Long gun recommendations needed for deer season

[bgcatty]

What about a Henry lever action rifle in .45 Colt or .44 Magnum? After all most shots would be within a 100 yards and either caliber would do the trick.

 

[Gun Chooter]

Yes i am considering the 77/44. How do you like it? And do you mean finicky in terms of accuracy or function? Thats another reason im not too interested in a muzzle loader since i dont hunt fields hardly at all.

 

[Gun Chooter]

Yeah, me too. It's all good and it's all fun.

A third hand TC fifty cal muzzleloader rebored to fresh fast twist rifling is a mighty fine thing to behold.
But if you do need to use brass .35 Remington and .45-70 sure are hard to beat.

Yes both are an absolute blast. But i have really come to love bow over firearm. Rewarding, and you dont have to figght heards of gun hunters. Actually get to enjoy some peace and quiet. Except for the squirrels.

 

[Gun Chooter]

Im putting a scope on my new rifle and i dont like scopes on lever guns. I know im weird. Like them both, just not together. Last year i had a doe come in on me that picked up my scent. Stopped dead in her tracks broadside behind a tree covering her whole body. This was right before she stepped into an opening in which i was going to pull the trigger. All i could see was her head staring at me for about 3-5 min then turned back the way she came. Only chance i had was a head shot. Pissed me off. Sorry if someone may not like it but this year if i run into doe in the same situation im placing a shot right between the eyes. A scope would give me confidence to place a clean shot in this situation. Not about wounding deer. Where i hunt the pressure is high and deer act odd at times. Not as mutch traffic and consistency as private. So my goal this year is to take advantage of every opportunity i can, with gun season being geared towards lots of meat in the freezer.

 

[Redleg11b]

I am a fan of the 44 Rem Mag in the application you intend, but I currently have a H&R in 357 Mag I may be using this year. I intend to ream it to 357Max before too long and start some load development for it. The SOCOM and Bushmaster cartridges are much more expensive to purchase than the 44RM, but cost will come down some if you reload. A few other suggestions as far as rifle options: Ruger Deerfield Carbine (semi-auto 44 Rem Mag) may be available on the used market (no idea of current asking prices), buy a used Savage (or a deeply discounted new old stock) and swap the barrel to the 458 or 450 for a good bolt gun, many times the T/C Contenders and Encores can be found complete with scope for about $600 or less if you catch one before it is snagged up, CVA and the H&R have already been mentioned.

I know you don't like scopes on lever guns, but I had a compact Weaver 2.5x scope on my 1894 in 44 that worked well out to 150. I whole heartedly recommend Federal Fusion, and used it to take a few deer before unemployment forced me to sell the rifle many years ago.

 

[Gun Chooter]

I am a fan of the 44 Rem Mag in the application you intend, but I currently have a H&R in 357 Mag I may be using this year. I intend to ream it to 357Max before too long and start some load development for it. The SOCOM and Bushmaster cartridges are much more expensive to purchase than the 44RM, but cost will come down some if you reload. A few other suggestions as far as rifle options: Ruger Deerfield Carbine (semi-auto 44 Rem Mag) may be available on the used market (no idea of current asking prices), buy a used Savage (or a deeply discounted new old stock) and swap the barrel to the 458 or 450 for a good bolt gun, many times the T/C Contenders and Encores can be found complete with scope for about $600 or less if you catch one before it is snagged up, CVA and the H&R have already been mentioned.

I know you don't like scopes on lever guns, but I had a compact Weaver 2.5x scope on my 1894 in 44 that worked well out to 150. I whole heartedly recommend Federal Fusion, and used it to take a few deer before unemployment forced me to sell the rifle many years ago.

Thanks for the reply. Options as you know are limited for me on public ground, and with all of the recommendations ill probably give a cva or h&r single shot in 44 mag a try. My budget of $600 will have me set with the rifle, good scope/rings and lots of ammo to practice. If for some reason im not a fan i can always switch it up the following year. Wife gets so irritated with the buying and selling of guns, but you just dont know till you try it! Your 357 max sound like a fun project. If you get around to doing it post some info on it, im sure others would be interested as well.

 

[oldpink]

Maybe your vision is good enough that you have confidence with iron sights, but if you find (as I hate to admit I did) that having the inherent advantages of a scope start outweighing the disadvantages, there is no reason at all to use a high magnification scope that would limit your field of view and make it nearly impossible to shoot at very close range.
For a good all around scope, there are plenty of decent makes of them that can even go as low as 1x (zero magnification) or 1.5x-2.5x, and you can even get something along the lines of a high quality variable with very low magnification at the bottom end and about 5x for the top end that would give you an advantage for around the 100 yard range.
I realize that it's considered sacrilege to most lever gun mavens, but I currently have a Hawke 2.5x-10x scope on my Marlin 1894 .45 Colt, an arrangement that has allowed me to cleanly take three deer in as many years.
I just keep the magnification turned all the way down to 2.5x while waiting, then should the deer show up at longer distance, I have enough time to turn the magnification a bit, but I'm ready to go should the deer show up very close, as they have done more than once.
You seem confident with iron sights, so you can hunt with those for as long as you're comfortable with those, but set aside a bit for the future should things change and you find that you'd benefit from a scope.
Just some thoughts and suggestions, mind you.

 

[Gun Chooter]

Oldpink, thankfully my eye sight is good but i know that will change with time. Hopefully a fair amount of time. Confident with irons but i feel that a low magnification scope will increase my odds. For me, bow season is more about the hunt, with gun season being more about the meat. I was looking at a vortex scope today that is about a 2.5-8 power. Was thinking along the lines of your strategy would be ideal. Just looking for pin point accuracy that hits hard.

