just wonderin'

What's the smallest gun you would use for deer to caribou sized game

  • 223 rem

    Votes: 13 12.4%

  • 22-250 rem

    Votes: 6 5.7%

  • 243 win

    Votes: 51 48.6%

  • 25-06

    Votes: 11 10.5%

  • 7.62x39mm

    Votes: 4 3.8%

  • 308 win

    Votes: 14 13.3%

  • Other (explain)

    Votes: 6 5.7%
  • Total voters
    105
uphere said:
no but u can destroy a lot of meat. i shot a caribou with 223 and i don't know if i missed the animal i was aiming for and hit this one or what but i hit it in the hip. the bullet hit one hip and shattered it the bullet kept going and hit the other one and stopped right there. the only piece of meat i could not eat was the piece around the shattered hip, if i had used a 270 or 30-06 most of both hind quarters would have been jello.
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joe-nwt said:
IMHO a guy with a minimum caliber who can't place the shot properly is no better off.
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10 characters
 
joe-nwt and huntinstuff are right: we, as hunters, have to critically assess ourselves and determine what (legal) calibre we can best handle and put in the time to practice with it. I have used a .243 to harvest moose, muskox and caribou - all clean kills.

However, I would like to use a .223 or a .22-250 for caribou (not legal for moose or musk ox), but i have to buy one first...:rolleyes:
 
I like the 25's for deer .... 250 Savage, 257 Roberts and 25-06.

Would probably take the 25-06 for Deer/Caribou combo, and
would not hesitate to use it on Moose or Elk.

Realize lots of "local sons" use 223's for collecting their protein.
 
I would feel comfortable using a 243 for deer sized game, but would rather use a 25-06 or 270. It's illegal to use 22 centerfires for big game where I hunt, but I think that they would work under certain shooting situations.
 
243 is the sensible minimum, and even then I'd use premium bullets and keep shots to 300 yards and closer.

now, if all I had was a 223 and I had to kill a deer or I'd starve, well the answer would be obvious :D but these days, nobody starves, and we all have many toys to play with. Better options for deer hunting IMO are 257 Roberts and up to 30-06
 
For me I would feel more at ease hunting deer with a .223 that I have practiced alot with rather than a 30-06 that I shoot once a year.

Nuff said.
If it's too expensive for me to get good trigger time on it, I would not feel good about hunting with it.
 
I'd use a .308, because its the only one I have on that list.;) However, I'd like to get a 25-06 to try for deer too.:cool:
 
Mumptia said:
light loads .308

I like a bang flop.

That said, I've not hunted with the .24's and .25's. Are you guys getting bang flops from those?
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some guys get "bag flops" with .22's
 
.243 is the smallest I would use, it's the smallest I have, and the smallest I can use legally. IMO its a great little round for this purpose. However, I almost always use my 7mm Rem Mag, most people I know use either .270 Win or 30-06.
 
death-junky said:
243 is the smallest i would go for deer and something in 30 cal for boo...
ttyal
Riley
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270 wont kill a 400 lb caribou? :confused: :D they'e soft boned thin skinned critters, anything from 243 on up will do the job if you put a good bullet where it belongs

Once upon a time I thought you needed at least a 7mm Rem Mag with 160 grain Noslers to kill a deer :runaway: we all see the light, well, most of us ;)
 
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