Dead is dead! I use all my guns for all my hunting - 6mm and up. My 22 caliber rifles are reserved for coyotes and smaller critters.

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Gosh, Seafire...and here I didn't even know rimfires were legal for shooting deer in Oregon......did you buy a hunting license and a tag?


....and so far I haven't read anyone here in this thread saying magnums were needed for deer, except you. Some said they use them on deer as well as other things, but no-one is saying that nothing else will kill a deer.

So why does that concept bother you so much?

yeah, I had a tag and license.. it was the last day of the season about 5:30 and after hunting all over the place all season, it was grazing in the back yard...so didn't want to freak out my california neighbors...

I make fun of guys who think you need a magnum for deer... that is a true fact...

but I don't care what a man takes a game animal with, as long as he can shoot it...

unfortunately many guys with Magnums, can't shoot them... and what bothers me is where is that bullet going when they miss... and the bullet was about 5 feet too high at 50 yds, ,due to Rambo with his magnum not being able to handle it...

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Originally posted by Jon Beutler:
I have hunted deer/elk in Utah for over 25 years without a magnum. (I hope to draw and elk tag someday and for that I have a 300WSM) But, do people regularly use 300, 338, 375 for deer? How about whitetail? I have killed deer with many calibers, but nothing larger than a 30-06. last year I used a 25-35 on a southern deer tag, and .30US on a cow elk tag.

I dont reload, but are there other advantages to the larger caliber other than weight, recoil, muzzle blast, flinching, cost ...

Everything is a "magnum" to somebody.

I'm not much on semantics,though am hip on results...because results interest me.

Jon Beutler --- Jon, I'm in the same boat as you. I hunted Eastern Utah, for more than forty years for muley and elk, now it's a draw for either (5days), that's garbage..... The only way I've found to get trigger time over the years is the good ole' 22, You'd be surprised how much running 2-3 boxes of 22cal every day or at least on the weekend helps keep your eye in, you don't have to shoot the WSM to keep things going. "Just Shoot", It's only a short distance to the west desert to get away from everyone....
(By the way I haven't given up on one more hunt in the BookCliffs before I die... I took more than 30 big muley's and a number of elk from the same ridge, never had to deal with people, it was 60 miles of dirt to camp from Ouray, I had the time of my life out there... I miss it...)

By the way, I've never hunted with anything but a 270win, 130gr Sierra (H4831 max) for Muley's and either 140-150gr Barnes or Nosler max H4831.... Most Mule Deer died in there tracks, Elk traveled 20yrds at most...

quote:

Originally posted by Jon Beutler:
I have hunted deer/elk in Utah for over 25 years without a magnum. (I hope to draw and elk tag someday and for that I have a 300WSM) But, do people regularly use 300, 338, 375 for deer? How about whitetail? I have killed deer with many calibers, but nothing larger than a 30-06. last year I used a 25-35 on a southern deer tag, and .30US on a cow elk tag.

I dont reload, but are there other advantages to the larger caliber other than weight, recoil, muzzle blast, flinching, cost ...

FUN!!!

quote:

Originally posted by Jon Beutler:
I have hunted deer/elk in Utah for over 25 years without a magnum. (I hope to draw and elk tag someday and for that I have a 300WSM) But, do people regularly use 300, 338, 375 for deer? How about whitetail? I have killed deer with many calibers, but nothing larger than a 30-06. last year I used a 25-35 on a southern deer tag, and .30US on a cow elk tag.

I dont reload, but are there other advantages to the larger caliber other than weight, recoil, muzzle blast, flinching, cost ...

Just ignore the "Magnum" thing, since there are a lot of cartridges that don't have "Magnum" following the caliber, but are still in the ball park in relation to the "Magnum" term used.

Because of the great number of bullets available for most cartridges these days, one should be able to load lightweight bullets to stretch the distance. For example, lets say that I want to hunt pronghorn with my .338WM rifle and can't get closer than 300 or 400 yards. In that case, AND if I am a good shot, I still can shoot that far without having to compensate a great deal for bullet drop. What I can do in this case is to use a bullet/load combination such as Federal's factory loads with 180-grain bullets out the muzzle around 3120 fps. But it's much easier just to buy a box of such ammo, of course

However, I would not use the same load/bullet combination to hunt moose in Alaska. In this case, I would use one loaded with 225-grain TSX or similar bullet, or a heavier bullet starting at 210 grains and ending at 300. Those I choices I can make depending of what I am hunting.

