Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Anyone hunting with a different rifle this year?

Since learning that I didn't draw any mule deer tags, I won't need my 270 Win. For general season black tail deer, I'm either using a M99 250-3000 or an M77 257 Bob. Or my 45 Colt if I get the chance.
222Rem

If I have the time to get it running before deer season, I hope to be using a M70 Classic SS 7mmWSM w/ a Leupold 4.5-14x40 LR mounted in Burris Signature dual dovetail rings and Leupold two-piece bases. I have all the parts and a trigger job on the rifle, just need to get it all screwed together and go to the range. I won't have time for any handloading this year, so I plan on trying the new Federal Fusion 140's (if I can find any in time) or else Win Accubond 140's. If neither one of those loads shoots in this rifle, it may well be one of my old standby's in either 7mmRM or 264WM that gets to do the honors.

Too many unblooded choices here, too few tags....

For tags I have September black bear for the Grand Mesa area, and cow and buck tags for the northern White River Nation Forest area (we�ll hunt out of Buford). In addition I�ll buy an over-the-counter bull tag but only use it if I see a real trophy � otherwise its cow meat.

Ruger M77 MKII .300Win with canoe paddle stock, new last Christmas. 180g North Fork SS.
Marlin 336 .30-30, bought used in January or February. 150 or 170g Speer FP.
Ruger M77 .257 Roberts, bought used a year ago. 120g Partition or Grand Slam, maybe a 115g TSX.

Then I have a new 160g North Fork load for the trusted Ruger M77 7mm Mag and an older but untried 300g Speer UCSP load for the Browning B92 .44 Mag.

The only thing I know for sure is that my wife will carry the Marlin .30-30 during bear season. Whether I use it for anything else is up in the air with the other choices.

I will be using the 240 Weatherby that I had built 4 years ago for Nevada Antelope in August. I am looking forward to finally Using this Rifle!

I built a 22-250AI on a Savage 110 action with a Duramaxx stock and a Burris FFII 4X14.5 scope, and I will be using it on Deer and Coyotes. My old standby Win M70 in 30-06 is going elk hunting for the first time this year.

I had a Sako 75 Hunter left-hand on order through out last years season. It finally arrived in February after the season closed. I've taken it to the range a few times and it shoots great. I can't wait for opening day.

kenjs1 �

That Browning is one sweet rifle. Dad gave me one about 20 years ago and since then it has only been the last couple years that it didn�t go along on the elk and deer hunts as my backup rifle. Made sure to hunt with it at least on day every year. Speer 240g JSP�s over 24.0g H110 and a CCI 350 mag pistol primer make a great deer load at 1880fps. I passed on a huge bull elk at 100 yards and am still kicking myself. Nowadays I load 300g Speer UCHP�s over 20.0g H110 for around at 1530fps � milder recoil but haven�t taken any game with it so far. Any way, great little gun and LOTS of fun in the off season, too. Enjoy!

Whoops!! Looks like I will have 3 new guns to bloody this year. The Winnie 444 I mentioned earlier. A new stainless BLR in .308. and a Stainless ported 1895GG. The GG will be wearing a williams rear and green fiber optic front. The BLR with probably have a VX III 2.5x8x36

Well at the moment (since I just got it) I may use a BLR 7mm-08 with 6x42 Leupold. It sure does handle well.

I don't know ... don't know ... don't know.

I'm nearing completion of my MRC 7-08, but I've grown fond of my 25-06, and of course there's old faithful; my 300 WBY (who hasn't taken a deer in the last two seasons).

I'm hopeful the new Montana delivers like I expect, if so I suspect she'll be seeing the action this year!

A different rifle? A different rifle?

Last year I only hunted with my T/C System 1 ML.

This year there is the T/C Contender .375 Win. (technically a pistol, but still...), the Savage 99 in .300 Savage, now the Ruger #1 RSI in 7x57, the Rossi M92 Puma in .454...whew, and that doesn't even consider possibly using the .357 Blackhawk or the 1911A1 if one walks right under the stand!

