308 for deer?

[Tampabucs]

I currently have a 300 win mag, but it just has a lot of recoil. I'm looking for something smaller like a 308 with 150 grain bullets. Should I consider a bigger grain or is 150 enough?

 

[dlbleak]

hello and welcome to the forum.the 308 is plenty for deer.you could even go 243 if the possibility of elk was not a concern.i shoot 30-06,308 and 243 for deer in oklahoma.never tracked a one more than 100 yards.

 

[Tampabucs]

Thanks for the welcome. I looked at the 243, but I think I'm going to go with the 308 for the wide variety of loads. The main thing is I don't want to track them, but I don't want a ton of recoil either.

 

[bigcountryok]

The 308 with a quality 150gr bullet is more than enough. You should always be prepared to track your deer. There is no such thing as a round that "knocks 'em down" 100% of the time.

I've seen a 243 drop them in their tracks and I've seen deer shot through the heart with a 338 Win Mag run over 100 yards.

 

[ez bake]

.308 in 168gr Winchester Ballistic Silvertip is my round of choice.

Haven't had a deer run more than 15yds yet.

 

[aeropb]

Anything .243 or higher is generally considered reasonable for deer. 308 is nigh ideal.

 

[MDT]

<-------has killed many, many deer with .308. it's my fav.

 

[300WSM]

I would be willing to bet more deer have been killed with 30-30s than anything else. 125 grain round nose. The reason one would go with a more powerful round is higher speed for farther effective kills. In the woods, i dont think you would get a shot more than 100 yds, but if youre out west or on the plains where there are no trees you might shoot a little farther.

 

[aturp]

I would be willing to bet more deer have been killed with 30-30s than anything else. 125 grain round nose. The reason one would go with a more powerful round is higher speed for farther effective kills. In the woods, i dont think you would get a shot more than 100 yds, but if youre out west or on the plains where there are no trees you might shoot a little farther.

30-30 is what I've always used, 150 grain. Haven't lost one yet. Like you said theres really not a shot in the woods over 100 yards.

 

[surjimmy]

You might consider a 300wsm, I use to have the 300wm and went to the wsm cause of a bad back and neck. I use 150gr Winchester Power Points, and the recoil doesn't bother me at all where as the wm I could only shoot 4 or 5 rounds before I had a head ache and my back hurt. As far as tracking deer after you shoot them about the only thing that will drop them where they stand 100% of the time is H-Bomb. I shot a doe with my 300 perfect shot and she went about 70 yards, my nephew shot a Buck (177lb) with an 80gr 243 and dropped him in his tracks. My point is there is no caliber that will drop a deer 100% of the time unless you hit the spine or blow it's head off.