best deer round

[funghi2]

sorry if this has been asked 2000 x's before.  Been shooting for 30 years so handle firearms pretty well.  Trying hunting for the first time.  Took the class and tags are ordered. I have a rem 40xb but i think its too heavy to drag around all day. thinking of grabbing a sako (finnlight or possibly that new carbonlight) or maybe a kimber montana. also thinking about a vortex viper 2.5-10 x 44 scope. Is this a decent setup for deer hunting?  Lastly, what round do you guys recommend?  i like to keep things simple so im not buying all different types of ammo.  so i have a couple .45 pistols and my rifle is a 308, but a hunter friend said 308 isnt a great deer round.  something about having too much arc. he recommended 7mm-08 or 30-06.  what do you guys think?

 

 

Edited August 26, 2015 by funghi2

[monkeyman2269]

50 call never seen anything run after getting hit lol. But I like the 7mm

[Pygmy]

Your buddy is mistaken..The .308 IS a great deer round...So is the 7mm08...And the .270 Win...And the 30-06 and about 50 other chamberings..

Get a .308 to go along with your target rifle..

Grab the Sako or the Kimber...Both quality firearms..

Wait a minute....GRAB ??..You're not ROB, are you ??

[chiefbkt]

Tell your buddy he's nuts, .308 is more than enough gun for deer. I'd use that and buy a 150 grain (or higher) bullet for deer. If you you want a new deer gun, can't go wrong with the 30-06.

[grampy]

So many good choices out there. 308 and 7mm/08 are only two of them.

[funghi2]

thanks for the replies. i guess if there is no clear winner ill stick w the 308.  he said you want a flatter shooting round. why is a flatter trajectory more preferable?

[funghi2]

Your buddy is mistaken..The .308 IS a great deer round...So is the 7mm08...And the .270 Win...And the 30-06 and about 50 other chamberings..

Get a .308 to go along with your target rifle..

Grab the Sako or the Kimber...Both quality firearms..

Wait a minute....GRAB ??..You're not ROB, are you ??

no, not rob

 

but i see ur from steuben co, i go up to visit an aunt in elmira often.  i shot her washing machine by accident once. long story

[ATbuckhunter]

Which ever rifle that you shoot best with, thats legal for deer. 308 is among the most popular of calibers for deer hunters so your friend is wrong. 

[Elmo]

Does you buddy like to shoot deer 800+ yards out or something?  Most deer taken in the Northeast are taken at less than 100 yards to arc never comes into consideration.

[G-Man]

How far,are you planning to shoot? You can't see further than 50 yards in most places I hunt?? 308, 30-30, 45 70,30 06,any will kill a deer to 250 yards. 7mm is over kill unless you shoot in 800 yrds or more

[funghi2]

ok great. 

 

now got to pick out a rifle. I think im leaning towards the Sako finnlight. the carbonlight looks awesome but i dont know if its worth the extra coin

 

 

[moog5050]

I have a sako 85 hunter and Bavarian carbine.  I can assure you, you will not be disappointed with sako.  Great choice.

[dbHunterNY]

don't know if the carbon stock is worth it for a deer rifle that you'll treat like a deer rifle.  finnlight is a great gun and I'd go with that.  even there synthetic stainless isn't bad.

 

your 308 is fine and won't shoot much less flat than a 30-06 in standard bullet weights.... that said ammo is a little crazy for availability as 308 is a "tactical" round.  unless you reload, 30-06 is a little easier to come by.  also if you reload you can throw in a heavier bullet and get more performance from the bigger case.  I have a couple 30-06.  308 is inherently more accurate by design but we're not shooting paper at 1000 yards we're hunting and trying to knock things down.

 

 

[Grizz1219]

25-06 with a 115 - 120 grain bullet..... it's like you hit them with lightening.... most any deer has gone after shooting them was 20 yards... 150 lb 9 pt... everything else dropped immediately... 

[Mr VJP]

I own 5 Kimber rifles, in various chamberings and 3 of them are Montana models, not counting the Talkeetna.  You cannot go wrong with a Kimber Montana for deer hunting.  If you go with the Model 84M in .308, you will have an excellent deer rifle.  Top it with a smaller lightweight scope like a 2-7x33, or a compact 3-9x33, or even a fixed 4x, and you have an excellent lightweight deer hunting outfit.

