Deer round continued

[tackdriver]

Ok we have a pretty good idea of what people are shooting so on to the next thing:

What do you prefer:

A lighter faster bullet or a heavier slower round? Meaning do you tend to buy the lightest or heaviest factory rounds for your preferred caliber? As of late I have been shooting 150gr Hornady SST .308's because they pattern quite well out of my rifle. Historically I used either 168 or 180 gr rounds.

[nitro5x6's]

150 Grain Accubond handloads from my .308s. Nasty.

FWIW, Mine don't pattern, that's a shotgun term. My rifle bullets do group into nice small clusters, usually one ragged hole.

[Chessbay]

I'm shooting Hornady 150 Grain SP's out of a Remington 700 30-06.

[SCTIMBER]

.270

130 grain...

Browning or Remington

[sandhills deer slayer]

270 nosler 130gr.

[SuperSwamp Fox]

130 grain acu tip boat tail .270 from remington. long shots very flat bullet.

[huntboykins801]

im shooting an arrow

[Glenn]

Most people, and I include myself here, are over gunned in the south east. Meaning they are shooting too light and fast for their hunting ranges. Hard to find that "tweener" round. One that doesn't just zip through at 50 yards and one that still has good down range velocity out to 200 yards.

Hornady 165 out of the ole dirty naught coupled w/ a high shoulder shot fits the bill pretty well for me.

Any one shooting a 300 at a whitetail in the southeast is over compensating for some other areas.

[tkohn]

7 mag - 150 grain partition by federal /prem.

[Swamp Rat]

I like a bullet of at least 115 grains, typically, with rapid expansion but constructed well enough to not go to crap. I want that bullet to be able to exit the off-side shoulder of a 150lb+ deer on a quartering shot. That usually means a heavier bullet, or a special design - Partition, or Barnes X. Not all of my guns will reliably do it - so I have to be choosy on shot angles.

If it does that relatively reliably, it will kill the deer well.

Specifically, I shoot:

6.5x55mm Swede with a 140 grain Sierra SPBT. (Wish Nosler made a 140 gr Ballistic Tip in 6.5...)

7mm Winchester Short Magnum with a Winchester 150 grain Ballistic Silvertip. I have only shot one deer with this rifle/load... the bullet exited on a small deer under the circumstancs described above, but came apart. I want to develop a load with an Accubond bullet for this gun... or a Barnes TSX Tipped.

30-06 with a 165 grain bullet (Sierra SPBT or Nosler Ballistic Tip) is my third gun, and a proven killer.

FWIW, if I was shooting the following calibers, these are the bullet weights I would focus on:

6mm Remington or 243 Winchester - 100-105 grains

25 caliber rifles - 115-120 grains

6.5 caliber rifle (260) - 120 if well constructed, up to 140.

270 - 130-150 (150 is a bit overkill for SC deer, but would penetrate well)

7mm - 140-150

30 - 150-165, or up to 170-180 in MODERATE velocity loads. 180+ grain loads in stuff 30 caliber magnums is really more suited for elk.

[Downeast]

3006 or .300 Wby with 180 grain Ballistic Tips does wonders. Or .257 Wby with 115 gr. Partition just for fun.

[CWPINST]

I am about as anal as anyone when it comes to ballistic performance, but in reality any decent bullet will do if you and your gun are capable of putting it in the right spot. Most shots are probably less than 150 yards, so extreme accuracy is not always required, but I rather have it and not need it than the other way around. However, there are times when you may need that level of accuracy coupled with the practiced ability to put it where it needs to be. If you don't practice occasionally you may be cheating yourself.

[JOHNSON]

Hornady 30-06 sst light mag. 150 gr.
I know where my round is @ 200 yds.
Beyond 200 it just isnt worth it. (Wounding or maming an animal)

[adk]

it depends where you are, or what the situation is.

if your in a 20 acre food plot, then a light fast bullet would be better, to cover the long distances and be more accurate.

if your shots are within 50 yards then a heavy slower bullet is best, cause accuracy doesnt matter as much at the short distance, and the heavier bullet will have more knockdown power at the short range.

[Treeclimber]

Original-Winchester Black Talon- 140 grain- hand loaded- .270 Win- since mid 1990s..…
Works for me! History: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Talon

[duckiller]

140 grain Hornady BTSP

[Swamp Rat]

Light + high velocity does not necessarily = more accurate... Quite often just the opposite.

Look at 308 Winchester "match" ammo for an example... modest in velocity.

[tackdriver]

Light + high velocity does not necessarily = more accurate... Quite often just the opposite.

Look at 308 Winchester "match" ammo for an example... modest in velocity.

Quite true, look at current mil spec 7.62 rounds.. 168, 173 or 175 depending on branch an application. Not nearly as fast as 150 gr rounds. Rate of twist is also a consideration 1:12 is ok for most applications. But for the heavier rounds I prefer a faster twist.

[Swamp Rat]

I think the current rate of twist on the military precision guns is 1:11.25 (11 1/4)... it's pretty much tuned for 175 gr stuff (M118LR).

My old Remington 700 in 30-06 did best with 165 grain bullets at a mild 2511 fps.... and it killed 'em dead out past 250 yards no problem.

[BuckAddict]

30-06 with a 150 grain remington core-lokt.