Lots of good info in this thread, maybe also a couple of mistakes or misunderstandings.
For starters, here's a link to the statute defining caliber restrictions:
http://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/statutes/?id=97B.031Keep in mind, being a statute, this law was made by the
legislature. This may or may not be what the DNR advocated. Some would say the legislature has made a mistake or two over the years.
The caliber restriction change
was intended to simplify things. Legislators kept pushing through exceptions to the old caliber restriction for their constituents. This led to the law being overly complex. Exceptions passed in recent years included the .30 Carbine and .56 Spencer cartridges. Ironically, believe the .56 Spencer is now illegal (it's a rimfire, IIRC).
Miscellaneous thoughts (I'm repeating some info from above posters):
-minimum case length requirements are gone
-the .25 ACP is now a legal big game cartridge, however ill-advised
-a .270 Winchester "pistol" such as a T/C Encore is legal in the shotgun zone, but a .30/30 lever action rifle is still prohibited...
-the .22 centerfires, while not ideal, can do OK
with an appropriate bullet and shot placement -I don't ever recall a 6-round limit on firearms for big game(?)
-1,000 ft-lbs of energy is a common benchmark for big game calibers, but I don't remember MN ever having that requirement(?)
In the end, it's up to the hunters to make good choices regarding caliber, bullet selection, and shot placement. Most of us will do so. Unfortunately, there are always the few making poor or uneducated choices...
Thanks for the great discussion, guys!