Dcryder, you obviously have not read many of my posts, as I have stated several times that I own a Savage actioned .222 bench rifle which will hold .25MOA or better depending on myself and conditions, as well as a couple other Savages and also have .22 and 6mm barrels that are awaiting reamers so I can chamber them in 22BR and 6BR. And along with my other H&R's, of which I have several, I also have a 6-.284 barrel for my H&R Ultra Varmint Fluted I had chambered from a .243 barrel.
As for the .243 shot I made that went south, I made a perfectly good shot through the lungs of the deer that ran off like nothing happened. Myself and several others tracked it for the rest of the day until it was dark, about 5 hours and covering several miles, at which point it had reached the edge of a very large swamp and we gave up for the night. We went back the next day, found where it entered the swamp, but could not follow the blood as it was far too wet. After circling the swamp looking for where the deer may have exited and having no luck, myself and my father walked in as far as we could with my uncle and cousin on the other side hoping to jump the deer and get it to run out or find it dead. No luck for the rest of the day. On the third day my cousin and myself went back with pistols and chest waders and went through the swamp basically zig-zagging through to cover as much ground as possible. After several hours of doing this, my cousin found the deer dead and bloated in a small dry area where it had bedded.
So in reality, I did find the deer, but it had been ruined as it was warmer than usual for November in NH and sat un-gutted for at least a day. I consider it a lost deer as it was wasted. But we did gut it, I tagged it and drug it out, and found a hole through both lungs and the spot where the bullet exited.
I truly feel that the .243 was the reason I did not recover the deer, as I have made many shots similar to that one and have never had a repeat of the incident. If the bullet had made a larger hole or the bullet had expanded more, the wound would have been much more deadly and I think would have stopped the animal much quicker. I was using factory Remington Core-Lokt ammo if I recall correctly.
I was also 16 (I believe) at the time of the incident as well, and I was honestly devastated by it. I am a very ethical and responsible hunter, and losing an animal really took an emotional toll on me. I also threw away my bow tag as well as my Maine tag and refused to hunt for the rest of the year, sold the rifle and went back to what I knew worked, either a 12ga slug, .50 cal muzzle loader or my 30-06.
The reason I recommend the .243 is that many others have had great success with it, contrary to my horrid incident, and it is seen by many as a great deer caliber. Better bullets are available more readily in factory ammo and will expand much more reliably, and many areas have much smaller deer than I do as well. I was against the .243 for a long time, but after listening to many stories of success with it from other members, I have begun to accept that it likely is a good choice in certain situations.
So just because I feel the .243 was inadequate when it failed on me, doesn't mean that it won't work in other situations. It has worked for many others, I just had an instance where it wasn't big enough to do the damage necessary to anchor a big, tough old New Hampshire whitetail. It's also worlds away in power from the .223, which is greatly lacking in my eyes when it comes to deer size game.
As for my trophy, it's a nice 8 pointer with a wide and very symmetrical rack that weighed in at 190lbs. I have shot bigger deer, and even a 10 pointer, but never anything with a rack as nice as this deer has. I believe it has an 18" spread and brow tines that are 6" long or better. He hangs on the wall at my camp, I will snap a picture next time I go up, which will likely be this weekend as I need to check on the place anyway.
As for a total, I am pretty sure the two this year made 19, though if you count my lost deer it's 20. I'm not bragging in any way, or trying to gloat either. I am just answering a question that you asked.
Think whatever you want. Nobody's perfect, but I don't take unethical shots on animals, period. Sh-- happens, and sometimes it happens to you. I am one of the most ethical and sporting hunters you will ever meet, and I pass more shots than I take by far, strictly because I don't EVER want to feel like I did when I watched that deer run off, EVER. That's the same reason I normally recommend much larger calibers than everyone else does, as I know what it feels like too watch a deer get hit hard, and then act like you missed and run away. I have been trying to accept the smaller stuff as "sufficient", hence my recommending it. It's still better than a .223.
Kenny
