Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting 30-06 too much for deer?

You just stick to that theory then. Fine by me. 50 yards is a far cry from 200 yds. I guess you think these bigazzz bucks just stand there and stare at us? I'd bet the farm if you ever drew a once in a lifetime AZ strip tag you wouldn't stroll up the mountain with a .223.

One difference between Big Al and I is I'm not shooting at a Deer
running at 195 no matter what I'm shooting or paying.

And that part of the world doesn't scare me.

Just answered your statement and gave yoy a choice.

Uhh yeah. Look at the numbers. Out to 250-300 yards or so, there's very little difference between say a 22-250 and a 30-06. And with the 22-250, you don't need to worry about drop. Just point and shoot.

I don't blindly believe what jbm says. As I've said, I've seen Hodnett and company in action enough to know.

I don't see how having a little more headgear than what most folks are used to changes anything. Big old mule deer bucks are certainly hard to find, but they die the same as anything else. They are just deer.

Huh. So what bullets at what speeeds were you using to come up with this theory?

The wind blows plenty freaking hard around here too, and I spent a couple years packing an M24 for a living. So I'm not exactly in the dark here either.

Then you probably won't get a shot, which is why I asked you what you'll pay if you don't get a shot. So you have to have them standing there staring at you, which regardless of what you read rarely happens with 185'+ bucks. I wouldn't expect you to be scared of it, just curious how familiar you are with it?

BTW boss, you're in no position to offer me a choice....it's my place, not yours.

Which is why I acknowledged that you know your stuff. They were shooting .223's at prarie dogs in the TX Panhandle. I have no clue as to speed, I just know what the wind was doing to those bullets. Thats all the help I can give you.

You know, I just realized I probably derailed this thread. I apologize to the OP, as it was not my intent. I was just stating my case, and why it is my case. I'll probably stick with my theory though. It's worked pretty good for 41 years. Battue, if you want to book a hunt shoot me a PM.

You're absolutely right about those big guys not standing around long. Old mule deer bucks are like a whole different species than young deer. But they aren't armored. There are too many big guys hanging on people's walls around this country that were expired via 22-250 and 220 Swift to discount their worth.

No, but it certainly is all about the "nut behind the bolt" !

I still fail to understand why anyone cares what the next guy is shooting, as long as it is adequate to the task of making a quick, humane kill. I have checked a lot of deer through check stations and have seen a lot taken by friends, family and guest hunters. Significant loss of edible meat is almost always a result of poor shooting and/or poor choice of bullet for the cartridge being used.

Admittedly, there are a substantial number of hunters who do not worry about any of this. At the end of the day, they are satisfied if they have an animal on the ground and tagged. We may not agree with them, but it's still an individual choice, even if it is made unconsciously, or with little or no concern. If they are not satisfied with the results, hopefully they will do a little research which will lead to a more satisfactory result the next time.

JGR,


First off I don't see where you derailed the thread. You wrote your opinion and that is pretty much what we do here.

Second, from what I've seen from members here who do use the .223 on Deer along with my and friends limited experience with them, I would have little concern in shooting the Bucks you posted with one. On top of that some of the AK crew has shown pics of some fairly hefty Black Bears shot with the same.

Third, my use of the word choice. It wasn't meant the way you perceived it. Perhaps I should have used offer. Then it would be your choice to accept or refuse the offer. Didn't even mean to get you riled up in any way. Figured it was a good chance to get a better than good deal on a hunt if you were willing to take the offer or bet if you wanted to call it that.

Now if the majority of your opportunities are at running Deer. Then I would have little interest. Have only shot one Mule Deer and that was in NM. Old guy on the downhill of around 20inches. Caught him bedded down, crawled up to around 100yards and waited for him to stand up. And if when I'm hunting around home the only opportunities I get are at runners, then I'm doing something wrong.

Big Al must be a heck of a shot. Does he pull that off often?

And not exactly sure where the Arizona strip is, but parents lived off and on in Chander when it was a dot on the edge of the desert. Visited them on occassion.

No problem battue. I know you're a good guy. Out there on our mule deer place, there are low deer densities spread out amongst lots of empty spaces. It's flat, sandy, a real b*^#tch to hunt. Most of the time you have to go into the brush/sandhills and dig them out, and they don't like it.....at all. Therefore the majority of our kills are on running bucks because we have usually gotten in right on top of them without either of us knowing it. Now I will say, if a guy is shooting a .223/TTSX at a standing broadside buck at close range, no problem killing it, but that's about the only way IMO.

I've seen Big Al kill three bucks like that out there, a 185, 191, and 201. I killed 2 like that out there, both 190's. There are lots of 190-200' bucks we never got a shot at. Little elevation and the wind make it a tough deal.

I couldn't make anybody a deal even if I wanted. Tags are spoken for the next 5 years.

Mudhen, I could care less what another guy shoots, unless he's undergunned, IMO, on my places. I don't like watching game run off wounded, never to be found. More importantly though, the landowner of the mule deer place lays down the law.....nothing under .25 allowed on the ranch for deer, so my opinion is irrelevant.

It's all good. Have fun and keep posting pics of those great Bucks.

If you're that slow grasping that I meant fifty yards after the shot and not before, I doubt you're going to comprehend much else.

You'd lose your farm. I hunt with what I choose that will handle the distance I need to shoot.Unless I have to shoot past 300 yards a 223 will work just as well as anything else.

I've taken deer with 8x57, 30-06, 270 and 300 Win Mag...I'll bet you a dollar none of 'em could tell the difference.

I've never seen any evidence to suggest that a 30/06 is too much for deer...but I've seen a lot of evidence that it does a thoroughly good job on them from any reasonable angle,and with good bullets some not so reasonable angles, too.

As one example,I recall a big doe in Northern NH wounded by another hunter,that I gave chase, crawling after her through the thickest dog hair second growth you could imagine for 45 minutes....she was so fast in here that despite several sightings I could not get a shot.I finally caught up to her,seeing her bedded about 20 yards away,but all I could see was from roughly the diaphragm back to the hips,and the tip of her nose....30/06 and factory 165 gr TBBC High Energy.

I aimed for the pelvic area and fired,expecting her to bolt out of there,but she was dead as a door nail by the time I walked over....a terrible shot and one not likely to be taken at an un wounded animal but killing is not always pretty. Sometimes we don't control all the circumstances,and something along the lines of a 30/06 with deep penetrating bullets can make a difference,even if it is a bit on the large side or considered a bit too powerful.

The 165 gr TBBC had smashed everything, breaking the hips and blowing out the off side handily....she just rolled over in her bed.Actually I know of one spike elk that expired after a similar hit from a 165 Nosler Partition. With bullets like these the 30/06 is no toy.

This kind of performance is one reason the cartridge is so popular back here,in thick woods, with fleeting opportunities(reality),where it certainly does not hurt to be throwing a little extra flack, which I think is where JG was coming from.

Would a 223 or 243 have given equally good results,even with today's super bullets? I don't know.

I agree with this. Long ago I stopped caring what others I hunt with use. Didn't change how I hunted or what I hunt with. Care even less what is said on the internet.

I can say that I hate to think how many miles I walked through the Maine woods and places in Washington County, dragging deer my father shot with a 22-250.

If you'd choose a .223 on a once in a lifetime big game tag, then I'd have say you have other issues, but hey. We're not talking stand hunting here. BTW why don't you post up pics of all those 190" muleys you've smacked with that .223, or even 175+ whiteys. I love pics of big bucks.