r/canadaguns • u/Prefon10 • 1d ago
Gun and gear reviews Favourite Caliber for Whitetail GO! ⬇️
Personally, I shoot my 30-06 with my Barnes Triple Shock TSX reloads.
What do you guys shoot?
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u/BigPoppaAlex69 1d ago
I like the 6.5 Creedmoor but my wife's boyfriend likes the 7mm.
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u/DecentComposer545 1d ago
I love this comment. Which one is the Bi*ch though?
Also 6.5 Creedmoor Hornady 143 Grain ELD-X. It has stopping power at a good distance and my rifle like it so while expensive I can take a deer with 1 round and call it a day.
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u/Jabronski95 22h ago
Unfortunately that's a terrible bully hit a shoulder or have a close shot and watch it grenade
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u/thehuntinggearguy 3gun, Mapleseed, YouTuber, SlamFire Radio, Revolver-hater 1d ago
EVERYTHING works on deer. 30-30, 7.62x39, 7.62x54R, 308, 30-06, 303 British, 243, 6.5 Creedmoor, 7mm-08, 270, 300 Win Mag, 338 Lapua; I've used them all on deer and there are probably some I'm forgetting.
Shot placement and having a bullet that can perform at its impact velocity are the only things that matter.
IMO, if you want to split hairs and/or specialize on deer, get something sub-30 cal without so much recoil because you really don't need that much horsepower to kill a deer. 270, 6.5 Creedmoor, etc. If you're recoil sensitive, use a .243 and don't worry about it: it'll kill the deer just the same.
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u/buji8829 IBl Precision 1d ago
Amen to that!!
Im building a 300 WSM right now for my all around rifle, love the cartridge and I think its about perfect for all game in BC that I choose to hunt, but for now my 30-30 and 30-06 are my go to rifles.
Id have no problems hunting with 6.5 Creedmoor or anything else really, good shot placement and a bullet that does it job and your good!
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u/themisterfixit 1d ago
Prairie hunter here. 270 is my preferred calibre. Made the switch about 5 years ago and haven’t had a deer take more than ten steps since. Flat and fast.
If it’s good enough for Jack O’Connor, it’s good enough for me.
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u/DashCameraman 1d ago
What is your opinion on .223 for deer out of curiosity? Where would you draw the line?
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u/No_Armadillo2253 17h ago
It works just fine. 55gr soft points is usually where most people draw the line. Put one in the boiler room and the deer is dead.
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u/Standard_Custard2338 1d ago
7.62x39 hand loads with Hornady SST for closer bush hunting or my do everything 7mm Rem Mag for longer range (as well as moose, elk etc)
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u/Khill23 1d ago
My favorite bush round as well, however I would like to experiment with barnes monothic as at close range that sst grenades pretty good if it hits something solid. Took a massive buck with 7.62 with my SKS at 5 yards, he was bayonet distance lol.
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u/Standard_Custard2338 1d ago
I have a couple of boxes of Barnes to try but haven't gotten around to it yet. My go to 7.62x39 is a Howa mini action in a chassis. Love that thing
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u/AirWolfMike 1d ago
I’ve used 30-06 in the past with great success. I then moved on to .308 for a few years after i started hunting white tail. I used .303 British for a year as well, I wanted to give that platform a chance to take a deer, worked great. I’ve now moved to 30-30 for the last 5 or so years due to the terrain being heavier bush/forest. I’ve had nothing but success with that.
So my favourite? Well i have to say 30-30 here.
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u/DougMacRay617 1d ago
The lords caliber 30-06 of course
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u/black_covfefe_please 1d ago
May be the worst caliber mentioned.
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u/DougMacRay617 1d ago
Coming from someone that said 270 lmao, you don't even merit a response
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u/black_covfefe_please 6h ago
I tried to reply to a comment that was 45-70 government.
I personally have taken deer with 30-06.
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u/Ok-Raise-5115 1d ago
12 gauge hornady sst sabot slugs
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u/jerbearman10101 1d ago
Awesome. Must have dropped like a rock. I’ve always wanted to hunt with a slug gun
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u/Ok-Raise-5115 1d ago
Ammo is offensively overpriced. Like $8 a shot. But it’s a lot of fun, with a scope and calm conditions I’ll drop one at 120 yards all day. Buddy of mine has a savage 220 bolt action 20 gauge slug gun and he’s taken deer out at 200 yards
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u/jerbearman10101 1d ago
That’s awesome! I have a 20 ga mossberg that came with a rifled barrel to swap in but the ammo prices for the slugs have always kept me from even sighting it in. Maybe I’ll bite the bullet and give it a shot this season
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u/Ok-Raise-5115 1d ago
With an 18” barrel they’re great to push bush with. Last year my old man was sighting his in and it took him 2 boxes before he finally got it 😂 expensive day lol
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u/jerbearman10101 1d ago
It’s funny you say that because I already use that mossberg for pushing bush but I use the smoothbore barrel. The trigger is super heavy so I figure I’d also be in the same boat as your dad lol. I think I’m sold though if you have success with it I’ll try it out
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u/uber_poutine 1d ago
.243 Sierra green tip for closer, .308 eld-x for further away.
