I've been deer hunting for the past 16 years. I started when I was 11. Up until recently I had never killed a real nice buck. I shoot a winchester model 70 synthetic, blued 7mm rem. mag with 150gr. ballistic silvertips. 3x9 leupold vx-2 scope. I hunt primarly in east central Missouri, but venture up to northern Missouri on occasion. The biggest deer I have shot is a 9point that I killed last weekend, has a 15 inch spread. So far my son (7 years old) started out with a great youth season taking a nice 8 point with a 16 inch spead.

 

I am in SE MO. Not many big deer here. If you get a 6 pointer, you're doing great. There is a HUGE (for this area) buck that has been seen in my field behind my house. He just has the right side antlers and there is 4 points on that one side. I saw him Sunday, but by the time I found him in the scope on my .308 (bull barrelled tactical), someone shot in the next field and he took off running. My favorite rifle I own is a Browning A-bolt Medallion with the BOSS in .30-06 with a Swiss scope. I love the feel of this rifle. Its sighted for 250yds with 165gr Nosler Partitions. My Weather Mark-V in .300 Weatherby magnum is sighted for 400 for those longer shots. Those new short mags are awesome, but when I pull a .300 weatherby shell out of your pocket and sit it down next to any SM or WSM, it puts a smile on my face.

Anyone thinking of a BDL/ADL needs to shoot an A-bolt. I promise you won't regret it. So much more comfortable than a Remington.

extremerider, I wouldn't want anything less than a 150gr, and I wouldn't shoot that. 165's would be the smallest I would use. 180's would be the best. 150's would have to be barrel burners. Couple hundred shots and you won't have any riflings left.

I am going to buy 2 new guns this winter. Smith & Wesson 500 magnum with 10" barrel, and a CZ Varmit bull barreled 204ruger. I know a guy dropping prarie dogs at 600+yds with the new 204.

 

How do you like your 300? I had one but sold it for my 338. I want to try and take some trips to Texas and hunt all kinds of animals. I want to try a elk hunt but i will probably never save up the money [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-disgusted.gif[/img]

I also have a 308 that was my dad's but it just collects dust now. If any of you all know where there's a nice 270 for sell please pm me. I promised my son i would buy him something but a 300 might be a little to big and he sure in the hell can't shoot my 338.

 

I like the 300, but I am not that consistant with it. The BOSS system on the Browning really reduces recoil. The .30-06 compressed loads I am shooting don't kick that hard. You can almost continue looking through the scope after the shot. The 300 weatherby is a different story. That thing kicks like a mule. My first shot is dead on, but I start anticipating after that and I start pulling. It kicks worse than my 8mm Yugo mausers. The .308 tactical is dead-on everytime. With the bull barrel, the kick feels like my 17HMR. The 300 would have been plenty for elk, but just the fact that you can say you have a .338 is cool.

I would recommend the .223 or .243 WSM for your son. They would make a good deer rifle and an excellent varmit rifle. .270's have never impressed me.

 

I like my 338 but i have a break on it lol [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img] So i guess you can call me a pu$$y. I shot my buddy's 30-378 and it almost knocked me on my a$$ and i knew that the 338 kick would be close to the 30-378 so i had a break put on it.

I might get him a 243. I promised him i would get him something so he can go hunting with me. He's only 11 and he want's this Kimber 270 but a 243 will probably be enough for him.

 

My husband bought a 243 for himself last year, but I ended up hunting with it. I really like to shoot it. Doesn't hardly kick at all. He bought a Nikon scope for it. It is very clear. Haven't shot a deer with it, but have killed a couple of coyotes, and a few targets [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

I hunt with a Browning A-Bolt stainless stalker in .300 Wn. Mag. It has the BOSS as well. The BOSS reduces the recoil to almost nothing, but the the sound level is unbelieviable. I think that is why I can't hear out of my left ear any more. I shoot 150 grain Federals and can shoot less than 1 inch groups at 100 yards all day. That is the great thing about the BOSS, you can tune your barrel to the round.
My biggest deer is a 4x4 whitetail in full velvet and scored 125 1/8. I shot it with the bow and it will be in the next record book. It's already in the N. Dakota rcord book.
I really like the .300 WM, it's a good prairy gun and actually does less damage to the deer than my wifes 30.06.

 

Yeah, I forgot to mention how loud the BOSS is. I can't believe Browning stopped making the BOSS system. Like you said, you can tune it to the load. I shrunk my 200yd groups by over an 1" by tuning the length of the BOSS.

 

have any of you hear of the 45-70, or what ever, its a lever action, pretty big gun, a guy hunts deer with it, that gun will automatically gut the deer for you, don't need something that strong, unless theres a tree in your way and have no choice but to take the 14 point buck thats behind a maple tree. ever hear the rumors of the buck of 1,000 points, and the 23 point Doe. and the three 17 point monster deer that were found in the massaschutes ocean area, and the 1000 point buck was found in ohio some where, pretty amazing.


peace

 

I don't hunt, but my friend does he just showed me a pic of a couple of 10 points him and his dad shot last weekend.