Top 3 Light Recoiling Cartridges for Deer [Including My Hunting Footage With All 3]
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- Опубліковано 11 вер 2024
- I get asked some form of this question ALL THE TIME - "What is a good, light-recoiling cartridge for deer?" In this video I go over my top 3 pics for the best deer hunting cartridges that won't kick you around much at all.
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7mm-08....one of the all time most under rated and under appreciated cartridges ever.
Yup
Where I’m at 7mm-08 is super popular
I would love to have a custom Savage 99 in 7mm-08 with a compact 2x7x33 ballistic dot reticle. Now that is what deer hunters could make real use of anywhere that has deer.
And it's adequate for black bear.
@@WHOTEEWHOWhy isn’t the 223 with the right grain bullet talked about as a great deer gun with almost no recoil?
.243 is just too versatile of a round not have. Great cartridge.
Took a 3x3 with a 243 this morning. 162y he dropped in his own footprints, deader than disco.
😂
Who else's footsteps would he fall in?
DTR - Dead Right There
Adam, I've never met you, but I can tell you are a good soul. The way you treat your wife, children & dog says a lot.
Switched from 30-06 to 7mm 08 years ago... best decision I've ever made. The way I see it is the easier the rifle is to shoot at the bench the better shooter you are. And the more confidence you have taking game with that rifle.
You are raising them right, My friend!
I guessed it without even watching the video first! Score! Also 100% agree! 7mm-08 is even good if you’re thinking of possibly going elk or moose hunting at some point.
.243 was the first centerfire rifle that I shot in the woods with my dad as a child. All 3 are great for beginners with exceptional ballistics. Love the videos of you and your children. Bring back memories of trekking in the back woods of New England with my dad. These moments will be cherished for many years by both of you.
Another lite recoiling cartrige is the 6.5x55 Swedish. Flat shooting and low recoil.
My go to deer rifle is a 6.5 Grendel. 120 grain federal fusion 115 grain Barnes tsx. Makes quick work of white tail out to 250yds. Really farther if you wana but I personally wouldn’t push it farther than 300yds.
Got my vote also.
What grendel are you using
Who makes a good 6.5 grendel rifle
Grendel Hunter, Alexander arms and Wilson Combat
@danhanson7948 why not an average rifle maker? Like the howa 1500. Me personally I think that's the ugliest rifle with the magazine 5 inches hanging out the bottom. Why do you think regular rifle makers doesn't make it
Another cool thing with 7mm-08, is that it does make a good entry level big game cartridge, if you are hunting criters larger than deer sized game. In fact the 7mm-08 basically is a modern 7x57mm Mauser. Truth be told 7mm-08 should get more recognition and should be more popular than what it is. I think the 6.5 Creedmoor stole 7mm-08's thunder.
Most hunting folks round here call it a needmore.
@Red-vn4xq we call it 6.5 manbun
I don't know about stealing its thunder. The 708 was around a long time before the creedmoor.
If I remember correctly, the 7mm08 was introduced in 1980. I think what hurt it was the fact that the cartridges were priced twice as much as 243 , 270, 308, and 30-06 . People watched their money a little more back then. 30-30 cartridges would be on sale for $8 a box. Those were the days.
@austinhall6933...lol. I was in my LGS the other day looking at the Ruger gen 2 rifles, specifically one in 7mm-08. They didn't have any but had plenty of 6.5 Creedmoors.
The employee said he would order one for me.
A couple of guys near us asked why I don't just buy one of the Creedmoors.
I replied, because I hate skinny jeans and don't have enough hair for a man bun!
They didn't quite know what to say to that but the employee cracked up laughing and said, yeah us old school guys know the 6.5 Creedmoor is just a 7mm-08 wanna be!
The 243 100 grain will drop a deer at any distance out to 500 yards. The 243 is a very underrated cartridge.
7.62x39, relatively low recoil, cheap, and effective. PPU rifleline softpoints are $20 a box, brass case, and deadly.
Hey bud my first year trying x39 I'm using ppu round nose soft points are those the ones you use or the pointed soft points and how does it compare to 30-30
But pretty dismal ballistics.
