The 400 Whelen works well on big deer. Should work okay on whitetails.

I'm pretty sure it's legal here... Never gonna try it but I thought I read somewhere it's legal in WI

I guess that was probably for the centerfire versions though

270 if I have to pick a best. Flat shooting with enough power to take any shot (with the exception of straight away) as far out as I feel I can ethically shoot. Though I've killed more with a 243. Shot one with a 22-250 once. Not a fan of the 22 calibers as they limit my range and they limit the shots I can take. Also the one buck I shot with a 22-250 didn't lose a single drop of blood, which can be a problem if they run even 40 yds after the shot in some of the cover we have.

My ideal gun for any species shouldn't limit your range or shot placement on the given species.

blow their minds and tell them they are both right

308win is a shortened 30-06 to use more modern powders that didn't need as much space

it was the 1951 do what 30-06 had done with M2 ball but lighter because less brass in the case and a little less powder because the case is smaller. that way GIs could carry more rounds into combat

ballistically yes 308win is about 100fps slower than modern 30-06 , but in 1951 30-06 was doing nearly exactly what 308win was made to do

so the deer at the end of the shot won't have any clue which 0.308" projectile hit them going almost the same speed

another way to put it a 20 inch 30-06 would be sending the same projectile at the same speed as a 24 inch 308 barrel

the shot to shot difference between 2 guns of the same caliber with the same ammo might actually be greater than 308 and 30-06

everything is legal for deer in WI , they changed the rules to "reasonable equipment" IF you drop a deer on the spot with 17 hmr it is reasonable equipment our county warden wanted so bad to hit a guy with unreasonable equipment for shooting a buck with 17hmr

problem was that deer didn't take 2 steps

so he could only write the tickets for shooting the deer out of season, the guy shot it with a 17hmr in the ear , then ran a broadhead through it and claimed an archery kill.

I have shot a buck with a 223rem 55gr soft point it ran about 35 yards and piled up , works great , the blood trail is not existent but it was d e a d and just didn't know it on impact turned the chest cavity to organ jelly.

Allan,
My Dad shot a .284 in a model 88 Winchester. I'm giving it to my nephew. Hope for a few more deer to fall to it.

Excellent choices, Ive killed a pile with both.

Ive used the 7mm Rem mag on Antelope and deer more , Ever since finding the 139 grain bonded Ammo over 30 yrs ago

My first big Buck was a Running 5 X5 Muley with the Non scoped .44 Ruger carbine -And dozens more with it in Wisc.& Minn.

You can use and cartridge./calibre you want as long as it's a .30-06. Anything else is just plain stupid.

Bullet construction is far more important than caliber. With the right bullet, caliber options are many. Although deer can get to just over 400 lbs, most deer shot are probably less than 200. Most popular calibers are overkill if you ask me. I'd rather have an easy on the shoulder caliber for deer.

Killed a very large pile of deer with the 30-30, that's my go to... killed one with a 243 and a few with slugs and buckshot.....

Put a decent bullet in the right spot and you go pick up your deer.....it ain't brain surgery, lol

My uncle was a 30-06 man. Got seriously upset when grandad bought a 243 in the late 60's. I thought he was going to have a litter of kittens when my dad bought a 308. Wonder he didn't stroke out when I bought a 270. My cousin has his old o3 a3 he bought from the NRA. Old mil surp has put a ton of meat on the table.

Trigger time seems to be the prevailing thought on best choice. My dad didn't believe in that. Called it wasting ammo. If you were not getting groceries or protecting livestock, any shooting was wasting ammo. He got his share of game.

I think if your method is working, your not leaving wounded animals for animal scavengers, your on track.

I really like the 7mm guns I have the 7mm mauser 7mm rem mag 7mm stw 7mm short mag all have got the job done for me. This year I will try the 6.5 creedmoor and see what happens.

I personally love the .243 as I’ve killed a lot of deer with it and the lighter recoil helps on deer drives and shooting running deer as I can pickup the deer again quicker after shooting. One of the better hunters I know and kills just piles of deer started out with the 250-3000 savage and moved to a .22-250 30 years ago or so and keeps just killing them every year.

I have shot deer with many calibers. They all work. Plus you need to what works where you hunt. I shoot different calibers from hunting in the wide open to in the thick woods. I have shot deer with bow and muzzleloader. You need to pick what works. It turns into a big argument, why? If it works use it.

Slugs

Why do the modern day expert marksman prefer short action calibers?

When weight is a factor you can shave a few ounces off. Some disciplines are still dominated by long actions. Most hunters would benefit more by shaving some weight of themselves than a few ounces off their rifles.

I killed deer with a 22-250 when I lived in SD, kills them dead but you rarely get a blood trail, which isn’t a big deal if you can watch them go down. Killed several with my mini 14 too but same deal. But I like to double lung em and bleed them out.

With Ti, Al, and poly stocks.
The way they scrutinize power...
I'd never thought that.

Thanks.

Oh and I put my 270 up against
Lugs outtabe 6.

500 yrds
running
snow storm
through a freight train
during an eclipse
with a clean oiled bore
on the last day

That .500 Nitro Express double on the left will pretty much paralyze a whitetail. The right bullet for thin skinned game is not easy to find.