deer rifles?

Question

i want a .243 or a .270 which cal would be better at around 120-175 yrd.

i would like a semi-auto but i would like a bolt action too which would be better for deer hunting

Answer 1

There are quite a number of us old hunters about who have an irresistable urge to duck for cover when we see an autoloader in the deer woods. Get the bolt gun. All you need is a single-shot, so firepower is not a positive.
On the other hand, 243 will require that you be careful with your shot selection, and you'll have to use premium bullets or risk bullet failure on the really close shots. 270 is not one of my favorite deer calibers, but it would be a better choice, as would any of the 6.5 to 7 mm standard calibers (no need for a magnum).

Answer 2

I would buy a 30-06 in either a Browning BAR or Benneli for semi auto, if bolt I would get a Remington 700 or Weatherby. If you are on a budget get a Savage. Do not skimp on optics get a Leupold VXII or better, Burris Fullfield II or better, or a Nikon Monarch or Bushnell elite or better.

If between a 243 and 270 get the 270 however the velocity of a 270 will bloodshot a lot of meat at close range. If you are limited to 175 yard and will only shoot deer then a 243 will be fine as well and give the option of some smaller and lighter rifles without excessive recoil.

Bottom line go and shoulder some guns and pick what YOU like not what some people on the internet tell you to get.

Answer 3

I deer hunted with a .243 Browning bolt action for several years. My longest shot was around 250 yards. Never lost a deer. But some of them ran a little way before dropping.
I've heard many good things of the .270 caliber. It is highly praised. I never had one.
I stepped up to a .308 Browning bolt action (with the 'BOSS'). It is very accurate. I can tell the difference in the 'clean' kills with the .308 caliber. The farthest I ever I had to track a deer shot with this gun is about 20 yards.
It seems to me that a whole lot of 30 caliber rifles are selling heavier these days.
As it's already been said, take into account what else you may hunt, where you may hunt, if you are planning on another rifle in the future, and most of all, what feels good when you shoulder the gun. The better the feel, the more confident you can be.
Good luck, happy hunting, and Merry Christmas!

Answer 4

Either caliber would be fine and either a semi or a bolt would be fine. It's really your call.
That's the joy of hunting, meeting some friends and talking about this caliber or that, this style or that, but you know what? They all work. I've used both and wouldn't put either one down. (One strange fact is that it's illegal to hunt with a semi here in PA. Don't ask me why, it makes no sense, I've seen some guys empty a lever action faster then a semi can.)

Unlike everybody else I'm not going to tell you to choose my caliber. There are too many good sized cartridges for deer so picking one is pretty much simply personal choice. Anything between .243 and.30 is fine. What's that, about 50 different cartridges? I would concern myself more with choosing a rifle that you will be comfortable with, with your style of hunting. Do you hunt the fields where you don't move often and sit in a stand and make long shot? A long heavy barrel with big scope sounds good. Will you be still hunting where you are constantly moving up and down hills in the brush? A short light rifle sounds nice.
There is no solid definite answer to this question, only opinions.

Answer 5

If the terrain isn't an issue, and you plan on always having a clear 120 - 175 yd shot, either will work just fine. Personally, I do not like semi-auto's in deer rifles; and almost always prefer the bolt-action, except in the case of a 30-30.

That is a pretty short-range shot, you're almost in the territory of where a 30-30 lever action would be ideal; for me the 30-30 is great to 150 yds; and in wooded or heavy cover areas.

You'll also want to consider what other type of hunting do you do now, and what else you may want to do in the future. If you will be hunting other deer, antelope, etc, where you may have much longer range shots, I'd go with the 270. This is, of course, if you plan on using that rifle for all your hunts. If you can afford having a different rifle for different scenarios; get them both!

Answer 6

It depends how challenging you want it to be. The most challenging here would be a bolt .243. You would have to be real accurate because of the small round and the slower second shot time. If you want it easy get the .270 in semi, bigger bullet, and easier to get a second shot off quickly. Either way you should pay close attention to accuracy. I would personally choose the bolt .270, because I like bolts and I've got a personal bias against .243 deer rifles.

Answer 7

Okay, here is what you are facing . . . Do you always want to be in a long-range sighting of a buck? . . . Because if you are in any kind of brush at all . . . The 243 Swift may not be what you are looking for . . . As it is also extremely high-powered, it may not be compatible with the possibility of twigs getting in the way, etc. Now, personally, as far as I am concerned, I would much rather own a 270 Winchester Pump than any other Deer Rifle manufactured; and that is including a 30.06 . . . By any manufacturer. And "They" say that the Ought-Six is the best overall deer rifle on the market. I just don't think so. I really feel that the 270 Winchester Pump is the best . . . The barrel is just right in length and fire-power is strong and solid, but yet, it is not so high-velocity that the Core-lock projectile will be subject to splitting too much from a shattering stick, twig, tree branch, etc. Actually, if you are in some mostly wide-open spaces then the 243 Swift is outstanding. I can see why you want to go for that too. Good luck. I don't go deer hunting anymore . . . I wish that I did but that is now a past era of my life . . . My entire family was raised on venison sausage . . . Mixed 50/50 with pork and smoked . . . Leaning more toward OAK and less toward HICKORY as the latter one has a tendency to cause Heartburn . . . BTW, I would never own an automatic deer rifle . . . What is considered to be "Semi-automatic" . . . Meaning of course that it's not a machine-gun. We always called them automatics though . . . But anyway, they are still subject to jamming and you don't want to ever have that big buck in your sights and after one shot, have to call your rifle store guy from your deer stand. And that old boy is just standing there looking, and wondering what was that? . . . I heard it but I didn't feel anything!

Answer 8

Personally I would go with a 30 -06 but if you are set on the other 2 go with the 270 and definitely bolt action . mossberg has a bolt action rifle that has amazing out of the box accuracy the make it in all of the above calibers and its less than 300 dollars

Answer 9

No straight answers only opinions eh?

Both calibers are good @ that range, if your hunting in any kind of bush go w/the 270. The 243 is faster & more prone to deflect easier. Both are outstanding cartrages.
Semi-automatic is nice, costs more & has the chance to jam easier than a bolt action.
So the choice is yours.
Good hunting

Answer 10

Go with the 270 in a Browning BAR. Very accurate guns, argably as accurate as any out of the box bolt action. Plus with the 270 you can hunt animals as large as elk. Jack O'conner used a .270 on the largest African game (although I wouldnt recommend that!)