What round for Varmint and Deer?

[SHOOTALL]

do ya hunt toy deer with toy poodles ?

[kyelkhunter3006]

Are you planning on shooting more varmints than deer, or more deer than varmints?  If you are going to shoot it more for varmints, I'd go with the .243.  It recoils a bit less than the 25-06, which adds up during a day of alot of shooting.  With the premium bullets available the .243 is better than ever.  With a Triple Shock X or a another deep penetrater, I'd take any reasonable shot at any deer, or bigger game too, for that matter.  If you are just taking pot shots at whatever crosses your path while deer hunting, I like the 25-06.  Be warned, both of them are hell on barrels for prolonged shooting.

I think that the .260 or the 6.5x55 are the most versatile of the list, but the lack of factory loads in both of these calibers is what's holding them down.  Moderate recoil and awesome ballistics make them stellar rounds though.

Another round you might consider is the 6.8 SPC. I was actually looking for a rifle for the uses you are talking about  It's mostly going to be used for predators and such, maybe a little moderate range deer hunting too.  I was about a hair away from having a semi-custom .243 built, then decided, what the heck, I can get a bolt action 6.8SPC in a Remington 700 for about half the price (it's similar to the 700 LV-SF, but in 6.8 it's called a Tactical, and it's blued), and ammo is priced the same or less than .243.  It should be better on barrels, has less recoil and blast than the .243, and ballistics very similar to the .257 Roberts.

[gr8ful]

For everything from prairie dogs to elk the 25-06 will do it.  Just use 120 gr. bonded bullets and be sure of your shot placement on the bigger stuff. 

[billy_56081]

  When looking for a good crossover caliber it is not as one person suggested above, safe to use a 30-06 with 150 grain bullets in many areas for varmint hunting. I live in southern Minnesota in  the open plains. We are restricted to shotguns only in our deer season because of the lack of anything to stop a ricocheting bullet. I hunt with a very group of very dedicated coyote hunters. Our choices in bullets are controlled by using very lightly built bullets intended for varmints that break up easily on contact. We have refused to let many people that wanted to join us hunt with us because of their choice of bullet. No full metal jackets, no using bullets desined for big game or target shoting.  One thing we want to do at the end of the day is come home. We also do not  want to hear that one of our rounds hit a house or car miles away. A bullet with a very high muzzle velocity and a low b.c. gives you a nice flat trajectory out to about 500 yards then starts shedding speed and energy fast. My favorite caliber of the above mentioned is the .243 with 55 grain bullets for varmints and 95 to 100 grain bulets for deer. Otherwise if I'm hunting only coyote and fox I use my 220 swift. Good luck and safe hunting.

 We are expecting the first big snow of the year this weekend in MN wish me luck, the coyote hunting is about to begin.

[gr8ful]

good luck with those 'yotes billy!

[lilabner]

The 25-06 would meet your needs very well. You probably aren't going to be shooting a lot at groundhogs and coyotes - just an occasional round, so there's no worry about cumulative recoil effect. In my experience, the cartridge is sudden death on deer, even on wide bodied western mule deer.It is also a good coyote cartridge and not as wind sensitive as some. In the lighter bullet weights, the trajectory is very flat.

[billy_56081]

Well there is one less coyote in Southern MN. I don't know what it is about those critters but they get me more excited than a big buck. And I am a very avid deer hunter.

[kyelkhunter3006]

Good for you!  Yeah, I love to see the bucks, but when the coyotes show up, I just zone out and all I can think about is busting one of them.

[billy_56081]

A dead coyote is a good coyote.

[SHOOTALL]

coyote , new around where i hunt , but they multiply fast don't they . we can hunt them year round !