I was browsing the local newstand and looked through the article by L.J.Hoots on Mule Deer Rifles in the current RIFLE Magazine. Wow, from my 25-06 through my 7mag, not a sufficiently powerful rifle in the lot! Bullets will be blown hither and yon! Forget about any 25's or 270's, it looks like the 300 mags are the minimum!

Yea and you believed that article huh !.

The differences between hunting and writing are as numerous as calibers are available !.

As the 7mm Rem Mag has served me over 40 years and 5 continents that I've hunted with it

it has yet to fail to bring down any Plains game PERIOD !. Distance bullet weight and velocity

along with proper shot placement are keys too a successful hunt .

In Africa I took several animals with it twice, a couple animals against my guides recommendations !.

Once established that I knew how to shoot and what bullets to shoot out of it ,

they were much more agreeable in allowing me to use it . Never use an undersized caliber for DANGEROUS

GAME , only a fool ventures into that realm . Safari's are pricey for most of us , so using a caliber

that nearly guarantees success is being SMART IMO !. One of the reasons that the 375 rule is enforced

in many areas !. When avid Muley hunters read what you posted their going to be rolling over

from laughing so hard , I know I did !!!.

I read the article as well Westernmassmann.......

I think you may have misunderstood. I didn't get out of it that the .25 cals up to .300 weren't enough gun, the writer was writing under the premise of 'what is the optimal caliber for mule deer'.

In the article they took into consideration all factors in shooting a mule deer and one of them was the possibility of a shot in the wind at a longer range. So the author felt that the .30 cals bucked the wind well.

You'll also note that some of the comments at the end of the article from other authors included choosing a good 6.5mm round because of the great BC's of the bullets.

Like you and Doc, I believe many rifles will suffice. The last muley I killed was with my .243 wssm with a 90 gr BT at 250 yards. It was easy.

wonder if it was winchester, remington or ruger that called him up and told him that magnum sales are little off lately?!

quote:

Originally posted by Westernmassman:
I was browsing the local newstand and looked through the article by L.J.Hoots on Mule Deer Rifles in the current RIFLE Magazine. Wow, from my 25-06 through my 7mag, not a sufficiently powerful rifle in the lot! Bullets will be blown hither and yon! Forget about any 25's or 270's, it looks like the 300 mags are the minimum!

I too read that article. JMHO, but Lee J. Hoots is full of more shit than a Christmas goose.
I guess the deer I shot with my .270 should have shrugged of the hits and run away laughing.
I guess my new 25-05 will only be good for chipmunkies.
Gee, I must be notoriously undergunned. Guess I'll really in deep shit should that man eating Mule Deer decide to have me for lunch.
Hoots, this one's for you.
Paul B.

Here's the deal. I'm almost 70 years old and been hunting for more years than most writers have been living!! I lived in Colorado for 20 years and hunted muleys and elk every year. In 1972 I shot the largest muley I ever got and the shoulder mount is over my fireplace to prove it. Oh, that was with a Marlin lever action 30-30. Two years ago, downed a moose in Maine with a neck shot at 210 yds. He stumbled about 10 yards while collapsing. That was with a 270 Win.
I enjoy reading the articles but when I get to any recommendations, I skip over those. I agree with others on this forum that shot placement is no. 1. Beyond that, shoot what you are comfortable with and shoot well. After all, the writers are really trying to sell the advertisers in their rag.

Remington trying to boost Ultra Mag sales again? That article is pure shit. Put the right bullet in the right spot and you'll get dead deer.

quote:

Originally posted by MikeyB:
That article is pure shit. Put the right bullet in the right spot and you'll get dead deer.

Yup.....and calibers from .257 to .284 do it quite nicely.....

quote:

Originally posted by horsefly2:

I enjoy reading the articles but when I get to any recommendations, I skip over those. I agree with others on this forum that shot placement is no. 1.

+1

Yep, Hoots' article made me visit the freezer in the basement and apologize to the mule deer that fell to my 30'06 and my son's 308 last fall.

Didn't the late Bob Milek once write that the .25-06 Remington was the best muley cartridge ever? I think it was Bob. Anyway I agree with whoever wrote it.

Bob Milek made long-range kills on mulies with iron-sighted 44 mag revolvers. I would assume he was an excellent shot with rifle.

Where I farm, everyone has several smaller places that you can't make a living on by themselves. We have lots of muledeer and I have had a lot of different hunters leasing from me through the years. As long as you don't try to shoot one with a varmit load or bullet, any thing within reason will work.

My biggest mulie was shot with a 243 at around 200 yrds and my longest range at close to 500 yards was with a 257 Weatherby. A 7MM Rem mag being the largest gun I have used to take mulies.

quote:

Originally posted by Doctor D:
Didn't the late Bob Milek once write that the .25-06 Remington was the best muley cartridge ever? I think it was Bob. Anyway I agree with whoever wrote it.

IIRC, both he and his son literally thought the 25-06 walked on water.
Paul B.

quote:

Originally posted by rcamuglia:
I read the article as well Westernmassmann.......

.....

In the article they took into consideration all factors in shooting a mule deer and one of them was the possibility of a shot in the wind at a longer range. So the author felt that the .30 cals bucked the wind well.

......

Like you and Doc, I believe many rifles will suffice. The last muley I killed was with my .243 wssm with a 90 gr BT at 250 yards. It was easy.

R,

That paragraph you wrote is a good synopsis of the article!

But...I'd put my 270 up against anything that author can dreams up for M deer out to 400 yards!

It'll carry over 1,500 ft-lbs energy to 400yds. And will group like this:



I call/pulled that one on the right

Heck, your .270 will kill them out to 800 yards + !

quote:

from my 25-06 through my 7mag, not a sufficiently powerful rifle in the lot!

Now that's a Hoot! OK for elk, but lacking on mule deer! What BS!

Yet ANOTHER reason that the gunzines are losing readership to the net.

Funny how anemic cartridges fired out of a pathetic break action single shot pistol reach out and kill where only the wunderboomer can barely perform.

The same Bob Milek mentioned above killed Mule Deer way out there with a 7 mm TCU also.