@@Shortdraw01 agreed but fine for 125 yards and in. Where I hunt ur lucky if you get a shot more then 75 yrds
@@mikes8915 yup, great for that. Real similar to a 30-30
My 308 groups the PPU sp 150 noticeably better than core-loks, underrated ammo, very consistent being not match grade. A bit mild but my semi likes that.
Love your 7mm08. That said my favorite low recoil deer cartridge is 257 Roberts. Only downside is availability. I reload 100 gn Speer HotCor to right at 3000fps from my Remington 722 with 24” barrel. I get DRT results with minimal recoil. It works.
260 Remington is a great low-recoiling cartridge .
You must be a proud dad. Great when you pass on the heritage of hunting.
Cool video!
The 7mm-08 140gr Core Lokt kicks even lighter than one would thinnk it should, from a Ruger 77 Hawkeye. Small rifle too. And it works great.
The Ruger 77 Hawkeyes, with their controlled round feeds, are the most under-rated guns on the market hands down.
@@doubled6595 Heck yeah. I love the LC-6 trigger from a reliability standpoint too
Great choices whoteewho! 2 very low recoil and the 7-08 is the perfect next step up. Or it's a perfect step down in recoil with amazing ballistics
I 💯 % Agree on 22 cals for deer ! Yes they will work BUT IMO 24 CAL & UP ARE BETTER! You do great videos Adam
Just bought a 450 Bushmaster upper (not for deer though). Great discussion WTW! For deer I'd probably pick 6.5 Grendel, but I'm nearly 72, and don't consider hunting at this point.
I love Grendel. Unfortunately I think it's dead.
Not dead
G'day from Aus., enjoy watching your show's, but for us old veteran's you need to turn thee volume up 🍻👍😂
I have two of the three...708...i shoot 140 grain nosler partition,,,, 243...i shoot 100 grain nosler partition,,, and now the 223...i shoot 60 grain nosler partition ! My go to gun is the 708, i am currently working on loads for the 708 using 140 grain barnes TTSX! I Live in Pennsylvania and our law for deer or bear is " any centerfire caliber" for elk it has to be 27 caliber or larger!
I called them 243, 7-08, and 6.5 Creed. I was close and got 2 out of 3. I forgot about the 6 Creed, or overlooked it. I was hoping the 25-06 was going to be on there, but compared to the three chosen it's got a lot more recoil comparatively.
Close guess!
@@WHOTEEWHO I've watched you enough I'm fairly good at guessing what you're thinking. I love your videos man, keep them coming.
Actually no, the recoil impulse from .25-06 is maybe 2 lbs more than .243
My buddy's daughter has shot a couple of deer with 6.5 Grendel in a Howa Mini Bolt. It seemed to work well with 123 gr SST. Very mild recoil.
I wish 25-06 would gain more popularity. It’s such an underrated under appreciated cartridge.
I am not recoil averse. But my grandson was/is, so we use AR-15 or a pistol caliber rifle(357 or 44 mag). He recently tried 350 Legend, which increases his options. The loads we use in the AR were Federal Fusion 62gr, which he took his first deer with, and now Barnes TSX 70gr. Most shots will be 100 yards or less, so he should be good with any on my list.
243 Win is very popular in the deer woods with a lot of hunters.
For those still shooting the .44 Mag the Remington UMC 180 gr JSP gives 2100 fps out of my 22" Scout. It gives a maximum point blank range of 175 yards (+/- 3" of point of aim). It does hold together on 25 yard shots. I can't vouch for expansion at longer distances..
I typically hunt with .308, wanted a new gun, so I got the caliber that everyone hates. None of the places I get ammo had 7mm-08, so I got a 6.5 CM. Was a soft shooter, going to try 130 gr Federal Fusion for deer this year. You have the best videos by the way.
For a budget load the Federal Power Shok 140 gr (almost positive that is a Speer Hot Cor bullet) should work well on deer. It's very accurate and makes advertised velocity. Out of 6.55x55 SE (100 fps slower) it stays together at 25 yards and expands well at 300 yards. Puts them right to sleep out of the Swede.
The Norma Oryx 156 gr flips 600 lb Waterbuck like it's out of a .35 Whelen out of the 6.5x55. The 6.5 CM is loaded to the exact same velocity with that bullet. That bullet might be a bit tough for deer at longer range unless you break a shoulder going in. Norma says it's not (unlike the Alaska), but I'm skeptical once it drops below 2000 fps on soft tissue hits.
