Best Round for Deer Hunting in Western Oregon?

[brokenarrow]

It's all about where you shoot them, more than what with. As my dad said "it's not the noise that kills them". Pick and shoot what you are comfortable with. There's more than one way to skin a cat and thankfully more than one rifle-cartridge combo to use for deer hunting. Everyone have a safe and prosperous New Year!

 

[ducksoup]

I love the old 25-35. The only rifle my grandfather ever owned and he killed lots of deer and even a few elk with it. My dad remembers hunting elk with him in the early 50's and watched him pole axe a cow elk at about 100 yards. She never took a single step, just dropped where she stood. My uncle got that gun and I was with him several times in western washington out of snohomish when he killed his deer with it. Where we hunted a 100 yard shot was a long shot. The brush was so thick you just couldn't see that far. But man was there a lot of deer up there! On my 50th birthday my dad surprised me with an old 1894 in 25-35 that's exactly like Grandpa's except with a Lyman peep sight. Best birthday gift ever! I had a tough time finding ammo for it so I finally bought dies and 150 rounds of new Winchester brass for it and I'm set for my life anyway. I have yet to kill a deer with it but who knows.......maybe this year!

 

[Silver Hand]

I love the old 25-35. The only rifle my grandfather ever owned and he killed lots of deer and even a few elk with it. My dad remembers hunting elk with him in the early 50's and watched him pole axe a cow elk at about 100 yards. She never took a single step, just dropped where she stood. My uncle got that gun and I was with him several times in western washington out of snohomish when he killed his deer with it. Where we hunted a 100 yard shot was a long shot. The brush was so thick you just couldn't see that far. But man was there a lot of deer up there! On my 50th birthday my dad surprised me with an old 1894 in 25-35 that's exactly like Grandpa's except with a Lyman peep sight. Best birthday gift ever! I had a tough time finding ammo for it so I finally bought dies and 150 rounds of new Winchester brass for it and I'm set for my life anyway. I have yet to kill a deer with it but who knows.......maybe this year!

If you want to have a real kick shooting with the 25-35 look into casting lead bullets for it and maybe for what ever else you shoot. The most sought after molds for the 25/35 produced 100 grain pills with or without a gas check, at a cost of almost nothing, about .14 cents a round complete with a gas check, once a guy is set up with a pot mold and the sizer set up. A fun round no doubt.
My grand son shot many more than I could ever count wile growing up.
Silver Hand

 

[ducksoup]

I'd love to start casting bullets but I'm retired and living in an apartment. Not really practical to do that here. I did buy several hundred 1/2 jacket bullets from a friend. I think they're about 60 grains? Loaded up a bunch with IMR 3031and they shoot great. I have a group of hunting buddies that will go out in the woods 2 or 3 times a year just to go plinking. Usually we'll designate what to bring, nothing but 22 rimfires one time, varmint rounds the next and so on. A couple times we've said to just bring old time cartriges. I have my 25-35, one guy shoots an old Marlin lever in 25-20, a couple old pumps in 25 remington and even an old bolt gun in either 30 or 35 remington? Anyway, we have a blast! Those old iron sight guns are amazingly accurate too. Lots of fun! I take my grandkids to when they get up to about 9 or 10 years old. Great memories.

 

[Silver Hand]

I'd love to start casting bullets but I'm retired and living in an apartment. Not really practical to do that here. I did buy several hundred 1/2 jacket bullets from a friend. I think they're about 60 grains? Loaded up a bunch with IMR 3031and they shoot great. I have a group of hunting buddies that will go out in the woods 2 or 3 times a year just to go plinking. Usually we'll designate what to bring, nothing but 22 rimfires one time, varmint rounds the next and so on. A couple times we've said to just bring old time cartriges. I have my 25-35, one guy shoots an old Marlin lever in 25-20, a couple old pumps in 25 remington and even an old bolt gun in either 30 or 35 remington? Anyway, we have a blast! Those old iron sight guns are amazingly accurate too. Lots of fun! I take my grandkids to when they get up to about 9 or 10 years old. Great memories.

Just keep the lead in mind with the grand kids, the least physical contact they have with lead the better off they will be.
I had my grandson wearing disposable gloves wile handling lead rounds and wile he was pulling the handle on the reloading tools.
Silver Hand

 

[mjbskwim]

I would bet the 30-30 lever gun has taken as many deer in western Wa as any caliber out there.
maybe the 30'06 next? just cause of it's popularity? 308 is a great caliber,270,243 since the blacktails ain't that big.Heck a 44 mag in a long barrel revolver or a lever gun would work
30'06 could be considered overkill since you will be shooting at around 100 yards or less. So all the hot rod calibers would also
Not much of an issue in wettern wa.Bow hunting will do the job just fine

 

[ducksoup]

I'd love to start casting bullets but I'm retired and living in an apartment. Not really practical to do that here. I did buy several hundred 1/2 jacket bullets from a friend. I think they're about 60 grains? Loaded up a bunch with IMR 3031and they shoot great. I have a group of hunting buddies that will go out in the woods 2 or 3 times a year just to go plinking. Usually we'll designate what to bring, nothing but 22 rimfires one time, varmint rounds the next and so on. A couple times we've said to just bring old time cartriges. I have my 25-35, one guy shoots an old Marlin lever in 25-20, a couple old pumps in 25 remington and even an old bolt gun in either 30 or 35 remington? Anyway, we have a blast! Those old iron sight guns are amazingly accurate too. Lots of fun! I take my grandkids to when they get up to about 9 or 10 years old. Great memories.

