calibers for deer hunting?

B

Big Tom

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So I was wondering what calibers can effectivley put down deer. I was orignally looking at the .243 win but ammo for that thing is exensive for me. What other calibers can I put deer down with, and still be able to shoot for practice without burning a hole in my pocket?
 
hey

get a mosin, will easily put a deer down and ammo is darn near free. can get hunting soft tips for it i believe. just a thought.
 
There aren't a whole lot of cheaper cartridges out there than a 243. A 30-30 is a few dollars cheaper though and it'll get the job done easy enough. But the cost of the ammo is the cheap part. I can go down to the store and buy a box of 20 shells for a 243 for about $14 if I get the cheapest stuff. If you're counting pennies, that's about $0.70. Seventy cents. If you're frugal, you can shoot 20 deer I suppose. Compare that to the cost of the license, your gas money, etc, and you see that the cost of the ammo is the least of your worries. Not a good criteria to select a hunting rifle.
 
It depends on what the minimum legal caliber for deer is in your area.
If the .223 is legal then that would most likely be the least expensive.

But if a .243 puts excessive strain on your budget, then you should consider target shooting with a .22lr and hunting with a centerfire rifle or shotgun.

Once you've zeroed the scope and familiarized yourself with a hunting rifle you really only need to put a couple boxes of cartridges through it a year.
Of course more is better, and by familiarize I mean about 500 rounds down range for a new shooter.
 
.243, .308, .270, and .30-06 is about as cheap as you can get around $20 for Rem Green box and Win Silver box ammo. .30-30 is the only one that will save you a few dollars at Wal-Mart most of the time. I think you just got a little sticker shock and once you start comparing ammunition you'll find what you can afford to shoot.
 
Are you hunting in Delaware?

I would suggest that you practice with 22LR and just do some shooting with the 243 a month or so prior to deer season to check your rifle zero with your ammunition. I don't know how many deer you try to shoot in a season (or what is legal in your state), but for me a single box of shells will last me several years as long as the rifle does not get banged around and I don't have to re-sight in the scope. I believe the most I have ever shot in a single season deer hunting was 14 rounds and in most cases it is one or two shots.

I shoot other stuff for fun. All rifle shooting has some application to shooting your 243. I hope you have a 22 rifle. If not, get one with the same action as your "deer rifle".

If you are like most, a long shot is 100 yds and it does not take a great deal of practice to hit within a 4" circle at 100 yds. You should be able to accomplish that at 200 yds without any significant practice with a 243.
 
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Anything from 223 on up is enough. Even the 22-250 with appropriate bullets would be sufficient in most parts of the US. For me, 7mm-08, 25-06 and 243 would be my choices, in that order.
 
I'm a reloader, and it seems that there has never been a bad cartridge that uses a 7mm bullet. Think about it, 7x57 (Mauser), 7mm Mag, 7 Benchrest, etc.

Since living in Wisconsin means that "game" is probably a whitetail deer in the 6 to 10 point Eastern count size, I favor the 7mm 08.

I had one in a Rem 7 "youth" rifle. With a padded jacket it fit me remarkably well.
 
all

i like them all except the 243 lost 2 deer with this cal rem bullets hit as good as can be .so don't think to much of it use about all the rest throw i think the 223 an 243s are good for head shots only good for that .cheap 30-30 or 308
 
Deer aren't hard to kill. Most anything will work IF you can put the bullet where it needs to be.
I've kill them with a 20 gauge slug, 12 gauge slug and with buckshot, .30-30, .35 Rem, .45-70,
.257 Roberts, 8x57, .308 Win, .25-06, .270 Win, .30-06, 9.3x65, .300WSM, and .270 Weatherby.
 
As a teenager, I used my scoped 243 win for both whitetail deer and varmints. I was poor; but I found a way to shoot enough to be a fair shot with the 243 out to about 250 yds. Never took a shot over 75 yds deer hunting.... the long distance shots were on varmints. It sure was fun smoking those woodchucks with a 243. That is where I shot most of my ammo. I shot reloads mostly.

Lost a deer with the 243 and I parked it. Bought a 270 and have used it ever since for deer hunting when I take a rifle.
 
rudy270 said:
i like them all except the 243 lost 2 deer with this cal rem bullets hit as good as can be .so don't think to much of it use about all the rest throw i think the 223 an 243s are good for head shots only good for that .cheap 30-30 or 308
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My friend, people hunt Elk with a 243, and quite successfully. It is more than sufficient, assuming proper bullet selection, for whitetail deer. 300 yards and quartering away? Well, no.

"A man's got to know his limitations."

Dirty Harry
 
Having used a .243 in a pistol ( bullets are moving out about 200FPS slower than a rifle ) and having never lost a deer shot with a .243 I submit that any issues with the cartridge come down to the shooter, not the round.

Choose a decent bullet and take a good shot at a reasonable range and the deer will drop in short order.
 
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