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Best bullet for short range deer hunting?
- Thread starter ReloadKy
- Start date
One deer story does not mean much. I don't deer hunt a lot.Last mule deer buch I shot was at about two hundred yards with my 30-338 .
It was elk season. Took a deer break.Thats why the big gun. I was shooting 200 gr Accubonds at 2900 fps.
Placement was a high double kung shot. Ribs,lungs,ribs. The buck dropped like a stone in his tracks,body upright,legs folded under body.
Exit hole about 2 in dia,but no big bomb crater inside. I think my 257 would mess up more meat.. That heavy Accubond kept integrity enough to not blow up a lot of meat.
In my opinion, 30-06 with a 180 gr Accubond or Ballistic Tip will penetrate through and do the job.
I think you'll get a little less meat damage with the Accubond,which pays the extra cost. As Wyosmith says,its the bullet hole that kills.On a deer,I'd expect a little larger hole from the Ballistic tip .Maybe the bigger hole will kill him deader.
I'd expect ,generally,more destruction from a higher velocity 150 gr bullet.
I'd expect the 7mm Mag to mess up more meat. I'd use the 30-06 with a 180
Accubond .
Less destructive on a deer but everything you need for elk.
It was elk season. Took a deer break.Thats why the big gun. I was shooting 200 gr Accubonds at 2900 fps.
Placement was a high double kung shot. Ribs,lungs,ribs. The buck dropped like a stone in his tracks,body upright,legs folded under body.
Exit hole about 2 in dia,but no big bomb crater inside. I think my 257 would mess up more meat.. That heavy Accubond kept integrity enough to not blow up a lot of meat.
In my opinion, 30-06 with a 180 gr Accubond or Ballistic Tip will penetrate through and do the job.
I think you'll get a little less meat damage with the Accubond,which pays the extra cost. As Wyosmith says,its the bullet hole that kills.On a deer,I'd expect a little larger hole from the Ballistic tip .Maybe the bigger hole will kill him deader.
I'd expect ,generally,more destruction from a higher velocity 150 gr bullet.
I'd expect the 7mm Mag to mess up more meat. I'd use the 30-06 with a 180
Accubond .
Less destructive on a deer but everything you need for elk.
Last edited:
reynolds357
New member
I like the partition. Great performance on game. I wish they would offer a higher b.c. version of the bullet.
My favorite bullet was the Failsafe until it disappeared. It was kind of a hybrid between the partition and the Barnes X.
My favorite bullet was the Failsafe until it disappeared. It was kind of a hybrid between the partition and the Barnes X.
A Partition would certainly work.
In this case,my suggestion to use n Accubond ,or a Partition,or any other premium bullet was not because its neededto hold up to a deer at 30-06 velocity.Same with the 180 gr bullet.
The cheapest 150 gr load you can find on the shelf is more than adequate to take deer at 100 yds with a 30=06.
Its harder to predict exactly what a bullet will do on game than which way a chicken will run.
But generally a tougher,heavier bullet from a 30-06 will make a good kill on a deer without leaving a watermelon size crater of mushed and shredded bloodshot meat.
In this case,my suggestion to use n Accubond ,or a Partition,or any other premium bullet was not because its neededto hold up to a deer at 30-06 velocity.Same with the 180 gr bullet.
The cheapest 150 gr load you can find on the shelf is more than adequate to take deer at 100 yds with a 30=06.
Its harder to predict exactly what a bullet will do on game than which way a chicken will run.
But generally a tougher,heavier bullet from a 30-06 will make a good kill on a deer without leaving a watermelon size crater of mushed and shredded bloodshot meat.
Yes I have tried the Barnes & I have found them to open a lot better than others but I get a flyer 1 out of 5 rounds out of my gun.
I have even tried reloading my own hunting rounds with a 150gr that opened up better than the Barnes but after 50yds it was done, dropped like a rock after that.
Hornady 110gr v-max holds a hardball sized group at 100yds.
As long as get a kill every time I pull the trigger I'll shoot anything. The Hornady does that for me.
I have even tried reloading my own hunting rounds with a 150gr that opened up better than the Barnes but after 50yds it was done, dropped like a rock after that.
Hornady 110gr v-max holds a hardball sized group at 100yds.
As long as get a kill every time I pull the trigger I'll shoot anything. The Hornady does that for me.
