looking for my first deer rifle

[marcos]

hello every one my name is marcos and im in the market for a deer rifle. im the only person in my family who hunts ever since my grandfather passed away and i have nobody to help me in my search for a good rifle.the rifle i have my eyes on is the remington 700 vtr in 308 if anybody has any input on this rifle or any ideas as to what rifle i should get it would be very helpful.thank you

[timberghost]

Hey marcos, welcome to the DHC. I don't know much about much lol but I stick with what I'm familiar with and 243, 270, and 30-06 are rifles that I feel are great deer rifles.

[Karl.Luhr]

It would help if you tell us what kind of area you will be hunting in? I always recommend that a new rifle shooter/hunter buy a bolt action in one of the standard calibers. You can never go wrong with a Deer rifle in the basic choices of 30-06, 270 Win, or .308 Win. The Remington M700 is considered by many one of the best choices in a both action. The vtr you mentioned is their varmiter with the triangular barrel on it. It looks neat and does take off some of the extra weight you get when there is a bull barrel on the rifle. There is also a ported muzzle brake on this rifle that might help with recoil but will raise the level of sound at the range and while hunting. Many States now require a hunter safety course to be completed prior to you hunting in the State. You can find out if it's required for you in your DNR website for your State. Even if you don't have to take it I would recommend it, they point out a lot of items that may safe your life or someone else that you are in the woods with.

Karl

[marcos]

thanks guys.as for the landscape i live in arizona so mostly hilly grassland for deer, but i also plan to hunt elk in the alpine forests in northern az. im mostly looking for something that has the accuracy to hit a deer in the vitals at at least 300yds. thanks again for the help

[Karl.Luhr]

I always suggest that a new rifle shooter/hunter plan on spending atleast 200.xx on a good scope. I personally would rather have a 650.xx rifle and a 350.xx scope than a 900.xx rifle and a 100.xx scope. The only argument for the 900/100 option is if it only a temporary choice to be replaced with something better asap. I would also recommend don't go crazy on the max power of the scope. The old standards of 2x7, 3x9, 2.5x8, or even 3.5x10 power are great. I also love 1x4 and 1x5 power scopes, just realize there will be a trade off in group size at the range. Better shooters might be able to hold their groups tiny at over 100 yards with a scope that has a max power of 5 but I can't. I always point out to new elk hunters that you are going to carry that rifle alot more than shoot it. When the time comes though you better be comfortable behind it.

Karl

[rdrader2002]

All the guys above have already said most of the things that came to mind when I first read your post.

About the only thing I can add is that you need to spend a considerable amount of time on the range to ensure you can [B][U]CONSISTENTLY[U][B] hit what you are aiming at when your target is 300+ yards/meters away. To do that, your rifle needs to be zeroed in at 200 yards. Either that or have a "decent" scope with the yardage/windage built in. (Can't remember the type of scope that's called off the top of my head)

If you can't consistently hit a pie plate (I'm cheap. I use a 9" paper plate.) at 200 yards, you'll only wound the animal you're aiming at instead of putting the round into the vitals area. Make sure you're scope is zeroed at 25 yards, then move to the longer distance ranges and take your time.

Of course, when you've made your choice and have your new "toy" sitting in the living room, you have to send us pictures to let us know what you got. <grin>

RR

[buckhunter5]

if u get a 243 get a savage model 11 combo w/ a bushnell scope i got it and i got a 3 shot group at a hundred yards about the size of a penny

[Perry]

Since I started hunting I have killed deer with .243, .270, 30-30 and now Im using a 7mm rem mag. All have been remington rifles except the 30-30. I use the 7mm mostly because I hunt a lot of big ag fields in nc and the shots get long. Good luck on your new rifle.

[Jmp51483]

The rifle you've chosen so far, rem 700 308. Is a fantastic choice for light skinned animals, ie- deer. That model is also well known for it's accuracy and dependency. I would go with what you have selected. For ammunition a ballistic silver tip 160gr should do the trick, make sure you sight it in at the range before you go out tho.