.30-06, .270, .243

last year texas trophy hunter mag said the .06 sold the most. i use .06 and love it.

Welcome to The Forum. We won't hold it against you for mentioning the TTHA, or at least too much.

In texas it is either the 30-06 or .270. The 243 is probably #3.

FWIW there is an article in today's Houston Chromicle sports section which states that the 270 is the most popular deer rifle in Texas.

I would go with the 270 since that is all I had ever shot growing up, but agree with Ringer that the 7mag stops them dead in their tracks.

I vote the .30-06. Everyone has one, has been around forever, and is the best "do it all" cartridge there is IMO.

I use the 30-30 winchester (open site@ 40 yrs of age ) my grandpa used dated to the early 1900's.
Dad uses a 250-3000 savage, then when he is feelin frisky a 300 win mag.
Brother a 30-06
my boys a .223

Don't worry crazyhorse I hunt 80 acres low fence from a camp with no electricity. I think TTHA members have bigger feeder spread patterns than my setup.

270 may be pop.but it is my least fav.use to own one never will again....

That is highly possible.

I'm stay with the 30-06, been good for years, ammo easy the find,evan at most little stores, easy to reload for. Just like the 06, and I have four of them.

Gotta be the 270

Yeah, I'd say any deer should be scared of a hunter using a 30-06 with a huge scope sitting in a blind not 50 Yards from a feeder! LMAO

I use a .308 here in West Texas

270 for me.

.270, 30-06, .243. and don't forget about the 30-30.

I have shot a 243 exclusively and killed many deer. I have dropped them in their tracks, some run a short distance and one run 80 yards on me.

Those that dropped had great shot placement. Those that ran off did not. It has to do more with shot placement than anything else, in my own opinion.

The one that ran off was front shot and completely broke the front left leg. I've dropped them as close as 100 yards and as far out as 340. The long shot was in the panhandle where they hunt wide open winter wheat fields.

I am concerned about the knockdown power at longer distances. I like the 243 because it is a very fast round with little drop to it. The larger calibres have more grains to the bullet but they do drop a lot quicker.

I have been toying with the idea of getting a 270 however.

Any recommendations on make and model?

Best all around for texas would have to be the .270 and 30-06 IMO. I hunt in alot brush, close shots(under 75 yds, so the 30-30 is my choice) For me the 30-30 is good upto 125 yrds. Just my opinion.
Just say the chance comes upto go to Co, Wy, Mo, or other larger game places the 30-06 is better to have.
From what I understand in some states a 30 plus caliber is required for elk etc. That said Id pick a 30-06, .308, or 300 mag for my next big gun. My fathers 300 Win mag is sweet. Only feel the kick target shooting tho..........

Quote:

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The larger calibres have more grains to the bullet but they do drop a lot quicker.

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I call.

Not sure what weight bullet your using in that 243, but if it's a legitimate deer load, and shoots flatter than my 300 Weatherby pushing 150 grain Noslers at 3600 fps, I'll kiss Ole Crazy Horse on the mouth.

300 Weatherby
150 NOS 3540 3263 3004 2759 2528 2307
ft-lbs 4173 3547 3004 2536 2128 1773
trajectory +1.0 -4.9 -14.6 - 29.7
29.7 at 500 yards.

243 Winchester
70 HP 3400 3070 2760 2470 2200
ft-lbs 1950 1795 1465 1185 950 755 590
trajectory +.08 -5.7 -17.1 -35.7
35.7 at 500 yards.

"Not sure what weight bullet your using in that 243, but if it's a legitimate deer load, and shoots flatter than my 300 Weatherby pushing 150 grain Noslers at 3600 fps, I'll kiss Ole Crazy Horse on the mouth."

Good post. Thanks for your Opinion. Man that is some ft/lbs/e DRT. Cant wait much longer and we (DAV) are really looking forward to meeting you Mike.

.308 would be my choice if you are looking for a flat tragectory. The choice of snipers.

It didn't become the standard sniper caliber because of it's flat trajectory.
100 200 300 400 500
165 SP-LM 2880 2655 2441 2237 2043 1859
FT-LBs 3038 2582 2182 1833 1529 1286
trajectory +2.0 -7.9 -22.7 -45.9

As you can see, some of our 300's have a far flatter trajectory.

In a military setting, logistical concerns are the primary determinant of the cartridge used, so sniper rifles are usually limited to rifle cartridges commonly used by the military force employing the rifle. Since large national militaries generally change slowly, military rifle ammunition is frequently battle-tested and well-studied by ammunition and firearms experts. Consequently, police forces tend to follow military practices in choosing a sniper rifle cartridge instead of trying to break new ground with less-perfected (but possibly better) ammunition.

Before the introduction of the 7.62 × 51 mm NATO in the 1950s, standard military calibers utilised were the .30-06 Springfield (United States), .303 British (United Kingdom) and 7.92 × 57 mm (8 mm Mauser) (Germany). The .30-06 Springfield continued in service with U.S. Marine Corps snipers during the Vietnam War in the 1970s, well after general adoption of the 7.62 × 51 mm. At the present time, in both the West and within NATO, 7.62 × 51 mm NATO (.308 Winchester) is currently the primary cartridge of choice for over 90% of military and police sniper rifles.[citation needed]

Worldwide, the trend is similar. The preferred sniper rifle in Russia is another .30 caliber military cartridge—the 7.62 × 54 mm R, which has similar performance to the 7.62 × 51 mm NATO. This cartridge was introduced in 1891, and both Russian sniper rifles of the modern era, the Mosin-Nagant and the Dragunov (SVD), are chambered for it.

Certain commercial cartridges designed without the logistical constraints of most armies and only performance in mind have also gained popularity in the 1990s—these include the .338 Lapua and .300 Winchester Magnum. These cartridges offer better ballistic performance and greater effective range than the 7.62 × 51 mm NATO. Though they are not as powerful as .50 calibre cartridges (e.g. the .50 BMG), they also do not suffer any weight penalty as is the case for rifles chambered for .50 calibre ammunition, and, as such, offer a significant improvement over rifles chambered for the 7.62 × 51 mm NATO.

Like I said before, my choice would be the .308. I own many rifles including the .308, 30-06, .243, .30-30, .223, and have been looking into purchasing a .300. Any suggestions?

I'm sorry for misspeaking before, all I meant was that it was a very flat tragectory leaving the barrel. Almost all other calibers will rise on you leaving the barrel.