what gun to get??

[Deker 3,478]

I decided that since I hadn't tested the 85gr ammo to see where it went (changed the 58gr zero from 100 to 200 yards) it would be more humane to put the wrong bullet in the right place than the right bullet in the wrong place.

 

 

the 58grain bullet will always fragment on impact thus not giving the penetration needed, on large animals like deer.

The moral of the story should be the right bullet for the right job with the right zero before shooting on live quarry,

We all make mistakes, it's what we learn from them that makes us better at our chosen task.........go get em.......

 

 

New rifle and new ammo, we have discussed this since (a few days back), got to admit "whatever" the ammo was devastating and the deer was dead before he fell over. Seeing as me/Mr Logic/my game dealer wants the meat we will be using different ammo in future!

 

This ammo is serious killing though, the shock wave and fragments caused massive internal damage.

 

Putting it in the right place helped too!

[Mr_Logic 5]

Snap, I disagree with you completely on this one. While I would like to use an 85gr bullet for minimal meat damage, and also because of its bone penetration, we PROVED that the 58gr vmax is an almost perfect killing bullet for a roe deer. In order to guarantee a humane kill, you want to expend as much energy into vital organs as is possible in the shortest possible amount of time.

 

Almost any bullet will whiz through a roe deer without applying all its energy. This one didn't make it through the other side of the deer. Vitals were very quickly turned to mush, and as a consequence this deer went down like a sack of spuds.

 

So... while it's the wrong bullet for the food chain, it's certainly the right bullet for a humane kill on the deer. We *thought* that would be the case but weren't completely sure. Deker has plenty of experience with deer, and he was of the opinion that if it's in the right place the deer will drop, and he was right.

[SNAP SHOT 194]

Snap, I disagree with you completely on this one. While I would like to use an 85gr bullet for minimal meat damage, and also because of its bone penetration, we PROVED that the 58gr vmax is an almost perfect killing bullet for a roe deer. In order to guarantee a humane kill, you want to expend as much energy into vital organs as is possible in the shortest possible amount of time.

 

Almost any bullet will whiz through a roe deer without applying all its energy. This one didn't make it through the other side of the deer. Vitals were very quickly turned to mush, and as a consequence this deer went down like a sack of spuds.

 

So... while it's the wrong bullet for the food chain, it's certainly the right bullet for a humane kill on the deer. We *thought* that would be the case but weren't completely sure. Deker has plenty of experience with deer, and he was of the opinion that if it's in the right place the deer will drop, and he was right.

Almost perfect being the word here, i'm not saying it won't kill roe effectively, but look at the damage to meat, which would not be lost with the correct bullet. The 58g will lack consistantcy if not placed effectively all the time.

happy hunting,

[shottyscotty 3]

I would agree with the notion of considering a .243 and a .308 if you want to shoot both smaller deer species and larger species.

 

I have a .243, which is superb for Roe and Muntjac - drops them on the spot with minimal damage to the meat. But for Red deer, it's just not powerful enough - shot one a couple of years ago and it walked off for probably 150yds before dropping

Rgd

 

MM

theres plenty enough power for reds in the 243 and if the dear didnt die quickly then you must of place your shot poorly as for the last 50 years on the estate i work the guests have cleanly shot and killed red stags cleanly and a lot of them have never fired a rifle before

[FJager 0]

Lads I think we have got off topic to the original question, someone is asking for advice, for what is being asked I would suggest a reputable brand .308 in a sporting weight barrel.

 

Mr Logic I am not disputing the fact that a heavy barrel will outperform a sporter weight one at the range, but carrying a heavy barrelled weapon around the weeds is not much fun, so it really comes back to what an individual does with their time, shoot a paper or game.

 

I have recently discovered the Rem 700 VTR, have you see this rifle, very interesting concept, be great for a spotlighting from the vehicle weapon.

[Mr_Logic 5]

Mr Logic if you are just practising on the range and not shooting competition, you are not going to notice buggar all difference, light or heavy barrel, by the time the detail shoots and then scores the heat of the barrel is not going to make any difference to your practising shots. If it was rapid automatic shots you would notice the heat.

I read this as you saying that there won't be any difference in the two at the range, on an informal basis, and I disagree. I sent down 40 rounds in about 5-10 minutes earlier today, there is no way I could have done that with a sporter weight barrel....

 

But I do completely agree that carrying that rifle around isn't much fun. My point about the SPS tactical is that since it has only a 20" barrel, it's lighter than your normal heavy barrel fare, and thus it's better as an all round rifle. You are however 100% correct when you say that if it's mainly for deer then sporter weight is best.

[Guest olofthegr8]

i think i am going to buy a 308 and 243. all the information has been very usfull