I guess it's a good thing VA has a very liberal bag limit on deer... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

If I draw a tag for deer this Fall, I'm taking a quarter-bore, but I don't know which one. Three .25 caliber rifles have joined the family since I last drew a deer tag. It might be the 700 classic in 250 Savage, or it might be the Win 94 in 25-35. I'll probably leave the 257 Roberts home.

Sycamore

Nice to see that some of you guys are going to hunt with leverguns this fall. My grandfather hunted with one his entire life, which covered most of the 20th century. He was an excellent hunter and had lots of guns but I'm not sure that he ever owned a firearm that had a scope attached.

For the last 8 or so years, my hunting pal/neighbor and I have used different rifles and calibers every year for deer season. We usually pick two calibers and get two rifles apiece in the spring and spend the rest of the summer and fall getting them ready, bedding, reloading and testing them. It keeps things interesting and you learn things about guns, you'd never imagine by just using one rifle or reading about others.
It causes you to form some very definite preferences for rifles and calibers. It also proves that nearly anything that is accurate will bring home the venison. I can tell you a couple of my all time favoirtes, with honorable mention to some others. First place goes to the .260 Rem, 7-08 Rem, 270 Win, and .280 Rem. Honorable mention goes to the .257R, 25-06, 7X57 and 6.5X55. Of course the old favorites the .308 and 30/06 are good choices, but far and away not my favorites. Some I don't particularly care for even though I've tried them are the .243 Win, and any of the .22's. Not that they won't work, they're just scratched from my personal list.
I've also come to like medium weight rifles, of around 6-3/4-7#. Lighter rifles are nice to carry, but hard to shoot on long shots, heavier are not needed for me and are tiresome to lug around. My shooting pal does like heavy barreled rifles for hunting out of our barn loft for long shots, though. Factory rifles that hit the right balance and weight right out of the box for me are the Ruger MKII stainless/syn and the Savage 16 stainless/syn for example.

Just picked up a Bushy Varminter 223 and its so accurate it might be in order for a couple of days in the stand. Head shots only though with the little 223

I'm almost finished converting my M94 to .357 maximum and would love to get a deer or two with it this year. I've never hunted big game with anything other than a Ruger #1 (270 and 30/06), so a lever gun with a peep sight will be fun change. I think I'll stick with the #1's for antelope and elk though.

A couple of years ago i picked up a Browning BLR 81' lightweight chambered in .358 win. Topped off with a Burris compact 2-7X 26mm scope it will keep Hornady 200gr spire points under 1" MOA. This should prove to be a great combo for deer and black bear and i cant wait to take her out and see what it will do. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I have a fairly simple rifle battery (all Ruger M77's or MkII's), but usually it's the '06 or my .375 H&H that goes out into the field the most. Yes, the .375 is a bit heavy for deer, but in reality it does alot less meat damage than the '06, .270, etc and any angle presented is an easy shot at any range. Anything I've ever shot with it has dropped in it's tracks... I just love that .375 Ruger RSM is all I can say. It's by far the finest rifle I've ever owned - fit/finish, features, etc.

I do have a new M77/RSI in .243 Win and have really grown to like it, but it's primarily my pest rifle - 'yotes, jacks, javelina, etc. It may go out during deer season though too...

I have other rifles to try but I will always reach for my #5 Enfield for the woods, and I have a new Stevens .308 for the logging roads and fields. They both shoot great.

Will try and get a .308 in time for deer season. Four others are on hand: a model 70 in 6.5x55 for stand hunting (not my favorite way to hunt), and a 99 Savage in .308 that needs a low power scope (2x7 sounds about right). A Mark X carbine in 7x57 is already scoped in QD mounts. Finally, a model 96 8X57 Husqvarna that just 'feels right and fits right'. The forend has been slimmed down, and with the barrel band swivel and recoil pad, its a pleasure to shoot. But the sights are awful (it can't be my eyes, can it?). Any suggestions that improved the sight picture on a similar rifle are welcome, but it has to stay iron sights only. A 336A in .30-30 is off to a friend and has XS sights. He is a lever action only man. Good forture to all.