Rifle Cartridges for Hunting

[RT2506]

Let's see if I can remember all the calibers I have actually taken deer with in my 48 years of hunting them.
Rifle: 22 lr, 223, 243, 25-06, 6.5 Grendel, 260 Rem, 6.5x55, 264 Win mag, 270 Win, 7mm Rem mag, 7mm STW, 30-30 Win., 30x47, 308 Win., 30-06, 8x57, 45-70.
Shotgun: 12 ga slug, buckshot and one with 1 1/4 oz #6 from about 4 yards.
Muzzleloader rifle: 50 cal
Handgun: 357 Mag, 44 mag, 45 ACP, 45 Colt, 6mm-225 Win., 30-30 Win.. 30-30AI

 

[Greyfox]

Might have missed a couple, and many have come and gone. These cover a fifty+ year period. For the last dozen years or so I've used stuck with only few cartridges for hunting(6.5x284, 300WM,22-250, 223, 22LR)
500-450H&H, 375 H&H, 375 Win, 35 Rem, 300WM, 300WBY, 30-06, 308 Win, 30-30, 270WSM, 270 Win, 6.5x284, 22-250, 223 Rem, 22Mag, 223WSM,6mmAR, 243Win, 260R, 6.5x47Lapua, 6.5 CM, 7MM08, 7mmMauser, 7.62x39, 300Sav, 416 Rigby, 44Rem, 458WinMag, 45-70.(some are long gone).
Muzzleloader: 31.45,.50

 

[Vortex!]

I'm actually glad I don't have more than three deer rifles because I have to debate which gun I'm gonna take Everytime I go hunting. Lately it's been my 243 win or 6.5 Grendel. I need to work up a load for my 270 win. Hopefully the 270 will hammer deer with the sledgehammers I'm loading for it. If I can get it to do what I want then the other two won't be used as much. I expect I'll use the 6.5 Grendel for hog hunting and the 243 for groundhogs unless I just love the 270 too much. I have also used 30-30 and .45 and .50 Cal muzzleloaders. Used to use my dad's 270.

 

[hunter67wa]

wow. well I will put what ive used to take game with. 22lr, 22wmr, 22 hornet, 22 k- hornet, 222, 223, 22-250, 22 Creed, 243, 6mm first big game rifle, 6 BR, 25-06, 6.5 Creed, 270, 280, 7x57, 7mm Mag, 30-30, 30 Rem, 30-06, 300 Win got a good flinch from it, 338 Lapua, 35 Rem, 35 Whelen, 375 H&H.

 

[djm670]

wow. well I will put what ive used to take game with. 22lr, 22wmr, 22 hornet, 22 k- hornet, 222, 223, 22-250, 22 Creed, 243, 6mm first big game rifle, 6 BR, 25-06, 6.5 Creed, 270, 280, 7x57, 7mm Mag, 30-30, 30 Rem, 30-06, 300 Win got a good flinch from it, 338 Lapua, 35 Rem, 35 Whelen, 375 H&H.

Not many holes in that line up!
.17mach2, .22 , 5 mm rem, .17 Rem, .223, 220 Swift, 6 mm Rem, .25-06, 6.5 Creed, .270, .30-06, .356 win, .45-70 1886 win

 

[hunter67wa]

I grew up with elk deer bear around the farm

 

[dougduey]

.22, .223, .243, 6.5 Grendel, 6.5-284 Norma, 7 STW, 30-06, 300 WSM, 338 Lapua. Sometimes it's hard to pick which one goes hunting!! The 06 got the call for openning day of Texas deer season since it had been feeling neglected.

 

[Deleted member 107796]

I like how you think, Guy. Great bear pix by the way!
Sorry for the grainy pic but we got:

450 Bushmaster, 35Rem, 338WM, 325WSM, 300WSM, 308Win, 7mmWSM, 7mm-08, 270WSM, 270Win, 257Roberts, 22WMR, 22LR (not pictured 25-06)

I'm an oddballer, I'm a wildcatter!

 

[Rifleman513]

Current line up that I own and load for:
223, 22-250, 243, 257 wby, 6.5 cm, 270 win, 280 AI, 30-30, 300 RUM

For big game hunting the 257wby, 280 ai, and 300 rum get used the most. For coyotes and varmints the 22-250 and 243 are usually in the top spot.

 

[bob4]

And I was feeling overwhelmed having just 3 to load for.

 

[xsn10s]

Just the cartridges that I've either taken game or varmints are 22LR, 223 Rem, 5.56, 22-250, 243 Win, 308 Win, 30-06, 45-70, 357 Mag, and 44 Mag. All handloads except for the rimfire. First big game taken was with the 45-70 running shot in Alaska.

 

[Aoudad shooter1975]

I was left guns by my uncle and now father...I am the "gun" guy inthe family.

On the rifle side:

22 RF, 22 mag,22 hornet, 218 bee, 222 Remington, 223/5.56, 220 swift, 22-250 imp, 22-6mm, 224 WBY, 22 creedmoor, 6mm Remington, 243 win, 240 Weatherby, 25-20, 25-35, 250-3000, 257 Roberts, 25-06, 257 weatherby, 6.5 Grendel,6.5 creedmoor, 6.5 Remington mag, 6.5x47 Lapua, 264 win, 7-08, 280 AI (soon), 280 Remington, 7mm Remington mag, 30-30 win,300 savage, 30-06--30 government, 308 win, 300 win mag, 300 WBY mag, 300 Norma, 32-20, 33 win, 338 RCM, 338-06, 338 Winchester, 338 RUM, 338 Norma, 35 Remington, 350 remington mag, 358 Winchester, 358 Norma, 9.3x62, 9.3x74, 375 H&H, 375 Weatherby, 375 RUM, 405 win, 450/400 3",411 KDF, 416 Remington, 458 SoCom, 458 win mag, 505 Gibbs, 500 3" NE, 577 3" NE

Don't think I missed anything...believe me I don't shoot all of them my uncle was a Winchester collector and loved Pre 64 model 70s, model 94s, and 95s he loved to hunt Africa too so some of my big bore stuff was his...he was also a keen collector of SW revolvers so have a nice array of them too. My dad loved 22 hornet and the bee, so have a collection of all kinds of those...I got the gene and collected Remington 600s--

 

[Weatherby Fan]

When I started hunting I used a .308 win then switched to a 30-06 for one season then onto the 7mm Wby Mag and pretty much used that for 20 years, the last 10 years have been a revolving door of cartridges, and started building a lot of rifles.

I do have several other cartridges/rifles, 243, 7mm-08, 270, 30-06, 250-3000, 250 AI, .308

These are the ones Ive kind of settled on that I shoot a lot and or hunt with.

I have several rifles in 22 mag, 6mm CM, 6.5CM, 6.5 PRC, 6.5-284, 280 AI, 28 Nosler, 300 Wby and soon to have a 300 PRC.​

 

[Elkeater]

I have a much shorter list than most of you.

Marlin 22lr(first gun), Remington 870 (waterfowl gun), CVA optima .50 muzzleloader, Remington 760 gamemaster .30-06 (grandpas deer rifle), Remington 700 varmint .308 win (wedding present from my brother and the first rifle I ever reloaded for and my first 1/2 MOA shooter), Ruger M77 Hawkeye .300 win mag (bought it when I was 16 thinking I would someday elk hunt. I've killed 10 elk with it now. It's the most consistently accurate rifle I own and I consider it my meat gun, it has killed a bunch of critters from white tails to elk), Remington 700 5r .300 Win Mag (first jump into long range hunting), parted together AR with a Wilson Combat barrel in 5.56 (varmint rifle and home defense).

That's it I think.