@@gk5891 I actually have the 140 gr Power Shok, got a box of each to test drive this year. I looked at the Speer Gold Dots also. I’m almost sure those are good medicine for whitetails also. I’ve used Nosler Partitions for 5 years but you can’t find them at a decent price anywhere.
I think the old 222, 243, are probably my 2 favorite
I got my first 3 deer with an old Savage bolt model 340 in .222 with 55 gr loads
Content, presentation, imparting solid knowledge, entertainment value - this is just a great video!
2t-06 & 260 rem although not as common as your 3 deserve honorable mention here especially if the new hunter is looking at used rifles might find a deal on a 260 rem as for the 25-06 mossberg patriot & savage axis budget friendly options just my thought , enjoy your videos almost every evening
.243 & 7MM.08, Excellent choices. Nice placements buy your two sons.
My daughter will be using my Remington 700 270 win using 90 grain reduced recoil loads.
After acquiring a 250 Savage I can't understand why it isn't more popular than it is. It has even less recoil than a 243 and carries 1000 ft-lbs out to 300 yards or more. If gun manufacturers would get behind it I think it would be very popular with new and young shooters.
My first substantial caliber was the 250 Savage. I stated in post above my sons and wife use 243. However one of my sons is using my old 250 Savage.
Ballistics are great - shame 243 knocked it off. National Rifleman did an article comparing it to the 6.5 Creedmoor and how similar they are. It’s funny - what goes around and comes back. Would be awesome to see 250 savage with more modern bullets and powder. Great cartridge and gun.
The biggest thing that hurt the. 250-3000 was twist rate followed by no short action bolts other than the 1920 Savage. It lead to it being overshadowed by the .257 Roberts in most applications. Of course the .257 Roberts popularity begain to dissipate with the commercialization of the. 25-06.
@@gk5891 Mine is a 1:9 twist newer barrel whoever worked on it before I bought it really did some fine work. It's a model 54 Winchester that I looked up the serial number on and it's from 1927. Looks brand new. If they were to push it with a fast twist barrel I think it would put many of these new cartridges to shame but it won't see it happen.
@russellmoore1046 I have a 54 as well, but it's in .270 Win.
My Savage 1920 has 1-14 Twist, but my Ruger 77 has 1-10 twist so faster twist has been available for a long while. Like the .244 Remington once the damage is done it's tough to recover.
@@ronwinn879 .250-3000 with a 100 grain bullet is a great little deer 🦌 cartridge.
That is so beautiful to have memories like that with your kids.
Awesome footage and even better memories with your sons.
I loved the footage of your sons taking game. Great job!
Anyone that loves on a dog like that is ok in my book. Great vid. thanks
Love my puppydogs
3 excellent choices! 7mm-08 is my favorite whitetail cartridge.
Don’t forget a 260 REM. Light reckon and very accurate round.
I like the 7mm/08 but my favorite is the 25/06 both about the same in kick
.243 is the smallest dia you can hunt with here in IN . Thanks for the feedback on the .350 Legend I was wondering. All the best :)
Thanks for watching
Out of my personal collection, the 3 lightest recoiling deer capable cartridges are 6.5 grendel (ar platform), 300 blk (ar platform) and 25-06 (bolt)
Maybe add 300 hamr for AR also wish adam would do some testing with that round
@@adambrack8642 I don’t have a need, honestly trying to get less cartridges haah
Completely understand but I only have standard ar"s so looking for something more hunting oriented and that is supposed to be good for that
I'm thinking into jumping on the 6.5 Grendel but the ammo availability is kinda crap, how's the 300 black supersonic at 300 yards?
6.5 grendel little beast of a round with sst 123 grain ..killed a doe with my daughter and it drop
.243 for the win. Much easier to find at most retailers.
Your boy's do You Proud , the recoil from those cartridges are perfect for smaller shooters and those concerned about recoil . Good shooting boys & well done Adam , great video as always . Catch You next time . Shoot Straight Stay Safe & Stay Well.
Who Tee got a great country life going on over there !! Congrats on a great family WTW ..You the man !!~ 7mm all day everyday !!
