.30 Caliber Bullet Weight for Deer

[WisBorn]

What is your favorite bullet weight for .30 caliber cartridges while hunting deer?
30-30, 308win, 30-06, 300mags, ext....

If you use a slightly different weight please choose the weight closest to your favorite bullet.

 

[Buzznrose]

I believe basically any .30 bullet will kill deer. I like the 165-168 because my .308 prefers them. My 30.30 likes 150’s. If I had an ‘06 or .300 mag, I’d likely be slinging 180’s if the gun liked them.

 

[JmacD]

I run differently depending on. 178 in 308 and’06. 212 or 220 in 300(PRC)

 

[Patocazador]

My Winchester 94 shoots all over the place with factory ammo. 125 gr. Sierra hollow points and IMR 3031 turn it into a target gun.
My FIL's 94 won't shoot with any accuracy except for the 170 gr. factory stuff. My .30-06s like 150 gr. handloads.

Different loads for different guns as far as bullet weight goes. They will all kill deer.

 

[.38 Special]

I generally believe the 180 is the best compromise, though it does depend on the cartridge. The smaller cartridges can struggle with the bigger bullet, while the big Magnums can do really well with even a 200.

I will say that I've had amazing results with 220 grain soft/round nose in the .30-'06. These generally only hit 2300 or 2400 fps, and they are not great choices for 300+ yard shots. For shots out to 200 yards or so, though, there really is very little additional drop or drift, and the things hit shockingly hard. For hunting in the forest - up to and including elk - there is hardly anything I'd prefer over the .30-'06/220.

 

[dh1633pm]

I go 150-168 due to the twist of my rifle. It does well with these.

 

[LoonWulf]

Ive had good results with 125s on up from my 06s and 300s.
Liked 160win wirh the 30-30

I prefer 165+ bullets in 30 as a general practice now tho, really dont care for 150s, but thats more prejudice then anything.

 

[Laphroaig]

I've used 165's since I started to load my own many years ago. 180's for elk and moose. 30-06 and .308

 

[jmr40]

It's not that simple.

Bullet construction and impact velocity are far more important than bullet weight. A standard 150 gr bullet fired from a 308 at about 2800 fps at the muzzle is right in the impact velocity sweet spot from the muzzle out to 400ish yards. Once they drop below around 1800 fps impact velocity is too slow for reliable expansion.

The same bullet fired from a 300 WM at 3300 fps stands a good chance of blowing up on contact inside or 100 yards and not giving enough penetration to reach the vitals. After it has slowed down to around 2800 fps it should perform well.

If I'm shooting 150's from a magnum rifle I need a premium bullet designed to stay together at those impact speeds.

 

[md7]

My 308 likes 165-168 gr so that’s what I use. But any 30 cal that groups well will be fine for whitetail

 

[earlthegoat2]

I have a chart in my head of what a proper bullet weight is for certain cartridges regardless of bullet construction. As you will see these are not necessarily the standard weights you will find for purchase of factory loaded ammo. They are however, proven bullet weights for deer critters using cup and core bullets at what I call “normal” hunting ranges which to me is 300 yds all the way down to contact distance.

308 - 150gr
30-06 - 165 gr
300 Win Mag - 180 gr
30-30 - 170 gr
280 AI -150gr
270 Win - 150gr
6.5 CM - 140gr
450 BM - 250gr
350 L - 180gr
360 Buckhammer - 200gr
35 Whelen - 200gr

I don’t know where or how the bastardization of the 300 Win Mag occurred but that cartridge is designed for 180 gr minimum weight cup and core bullets. I see way too many 150 gr options out there though.

Obviously premium controlled expansion bullets will have some different ideal weight characteristics. This list only address cup and core bullets.

 

[Wolfshead]

I put 150.
I normally hand load 150 grain Nosler Accubonds.
I’ve had some DRTs and some travel while dead, but nothing more than 50 yards.
I personally know some people who use 165 grain bullets and swear by them, while believing that anything lighter doesn’t work.
I don‘t know anyone personally who use 180s for deer.
As has been stated all will kill deer dead.
When I was younger someone once said that “Deer are nothing more than a paper bag filled with shaving cream. Hit them in the right spot and you have a dead deer.”
I am in NY and they almost went to non-lead bullets on public land so I’m developing a load for copper which will be 130 grain Barnes ttsx.

 

[Buzznrose]

I am in NY and they almost went to non-lead bullets on public land so I’m developing a load for copper which will be 130 grain Barnes ttsx.

Solid copper is certainly a great choice and if I ever went that route I’d be shooting lighter bullets too. Just have not needed to make that decision yet.

But when/if I ever add a new bolt rifle in a new cartridge to the safe for hunting, I’ll probably just start using copper from the jump.

