best deer gun ?
 

im trying to get a new deer gun for ny hunting what would you suggest im leaning torge a 270 , 25 06 i dont know yet can i get a little help

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Guess it depends on your type of hunting. I hunt mostly woods and some field. I have the Remington 700 BDL DM in .30-06. To me this is the best all around deer gun. My son hunt fields only and he likes the same gun in 7mm Rem Mag. I kid him it is too much gun but he has taken deer at 301 yards with one shot.:D

RE: best deer gun ?
 

My favorite gun is my .300 Winchester Mag.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

I'm all for the low recoil .243. Honestly for where I hunt it handles most every situation perfectly, and as long as you take the time to aim for good shot placement, killing power is no real issue.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

yea i forgot to mention i hunt alot with a 243 but its not mine i shot one opening morning 500 yards with it an dropped write there , also i like the guns that i dont gotta chase deer to much after i shoot them , i know its shot placement but some guns you chase an chase i like the quick clean kills

RE: best deer gun ?
 

hello i like my 30-30 sav, my poppy uses the good all 6.5 55 mauser and he has lots of funn with that too kdown lots of deer and handles pretty good my advice is that whatever gun you feel the comfortablest with if you don't like lots of kick or recoil the the .243 or .270 are good choices now if your one of those advid hunters then you would use a big meat stick

RE: best deer gun ?
 

"cough, cough"

RE: best deer gun ?
 

500 yard shot with a .243? either you're not great at range estimating or you're nuts....243 lacks serious energy at that range...not somethign you wnat to try at home..Anyways, I'd go wiht a Remington 700 BDL DM, BDL SS DM, or mountain rifle DM, all in .270 or .30-06. perfect for any deer, anywhere. Detachable Magazines are really handy. I've had mine for 4 years, i've killed 15 deer. no disappoint here.

slayer

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Cant go wrong with a .270 or .30-06

RE: best deer gun ?
 

yea well 243 great gun works good for me an i can do w/e i please with it and hit anything cause u guys are being major********* isnt my falt

Get with the program Buckmaster.....name calling is not one of them!

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Guys, apparently the part of u who think a 500 yard shot with a .243 winchester lack the knowledge of shooting one...and shooting one for years. i have used a ruger target model chambered in the .243 on many 400 yard shots on groundhogs, even a squirrel once, coyote, and YES....2 deer. I know many of you will argue that those animals arent deer...but i said ive shot 2 at a lilttle over 400 yards. If you have used one for years and have shot hundreds and hundreds of rounds like I....u would know that 100 more yards on to 400 is VERY possible. However i do agree....that u have to have practiced and practiced and must be a very good shot wtih the rifle to take a deer at 500. I hunt farm country where pastures stretch as far as u can see and that is all i have ever used, before i bought mine 8 years ago i borrowed one for two years exactly the saem model an caliber as mine. I agree that u couldnt go out every morning and make a 500 yard shot on a deer wtih a .243...because ur going to miss more times than not...and let's not forget about luck. He could have actually dropped it at 500 yards. I also lacked to mention that i have my cartridges reloaded with more powder so its alot hotter than a regular casing from a leading manufacture, therefore the ballistics move up from factory ballistic charts just a bit as do the velocity and downrange energy. In my opinion the .243 is an excellent deer cartridge out to 300 yards and will efficiently take any deer down at that randge and beyond 300 yds....unless u are very skilled i wouldnt risk wounding the deer. I have taken cleanly, all of them went down, 27 deer with mine and am well pleased.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

I didn't say it wasn't possible. And i agree, theh .243 is a great gun. I just prefer somethign with a little more snuff. I am reading my ballistic charts right now. a .243 with a 100 grain bullet with factory loads has 880 ft lbs of energy at 400 yards. Recommened energy is 900 foot pounds. i think the energy is alot less at 500 yards plus factor in wind and humidity, that bullet doesnt have enough energy. the 100 grain bullet gets moved a bit by wind drift at that range. im not saying it can't be done, but im saying it shouldnt be done. I'm not getting up on my soapbox, and i aint one to be preaching, but i say it shouldnt be done. a .243 just doesnt have the energy at that range. and with the bullet drift, you could hit them somewhere like the guts or leg. i wouldnt use the .243 past 250...too much risk. leave the long range stuff for teh big guns, the .270's, .30-06's, and 7mm mag's

slayer

RE: best deer gun ?
 

