What many posters here are missing, is that the hunter who buys one rifle and calls it good is a really poor indicator of a trend. He will likely buy whatever his dad or granddad used, and go no further.

Another poor indicator are the posters here who are only one step into the "cartridge awakening". If you started out with a 270, then tried a 300 Mag, and never stepped down the caliber scale, it's hard to get a full view of what's going on here.

Until a person has really tried a wide variety of cartridges, or at least seen them used in the field, it's tough to get a good bead on what doesn't work.

In my experience, after guiding a bunch of hunters for deer, antelope, and elk, there are a few trends I've noticed with cartridge selection:

1. Hunters as a group are getting older. Which means their recoil tolerance is diminishing.

2. Around 20 lb. ft. of recoil is about all the average guy who doesn't shoot much can handle. Get above this number and performance will decrease, which can be seen in the field in the form of gut shot and lost game.

3.Those returning from military service will often use the military round of the time, as they are familiar with the weapon and know what it is capable of. This was seen after WWII with returning GIs, and can be seen today. I know of a whole bunch of vets returning from the GWOT who pack an AR-15, and use them quite effectively on game.

4. When I say bullets are getting better, I'm not talking about the Barnes TTSX. I'm saying bullets since the '50s are better than those from say, the '20s. Before Nosler Partitions, it was sort of worth listening to what guys like Elmer Keith had to say. Same thing with Ruark shooting a warthog in the azz with hollow points, then proclaiming the 220 Swift lacking. Unfortunately hunters are slow to learn, and take old weird advice like that to heart (Read: Savage 99).

5. The internet was by no means the beginning of small caliber usage. Growing up in Montana before the 'net, the 270 or 30-06 were considered a "Big Gun" for elk. Many, many deer and antelope were and still are shot with 22 caliber rifles every year. When someone showed up with a Magnum, they were pretty much laughed at, usually followed by a comment like "What are you hunting, Tyrannosaurus Rex "?

Why did this occur? Because local folks shot all year, and realized big stupid cartridges were loud, kicked too hard, and were simply unneeded. We had also been in on the "Magnum Rodeos", chasing wounded game around the hills, after some dude blew off a few legs and put a couple rounds through the guts and into the hillside around the animal. These same wounded animals were often finished off with 204s, 223s or 22-250s. Funny how that works.

What does all of this mean?
People go through cycles. Often start out with what Dad used. Usually work their way up due to the young man's testosterone fueled "Real men use big guns" mindset. Then work their way back down when they realize it's not needed. We are all at various points on this scale, depending on our experience and degree of rifle looneyness. Some folks find what works for them and quit there. That's fine. But one should really go through the full cycle, and observe what works for others, before declaring a hypothesis valid or otherwise.