I like 6.5 grendel too. Heavier bullets with. Bigger diameter, flat, low recoiling and easily bought or built in ARs and in bolts too. Comparable to a .243 ballistically but heavier bullets and bigger diameter lends itself to a better wound channel and better penetration thru bone. Also some good hunting bullets/rounds available.
Yes I took a buck this morning with my 6.5 Grendel my first buck also. I couldn’t believe the damage. The exit wound was crazy and it went through its front leg and broke it.
My son shot a nice 3 point muley at over 400 yards one shot in the heart with a 243 this fall.
Considering the recoil pads offered on stocks these days, recoil is a fading issue in my opinion. Muzzle blast, especially for new shooters is a major factor. Spooks the person, and their mind tricks them into thinking any recoil of the rifle is worse than what it actually is.
This can definitely be a factor. Mine son didn’t like shooting the 300 blackout for this reason. Suppressed works wonders for this issue.
Good footage of them boys… ain’t no denying them youngens for sure little hooters looks just like you
I love the 6.5 grendel , low recoil and plenty of power
3 perfectly capable cartridges for hunting. Personally im fond of the 6.5 creedmoor. Every since i built out a rem 700 in 6.5 my wife and daughter have fell in love with it and thats all they will use now. My wife always shot my rem 700 30-06 but now that rifle hasnt been touched in 6 years since i built out the 6.5 creed. Never lost a deer with the 143 eldx
I have to agree. And if you want to catch elk too a 7mm-08 is a great low recoil combo rifle
Here in Kentucky where we mostly hunt really close range i line my rifles up at 50 and fine tune the left and right and hundred depending on caliber im usually 1.5 to 2 inches high at hundred i prefer my rifle heing dead om at 50 instead shooting a little low
Solid choices. I'd like to nominate the 6.5 Grendel, and, if you can find one, the 257 Roberts.
You literally can't beat the 243. ESPECIALLY if you have it in an AR10 platform.
The calibers are nice to know but I’m more into watching you and the boys spend time and hunt so awesome
Great video especially with your boys and making a spot report .
Howdy from Texas - Another well stated and educational video! I’m in Texas Hill Country and typical shots are with in 100 yards. I started my boys on 22-250 (I grew up closer to border and that is an amazing longer range predator caliber). Agree on it being less forgiving on deer BUT - it’s a surgical instrument- wasn’t long before they were neck shooting. I have however stepped them up to 243 and heart shoots. It’s pretty much the prescribed first caliber for youth in Texas. They and my wife all take deer with them out to 100 yards (I’d probably keep it in 250 yards to play it safe and be ethical). Thanks again.
I love 22-250!!!
That 6mm Creedmore kicked. the 243 kicked good. The 7/08 had a 200 monster behind the gun. Low recoil.
6.5 Grendel is a awesome little round light recoil also 257 Roberts is a great little round 2
243 is in that group !
Beautiful shot Young Man,my hero!!!!!!
30-30. first deer rifle caliber. Plus its lefty friendly out of box as the lever and hammer both operate fine either hand. low recoil solid woods gun (distance youd feel good at before a tree gets in way) Shot a doe 100 yards away, didnt see a skinny popular in scope, went thru (1.5" thick), traveled straight n true still n dropped doe 15 yard sprint. My heart sank when I saw the bent little tree, instnatly thought I just injured a deer vs vital shot. few trees later, there she was.
love the 7mm-08.... My son's puppy was Toby :) loved that hound! such a cool pup :)
THAT WAS ONE OF THE BEST VIDS I'VE SEEN IN A WHILE.VERY INFORMATIVE,I LOVED IT!!!!😁💥💥💥
Thanks for watching!
All good choices. I like AR platform for kids with the adjustable stock. 6.5 Grendel is also a good choice.
I changed my 30-06 to125 low recoil ammo and made a great difference. I later got a 243 because of my pacemaker. It caused no problem and was a lighter rifle to carry.
You named them perfect. I like my 243 go wild with 1 in 9 twist, can do prairie dogs, and up to a deer. But I also have the 7mm-08 go wild Ruger. Topped them both with a vortex venom on the 7, and vortex strike eagle on the 243. Kentucky
I think the 250-3000 is absolutely lights out for deer.