you guys should try a browning blr. 308 the best deer gun around...and body u must be a sniper to hit at 500yds i cant see 500 yds.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

400 yard shots on squirrels? Thanks i needed some more humour in my day.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Out of all my centerfire rifles i like the bar 270 with win 130 gr,power points the most.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

I personally hunt with a 30.06 most of the time. However, i just bought a 7mm-08 and damn if that ain't a nice caliber for deer. I may make that gun my new go to for next season.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Wow, Buckmastr229 - what a lousy attitude! There are so many things wrong with your post, it's hard to tell where to start:

1) You appear to have settled on the .243 as your favorite gun. Why, then, did you ask for the "best deer gun" if you've already made up your mind?

2) You asked for recommendations, then rejected the suggestion that the .243 wasn't the best gun for taking 500-yard shots.

3) Deerslayer_37 is 100% correct, and you are 100% wrong, on taking deer at 500 yards with a .243. According to Remington's ballistics charts, the most energy any of their cartridges has at 500 yards is 797 foot-pounds, well below the recommended minimum of 900 foot-pounds for taking deer. That cartidge has a drop (assuming that the rifle is zeroed for 200 yards) of 38.3 inches - more than three feet! The trajectory of the bullet at that range more closely resembles a mortar than a hunting rifle.

If you dropped a deer at 500 yards with one shot from a .243, you are the luckiest deer hunter on the face of the earth - and probably the least ethical. I suggest that you adjust your attitude, and check your facts, before you post other messages on the board. I fully expect that you'll call me names too. Go right ahead - I need a little humor in my day, and small-minded people generally are very good at providing it.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

The best deer rifle in my opinion is the 30.06, however I also have a 270 and its a great rifle also. My dad hunts with a 25.06 and its a great rifle, you just have to watch what shells you use. Any of your choices would work just fine.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Where I hunt, I can't even SEE 500 yards. I guess shooting deer at 1500 feet, you don't have to worry much about camo, scent, movement, or anything else.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

you might be able to shoot a deer at 500 yards but it sure didnt drop right there

RE: best deer gun ?
 

he he. My thoughts as well. :D

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Probably not too much left of a tree rat shot with a 243. How many does it take to make a meal, 60?

RE: best deer gun ?
 

buckmaster if your so proficent with a borrowed .243 why would you even consider a different cartridge? I find it equally funny you would come here to ask us subpar hunter/marksmen our opinion. Please spare us the ridicule next time...Thanks;)!

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Not here to recommend anything. But just to say that I use 3 deer rifles;
My first was a Marlin in 35 Rem. Next I found a Revelation bolt action in 30-30 (made by Savage, a store brand for Western Auto.) And then I have a Rem. 700 in .35 Whelan. As I reload I can adjust according what/where i hunt. I like to use all, but when I get serious, I grab the Whelan.

Russ

RE: best deer gun ?
 

7mm-08, i forgot about that one. a couple guys in our group have started shooting them. my younger cousin is a small framed kid and has a model 7 youth in 7mm-08 and absolutely dropped the hammer ona doe with it today. very good cartridge IMHO. im still sticking with my time tested .270 or the .30-06. both are older than methusda, but they still are at the top.

slayer

RE: best deer gun ?
 

hey russ i thought i was the only one out there with a rev. i really like the one i have i got it from my dad the hard way.Just holding it makes a tear come to my eye.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

I'm not the expert so like you, I asked many, many experienced hunters and sites like this. .270 kept coming up more than any other so I got my sons and I each one. Ruger, Remington, and Winchester. Can't tell the difference between makes. We love them and have taken deer and elk every season since. Longest for us was an antelope at 350 yds (paced it off afterwards), but we know they are effective even further.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Hmm...where to start?

Anyone taking five-hundred yard shots had better be spending weekly time on a 200+ yard range. It takes a hell of a shooter to put 5/5 in the black even at 200 yards...300 yards all the more and ranges that can accomodate 300 yards are rare. Factoring in 38 inches of bullet drop?...sigh...

500 yards with a .243? I'm afraid I can't recommend and would be embarrassed to admit it if I were to actually try such a shot and to pull it off. Truth be told, I couldn't smile about anyone taking 500+ yard shots regardless of caliber, quarry, or success...

Such a boast hardly makes a case for any caliber, much less a .243

But I understand your fondness for the caliber, I've taken at least four bucks with a 6mm including a monster Mulie...but it wouldn't be in my top 3 choices.