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Originally posted by Geedubya:
From my perspective, bullets traveling over say 2700 fps tend toward bloodshot meat at under 100 yds. Other than that, I have no problem with magnums.
GWB

Not in all cases. For example, a small animal shot through the lungs with a .340 Weatherby and a controlled-expansion bullet traveling a lot faster than that could very well pencil through if the animal is very small. The reason why this happens is because sometimes there isn't enough resistance on the nose of the bullet to make it expand. Year ago I shot a very small animal the size of a marmot through the lungs. I used a 230-grain FS loaded a little faster than 2800 fps from around 100 yards away. The little critter just rolled down the hill (I didn't think I had killed it), and when I looked at it there was a tiny hole and hardly any blood coming out of it. The bullet passed through in a fraction of a second, and I am certain that it could not expand.

However, I would not shoot a deer on the shoulder with the same bullet On the head, yes.

for just deer? grab a 270 win and hunt. anthing else is just showing off.

I hope no one tells all the Deer I have killed over the years with my Ruger 250 Sav International that I was under gunned, LOL.

Steve E...........

Don't get me wrong, "Magnums" have a place, just like a the 17cals. have there place..... With that said, any time there is an exit, that bullet carries with it the potential to do damage, to the animal behind, the tree, the dirt or rock..... The animal isn't any deader, you're going to be picking bone or blood shot meat from the animal, your shoulder is going to be sorer, your trigger finger is going to be a little more hesitant for the next round. The list goes on and on. More powder, more expense, less barrel life, yada, yada.....

On shots out west on Elk that are across the canyon, 4-5-600yrds yes, use one, but you can't tell me that in the heat of battle, that you can tell the difference between 5.5" and 7" of drop at 350 yards on a big buck.....

I guess there is a case to be made that your's is bigger than mine.... lol.... and yes one of my guns is a Remy 700LH in 7win mag. It's not my favorite, it's shot fewer times in a year than any other weapon I own..... If you have a magnum great, but for anything on this continent with the exception of big bear, well, I'll stop here.... and that's the way I feel.... lol....

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Originally posted by LBGuy:
for just deer? grab a 270 win and hunt. anthing else is just showing off.

It also depends on "where" in relation to deer. For example, deer and brown bears can be found in Kodiak, and even the .338WM is the smallest gun caliber most people would use for these bears. Not only that, but according to a lot of stories from hunters in Kodiak, gun shots often sound like "dinner bell" to brown bears

Don't all you people know that you must uses a controle feed rifle and a cartridge that was developed less than two years ago that uses no less than 100grs of powder. A deer will know the difference.

I've shot hundreds, possibly thousands, of rounds out of my .375 at the range over the years, preparing for the main event...my African hunt. This is apparently OK, even admirable. But shoot one round at a coyote or deer, get a quick, humane kill with very little meat damage (less than most 30-06 loads), and now I'm showing off.

I've gotta say it: Maybe you don't have one/don't want one/don't believe in them/can't shoot them/are afraid of recoil/don't like loud noises/can't afford one/like to show off with marginal calibers/fill in the reason of your choice. Whatever. Good for you. Why take shots at people who do it differently?

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like to show off with marginal calibers

You’re treading on dangerous ground mister! You’ll start a “deer hunting with a 22 caliber” thread with fighting words like that. Jwm, its July! It’s too hot to go fishing, play golf, or about anything else outdoors. So people have nothing better to do then sit in front of their computers naked, drink beer, and talk "smack" on the forums.

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So people have nothing better to do then sit in front of their computers naked, drink beer, and talk smack on the forums.

Unless Mic is short for Michelle, that could be a bad visual.

quote:

Originally posted by Antelope Sniper:

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So people have nothing better to do then sit in front of their computers naked, drink beer, and talk smack on the forums.

