Best Shots

[almostthere!]

My best shot is a dead on frontal hit. Talk about knocked down power. This shot will put the power-driver on any deer.

Hopefully, this shot will present itself again this season. I've switched to Barnes-X bullets and wanted to see if it will do a full body length pass through.

[shortfatguy]

i shoot for the heart/lungs used to shoot for the neck alot but i got out of that habit after hearing stories about neck shots missing the bone and not killing the deer. how do you shoot them when they are facing you and not get [commercial-or-naughty-word] from the guts all over inside the deer?

[Gissert]

Ooooo, frontal shots. I don't like them, but I took a buck last year at 45 yards with one. The margin for error is pretty small with a frontal shot. I wont take that shot unless the deer is very close, and it wont turn sideways.

Now, for the part your are asking about. Mine was actually shot with a Barnes X bullet. It was a .338 210 grain boat tail from my .338 win mag. It took out the top of the heart, left lung, came out the rib cage and ended up in the hind knee joint. I found it while skinning. I put it on my powder scale, and it still weighed 210 grains, but was opened up to about .55 inches. It looked just like the magazine ad pictures. The deer ran about 75 yards and piled up.

That is the second Barnes bullet I have recovered. the other was from a buck my wife shot with her .338/06. It went through both shoulder blades, and ended up against the skin on the far side. That one weighed 210 grains also.

[Stratosman]

I took a frontal shot last year on an eight pointer that ran right to me and was staring at me from about 20 yards, didn't know what hit him. But typically I aim the saim place as when bowhunting, righ in the crankcase, I dislike neck shots also no matter how close. I slug hunt and use a 3" federal premium sabot. 90% of the time the deer drops in its tracks. Awesome slug out to 100 yards.

[Perch Jerker]

I always shoot for the heart/lung area. As far as 'best' shots with a firearm, I couldn't tell you. I have some memorable ones though:

273yds WT deer on the trot, Alabama last year, .300 Win Mag, 180gr Nosler

210yds Mule deer standing on opposite ridge, Nebraska 6yrs ago, .300 Win Mag, 180gr Scirocco

80yds WT deer standing, MN last year, .416 Rigby, 350gr Speer

Plus archery shots on deer & bear. This year I'm shooting a .500 A-Square with a 600gr bullet (Woodleigh) going 2450fps so I'm hoping to add some more memories with 'non-traditional' rifles.

PJ

I handload and regularly practice shooting at 200-1000yds (used to shoot 50BMG in 1000yd competetion) so I have tuned ammo and experience. I've never had to shoot at a longer range because I believe the best shot is the closest shot, not the longest one. Even though I CAN shoot a deer at 600yds with my equiptment, doesn't mean I should.

[bigbucks]

I shot a buck at 125 yards straight on with the 30.06, 180 grain bullet, a few years ago. He just turned & ran off, didn't look hurt, he went about 150 yards on the dead run. His heart was gone. The bullet never exited & I never figured out where it was.

I agree the best shot is the closest shot. I always shoot for the heart/lung area unless I have a clear standing shot at some other angle, or say only the head & neck are visible through the brush at maybe 50 yards or less. Naturally that depends on if I expect the deer to come clear shortly for a better shot. If you've got time to take a deer standing with a close range head shot versus a running shot, it's still probably a better shot.

The best shots I've ever made personally were a running deer through the head at 30 yards, which was an accident, his head was down & I led him too much. Standing doe & walking caribou, both in the 250 yard range.

[MikeYager - Suzuki]

I always shoot for lungs. I figure less blood clotted meat to clean through. The neck is too small for me. If I was hunting public land and a nice rack came by I would go shoulder to knock it down on the spot. Lung shot deer always run a ways and I don't want to argue with another hunter if it runs his way. On the private land I hunt there is room for one to run and they usually run the direction of the house so the drag is less. I did accidentally hit one in the neck last year with a standard 12 ga slug. O Boy did that deer drop!! That was a great deer to butcher.

[92python]

I like a double lung shot from the side but high enough in the lungs that the "shock" effect is felt in the nervous system.

As close you can get to the spine while hitting both lungs is the best. I have had 3 deer pile up and die immediately while they were running full boar on drives when I have hit that spot. They didn't even kick. All taken with a .308.

I avoid frontal or neck shots when possible.

[Dan Wood]

I shoot with a gun about the same I do with a bow... double lung shot is what I look for - only thing different is that I don't worry about missing the shoulder with my rifle...

[TheGuy]

My best shot was one that was about 4 feet from me. I didn't even aim, just pointed the gun. It was a doe and was going to jump the fence right next to me. I hit her right the melon, blow her brains out! She never even saw me. She was just going for a Sunday walk in a field and BANG! It ran about an inch! No, the deer was not tied up!! I get that one from my hunting party.

[Bogey911]

My best shot was a heart kill on a doe that was running full speed at about 300 yards away with a Win. 300 mag. Don't take this as bragging because I was as amazed as anyone and I could venture to guess that that would never happen again. This was after I had jumped the doe while walking back to the truck from my stand. What an experience!

[riverrat56]

of the three deer i have shot since i could start hunting all have been horrible shots ( not where i was aiming or expecting to hit ) but all have dropped the deer in its tracks, one i jumped and shot it at about 20 yards in the neck out the jaw, one i shot at 17 yards on the run ( i missed it from about 20 while it was standing) hit that one in the neck right at the base, spun in a circle and dropped and the last one i missed at about 30 yards standing still and it ran towards me, droped him at 2 yards straight down from my stand. but ive talked enough, lets see what i can do this year.

RR56