Thought I would ask, and throw in some of mine.
When I started deer hunting as a kid in the early 1970's, I used to read a lot of Elmer Keith's writings about his preference for big bores. As a result, my first big game rifle was a 1909 Argentine Mauser that I sporsterized myself, and had re-bored and chambered to .35 Whelen. I loaded my own using 30-06 brass and 250 grain Speer bullets. It was a deer killer for sure, but in hindsight, more than was really needed for whitetails. Took some nice bucks with it though.
![163526]( "163526")
My heavy bullet / moderate velocity kick continued with an early Browning BLR in .358 Winchester and 200 / 250 grain bullets. It too proved to be a real one shot killer, and the rifle balanced well, and offered a quick second shot if needed (but seldom did). I didn't like the way factory Winchester 200 grain Silver Tips performed on deer, so took to loading my own using .308 Winchester cases, and Speer, Nosler, and Hornady bullets. Still one of my favorite deer rifles
![163527]( "163527")
It was also about the time I really got into handgun hunting, and still am. I have used a variety over the years to hunt whitetails, but my favorites have been the Ruger single actions, and the models 29 / 629 S&W's in .44 magnum. Some like hardcast SWC's for that purpose, but I long ago settled on the Hornady 240 grain XTP bullet at about 1250 fps as a reliable deer killer that can be depended on to expand and penetrate. Lately, as I get older, I have come to appreciate a red dot for good shot placement.
![163529]( "163529")
![163530]( "163530")
Tried a lot of different guns and calibers, as well as black powder (Much prefer soft, heavy conical's out of traditional rifles to light weight sabot loads). Have pretty much concluded that it doesn't take a lot to cleanly kill a whitetail, that bullet placement and construction is more important (I am a big Nosler PT fan) And these days my like for a particular rifle is just as important, within reason, as caliber is to me. Some current favorites are a Kimber 84l in 30-06 with 165 grain bullets, a Ruger Model 77 compact in 7mm/08 with 140 grain Noslers, and of all guns, a H&R single shot I fixed up a little, and had barreled to .257 Roberts. Shoots and kills well with 117 grain cup and core bullets. Ruger 77 shown.
![163531]( "163531")
Most of my deer hunting has been in Maine, PA, CT, and the Adirondack Mountains. Probably 90% of my shots are 100 yards or under, and I like a scope in the 2x7 or so range. Lately I have come to appreciate the light weight stuff as I get older.
So, what are your favorites?
Larry
When I started deer hunting as a kid in the early 1970's, I used to read a lot of Elmer Keith's writings about his preference for big bores. As a result, my first big game rifle was a 1909 Argentine Mauser that I sporsterized myself, and had re-bored and chambered to .35 Whelen. I loaded my own using 30-06 brass and 250 grain Speer bullets. It was a deer killer for sure, but in hindsight, more than was really needed for whitetails. Took some nice bucks with it though.
My heavy bullet / moderate velocity kick continued with an early Browning BLR in .358 Winchester and 200 / 250 grain bullets. It too proved to be a real one shot killer, and the rifle balanced well, and offered a quick second shot if needed (but seldom did). I didn't like the way factory Winchester 200 grain Silver Tips performed on deer, so took to loading my own using .308 Winchester cases, and Speer, Nosler, and Hornady bullets. Still one of my favorite deer rifles
It was also about the time I really got into handgun hunting, and still am. I have used a variety over the years to hunt whitetails, but my favorites have been the Ruger single actions, and the models 29 / 629 S&W's in .44 magnum. Some like hardcast SWC's for that purpose, but I long ago settled on the Hornady 240 grain XTP bullet at about 1250 fps as a reliable deer killer that can be depended on to expand and penetrate. Lately, as I get older, I have come to appreciate a red dot for good shot placement.
Tried a lot of different guns and calibers, as well as black powder (Much prefer soft, heavy conical's out of traditional rifles to light weight sabot loads). Have pretty much concluded that it doesn't take a lot to cleanly kill a whitetail, that bullet placement and construction is more important (I am a big Nosler PT fan) And these days my like for a particular rifle is just as important, within reason, as caliber is to me. Some current favorites are a Kimber 84l in 30-06 with 165 grain bullets, a Ruger Model 77 compact in 7mm/08 with 140 grain Noslers, and of all guns, a H&R single shot I fixed up a little, and had barreled to .257 Roberts. Shoots and kills well with 117 grain cup and core bullets. Ruger 77 shown.
Most of my deer hunting has been in Maine, PA, CT, and the Adirondack Mountains. Probably 90% of my shots are 100 yards or under, and I like a scope in the 2x7 or so range. Lately I have come to appreciate the light weight stuff as I get older.
So, what are your favorites?
Larry