Unless Mic is short for Michelle, that could be a bad visual.

Oh believe me, it’s not pretty!

Deer...and a 6.5 x 55 or a 7 x 57....just perfect together!!!!

I would challenge anyone to look at a deer carcass and be able to tell whether it was shot with a .270 150grn bullets at 2950fps, a 30-06 with 150grn bullet at 2950fps, or shot with a 300winmag with 180grn bullets going 2960fps.

There is no difference in what the carcass will look like.

One of the worst bloodshot cases I've ever seen was on a 10pt buck shot on the point of the shoulder with a 30-30 at close range. Bullet placement and construction are what decides whether you have a tidy carcass or not.

Why then, at least for me, has the 7mmRM and 300WM has killed deer quicker and also farther, than the 7x57 and the 308?

Joe A.

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Originally posted by LBGuy:
for just deer? grab a 270 win and hunt. anthing else is just showing off.

Showing off.........it's the American way.

It explains using the super-magnums on deer as well as Texas, the Z06 Corvette, Las Vegas and boob jobs, among others.

I guess mags are for those that think they might run into one of these someday.

http://www.bigfootmustdie.com/...-with-sasquatch.html

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Originally posted by Jon Beutler:
I dont reload, but are there other advantages to the larger caliber other than weight, recoil, muzzle blast, flinching, cost ...

One Rifle Big Game Hunter

338

http://www.chuckhawks.com/one_rifle_hunter.htm

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None that are sensible

Ironically posted by "Cobra", as in a 500 horsepower automobile.

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Originally posted by DougH9:

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None that are sensible

Ironically posted by "Cobra", as in a 500 horsepower automobile.

My handle has nothing to do with the car.

using a magnum is a mather of trust, i use a magnum on each calibre,

22 - 224 wby mag
6mm- 240wby mag
257 - 257 wby mag
270 - 270wby mag
7mm - 7mm stw
300 - 300wby mag
338 - 340wby mag

but my "to-go gun" is my 300wby mag, not matter if is a whitetail or elk, or mule deer, or coues, or tropical deer.

is my trusty friend, never failme

so, use what you trust.

standar o magnum, rifle or bow

so be a happy hunter

best regards

I was dead set on deer hunting with my 416 Rigby this year. I've never killed anything with it and just wanted to see what it would do to it!!!!

Down here in South Texas,shots can be long and the brush is full of thorny vegetation.Magnums are fairly popular with the hunters here because most of us like um DRT,not to mention all the 100-300lb hogs that may show up usually right at sunset.Sometimes there is also waist high grass in that brush and a deer can really disappear in there.So I'm all for,"use enough gun and hit'em hard."

quote:

Originally posted by Jon Beutler:
I dont reload, but are there other advantages to the larger caliber other than weight, recoil, muzzle blast, flinching, cost ...

When I bought my 7mm Remington we were living in Logan, it was my main big-game rifle, and I wanted something big enough for elk with good point-blank range for other game. It's done that for almost three decades.

quote:

Dead is dead! I use all my guns for all my hunting - 6mm and up.

I've resisted telling this story that I refered to in my earlier post on the subject as long as I can stand it. Old G.I.s know a story like this is supposed to start by first saying, "You ain't gonna believe this, but this ain't no sheet!" (My part of the story is true, some of the details recounted may not be. )

Some years ago in the company break room a youngish hunter told of shooting a whitetail with his .30-30 the previous week. He then tracked it for a mile and had almost given up before he found it, dead at last. Upon field dressing he found that the heart was mushed but that .30-30 just wasn't up to killing the critter until he bleed out. I tried to convience him that couldn't be true for several reasons, he said, "I know what happened, some deer are really hard to kill. I'm gitting a bigger gun." Today he still hunts the smallish deer in Georgia but he uses a .338WM!

Well, that is certainly "using enough gun"!

