Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting The perfect muledeer rifle

For me I have shot the last couple with my Bannsner 7mm stw using 175 gr. nosler partitions with 73.5 grs of IMR 7828.

I have also shot some with my sako (lite) 300 win mag 180 gr partitions same powder 74 grs.

Both work Great!

I see that federal has come out with a 160gr. Accubond for the .280. After seeing the ballistics for the round I am really starting to think this might be the way I want to go. It is very compareable to my -06 in the 180gr. in the accubond. It shoots a little flatter has almost the same downrange energy and less recoil!!! A light weight .280 seems like a great muledeer rig.

c.d.,
the common 7mm class cartridges are uniformly excellent, and all will do pretty much the same job, on mule deer.....
the rifle that you carry will make the difference, and the model 70 classic featherweight is not currently offered in a .280...
it is offered in 7-08, and 7 WSM, as well as the ,270 & .270 wsm.....

there are certainly rifles available which equal or better the winchester in one way or another...
still the 70 classic featherweight is simply the best hunting rifle in it's class.....

Creeping Death..Federal also has a 140 grain Accubond in the 280 caliber..probably a better choice

oldguns, Just checked out the ballistics for the 140gr. accubond. Nice!! My only problem is that I need to get over the mind game thing I'm having a problem with. I've never owned anything but a .30 cal and never shot anything but .180gr. bullets. I need to get over this. I also just went to Ruger's web-site and the model 77 with a 22" barrel weight's the same as a featherweight. I might have to go to the local gun shop and shoulder one to see how it feels. I might have to start with 160gr's and work my confidence down to the 140's. The 140gr Accuboud has the trajectory I'm hoping for. CD

If I had to choose one it would be .270 Win. in a (quality) synthetic stocked bolt action with a 22-24" barrel, and scoped with quality optics in 3-9, or 3.5-10 range weighing in 7.0 to no more than 8.5lbs all set to go. I would load with a good quality 130 or 140 grain bullet. Up until a few years ago, it would be a 140 gr Hornady BTSP. Now I'd probably choose one of the polymer tipped bonded bullets such as the Nosler Accubond. A .280 Rem or .270 WSM built to the same specs would suit me just fine, but the .270 Win is a personal favorite.

-Lou

Remington Model 700 7mm Rem Mag, 150 grain Scirocco, handloaded. Forget factory ammo, handloads are the way to go in the 7 mag if you want to take advantage of the cartridge's true capability.

There's a lot of lot of 270 talk here, and that's worked for me. I've used 30/06 as well. Both are in Ruger #1s. The 270 was probably shooting some cheap 150 gr Speer soft point boattail handloads with W760 or IMR4831. With The 30/06 I've used 165 gr SST's, 180 gr Failsafe, and 168 gr ballistic silvertip. These were also handloads primarially with W760 but some were with IMR4831.

None of these were huge muleys (a mix of bucks and does), but all were one shot affairs.

25/06, 270, 280, 30/06 and the 257 or 7RM. Any of these would work slick as well as some of the short mags.

MtnHtr

I'm building right now what I think of as an ideal "all around" deer/sheep/goat rifle... M700 stainless Mtn rifle (ADL), Timney NULA trigger, Leupold FXII 6x36, Talley Lwt's, Bansner "Sheep Hunter" stock and aluminum adl trigger guard for 7lbs "all up" weight.

Brad- When you get done with that rifle let me know and I'll forward you my address for shipment to UT! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> I'm thinking something along that line would make the perfect compliment to my Ruger .338...unless I can convince the wife that a NULA version of the sam is ok!

GreatWaputi,

Amen to that treatise on quality optics!

I've had my Leupold 10x28 Golden Rings for quite a few years now and they cost a pretty penny but WOW what a difference it is to use a quality pair of of binos... Cheap/mediocre ones will quickly drive you insane and glassing for long periods can be a recipe for quite a headache. I now swear by the rule of "buy the best optics you can find and worry about how to pay for them later..."

They last nearly a lifetime if well cared for and the comfort and enjoyment they give is priceless.

I've always used heavy-for-caliber bullets in my rifles. Yes the lighter ones often work well but it's with the not-so-ideal shots that you really see the performance difference of the heavier bullet. I plan and train for those not-so-ideal shots, not the ideal ones.

All I've used is 180gr in my '06, though I admit I may try the 168gr TSX as I've heard so many excellent reports on it's performance and one-hole accuracy from numerous hunters.

PS: When it comes down to it, if you have a good 30-06 it's doubtful that you really NEED any other rifle for 99% of the world's game... That may be a boring fact, but it's the truth!

All the muleys (but one) I've shot have been with a 270, 700 BDL wearing a Leupold Vari X-III 2.5-7X. I've used my reloads everytime. 130gr. Nosler.
This past fall I changed things, I wanted to take the skunk off my new Model 70 338 that wears a new Leupold VX-III 2.5-8X. I used my reloads on this one also and was shooting 225gr. Noslers.

For me, the perfect rifle would be my .280 Ackley Improved with 120grain Nosler BT @3300+. It weighs 8.25 lbs field ready and shoots under 1/2 an inch with this particular load.

Good Shooting,
HBB

Ruger mk11 30-06,kills deer dead

buck

Find you an older Featherweigt Mod.70 or Ruger in 7x57.Use Hornadys LIGHT MAGNUM ammo w/139 gr bullet or handload 51.5 RL 19 W/any 139-140gr.bullet at 2850-2900.Put a variable Leupold 2x7 or 8 or even a 3x9 and go huntin.A perfect lightweight rifle for game you mentioned that can also double on elk and caribou out to 300 yds. with the Barnes 150tsx or 150 Partition.

Being a California resident who gets to hunt Mule Deer only on successful draws in other states I will also suggest my .54 front stuffer. Much easier to draw the muzzle loader tags, so this rifle lets me hunt more often. And hunting with a 100 yard rifle in 1000 yard country does make it more like a hunt rather than a shoot. And I have never had any deer go too far after being hit with one of those 435 grain maxi balls.

You asked about the rifle and caliber for Mulies?
First the rifle.
My choice is an easy to pack well balanced accurate enough bolt rifle with which I can also shoot well offhand. For me that is presently a Rem. 700 KS in .270 cal. or the one in .300 WBY. On it I use a well padded sling for comfort. I match the weight/length of the scope to the balance of the rifle. The largest scope for hunting I ever consider is a 3x9. My taste goes now more to fixed powers, where in my view 4x or 6x are where it is all at for hunting big game in open country. I always leave my scope flip-up covers in the truck when hunting.
For long range checking the trophy or scanning the terrain I use BINOCULARS.
I DO NOT install a Harris or similar bipod. They are ackward and destroy a fine rifles handling characteristics. They are good for ambush/sniping shots only. Instead I carry Stoney Points quick to use lightweight colapsible crossed sticks for sitting shots. Prone shots if grass length allows goes over the day-pack.
Caliber wise? for trophy hunting?
The best cartridge is the one that with a premium bullet can traverse the animal into the heart/lung area from any angle!!
That leaves us with a whole swath to choose from, one as effective as the other. Pick from those what installs confidence in you.
For me that covers many of the .264 to the various .300 Mags and standards .

I have never hunted muledeer, but if I were preparing today for a hunt scheduled this fall, I would be loading 140 grain Nolser Accubonds into 270 Weatherby mag cases. Then I would put a Leupold VX3 4.5-14x with Leupold dot reticle onto a Ruger number 1 rifle. That should do the trick and be a little different too.