RaySendero
New member
HiBC wrote:
A Partition would certainly work.
.....
The cheapest 150 gr load you can find on the shelf is more than adequate to take deer at 100 yds with a 30-06.
.
Yes, Even the cheapest factory ammo for either the 7RM or 30-06 is more than adequate to take deer at 100 yards.
I reload the 150 NPT for my wife's 30-06 at a reduced velocity just 100 fps faster than a 30-30. It will take deer to 150 yards (maybe more) expand, make 2 holes and doesn't do meat damage.
My bad; should have been more specific. I meant cup and core bullets (like Interlock, Pro Hunter, or Hot Cor) with exposed lead, rather than polymer tips.Ballistic tip and SST are not cup and Core? What are they?
Deer are easy to kill, unless you hit them in a bad place.
reynolds357
New member
Shoot them like my cousin shot his last deer. Shot in the rear end, then the front foot, then knocked hair off the top of back, but missed spine, and finally a shot in the neck finished him off. He is a fine marksman. He shot an antler off of a nice buck a few years back. His land borders mine so I hear the battle begin whenever he decides to shoot a deer.Shoot them behind the shoulder, all you mess up is ribs on the off side. At close range(100 yards of less) you should be able to pick your shot. Don't shoot them in the meat.
Blindstitch
New member
I recovered a deer from the property where I hunt (someone was trespassing) that was shot in the front hoof/ankle and nose. No meat lost on that one. I'm actually surprised the deer died. I found blood at 3pm dropping off stuff to my blind before the next day hunt. Mentioned seeing blood and my dad came back with me at 8pm. We jumped the deer 3 times but came back around midnight and it was dead.
reynolds357
New member
Shoot barnes etc.I personally have not taken deer with a 7mm mag. although I have seen many rifles from .224-.308 cal. take game... with bullets launched at 3200 + - Fps. and cause a lot of blood shot mince meet. I personally don't care for lead in my food.
bamaranger
New member
plain vanilla
I'm believing conditions described by the OP are about what most eastern/southern deer hunting looks like, woodlands and shots under 100 yds, and animals usually way under 200 lbs. For that one does not need to go to premium bullets or even magnum calibers. Plain vanilla, everyday cartridges and projectiles will work just fine.
Forced to choose between the 7mm mag and the '06, I'd go '06. I'd likely shoot 150's or 165's if I used factory ammo, and a Core-lokt, Power Point or other conventional soft point would work just fine. Anybody's cup and core 150-165 SP will do from the reloading aspect as well. I like Sierra Pro-Hunters, which until recently were affordable and gave good accuracy in all my .30 rifles.
My own '06 woods rifle is loaded a bit differently however. This 20" barreled Mark X with Mannlicher style stock likes heavy bullets. I load Sierra 180 RN slugs to just over .300 Savage velocity, 2450 fps , which gives me a relatively easy shooting '06 that kills well. Lots of penetration, and the modest velocity RN slugs seem to offer lots of expansion as well. I've toyed with the ideal of shooting 170 gr FN .30-30 slugs at about the same velocity, but have never done it.
I'm believing conditions described by the OP are about what most eastern/southern deer hunting looks like, woodlands and shots under 100 yds, and animals usually way under 200 lbs. For that one does not need to go to premium bullets or even magnum calibers. Plain vanilla, everyday cartridges and projectiles will work just fine.
Forced to choose between the 7mm mag and the '06, I'd go '06. I'd likely shoot 150's or 165's if I used factory ammo, and a Core-lokt, Power Point or other conventional soft point would work just fine. Anybody's cup and core 150-165 SP will do from the reloading aspect as well. I like Sierra Pro-Hunters, which until recently were affordable and gave good accuracy in all my .30 rifles.
My own '06 woods rifle is loaded a bit differently however. This 20" barreled Mark X with Mannlicher style stock likes heavy bullets. I load Sierra 180 RN slugs to just over .300 Savage velocity, 2450 fps , which gives me a relatively easy shooting '06 that kills well. Lots of penetration, and the modest velocity RN slugs seem to offer lots of expansion as well. I've toyed with the ideal of shooting 170 gr FN .30-30 slugs at about the same velocity, but have never done it.
reynolds357
New member
Core lokt not bad