I started hunting with a 243. Got tired of shooting deer and having them run off out of sight with a lame blood trail. It did kill them I just had to go find them.. I shoot a 30 or 35 now and see better results, less tracking better shorter blood trails. Most now drop out of the scope when I shoot. And I am shooting bigger older deer now than when I started. Others may have different results. Those are the results I have seen from my own shooting and the many many other people I have hunted with.