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u/illknowitwhenireddit 1d ago
In 2024 I took my buck at roughly 400 yards give or take 20, with my .243 slinging Hornady Precision Hunter 90gr ELDX. Heart and single lung shot, he jumped up, fell over backwards, and died where he landed. The heart looked like red jello.
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u/Wise-Capital9455 1d ago
45-70
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u/black_covfefe_please 6h ago
Probably the worst caliber listed.
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u/Capable-Ad2106 1d ago
250gr 45 cal xtp in a sabbot with 100 gr of pyrodex out of a 54 cal Hawkins muzzleloader
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u/thecoolernameistaken 1d ago
I’ll piggyback I got a 308 I haven’t taken out yet what’s a better grain for deer vs PRS?
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u/uber_poutine 1d ago
For PRS, this is entirely dependent on your rifle (I'm sorry, it's a frustrating answer). You'll have to go out and shoot to see what it likes. See what other people with your twist rate use and use that as a starting point, then dial in your load.
For deer, find something around 150-180gr and dial it in. (That said, for the distances that you're going to be reaching out to in the field, commercial cartridges are probably sufficient if you don't want to put in the work to develop a hand load)
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u/thecoolernameistaken 1d ago
That’s fair I figured prs would be trickier. Honestly I don’t even hunt. Just thought the gun looked cool
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u/mmac2121 1d ago
I've had some success with .44 Mag through a lever action for 50-100 yards in the bush. Its turning into one of my favourite calibers
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u/Fickle_Ice_7584 1d ago
Hoping to take my first deer with my Hornady ELDX 178gr loads for 308. Still tinkering to get them right, but with just rough trim length consistency they performed pretty well out to 330 yards. So I'm now tryna crank the autism up and use very consistent trim/seating depths and see just how accurate I can be.
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u/Murray3-Dvideos 1d ago
Im jealous your .308 likes the stuff. I bought 200 bullets thinking my Bergara would shoot it, instead I got SKS sized groups. Its a real shame cus they seemed like a decent cost effective target / big game option. Now im banking on 175 SMK X bullets.
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u/Fickle_Ice_7584 1d ago
Yeah I heard bout them not liking the ELDXs, I bought 100 bullets, then immediately saw people talking bout how awful they run in their bergara HMRs in 308. Luckily they run fine in my gun.
Though I will say I done up about 4 different charge loads for it and mine shot best with 41.3gr of Varget, buddy of mine told me to load 41.0gr of varget and the group's weren't anything to write home about. That extra .3 made a big difference. So you may have to just tinker some more if you reload. If you're just buying em by the box then I guess you may be SOL
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u/Murray3-Dvideos 1d ago
I did around 80rnds worth of ladder tests. Couldn't get it to pattern under 1moa consistently. People suggested trying something beside Varget but I want my loads to centered around Varget since its an affordable, readily available and super temp stable powder. So now im experimenting with SMKs, different brass and different primers.
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u/Fickle_Ice_7584 1d ago
That group I shot was with mix matched brass, not uniform trim length ( if it was under max trim length I didn't touch it ) and non uniform seating depths haha so if they shoot like shit now that Im trying to be as consistent as possible it'd be kinda funny.
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u/TescoValueSoup 1d ago
Group size doesn't matter on a cold bore in a wet field. Just make sure the first round is always dead nails and send it.
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u/DougMacRay617 1d ago
5 shot groups are your friend
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u/Fickle_Ice_7584 1d ago
I learned pretty early on there's no need for 5 round groups. I don't need that kind of negativity in my life.
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u/preferablyoutside 1d ago
22-250, pushing Sako 55gr Gamehead light kicking hard hitting.
Few of you fellas sound like you’re ready to go round for round with Nelson’s Navy with the firepower you’re packing.
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u/BisonCompetitive9610 1d ago
I've got some Speer 270 grain bullets that I'll be using this season in a 375. Working up a load.
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u/impureSurfer 1d ago
.50 boom flop. You know if you made a bad shot. No guesswork. No looking for the darn deer. You saw it fall. (Apart) 🤣
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u/The_Moony_Fellow_ 1d ago
Whatever .308 was on sale the night before.