Best Caliber for Deer for 200+ Yard Shots?

[trchandl2]

30-06

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

Any of the rounds in the .30-06 family will kill whitetails DRT inside 400. All have ammo that is easy to find from farm supply stores to big box retailers.

I bought a .308 as my "one rifle to do it all" because of versatility (i saw the other day there is over 100 factory ammo options), short action, and ability to use in AR platform.

 

[awildswanger]

Lets say hypothetically a fella is looking for a new rifle and is set-up with a .25-06, .270, .30WCF, a .308, and a 300WM. in this hypothetical situation he’s looking for something a little different, and is considering the following options; Rokslide Special Tikka 1:8 223, .243 Win, (maybe a 6 Creed) 6.5 Creed, or a 7mm-08. Deer and pigs are on the tags, minimal shot distance (Hypothetical location of E. TX piney woods), and wants as little meat damage as possible. What would y’all go with?

 

[Rich M]

Lets say hypothetically a fella is looking for a new rifle and is set-up with a .25-06, .270, .30WCF, a .308, and a 300WM. in this hypothetical situation he’s looking for something a little different, and is considering the following options; Rokslide Special Tikka 1:8 223, .243 Win, (maybe a 6 Creed) 6.5 Creed, or a 7mm-08. Deer and pigs are on the tags, minimal shot distance (Hypothetical location of E. TX piney woods), and wants as little meat damage as possible. What would y’all go with?

I shoot 350 Legend inside 300 yds, 357 mag out to 150, 243 to 300. All easy to shoot. Legend is a good round w limited meat damage. 357 mag rifle is same but has better DRt.

243 is like a regular rifle and can bloody up the meat. Low recoil tjo.

 

[KINGSNAKE]

I say get a 375 HH. Who's with me.

 

[Centralcoastca]

I say get a 375 HH. Who's with me.

I’ll probably never get to hunt anything I’d need one for, but I do want one… just different enough, just common enough and plenty big enough.

 

[Newtosavage]

Lets say hypothetically a fella is looking for a new rifle and is set-up with a .25-06, .270, .30WCF, a .308, and a 300WM. in this hypothetical situation he’s looking for something a little different, and is considering the following options; Rokslide Special Tikka 1:8 223, .243 Win, (maybe a 6 Creed) 6.5 Creed, or a 7mm-08. Deer and pigs are on the tags, minimal shot distance (Hypothetical location of E. TX piney woods), and wants as little meat damage as possible. What would y’all go with?

7mm-08 with 120 TTSX's @ 3k for the win.

 

[NABG Hunter]

I’ll probably never get to hunt anything I’d need one for, but I do want one… just different enough, just common enough and plenty big enough.

Get a Ruger guide Gun in .375 Ruger Magnum. I have and it’s incredible.

 

[awildswanger]

7mm-08 with 120 TTSX's @ 3k for the win.

Would you say there is an overlap with the 7mm-08 to the .308? Not seeking to nitpick. What led you to that conclusion?

 

[Newtosavage]

Would you say there is an overlap with the 7mm-08 to the .308? Not seeking to nitpick. What led you to that conclusion?

Of course there's overlap. There's overlap with a ton of cartridges. But the 7mm-08 strikes the best balance of downrange performance, case size (powder used) and recoil, largely due to it's high BC bullets. The 6.5's are higher BC but then you are limited by bullet weight. But there's not enough difference between a 6.5 CM, a 7mm-08 and a .308 to argue over. They are all good hunting rounds.

 

[NABG Hunter]

I’ll probably never get to hunt anything I’d need one for, but I do want one… just different enough, just common enough and plenty big enough.

Here is a pic of my .375 Ruger Magnum that I mentioned. You need one! LOL.

 

[cwsmith95]

25-06 has done well for me

 

[Mosby]

For most of my deer hunting in timber I use a 30-06 or 7-08. In Iowa I use a 45-70. I have a 300 WSM set up for long range deer, with 130 gr Barnes TSX. Extremely accurate out to 400 yds.

 

[T3X]

Good to see 6.5cm in the top picks, since I just picked one up last month. Sounds like Hornady 143ELDX is the ammo of choice. I shall see in the upcoming seasons. Now to find ammo at decent prices again...

 

[5MichaelBoys]

.270 or 7mm-08 have been my go to calibers for years.

 

[Sprunk]

I've killed as many with a pickup as I have with a rifle haha. Placement is more important than caliber, I like my .308 for almost anything 110-220gr+ covers a lot of different situations and species.

 

[Big_O_86]

30-06. It’sa little overkill, but at 165gr I can use the rifle for elk also and I don’t have to mess with my scope. I usually have both tags in my pocket.

 

[lubbockdave]

what ever you can hit a paper plate size target with consistently...used everything from a .243 to 7mm-08 to .270, 6.5x55, 35 rem 30-30etc...they all do the jojb

 

[BigNate]

5.56, 22-250, 257 Roberts, 25-06. I'd also be willing to try a 6mm ARC, or 6.5 Grendel. Anything bigger is a waste.

 

[7mmHunter]

I'm considering a new gun for the upcoming season due to the new lease I was lucky enough to stumble on. It has some nice flat, open fields and I'm looking at some 200+ yard shots. What is your favorite caliber for deer for those 200+ yard shots?

30 cal - 300WSM

7mm - 7 Mag

6.5 - 6.5 PRC

If you handload - well then you pick