By the way...grats on the shot of a lifetime (no sarcasm intended).

RE: best deer gun ?
 

:D You have got to be kidding me 500 yards with a 243?? That would be a lottery shot. The scope for that yardage to make shot placement just right for the downward angle and to make sure about the sex of the deer it the season is buck or doe is kind of riskie,lol. The scope would have to be worth more than the gun and likely just as big,lol. Maybe could be done bench shooting but if it's sited in for that, but then if something was 50 yards would shot five feet below a deer or just aim at your foot.

I will stick with my 308 savage 99c lever, with 150 gr. I have taken deer as far as 250 yards, open sites. I have taken too deer to count over my years with this gun. The thing to do, is what ever gun you buy, you buy for a reason, stay with the same gun, love it , treat it well, practice with it , be come one with it and you will become a team, and it all falls into place after that

RE: best deer gun ?
 

I'm hearing many of you doubting the ability of the .243 out to 500 yards. I don't know if this guy was telling the truth or not but if he's not, it's his lie let him tell it as big as he wants to. I have a Remington Varmint Special in .308 and I can stick 3.5" groups at 600 yards with it topped with a Leopold 3.5-10X40mm scope. I also have killed numerous and I mean numerous deer over 400 yards with a .270 and one at 460 yards with a 7mm. I have 2 witnesses on 3 shots over 425 yards. Oh, I dropped all but one on the spot including the one at 460 yds. I'm not trying to start an arguement or brag but if the guy says he got one at 500 yards I'll at least give him the benefit of the doubt.


PS: I've missed deer at 90 yards.........standing broad side;)

RE: best deer gun ?
 

the nicest deer gun around browning blr .308

RE: best deer gun ?
 

i once shot a flea off a deers back at 1000yds

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a little old fashioned but i stick with my 30 30 savage.. they don't make it any more.. but the 30 30 will get the job done.. and its very reliable

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The .280 is a fine all around gun I hear. You won't go wrong with a .270 though.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Alright, first off I have to say it...
Buckmastr- you are crazy. Sure, it will do it, but a .243 isnt much of a deer rifle past 100 yards, let alone 500...people like you make me laugh...
Get a real deer rifle, anything along the lines of a .270, .30-06, .280, .308, 7-08 or 7MM...guns that will do the job right

RE: best deer gun ?
 

I think we all need a little more practice on range estimation. For those of you shooting 500 yards I would like to know where you're aiming. As a former Marine marksmanship instructor I am quite accustomed to shooting 500 yards with rifled sights. While I can hold a 3 inch group at 200 yards it's more like 30 inches at 500. Of course you raise the rear sight aperature about 1/2 inch to make a 500 yard shot or else you'd be off about 6 ft. Not to mention a silhoute target looks like a toothpick at that range. So for all of you shooting your scoped rifles are we making these sight adjustments or just aiming 6 ft. off the animals back?

ps. The one that said he can shoot squirrels at 400, the Marines are looking for a few good snipers.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

While I dont condone shooting 500 yards with any caliber without an extreme amount of practice, especially with a caliber like a 243, I know it can be done. Go to www.longrangehunting.com, theres guys there that shoot all kinds of animals at extreme distances, but they use guns that are adequite for the task.

btw, my favorite caliber is 7mm08, shot a doe and an 8pt last Friday morning, the doe dropped in her tracks and the buck ran about 50 yards and fell in sight.

RE: best deer gun ?
 

Do not try to come between my Louis L'amour Books or my 30-30 Winchister, guess I am a little old fashion.....

RE: best deer gun ?
 

My personal favorite is my remington 700 sendero in 300 winchester mag.....I also have a ruger and savage 110 police both in 300 win. for my brush gun i use my marlin 444 great for close up shots........ as for the shot at 500 yds with the 243 hahahaha (thats not me laughing thats the deer when the bullet BOUNCES of his little brown a@$ and hits the ground.....) the boy can barely type so im questioning his ability to judge wind velocity and direction plus accounting for the natural drop of the bullet at 500 yds with his borrowed rifle...Personally i am comfortable shooting up to 400yds(not saying perfect cause i have missed at 90 yds broadside also with open sights:eek:) but i have been to a number of classes and basic long rifle training. And the handy laser range finder always helps....

RE: best deer gun ?
 

YAS SHOULD USE A 375 h&h Magnum no chasin at all