Just keep the lead in mind with the grand kids, the least physical contact they have with lead the better off they will be.
I had my grandson wearing disposable gloves wile handling lead rounds and wile he was pulling the handle on the reloading tools.
Silver Hand

Good point!

 

[salmonriverjohn]

Ahh heck,, just to stir the pot up a bit on this tired old thread, and y'all knew some smart-hole would do it sooner or later,
The best all around cartridge ever made, the one against all others are judged and compared to is,,, beyond a shadow of a doubt the ,,
30-06!
Bring it on short mag boys and long mag fans,, ya know I'm right.

 

[ducksoup]

Yep, even though I don't own one and probably won't ever buy one, the '06 might be the best all around gun in the lower 48. But since the OP said best deer round for western Oregon, there just might be better rounds. Not that the 30-06 won't work and would be just fine, but.......?

 

[2A2Dend]

The 30-06 for both deer and elk. The 25-06 is also an excellent choice for deer.

 

[jbett98]

I like my 257 Roberts. Never had any complaints from the deer.

 

[Silver Hand]

Ahh heck,, just to stir the pot up a bit on this tired old thread, and y'all knew some smart-hole would do it sooner or later,
The best all around cartridge ever made, the one against all others are judged and compared to is,,, beyond a shadow of a doubt the ,,
30-06!
Bring it on short mag boys and long mag fans,, ya know I'm right.

Nothing wrong with the cartridge designed before 1903 - Adopted in full by 1906 as the U.S. military's 30-06 rifle and machine gun round, later converted to the 7.62x51.
After about fifty years it was brought up to date with knowledge of the difference in what twenty or more grains of power can do behind projectiles of the same weight and diameter that surpassed the old technology standards of the early 1900s. Cutting feet not inches off there thousand yard targets and hitting them with much more force, giving consideration to foot pounds of energy at range.. You simply get hit harder and die faster from a round from any given distance when hit with a magnum round.
As the .300 Win mag. had it's introduction as the new us sniper round used in Vietnam I was unknowingly developing the same round in my long range hunting rig and let me say I was very successful hunting at any range but if not for the .300 win mag my sights would have been held much higher and impact with the target at hand more marginal, given the math.
Silver Hand

 

[JRuby]

For my hunting the old 7x57 is what I reach for when deer hunting. I dont need the most powerful cartridge I want one that has enough reach and an enough horsepower to get the job done reliably. I love this cartridge it or the 6.6x55 are perfect for deer undet 400 yards which is farther than my personal limit.

 

[TM-Salem]

I brought my 1950 Waffletop 336A in 35 Remington with me... hope to use it this year.

 

[Captain O]

.30-'06 Statewide, .35 Remington in "brush country".

"There isn't much in life that a man can't fix, with $500.00 and a .30-'06".

It's quite simple, really.

 

[salmonriverjohn]

.30-'06 Statewide, .35 Remington in "brush country".

"There isn't much in life that a man can't fix, with $500.00 and a .30-'06".

It's quite simple, really.

I've had and have many different caliber hunting rifles, but the one that I always reach for when heading out is my old model 70 .30-06. Yes, it is quite simple isn't it.

 

[orygun]

30'06 could be considered overkill since you will be shooting at around 100 yards or less.

Ever hear of a thing called a clearcut? Been around Wayerhaueser land recently? Quite often a good place to find deer is on the side of a clearcut that you are not on!
Yep, there is a lot of places where shots, and your sight distance, is better marked in feet than yards, but that's not the only possibility. Unless that is how you want it.
I've not racked up an impressive list of kills and the ones that I have could have been handled with a 30-30, but I missed an opportunity for a very nice buck on the other side of a clearcut many moons ago because I ran out of gun. Maybe with lots of practice and a different set of sights I could have made that 300+ yard shot with my old Winchester 1894, but I doubt it. I prefer not to limit myself that much and I've moved past the point of having a safe full of guns to suit my mood that day.

30-06 for me.

 

[salmonriverjohn]

Yep, never considered "dead" as overkill Orygun.
Hit them in the wrong spot with a 6mm, .25 or any other caliber and your going to have a mess of blood shot meat on your hands.
Heart/lung area=dead, overkill?
Ain't no such thing, dead is dead.

 

[Captain O]

"Overkill"? What is that? I am unfamiliar with the concept.

 

[jbett98]

My best friend Ron hunts deer on his farm property with a 4" Security Six .357 Magnum pistol.
I will admit that it's kinda like shooting fish in a barrel, but the round does knock them down at 30 yds.