220 Swift or any have speed .224 and also a 6mm arc or go as big as a 25-06 rem or 257 weatherby or if ya wanna buy light recoil go 6.5 grendel
I got the savage axis 25/06 last year black Friday cabelas
I built an AR 300 hamr for my son he loves it and I've used it to take a bunch of foxes and coyotes this is the first season for deer so if the performance I've seen so far continues it'll be a great deer load and I'll be building another
A very good list cannot argue one of them. 👌🏻👌🏻
Getting to the nerdy stuff, recoil can be predicted by looking at the following, bullet weight, chamber pressure, rifle weight and stock design.
To explain that if you shoot two rifles that are identical, let us say 2 Ruger Americans; both shooting a 150gr bullet. A .308 and a .30-06, all knows the .30-06 kicks more, it is burning more powder and at a higher pressure. Now compare a .270 and a .30-06 shooting a 150gr bullet. Now the .270 will kick more, again higher chamber pressure.
Reading reloading manuals can help quite a bit to show you how much recoil to expect.
The rifle weight is obvious, does not need to explain why a light rifle kicks more than a heavy rifle.
Stock design, this is important, the worst stocks are the lovely Bavarian stocks, and there is a good reason why they are generally not seen standard on most rifles and only an option of few.
Who Tee what a hoot to see ur sons hunting together. Proud papa
6.5 grendal probably the best low recoiling rifle I found 123 sst good fo lady’s and kid. Love mine get u a upper for your ar-15 and your in the game
👍😊 having the rifle clamped in a tri- pod helps a lot .
In my opinion 6arc and 6.5 Grendel for kids are best. You can even get a howa mini action which is very light.
A bit surprised you didn't add the 6.5 Grendel since you've put out some videos on the Grendel also.
Great video, especially with the kids. Congrats! Great choices, I expected you to have the 6.5 Creed, .243 and 7-08. My first hi- power bing-bang was a REM. 700 in .243, super accurate with Fed. Premium 100 gr. and the same Core-loct 100 gr. you used.
I love my ‘06’s, .270 Win., etc., but have been thinking about a 7-08 in a real light bolt pew pew as an easy carrying low recoil and blast woods piece.
Suppose a 170 lb buck is edge of a food plot backed up to a swamp... evening.... you don't want a blood trail. You want 150 gr pointed soft point, 2600 fps or more, through both shoulders. 270 7mm08 or 308 are the mild recoil. 30-06 7mag or 300 mag are the biggest kickers you should take to the woods. Very honorable mention would be 6.5 prc.
My lowest recoil rifle is the 6.5 creedmoor with 129 gr loads. Actually less felt recoil for me than a 243 with 100 gr loads. But, my other 3 are 450 bushmaster, 300 Remington Ultra Mag and 375 Ruger, lol
i was with my buddy when he shot a buck with a 300 ultra mag. At 250 yards he hit just behind the shoulder and the exit was the size of softball. It was the biggest exit ive ever seen. very impressive. i think he was using 180 grain remington premier scirocco's
@@ianharper1189 My friend mistakenly used Nosler Ballistic tips (165 gr) instead of Nosler Partitions. I took a mulie doe at 505 yds. Steep downhill angle, (foothills to river bottom in western Wyoming) hit her dead center heart, angled down and exited through the off leg. Knocked out a 1" thick chunk of bone that I found underneath her. Looked like a bone from a beef round steak! Looking just like it was cut on a saw!! It was so strange! Bullet was 3,330 fps. Awesome cartridge. Dropped out of the scope dead as a door nail.
@@wiseguysoutdoors2954 sounds like a good time. I hunt upstate ny. We have more hunters than deer. That same friend is now using a 6.5 creedmore while I've stuck to my 3006.
You can buy reduced recoil ammo for many of the popular heavier recoiling hunting calibers. I handload .270 Win ammo to .243 levels because my potential shots are fairly short and I like less recoil. I also hunt with supersonic .300 BLK ammo because it is light recoiling.
Unfortunately they are gone now, but the old 250 Savage and the 257 Roberts were great deer cartridges that had very little recoil. My Savage model 1920 in 250 has such light recoil, that it doesn’t move you off target.
