Wow.

He can't shoot well, so he should get a bigger caliber?

I can't stress this enough... a poorly placed shot from a .458 magnum won't kill any better than a poorly placed shot from a .22LR.  

Instead of saying "you should use a bigger gun" you should be saying "practice with what you have until your groups tighten."

If you hit them anywhere but "exactly in the vitals" with a larger caliber, it's not going to result in an ethical kill.  Most of the deer I've helped track, and eventually lost, have been shot with calibers larger than .30-06.

As for your statements about the deer not presenting a decent shot... well, just don't shoot.  Its our duty as hunters to harvest game as humanely as possible.  If you can't make the shot, don't take the chance.  It's that simple.

The hunters I have to help track are always the type who take a shot, or multiple shots, regardless the circumstances.  If they see a deer, they're going to shoot at it even if it's behind brush, running, etc.  They lose a lot of injured deer.

I'm hunting deer with my AR this year (scoped, not irons).



That said, I'm not expecting to see any 200 pound deer - these are small coastal blacktail deer I'm after - but I would not hesitate to shoot a deer at 200 yards if I had a tree or something else to rest against and a clear shot at a standing/walking animal.



I'm not the kind to just sling lead in their general direction - I want to know that I am killing a deer when I pull the trigger.

As you will most likely be hunting deer well into the future....go buy a good .308 bolt gun and stop dicking around with questionable cartridges or obsolete rifles of mediocre accuracy.

opinion.



I stated mine.



And for every "situation" you can come up with,I am sure will be an opinion.



Bottom line, if you can kill it with another caliber, you can kill it with a 223. (ETA: When it comes to Whitetails)



The argument used to be, that a 243 was to light for deer. I have seen and personally used a 243 to take numerous whitetails.

Same as a 223.



If you can't make a shot with 223, then probably should not be shooting at it with anything else.



I have a 300 RUM and I go bang targets at 600 yards with it. Does that mean I should be shooting at deer with it at that yardage?

NO it does not, even though I probably stand a 90% chance of killing it. But it is that 10% chance that I won't and that is what stops me.



So as I stated, unless the deer is a 400+ yards away, a 223 will kill it with the proper hunting round and shot placement.



Do I personally think someone should be shooting at a deer 400+ yards away? NO.



I actually think 200 yards is to far. I know several people can drill it at that yardage, but what if it is a miss?

There is no telling what that bullet will make contact with.

I have had the unfortanate experience of sitting in a tree stand, with a bullet striking the tree about 4 feet above my head.

I still have no idea where that round came from as I never heard the shot.

Pick one, its a 200lb deer not Godzilla with a rack.

What a mess of a thread.  Nothing like a bunch of gun cranks to argue about what caliber or load to use for something.

However, I will say that this is about the most rediculous thing i've heard today: (from Cypher214)  I can't stress this enough... a poorly placed shot from a .458 magnum won't kill any better than a poorly placed shot from a .22LR.

You can hit a deer in the shoulder with a 22LR and it likely won't die.  You can shoot that same deer in the shoulder with a 308 and it's toast.

Likewise, you can hit a deer in the liver with a 22LR and you'll never find it.  Hit it in the liver with a 308 and it won't make it far.

Heck, hit a deer in the LUNG with a 22 LR and it'll get away.  Not so with a 308...or a ".458 magnum".


-David
Edgewood, NM

Before you go hunting with the Mosin... make sure you can hit what you are aiming at to those distances.  A lot of these surplus bores are shot out and even though it will take out a deer easy enough, don't rely so much on the stopping power as the accuracy you can get with it.

FWIW, I have all of the guns you listed and I bought a .270 for like 100 bucks.  Scope was 300.  Pick the right tool.

My point is that big calibers don't make up for shitty shooting.  To say otherwise smacks of ignorance.

+1.  Said much better than I could....been trying to say that for the last couple days. "Larger calibers give you a larger margin for error."

-David
Edgewood, NM

I would call in mortar fire.

Short of that they all would work, but I would probably take that mosin to the range and see about getting comfortable.

Also 5" bench shots would encourage me to practise at the range anyway. Thats not an assault on your abilities, I just think your groups could be better. You want one well placed, clean shot.