The Ultimate Whitetail Rifle -By Jeff Johnston, NRA Country Beat Reporter

The Ultimate Whitetail Rifle

By Jeff Johnston, NRA Country Beat Reporter

As days grow shorter and the air turns brisk, whitetail bucks begin creeping from the woodwork in search of mates. This is the time when old Mossy Horns may let his guard down for a moment, and when young deer act like maniacs. Yes, right now the rut is on.

Meanwhile, millions of good ole boys-and a growing number of gals-don blaze-orange hats and grab their reliable, buck busting .30-30 Winchester lever action rifles and take to the fields like an army of venison-seeking soldiers.

Well, some grab .30-30s, but a goodly number of them wouldn't dare settle into a deerstand without their venerable Remington Model 700 in .30-06. Other deer hunters swear by a Browning A-Bolt in .243 or their scarred Winchester M70 in .270. A Savage 110 in 7mm Mag. can't easily be topped, or then again a custom new Ultra Light Arms in .280 Remington may be the way to go if you've got some cheese. And who can forget grampa's Ithaca Deerslayer shotgun, an icon that's taken more deer in Illinois than the highway does turtles? Maybe you can afford a shiny new one, but why would you when grampa gave his beloved gun to you before he passed to higher hunting grounds?

Fact is, there are so many great rifles-and so many sound reasons for choosing one-that NRA Country would like to know: What's your favorite firearm for deer? Tell us, or send us a picture of you with it by clicking here.

Academically, a mature male whitetail weighs about 200 pounds on the hoof. It's wary, fast and has a nose like a hound dog, but it's not particularly thick skinned. In terms of calibers, a .223 Rem. with a premium, controlled-expansion bullet like a Barnes TSX can kill a whitetail as dead as dollar gas, but I'd hardly call the .223 ideal-not when you can easily find that sweet balance of power and shootability. On the other end of the spectrum, if I could only choose one rifle for all hunting, there's a great argument for a .300 Winchester Magnum. It'll send a 180-grain bullet at 3000 feet-per-second, an equation that adds up to an overly qualified candidate. But it kicks more than a deer rifle should, and at around $60 per box of ammo, it pains more than your shoulder to shoot it. Plus, thanks to the NRA, nobody's making me choose just one gun. So it and all the rest of the 30-caliber magnums are out.

A 7mm Rem. Mag. is a wonderfully potent round as well, but unless you routinely shoot deer at ultra-long range, it may be too much; It's also bites like the neighbor's pit bull. If you can shoot it well, then go for it, but I say instead of throwing lead across the prairie, perhaps you should practice your sneaking skills instead.

"But JJ," some people moan, "the .30-30 Winchester has taken more deer than all the rest, so it's the best." Even if that were true, dear friends, it's hardly a qualifier. Click here for further investigation into the .30-30 myth. Ballistically, the .30-30 is marginal past 150 yards.

Millions of Americans love their .243s, and so do I. For all but the biggest Saskatchewan giants at questionable ranges, it's all the bullet a hunter needs, if the hunter does his or her part. It's known for its accuracy, it's inexpensive and it's a creampuff to shoot. In an average, 7-pound rifle, it delivers about 8.5 ft.-pound of recoil energy. Compare that to a .30-06 with 27. My nephew Harmon dumped a deer like a bad date with his Savage .243 last year, and he's 11. Some argue that a .243 is too light, and I tell them they know not of what they speak. But is it the perfect caliber? Methinks not.

Before I speak of perfection, I must mention the .30-06 Springfield, because it would anger the hunting gods-or worse, the gun bloggers-if I didn't. I don't know how many Remington Model 700s in ought-six have been handed over glass counters to smiling rednecks over the years, but it's not enough. Rest assure, if this timeless caliber was good enough to defeat the Nazis, it's good enough for that 8-point buck on the back forty. If someone shows up in camp with a M700 in .30-06 and a Leupold scope on it, I tip my hat respectfully and listen when that man speaks around the campfire. Normally he doesn't say much except, "Thanks for helping me drag him out, boys." As good as the .30-06 is for everything, however, it's not my first choice in a pure deer rifle.

A few months ago I asked NRA-member and country music singer Casey Donahew of his favorite deer rifle. ".25-06," he replied without a stutter. I knew right then and there that this ole' boy could do more than hold a catchy tune. Country music star Tracy Lawrence said the same thing. If you don't believe me, click here to listen for yourself. Deer hunters all over the land-especially in open-terrain states like Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas-say the same thing. This meat missle is a .25-caliber bullet seated atop a .30-06 case. It flies 3230 fps and hits like a straight right from Floyd Money Mayweather.

Then there's the .270 Winchester. Everything I could write here has already been written a thousand times over by the likes of Jack O'Conner, except the fact that Jack O'Conner used the .270 before the widespread use of premium bullets, like Barnes TSX, Winchester XP3, Trophy Bonded Bear Claw and Hornady GMX-bullets that allow smaller calibers to expand, yet stay together and penetrate. But I'm grasping here. The .270 Win. and WSM are wonderful whitetail calibers; For all around deer hunting-think mule deer out West-it's likely the best considering its availability, bullet options, rifle configurations and ballistic performance. If anyone says the .270 Win. is a piker, kick him out of deer camp, defriend him on Facebook, and call the authorities immediately-he's likely a commie bent on ruining NRA Country.

There are a dozen other calibers that could be nominated for the world's best whitetail rifle, such as the .257 Weatherby, 6.5 Creedmoore, .260 Rem., 7mm-08 Rem. (my second choice) and others.

At some point however, a hunter must quit thinking about his or her equipment and go hunt. Grab a gun and focus on finding a buck and delivering one swift, fatal shot. Fact is, it doesn't matter what rifle you lug afield as long as it's of adequate power and accuracy, and it feels like magic in your hands when the wind turns chilly and the bucks begin to misbehave.

What's mine? It's a Remington Model 7 (the smaller, lighter version of the M700), chambered in .308 Winchester and stoked with Barnes TSX Bullets. It's custom-painted in camo and sports a 2x-7x33mm Leupold scope and a trigger job.

Are there better rigs available? Likely, but, as Private Pyle said in Full Metal Jacket, "This one is mine." Now please excuse me while I go score some steaks