Bullet Caliber – Whats best for Deer Hunting?

Am Shooting Journal ^ | 7/17/2018 | B Smith

[w1n1]

In one of the many survey conducted online this one is by B Smith an outdoorsman and writer.
The question was asked on Social Media of what is the best rifle caliber for hunting deer. Supposed you were a newbie and was in the market, the following information may be helpful to you. You can obviously ask the folks running the gun stores and ranges.

The following answers comprises from many different levels of hunters/gun enthusiasts, take it with a grain of salt, this is from the internet poll.
Here are those popular calibers for deer hunting that was mentioned:
.243
.270
.30-30
.308

There were other type of calibers but the above calibers repeatedly came up in the conversation.
Reasons varied among hunters and gun enthusiasts, but here's a more thorough explanation of each calibers strengths. Read the rest bullet caliber for deer hunting here.

[Hyman Roth]

Whatever your friends are using and they do all the work and bring you the yummy venison. :>)

[JBW1949]

Are you hunting mountains with heavy forests??? Are you hunting over flatland soybean fields? Are you hunting rolling prairies??? Are you hunting around coastal swamps???

It is ridiculous to ask the best calibre for deer hunting without taking a lot into consideration...

[riverrunner]

I have shot them with from 22lr to 458s shot placement is a lot more important then caliber.

[Sgt_Schultze]

It depends. Are targeting large mature males, or Bambi?

[NY Cajun]

The computer results seems somewhat flawed. .30-.30 is a cartridge, not a caliber. A caliber is a diameter of the bore or bullet. Also, an ideal cartridge for a whitetail deer in brush country in the northeast may not be best for whitetail deer in an open farmland in the Midwest. Did the study call for any deer, or whitetail deer specifically?
I’ll pass and just go by my own experience. YMMV

[Joe 6-pack]

Much depends on the terrain. In dense brush where shots will seldom be over 100 yards, it's not so much the caliber but having a rifle that is easy to carry and maneuver through the brambles. A light lever action in .30-30, or any magnum pistol cartridge is more than adequate and won't kick your butt carrying it all day. If hunting from a blind with long range shots being expected, I give the nod to something in the .25-06 or .257 Weatherby range.

Just like all the debates over best defensive sidearm, it really boils down to what you're comfortable with and what you shoot well.

[DaveA37]

The answer to that question has a very wide parameter. Depends a lot on the species of “deer” one hunts and where they are hunted. For example, deer in Florida are considerably smaller than the same species in Minnesota or another “northern” state. Mule deer are physically larger than whitetail deer. There are numerous differences all over the county. Certainly caliber (bullet size and velocity) are important BUT, no matter what the caliber or velocity, the more important question is how well one shoots that counts. You can harvest a deer with all those calibers listed. No doubt someone will take exception to my opinion so pick the caliber and learn to shoot it well.

[DaveA37]

The answer to that question has a very wide parameter. Depends a lot on the species of “deer” one hunts and where they are hunted. For example, deer in Florida are considerably smaller than the same species in Minnesota or another “northern” state. Mule deer are physically larger than whitetail deer. There are numerous differences all over the county. Certainly caliber (bullet size and velocity) are important BUT, no matter what the caliber or velocity, the more important question is how well one shoots that counts. You can harvest a deer with all those calibers listed. No doubt someone will take exception to my opinion so pick the caliber and learn to shoot it well.

[TexasGator]

The author is also deficient in basic grammar skills.

[unread]

"Bullet Caliber – Whats best for Deer Hunting?"

What part of the country..?? What's the terrain like.?

[rjsimmon]

.30-.30 is a cartridge, not a caliber.

Yes, it is. The moniker is ".30-30" and represents .30 caliber and 30 grains of smokeless powder. It is also known as .30WCF which is the round my 1894 rifle fires.

[Williams]

Agreed. If you are shooting in forest or brush well under 100 yards, a slug gun is just about perfect. And for all around use .30-06 should be on the list.

[antidisestablishment]

22 caliber, suppressed. Works best with spotlight.

[areukiddingme1]

Remington 870 12 ga with Remington Slugger slugs...Works every time.

[Caipirabob]

In before random FReepers verbally bash each other over the use of nearly indistinguishable calibers and cartridges...😂

[Yo-Yo]

Are you hunting mountains with heavy forests??? Are you hunting over flatland soybean fields? Are you hunting rolling prairies??? Are you hunting around coastal swamps???

Are you hunting in a shotgun-only county?

[rebel25]

577 Tyrannasaurus
50 BMG
these are the cartridges with the most kinetic energy i can think of, so they are going to be the best killers, for those that don’t mind pain on both ends of the barrel.

[Red Badger]

[Red Badger]

Never heard of such a thing!....................