 

[Deet]

I switched to the 35 Remington in a single shot and have not been disappointed. Great knockdown, very accurate and inexpensive to get started. I found a reloader in South Bend called Rose Reloading and he usually is at the gun shows in northern Indiana selling 35 Remington in the cut down brass. Price of the ammo $1 a round.

 

[Leadeye]

Lever gun in 44 mag if you don't reload, 45 Colt if you do.

Reloading pays off quickly and with cast bullets you can not only get in lots of inexpensive practice, but hunt with them as well.

 

[Gun Chooter]

I switched to the 35 Remington in a single shot and have not been disappointed. Great knockdown, very accurate and inexpensive to get started. I found a reloader in South Bend called Rose Reloading and he usually is at the gun shows in northern Indiana selling 35 Remington in the cut down brass. Price of the ammo $1 a round.

Price isnt too bad, but trying to stay away from unique chamberings.

 

[two70]

I like the 458 but, cost of ammo. And generally "different" is costly as well. 44 is still a steong contender

Yes i am considering the 77/44. How do you like it? And do you mean finicky in terms of accuracy or function? Thats another reason im not too interested in a muzzle loader since i dont hunt fields hardly at all.

You could build or buy a .450 Bushmaster upper for less cost than the 77/44 if you already have an AR. Ammo is cheaper than the .458 too.

 

[NKBJ]

You could have a nicely accurate buffalo stopping hunting rifle for less, shooting paper patched soft lead bullets.
Why bother satisfying goofy bureaucrats on what cartridges they insist upon? Tell them to stuff it up their brass.
The only question to be answered is flint or percussion.

 

[dancrichy]

I've been doing some research into the .308 and it seems like an excellent round. As far as I know you can now use 30 caliber cartridges for deer. I've also heard great things about the 6.5 creedmore. Right now the .308 is more available but it looks like the 6.5 could become very popular and available soon.

 

[M67]

I've been doing some research into the .308 and it seems like an excellent round. As far as I know you can now use 30 caliber cartridges for deer. I've also heard great things about the 6.5 creedmore. Right now the .308 is more available but it looks like the 6.5 could become very popular and available soon.

On PRIVATE ground

It's a whitetail, plenty have been taking with a .410 gauge lead hunk, there's plenty of capable deer rounds it's just you need a round that is legal for where you hunt

 

[bobjones223]

If you don't want to drop a lot, a CVA single shot in 44 mag or 450 Bushmaster

Lever gun, maybe an older (pre Remington) 44 mag Marlin 1894

AR upper, 450 Bushmaster upper. 450 is a nasty round. Bushmaster does weird production schedules though so finding one of those might be difficult, you might have to get a Windham Weaponry 450 Thumper upper and just shoot BM out of it

+1 on everything stated above...I looked at the SOCOM but noticed the .450 had better balistics.

That being said...I am still running 44 mag and 45 Colt, I even hunt private land 100% of the time. Never felt I needed more for where I hunt.

 

[ru44mag]

Thanks, this is what I've been leaning towards the most since last year, but felt there may be better options. From what I've read, the 450 bushmaster would have better terminal ballistics over the 44 mag? Most appealing about the 44 handi rifle is I could have it scoped with ammo in hand for less than the alternative rifles alone. There is the cva 450 but it appears availability is limited?

Sorry. I did not finish the thread so, hopefully this is not a repeat. I have taken many deer over the years with muzzle loader, 12 gauge, 44 mag and last year my old 30-06. This year I plan to use my old 6.5x55 Swedish mauser because I have wanted to use it for so many years. But out of all of them, the 44 mag is my favorite. If you plan to keep your shots under 100 yards it will do very well. It is my opinion that it kills faster than a 30-06 at 50 yards. I like the lever guns, but my little brother has killed a bunch of deer with a Rossi single shot 44 mag that is scoped. Just my

 

[Gun Chooter]

You could have a nicely accurate buffalo stopping hunting rifle for less, shooting paper patched soft lead bullets.
Why bother satisfying goofy bureaucrats on what cartridges they insist upon? Tell them to stuff it up their brass.
The only question to be answered is flint or percussion.

Haha i like your style but right now its not quite mine. Not looking to venture into something im unfamiliar with this late. Not ruling it out for the future.

 

[Gun Chooter]

Sorry. I did not finish the thread so, hopefully this is not a repeat. I have taken many deer over the years with muzzle loader, 12 gauge, 44 mag and last year my old 30-06. This year I plan to use my old 6.5x55 Swedish mauser because I have wanted to use it for so many years. But out of all of them, the 44 mag is my favorite. If you plan to keep your shots under 100 yards it will do very well. It is my opinion that it kills faster than a 30-06 at 50 yards. I like the lever guns, but my little brother has killed a bunch of deer with a Rossi single shot 44 mag that is scoped. Just my

Thank you this is info i like to hear. I like this option bc its the least expensive and checks out on most everything im wanting. Reviews say the h&r rifles are hit and miss though (accuracy), no punn intended. Some say they are tac drivers, some aay they dont group for shat.

 

[Small's]

If your using an ar platform i would go 450 since its cheaper to shoot. If not a lever gun or bolt gun in 44 mag. Most people dont realize that a 44mag out of a rifle is right there with a 30/30 ballistically at normal woods distances. Or heck just use a muzzleoader for both firearms and muzzleloader season. The old muzzle cannon with a good 45 cal bullet and a 3 pellets puts out a serious punch. Even two pellets is great and shoots a tad better.