't argue the comments you make about guys that can't shoot or don't take the time to zero and practice with their chosen firearm. Finally, that last sentence of yours is more than hogwash. It's absolute BS when the majority of people that are hunting know that the best shot at an animal is broadside or quartering slightly away, especially with a bow. If you're that hard up to take a high risk shot at a LIVE animal that you aim for it's head like you mention in your last sentence, then go to the grocery and buy a steak or some burger!!! Again, it doesn't matter how great you can shoot on the bench at a paper target that doesn't move like a deer's head can at any instant and you don't know when that instant will be!!! All my "go to" rifles will shoot under MOA and one will drive tacks (see 10 shots with my Sako .243), but they have never been used to attempt a head shot at ANY distance.

Gunplummer

Yeah,yeah,yeah. I don't need advice from amateurs that freeze up when they see a deer. I bet you would not take an off hand body shot at a deer standing at about 80 yards out either. You are right about one thing, punching paper is not like shooting at a deer. Before compound bows came along to help the inept, my cousin shot on a league with a recurve. Every year they took on the pistol team and beat them. I hunted and killed deer with a bow so he decided to try it. ONE year. He became so rattled when he saw a deer that he would miss the whole deer. He gave up and went back to target shooting. If you can't control yourself when a deer comes along, don't take shots you can't handle.