 

[LoonWulf]

I don’t know where or how the bastardization of the 300 Win Mag occurred but that cartridge is designed for 180 gr minimum weight cup and core bullets. I see way too many 150 gr options out there though

Cause they are fast, flat, and usual enough......
Im really not a fan of it either tho.
I tend to gravitate to a 2800-3000fps launch velocity for heavy for cal cup 'n cores. The 150 in .308 and 06 are on the upper end of that, and they (usually) work fine, but they are also low middle in weight.
Stick em in a 300 without increasing jacket thickness and/or core adhesion, and they are kinda like shooting a 125 out of an 06.

which ive also done....125NBTs are unusually tough, and work well even in the larger 30s. At least on animals upto about 200lbs (largest ive shot)

Anyway, being selective about bullets mitigates alot of weight related issues.

 

[Slamfire]

The gunsmith Ralph Walker wrote an article and made the case for 130 grain bullets in the 30-06. He killed lots of Alabama deer with the load, and at relatively close range, due to the fact shots over 50 yards are rare in deep woods. He went to the 130's after having too many deer run off after being hit with heavier bullets, that did not expand. I shot one deer with a 125 grain bullet in the 30-06 and it hit the hip joint and totally shattered the leg bone, and ruined the meat on that leg. The distance was only 25-30 yards. The last shot was through the neck and that ended the affair instantly.

Jack O'Connor wrote article after article extolling 130 grain bullets in the 270 Win, and yet, you can push 130's faster in a 30-06. And they get no respect in 30 caliber.

Friend of mine has been using 165 SST's in his 308 Win and found the bullets would make a small hole through the rib cage. The deer would run off in the dusk. Next morning he would find the deer about 200 yards away, all eaten by coyotes. Bud changed his aim point, now it is between the shoulder and neck, where there is enough meat and bone to upset the SST's. Knocks them down and keeps them down.

 

[horsey300]

This question is too vague, different bullet construction and speeds, .30 carbine up to .300rum, there's a REASON there's so many to choose from, I've used/seen .30-30 with .30-30 specific 150 and 170 gr bullets, .300 savage with 150s (for .300 sav velocities),
30-40krag with 180s, .308, .30-06, .300wm, and .300 rum. All 150-220 in one flavor or another, there is no REAL 1 size fits all unless we rule out either the very slow or the very fast, and give a specific distance. .308 and .3006 generally do quite well with 150-165 but I'd not hate a 125 prohunter or nbt either, .300wm+= 165+ weights to handle the up close splodey or longer range shots. A 165 bonded bullet would check a lot of boxes, as would a 150ish monolith, but if we include the lower end of the spectrum then I would say I could use anything designed for .3030, .300savage, .30-40 in the .308 and probably even .3006 but would be less inclined at .300wm +.

 

[WisBorn]

I voted for 165 grain. It is the in-between weight that can wear several hats with a well constructed bullet.

I have used 150gr & 170gr in 30-30, 165gr in 308win, 150 & 165 in 30-06.

In 300mags I have only used premium bullets in 180gr and always believed that 300mags shine with 180s.... but THR Friends have had great success with other weights from 150-220.

Thanks for your votes

 

[Wolfshead]

The gunsmith Ralph Walker wrote an article and made the case for 130 grain bullets in the 30-06. He killed lots of Alabama deer with the load, and at relatively close range, due to the fact shots over 50 yards are rare in deep woods. He went to the 130's after having too many deer run off after being hit with heavier bullets, that did not expand. I shot one deer with a 125 grain bullet in the 30-06 and it hit the hip joint and totally shattered the leg bone, and ruined the meat on that leg. The distance was only 25-30 yards. The last shot was through the neck and that ended the affair instantly.

Jack O'Connor wrote article after article extolling 130 grain bullets in the 270 Win, and yet, you can push 130's faster in a 30-06. And they get no respect in 30 caliber.

Friend of mine has been using 165 SST's in his 308 Win and found the bullets would make a small hole through the rib cage. The deer would run off in the dusk. Next morning he would find the deer about 200 yards away, all eaten by coyotes. Bud changed his aim point, now it is between the shoulder and neck, where there is enough meat and bone to upset the SST's. Knocks them down and keeps them down.

It’s funny that you mention this.
My Brother In-law has a new to him .270 and I asked him what he was shooting. His reply was a 130 grain cartridge.
As I was sitting on stand I was thinking about the 130s I have been working up a load for, for my .308 Win., and I thought about some of the comments I’ve heard in regards to 130s being too light for .30 cal.
”Old habits” die hard I guess….

