the thing with bullet placement is for it to expend all it's energy inside the animal.that's why the bigger bore higher velocity bullets are better.mass x velocity= energy. if you deplete that energy inside an animal and not hit a vital organ,then the central nervous system takes over and if enough energy is expended the central nervous system shuts down,hence death.

 

357 magnum
260 savage striker..my fav..

 

I have a Ruger 270 ultralite that has been awsome on deer and elk. Use with Hornady 130 grain and have dropped animals in their tracks several of which were running. I like this gun because it is so lite I can shoot it right or left-handed and carry it forever in the mountains of Colorado.

 

It really depends on where I am hunting. I really like my Model 70 in .25-06 and believe that for many applications, that caliber is about the deadliest. In the woods of the Northeast, I will usually go with a .30-06 either in, again, a Model 70 or in the Browning BAR. For the woods, I have been getting a hankering for a .308 BLR and would likely scope it (if at all) with something like a staright 2.5X.

I've killed mule deer on a combination hunt with elk using the elk rifle, typically a .338 or a .300 Winchester Magnum depending on whether ot not I'm in the open or the Aspens. The .300, like it's close cousin, the 7mm Remington Magnum can be too much gun for thin skinned game like deer, especially if heavier bullets are used.

In my home state we have to use shotguns or a muzzleloader. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif[/img] With all the deer I've taken over many years and having used many rifles, I have to say that the .25-06 is like hitting them with electricity!

 

I believe it's actually "mass times velocity squared equals energy". Thats why a 50 grain bullet traveling at 4000 FPS has more energy than a 100 grain bullet going 2000 FPS.

 

The actual formula for kinetic energy is mass times velocity squared divided by 450,240 = kineticenergy. So for a 420 grain arrow at 275 ft per sec it would be 420 x (275x275) / 450,240 which is 70.55 ft lbs of energy. Same formula for bullets ,180 grain bullet at 2,700 ft per sec is 180 x (2,700x2,700) / 450,240 = 2,914.45 ft lbs of kinetic energy.

 

Mines a Remington 280 Mountain Rifle. With 150 gr barnes X bullet reloads. Velocity of about 3000fps.

 

Thunderbolt, dont' you have to convert the "grains" to "pounds"?

 

I've hunted with a lot of rifles in a lot of different calibers, but my favorite is the one I have now. It's a Browning A-BoltStainless Stalker in .300 Win Mag with the BOSS. In N.Dakota, a lot of shots can be 200-300 yards. The .300 can reach out that far and still have enough energy to do the job. Besides, I shoot the gun well and feel confident with it and it actually does less damage to the animal than my wifes 30.06. Of course I can't hear any more.

 

No you don't convert the grains to pounds. The formula for arrows and bullets uses the weight in grains because that is how the arrows and bullet weights are measured.