 

My 84M is a 7mm-08, but I do own other rifles in .308 and a .30-06 as well, but I just saw the 7mm-08 to be a better round for deer when I compared them.  It was mainly based on ballistic coefficient.

 

 

Regarding your question about a flatter shooting round, a flat shooting bullet allows the shooter less concern about holding over the target on longer shots as it will not rise above, or fall below, the line of sight as much when fired.  That allows for less guessing about hold over when shooting at game.

Edited August 26, 2015 by Mr VJP

[Doc]

Ha-ha-ha .... your buddy is just like most hunters. Most of us have a particular bias, and will make all kinds of silly claims in defense of our favorite caliber. Nothing unusual about that. Caliber, cartridge, make, model, of the best deer load and rifle will fill many pages of replies on a hunting forum. We all like our own choices .... right or wrong.

[t_barb]

I took the advice of Grizz last year when I was in the market and went with a 25.06...  Pulled the trigger twice last year and the results were great.

 

Love the flexibility to go down to a 75 or 8- grain bullet for a great varmint gun as well.

[Grizz1219]

I took the advice of Grizz last year when I was in the market and went with a 25.06...  Pulled the trigger twice last year and the results were great.

 

Love the flexibility to go down to a 75 or 8- grain bullet for a great varmint gun as well.

 

 

I hated giving my wife my 25-06 barrel for her T/C.... but couldn't justify having two of them,....  so I bought a 30-06 barrel for my T/C.... Still think I might buy a 25-06 and never track another deer... LOL

[Two Track]

If you are shooting at 140 yards or less, you can even go for a rifled shotgun.

 

I know someone that shot at deer at 120 yards and it also dropped the deer he couldn't see that was a few yards behind it using a H&R 20 gauge magnum.

 

The best round to use is the legal one you are most comfortable shooting and lugging around (possibly all day).  Whether it is something like a .300, .30-06, 7.62, .24, or something else, it is the shot placement that makes it.  Knock-down power is just the icing on the cake.

[dbHunterNY]

I've been thinking and working toward getting into reloading.... slowly.  once I do i'll be loading 210gr Nosler Accu-bond LRs out of my 30-06 rifles.  That'll mess a deer up out to 300 yards... further if you have some way to dial elevation or have elevation built into reticle.

[wolc123]

The top deer round is the 30/06 (150 gr to be specific). The 140 gr .270 is a close second, and the .308 a not too distant third. One thing that keeps these rounds on top is availability and cost of ammo.

When choosing a whitetail rifle for NY state hunting, I would stick with one of those calibers. Personally, I use the 30/06 and have no complaints about it's performance. Even more important than caliber, is the rifle itself and the scope. I usually hunt from a stand or blind where long shots are common. A heavier, bolt-action rifle with a variable power (3-9X), high-quality scope is the way to go in that scenario. If you will be still-hunting in cover where most shots are under 75 yards or so, then a light-weight, "carbine" type rifle, with a low power scope or even open sights, would be better. The bolt-action is the undisputed king of the long shots, but a pump, or semi-auto would probably serve you better for short range work.

You will likely get as many opinions as you get replies on this question and those I have listed apply to myself.

[thphm]

Here We Go Again.? Any bets on how many pages.

[Lawdwaz]

.243 is a barn burner.  Ain't no deer walking away from a 80TTSX in the boiler room.............

 

 

Remember; it's bullets, NOT headstamps.

[ants]

The friend who told you that the .308 isn't a good deer round, is very very wrong. I can't imagine anyone who has the slightest bit of gun/hunting knowledge, saying that. Your .308 is a fine deer round and its also more than enough for bigger game like Black bear, Elk, Caribou  etc...if you're itching to just get a new rifle in a different caliber, then any of the popular deer rounds are great.  .243 Win, 7mm-08 Rem, 270 Win, 30-06 Springfield, 25-06 Rem, and there are a bunch more. I would say that the most popular are probably .308, .270 and 30-06 in bolt guns and 30-30 and 35 Rem in lever guns.

My two favorites are 7mm-08 and 30-06.

Edited August 27, 2015 by ants

[funghi2]

im going by the beretta store in the city to check out a few sako's.  i think ill stick w 308. or maybe 30-06.  thanks for the replies.   i sous vide a lot and a hunter friend gave me some venison that was just spectacular.  excited for my first hunt.