A cartridge may feel like it is ready to do anything when it has a flat trajectory, light recoil, and tight groups. At the deer woods that confidence is true. With bigger bodies, heavier bone, steeper angles, the same rounds may explode steam in a minute.
Bullet construction has been advanced, though hard limits remain constant: mass, construction and impact velocity determine whether the projectile attains vital depth and disruption sufficient to terminate the process with a swift and successful exit. There is a purpose behind older rules of thumb, such as the frequently-repeated notion that deer-sized game requires about 1,000 ft-lbs of energy to be deposited onto it, and larger game requires even more.
1. .223 Remington
The .223 Remington is worth its paper accolades: the weapon has low recoil, rapid follow-up, and precision that makes unpractised shooters appear experienced. The common 55-grain loads in the 3,200 fps range appear to be respectable in small game and predator work, but when the game becomes dense the shoulder bone, dense muscular tissue, and the quartering angles it presents on alert running game all intervene, its trouble begins.
Tighter bullets still do not get much penetration consistency on heavy-bodied game despite the cartridge with its restricted frontal area and modest momentum. It will operate under confined conditions, but can and should begin to part ways very fast when there is but one shot window and much animal to be traversed.
2. 5.56×45mm NATO
Since it has the same bullet diameter as.223, 5.56 NATO is frequently considered as a mere upgrade. The spec of higher pressure can provide velocity, but it does not alter that which is the most important on large animals, the dependability with which a bullet will drive deeply after striking boning and tissue at the hunting range.
There are heavier projectiles, but even the addition of weight in the same small caliber provides a narrow wound profile as compared to the traditional big-game rounds. Practically it is a small-bore choice which will insist on narrow conditions and stern restraint.
3. .22-250 Remington
The .22-250 is a speed specialist. It fires at prey at approximately 3,800 fps with light bullets that hit with force, speed and in a dramatic way. The same speed may be a disadvantage with larger animals where high upset and fragmentation at a high speed decrease the straight-line penetration.
Hunters are occasionally lured by the fame of the cartridge into believing that velocity is a replacement of bullet diameter and weight. That trade may be able to put shallow wound channels on larger bodies, particularly when hit when velocity has bled off downrange.
4. .243 Winchester
The .243 Winchester is approaching the peripherals of the big-game discourse in that it has so much to offer: easy recoil, great precision, and an almost limitless bullet weight. It is popular in deer sized game, but its ceiling appears when the animals are heavier and the angles are worse.
Terminal consistency and penetration are crucial to the choice of projectile. Most 6mm bullets are made thin and varmint and some of the standard deer loads will fail to make an exit at broadside. One technical debate observes traditional.243 shooting penetration anticipations between 12 and 14 inches in some conditions, and promptly restricts shooting chances when the animal is quartering or heavy in the shoulder.
Impact speed performance cliffs are also in existence. This is a fast cartridge, and does its best business in a distance of about 200 yards, as the longer the distance the greater the accuracy required and care taken to match the bullets. The.243 is still competent in its own lane, but it can be easy to go out of that lane and not even notice.
5. 7.62×39mm
The 7.62x39mm is hard, ubiquitous, and is not hard to shoot. Its normal 123-grain loads of approximately 2,350 fps can shoot deer at medium range when combined with suitable bullets and realistic range restrictions.
Its faults are manifested in form of range stretches. Velocity and energy are rapidly lost, and the arc and wind-sensitivity of the cartridge are very sensitive to the control of the hold than many a hunter would expect a rifle-shot to be. In larger-bodied animals, low velocity will decrease expansion reliability and deep penetration will be less reliably counted.
6. .30 Carbine
30 Carbine is frequently found in convenient, light rifles, which feel right in thick cover. It shoots more like a hot handgun load than a modern deer rifle load, which usually propels a 110-grain bullet at approximately 1,990 fps.
It has a very short range and can only be used with care on small-to-medium game but it is deficient in both range and reserve penetration. It lacks sufficient margin of error to be used as a general-purpose hunting choice on heavy animals or a difficult angle to shoot at.
7. .17 HMR
17 HMR is a precision rimfire, which is designed to shoot at small targets. A common load propels a 17-grain bullet at velocities of more than 2,500 feet per second, and this has it shoot flatter than most would imagine of a rimfire. Its bullet weight and energy level however do not make it out to be more than a small-game. In deer-sized animals it does not compare in penetration with that required to ensure consistent vital reach across bone and muscle, and its small margin further increases the probability of wounding instead of rapid healing.
A similar practical restriction is also marked by minimum caliber regulations in many jurisdictions on big game. All the cartridges are honest about their work, varmints, predators, targets, and controlled deer work at a close range. Having popularity as blanket recommendation is where trouble begins, and when a round selected to provide comfort is called upon to perform heavy work. Ultimately, there is no such slogan as enough gun. It consists in the quantifiable combination of the speed of impact, the integrity of bullets, and depth of penetration, adjusted to the dimensions of the animal and the types of angles the field is actually producing.