Agree on the recommendations, but you should have included in your video statement boys were using rifle tripod. That reduces the need to balance the rifle and absorbs some of the recoil too.
6.5 Grendel awesome round extremely low recoil
I love your videos and this one is a very good one and the hell with all big mouth out there.. I guess they haven’t hunted much.
🙏🙏🙏 appreciate you watching
Virginia is one of those Southern states that don't allow .223 for hunting deer, bear, or elk. But I reckin it don't matter much to me. I hunt in my backyard and the town I live in only allows archery, muzzleloader, and shotgun, although the county itself allows hunting deer and bear with a rifle using centerfire ammunition that is .23 caliber or larger.
Maybe one of these days I'll go buy me a hunting license so I can go somewhere where I can hunt with a rifle.
First deer I ever got was with my daddy's .243 Can't recall exactly how old I was, but I know I wasn't older than 9. I figured a .243 was going to be one of the cartridges you mentioned.
I agree with the choices. I hate hear about your experiences with 350 legend, I have have had good luck with it on hogs in 180 grain, but it is a different shot placement than deer.
does great on deer too within 100 yards.
I'm a big fan of the .257 Roberts, but I readily acknowledge that it is hard (and expensive) to find ammo for it. It is a handloader's dream, but if you are buying factory anmo, I would not recommend it.
Recoil is relative. It all depends on the kind of hunting you have done in your life. I am a western hunter and the deer I hunt are mule deer and there is always the possibility of having the opportunity to harvest an elk while deer hunting. A 30-06 is a light recoiling rifle to me and to my hunting friends. A heavy recoil is my 300 win. mag. or my 35 Whelen but not as much recoil as the ten gauge shotgun produces. I don't often pattern it cuz it knocks the heck out of me.
Good choices, although I would probably have suggested the 6.5 Creedmoor over the 6 Creedmoor as an option in-between the. 243 & the 7mm-08. Also definitely agree with your assessment of the .350 Legend. Very borderline performance from them! I would suggest the 170 gr American Whitetail load as probably the best option there, based off of feedback from a lot of Iowa deer hunters. The Bearcreek Ballistics ammo is one I haven't had any personal feedback on, but looks very interesting, with a lot of promise.
Priceless footage!
Hey Adam,
I have a Winchester 1894 .25.35 also very deadly out to 150 yd open sights from
what I have read about this gun was that it was designed for younger
Shooters Ergo the light recoil I would also like to mention the
fact that when you shoulder this rifle, you do not have to look
for the rear sight or the front sight they are just there . I just
wish Winchester and Hornady would chamber these rounds
more than every 5 to 10 years, seasonal chambering is what I
was told this is called
25 06, 6.5 creedmoor
First cartridge that came to mind when I saw the title was .243 would’ve loved to see the 25-06 in here though
The .284 projectile is the king from way back !
Well 243 win 6.5 Creedmoor and the 7mm08
I would choose 6.5 Creedmoor over 6 Creedmoor. If you want a 6mm, .243 Win is the way to go.
WTW, I started this video as background noise while I was cleaning some bing bangs. When you started talking about shot placement I had to stop and restart the video. I couldn’t agree more on teaching the youngsters about ethical kills. Can you kill a deer with a neck shot? Absolutely, my dad was always a head shooter. Those kids will remember these times and eventually pass that knowledge on to other young hunters. Totally agree with your choices in calibers as well. You hear a lot of people on the creedmoor kick and to each their own. Keep up the good content and have a great hunting season.
Thanks! Appreciate you watching
I wish i never sold my 6.5japanese rifle. It was a sweet shooter. Light recoil,very accurate. If i ever come across one again,gonna make a sporter or just simply just add aside mount weaver and a scope . Have that on a Italian Carcano carbine . Shoots fantastic,with my hand loads.
I really like the 280AI -- I know the recoil is about like a .270 Win though.
Man, I've come to love your videos! You've earned a subscriber
Appreciate you watching!
I would not include both the 6mm CM and the .243, because there is so little difference between them. I might have included the 6.5 Gredel as an interesting choice. Fits in an AR 15 platform, and should be fine out to 250-300 yds, and less recoil than any of the ones here.