Deer hunting with .40 S&W rifle

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austin.brown

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Ok first here are the regs copied off the wildlife departments website. I know this is just a rough overview of the laws, but I am having trouble finding the actual regs right now.

Legal Means of Taking

Rifles: Centerfire rifles firing at least a 55-grain weight soft-nosed or hollow-point bullet and having an overall cartridge case length of 1 1/4 inches or longer (9mm rifles are not legal). Clips or magazines of all .22 caliber centerfire firearms may not be capable of holding more than seven rounds of ammunition.

Semi-automatic handguns: Chambered for any centerfire ammunition with a 100-grain or heavier soft-nosed bullet and having a cartridge case size of .40 caliber or larger (includes 10 mm, .357 Sig., and 40 cal. or larger) and a minimum barrel length of four inches.


So my question is, would it be legal to take a deer with a rifle that is chambered in .40 S&W or .357SIG ? If I look at the pistol regs it says 40 cal with a barrel minimum of 4 inches, but the rifle regs, rule out this round because it is too short. 1.135 in according to Wikipedia. If this round out of a 4 in barrel is legal to take a deer with why would it be illegal to use it out of a 16 in barrel?

The regs state specifically that 9mm is not legal but says nothing about .40 S&W

Crap, this was supposed to be put in the hunting/fishing section. Mods please move
 
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Okie4570

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According to what you've posted above, I'd say it was illegal to use in a rifle due to the case length. Does it make sense.....no? Ask your GW. It's kind of like using a .410 Contenter pistol or a Judge in the spring for turkey. Yes it fires the same round as the shotgun, but being fired out of a handgun makes it a no go in the spring.

Legal Means of Taking
•Archery: Equipment described as legal for deer archery season. See Deer Regulations .
•Shotgun: Conventional or muzzleloading, using shot no larger than BB (.180 in. dia.) are legal.
•Illegal Firearms: Rifles and handguns may not be used during the spring season.
 

mr ed

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I think it has something to do with distance vs. power in the minds of the ODW.
A person hunting with a 40S&W handgun will take a close carefully aimed shot.
A person with a rifle will take a much longer shot where the cartridge has lost most of its power.
 

Okie4570

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Ok first here are the regs copied off the wildlife departments website. I know this is just a rough overview of the laws, but I am having trouble finding the actual regs right now.

Legal Means of Taking

Rifles: Centerfire rifles firing at least a 55-grain weight soft-nosed or hollow-point bullet and having an overall cartridge case length of 1 1/4 inches or longer (9mm rifles are not legal). Clips or magazines of all .22 caliber centerfire firearms may not be capable of holding more than seven rounds of ammunition.

Semi-automatic handguns: Chambered for any centerfire ammunition with a 100-grain or heavier soft-nosed bullet and having a cartridge case size of .40 caliber or larger (includes 10 mm, .357 Sig., and 40 cal. or larger) and a minimum barrel length of four inches.


So my question is, would it be legal to take a deer with a rifle that is chambered in .40 S&W or .357SIG ? If I look at the pistol regs it says 40 cal with a barrel minimum of 4 inches, but the rifle regs, rule out this round because it is too short. 1.135 in according to Wikipedia. If this round out of a 4 in barrel is legal to take a deer with why would it be illegal to use it out of a 16 in barrel?

The regs state specifically that 9mm is not legal but says nothing about .40 S&W

Crap, this was supposed to be put in the hunting/fishing section. Mods please move

What I highlighted in bold has always raised a question for me as well. As far as I know, in the reloading world there are these two terms: COL= Cartridge Overall Length and CL= Case Length. Seems that the ODOW has combined the two. That being the so, the case length for a .40S&W is only .850. and the COL is 1.135.

.38spl and .44spl would fall into the same situation as the .40s&w as well, their cases are just under 1.25.
 

Jared

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very interesting...I thought in the past the regs stated that rifles chambered in 9mm luger were illegal, leaving the assumption that rifles chambered in the legal handgun calibers were also legal. However, that isn't in the regs that I can find, therefore I'm stumped as well to what the actual intent of the regs are. I would advise contacting ODWC by email and asking for clarification. It may be as simple as NO only handguns, but it may not be.
 

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