 

[Larry in wyoming]

When I lived in Maryland, I used 150NBTs. Until I realized the 308 was way more gun than I needed. I switched to the 250 savage with 100gr bullets. When I moved to Wyoming, I switched bullets in the 308 to 165 accubond. Deer and elk season can overlap and I wanted to be prepared for both. The accubond has worked well for me on deer and antelope but I've never shot an elk with one yet. There is a gentleman here on THR who has though and reports excellent results. I use the 300 win mag with 180 nosler lead free for elk.

 

[22250Rem]

I voted 150 gr. because except for my .30-30, the 150 gr. Nosler Accubond is my #1, .30 cal. hunting bullet. Even though other weights will kill deer just as dead. In my 300 WSM, it's been used on pronghorns, mule deer and whitetails. Have also witnessed it take a mule deer at long range from a 300 RUM. Bullet performance was excellent every time. In my 300 WSM it displays great accuracy, which is why I began using it in the first place. I wasn't worried about the bullet construction as much as I was concerned about putting that bullet where I wanted it to go. There's plenty of other bullets that work, but I settled on one handload in order to be totally familiar with the trajectory and performance of that rifle with that load. Same deal with the .30-30; one bullet and one load, a Hornady 170 gr. flat point because with a suitable dose of Leverevolution powder behind it, it's my most accurate .30-30 load. The 30-30 gets used where I can't even see 100 yards in any direction, so the old school flat points work great. Tried the Hornady FTX flex tip, pointed bullets, but never got quite as good accuracy as the old flat points. Couldn't vote for 170 anyway, as there was no 170 gr. option. I have two other hunting uses for .30 cal. 150 gr. Accubonds; one of which is with a 5 round clip, in order to be hunting legal in my M-1 Garand. Only been out a few times and no shots offered yet, but someday I'd love to take a deer with it in honor of one of my late uncles, who carried an M-1 in the Pacific theater in the latter part of WW2. He thought my M-1 would make a great deer gun, because it's in .30-06, right? Just substituted some 150 gr. Accubonds for the 150 gr. FMJ's in my NRA High Power competition load, accuracy tested them, put 'em in a 5 round clip and it's good to go. . That gave me the idea to try the 150 gr. Accubonds in the .308 chambered M1A that I also shot a lot of NRA High Power matches with back in the 1990's, early 2000's. They shoot great in that also, so this year it will get taken out for the first time deer hunting to sit in a blind on my buddies land. Got a 5 round mag for that as well. Always wanted to deer hunt with something like an M-14 ever since a bunch of us 18-19 year old kids were being taught marksmanship with the U.S. Rifle, M-14, by our Uncle Sam. For a lot of us it was enlightening to realize that we could hit things with a .308, (AKA 7.62 NATO), a lot further away than most of us, including me, realized. Then some guys began saying how cool it would be to hunt with these things. Funny how I never got around to it, but that should change this year. . In .30 cal., for deer, I just couldn't vote any other bullet weight other than my favorite 150 gr. (unless it's for the .30-30).

 

[Chuck R.]

I use 165s and 168s in my 300WM when I know the shots might be long.

I get around 3150 with both weights, right now I'm working on a load with the Nosler ABLR in 168 that's clocking 3170.

The 180s do have a higher BC, and do catch up and pass the 165s, but it's not till about 600+ yards. So for deer, why use the 180s and tolerate the recoil? I also use 168 Match bullets for practice, so it's almost cost effective.

It's the same reason I use 130s in .270 VS 150s, the 150s will give better wind deflection and less drop, but it's a ways past my normal shooting distances.

 

[black mamba]

165 Remington Core-Lokts at around 2700 fps work great. Found a super accurate load at that velocity and never changed.

 

[hawg]

I use 165 grain Nosler BTBT in my 30-06 at around 3000 FPS. They do tend to fragment at ranges under 100 yards but they kill them just as dead and they don't go anywhere.

 

[41 Mag]

From my early youth the 30-06 was pretty much the staple hunting iron around our family. Pretty much all of the men in our family used them. Most were sporterized 03A3's which were picked up back in the early 60's. Along with these were hundreds of rounds of milsurp ball and AP ammo.

The ammo was used to target practice, and for hunting the bullets were pulled, cases neck sized, and a 150gr Spitzer was seated. For the AP we used a 165gr. For years these arms and ammo put countless deer in the freezer.

As I grew older and began to develop my own loads, I found that my dad and uncles pretty much had it dialed in. Loading some of the same ammo and running over a chronograph I found that the 150gr ran upper 2700'ish FPS and the 165gr ran right over 2700. So either of them going just over 2700fps worked REALLY well.

I have expanded from the '06 to a couple of others and a couple of 308's. In all of them I have never had much need for any other weight bullets.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

I shoot 165s in my .30-06 but I'm under no illusion that it's better than any other.
The ones I've shot with 150s couldn't have told you the difference.