Ah yes, a variation of the "I made a perfect heart shot and the deer ran off never to be found".

for normal deer hunting in season i usually use a handgun but if i do grab a rifle its about never a magnum but when we do crop damage shooting i about allways grab a 300 mag of some kind a 7mag of some kind or a 257 weatherby (my favorite) Only exception i usually make is to try out a new gun or i do make an exception in using my #1 2506 often. When we do crop damage shooting a little bruised meat isnt a consern and we dont want the deer running out in the field where we have to drag them through the crops and we dont want to track them. the mags about allways dump them in there tracks. Plus when we do crop damage shooting 300-400 yards is the norm and in normal hunting season a 100 yard shot is a long one.

I hunted in SA last year with a 375 H&H using Barnes TSX and Solids. While out hunting for
larger game my PH asked me to cull an Impala with deformed horns. I shot it at 100 yards using 300 gr TSX. No mess, very little damage but DRT. I would not hesitate using my 375 for deer but do not because I have other lighter rifles. It does make sense to use your big bore though - it gives you both practcle practice and builds confedence.

Some people want a gun with which they can shoot an animal in the rear and still get it. I'd much rather make good shots.

However, in all fairness, sometimes a large slow-moving bullet does less damage to an animal than an extremely fact round that comes apart. But, I just don't see why one needs anything more than a 30-06 for deer-sized game. Its kind of like using 100 pound test line to bass fish with. But as I mentioned in another post, variety is the spice of life.

For 75 percent of Western Deer hunting a .270 win, or similar caliber is hard to beat. If you expect shots of 400 yards or beyond, I like the 7stw or an ultramag. We also have alot of combined Deer/Elk seasons here in Colorado, and for that a .338 WM is just made to order.

quote:

Originally posted by Jon Beutler:
I have hunted deer/elk in Utah for over 25 years without a magnum. (I hope to draw and elk tag someday and for that I have a 300WSM) But, do people regularly use 300, 338, 375 for deer? How about whitetail? I have killed deer with many calibers, but nothing larger than a 30-06. last year I used a 25-35 on a southern deer tag, and .30US on a cow elk tag.

I dont reload, but are there other advantages to the larger caliber other than weight, recoil, muzzle blast, flinching, cost ...

Never shoot more gun than you can handle...

Never judge what another shooter should handle

T

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I dont reload, but are there other advantages to the larger caliber other than weight, recoil, muzzle blast, flinching, cost ...

The advantage is called Options.

With a 25-35 I don't suppose you would be taking very many off angle shots, or shots over 100 yards. With a 7mm STW I can take a 400 yard off angle shot with confidence.

Now if you hunt from a baited blind on private and the deer just stand there 50 yards broadside, then the advantages of a magnum are mute.

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Older age usually brings back sensibility.

Agreed!. I started out hunting deer 45 years ago with a little 30-30. Graduated up to 8mm mauser, then 30-06, then .280, then .300 Win Mag, and finally .338 Win Mag..

Then I realized how heavy those rifles were, and was I willing to carry the extra weight in exchange for a few feet per second. So I went back to a light .308 which killed deer just fine.

Now I have found a .325 WSM ( a magnum) Kimber Montana that weighs next to nothing. So I now get the best of both worlds, a magnum round in a lightweight gun.

quote:

Originally posted by Doc224/375:
I've been using a 7 mm Rem Mag for 44 years now it's NEVER FAILED ME regardless of what Animal I've shot

at any range 30 Yd. - 525 Yd. . Accounted for game on 5 Continents and a few Islands .

IMO it's one of the most versatile cartridges around 100-180 grain

reduced loads to Slammers . Bullet selection and weight is more important when hunting with it, than whether

or not it's a magnum or not !. Old hunter told me 44 years ago , if your going to the party bring enough

Gun to get the job done HUMANELY !. So I Did !!!. Do I use it for everything NO but almost could !.

Me, too. 7mm Rem for deer to plains game. Very efficient, although I did kill a deer with my .375. The deer doesn't care and the 7mm Rem is highly versatile.

The only need for a magnum would be to extend your effective killing range. Ultra long range hunting. Being a former Marine I am well versed in shooting out to 500 yards and when hunting I limit myself to 400. Std. calibers are more than up to the task at these ranges so there is no need for more power. There are to many variables that make ultra long range shooting more about marksmanship than hunting. It is a free country and those that enjoy is are free to do so.