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Old 11-04-2008, 02:04 AM
Brad09 Brad09 is offline
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Calgary
Posts: 42
Default Best caliber for deer

Okay, you guys are probably sick of hearing from me by now, but I've still got nagging questions. Firstly, I work in a sporting goods dept. of a Can. Tire, so I see quite a few hunters coming and going, especially during this season. And since the bug bit me about 2 weeks ago, and I've decided to give it a go, I've picked the brain of every hunter that comes in. Right now, I haven't asked about techniques and great areas for a couple of reasons. Seems to me that I actually need to go out hunting to fully appreciate the best techniques, and that nobody wants to give up their prized spot lest I go out there and (doubtful though it may be) steal their buck. Therefore, I've been keeping to questions about rifles.

Now, when I ask what the best all-round caliber is for North American hunting(no trips to Africa in my next 10 years), ninety-nine percent of guys tell me that a 30-06 Springfield is good from everything from white-tails and mules all the way up to monster moose. However, when I ask what the best caliber for deer is, I get a few different responses. Lots of people seem to say that .270 Winchester is a safe caliber, and good for pretty long ranges and up close. However, I had a pair of guys in the other day, older guys and clearly grizzled veterans, and they told me that they wouldn't even think of shooting a deer with anything less than a 7mm Remington Magnum. Now, a friend of mine told me that a 7mm Mag kicks like a mule. When I told these guys this, both of them smirked, and one of them looked at me and said, "You're a big boy, you can handle it." And another guy I know, an Army vet and a former hunter, was telling me that a 7mm Mag was a good way to wreck the meat and rip a perfectly good Bambi to ribbons.

Now, for some reason, speaking to these 2 guys has stuck in my mind. So, there are two questions that come to mind. Firstly, myself, at a tender 22 years of age and perhaps having put 20-30 rounds through the barrel of a .22in my life, wonders what the kick of a 7mm Mag is like. And secondly, I'm curious to know what everyone here prefers for white-tailed and mule deer. When I look at hunting elk and pronghorn later on down the road, I'll look at buying a gun specifically for shooting them.

In reading several forums similar to this conversation, I seem to hear a lot of comments to the effect of, "it doesn't matter what caliber you shoot, it matters how you shoot it." And really, it makes perfect sense to me. But at this point, I need a starting point. I'm wondering if perhaps it's more about your personality, and that guys that grow up firing big Magnum calibers are more apt to shoot them successfully on all game, or if it's a general consensus that when you shoot little Bambi with a Magnum cannon that you're asking for confetti no matter what, and some guys just get lucky. I guess it boils down to whether or not specific calibers are meant for specific game, or if it's all just guesswork and opinions, and when you get good at shooting a specific caliber, you should just stick with it no matter what you hunt(as long as you don't chase moose with a .243).

Please offer your opinions.

Brad
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