shotgun?

[sunnydale slim]

I would say get a rifle and for several reasons a 308. A couple of reasons are that ammo is readily available and for the most part less expensive than other calibers. I agree on spending a little extra for the scope and mounting system for it, a couple of my personal preferences are Luepold (VX II or higher) and older 1 pc. tube Redfields if you can find one. Just my $.02

 

[Petro_58]

Depends what kind of Area your going to be Hunting. Heavy Brush, Open Fields a mixture. I've taken Many Deer with my .243 thats my prefered Caliber. I'd say from .243 Up for rifle Calibers. Good over all Deer caliber you can't beat the old reliable 30/30.

 

[BHJ]

Well if it's your first gun you might as well go with something versatile that can do it all. That would be a shotgun. From sparrows to bears to home defense a good 12ga has it covered . Personally my most versatile shotgun and favorite is a Remington 11-87 semi auto. I have a 26" field barrel for it and a variety of choke tubes from skeet to extra full turkey. This allows me to adjust the shot column to the density I desire for different tasks and situations with a quick choke change. I kept my eyes open and after a while came across a 21" cantilever scope mount rifled slug barrel for $110 and promptly mounted a 2-7x32 Leupold on it. It takes about 1 minute to go from scattergun to .72 cal rifle and the scope stays zeroed cause it's attached to the barrel not the receiver.
If $500-$700 is out of your budget then Remington also offers an 870 express combo package (pump gun). I bought one of these for my son for $350. It comes with a 26" vent rib barrel with 3 remchokes and a rifle sighted fully rifled 21" slug barrel. It still covers all the bases just fine. It's a little harder on the shoulder than my semi auto gas gun but if you only shoot it a couple of times with deer/turkey 3" loads it's not too bad. With 2 3/4" bird shot not bad at all. I have yet to see a rifle cover all these bases.
Good luck and it's hard to beat the versatility of a Remington shotgun and if it's the only weapon you have I highly reccomend it.
BHJ

 

[Hunley]

Welcome to the South, now get a rifle!! 7mm Mag is a nice choice

If you want to destroy one of the deer's front shoulders (or your own). In rifle, anything over .30-06 for the deer around here just seems... wasteful.

Back on topic:

1. If you get a rifle, and it will be your first, get a bolt action .308 with an 18-20" barrel. It's more than enough to kill anything in the Southeast. Plus, you can get plenty of surplus ammo to practice long distance shooting with. That said, you probably won't shoot past 150 yards in Georgia.

2. If you want a shotgun with a field and rifled barrel, the prices on Mossbergs are hard to beat. Accessories are plentiful as well. I won't say a model number in particular. If Stoeger makes a rifled barrel for their Model 2000, that would be a good semi-auto option at a reasonable price.

 

[WMSproject]

My entire family hunts whitetail deer and have done so for generations. None of us use a .308. I'm not sure why. A couple members of my extended family use a 30 06. They are the ones who never touch a gun until it's hunting season and then expect other family members to sight in their rifle. The rest of us who are seasoned shooters use bolt guns chambered in .223, .243, .270 and .270 Win Mag.

The kids in the family shoot .223 and .243. The women shoot .243 and the men shoot .270 and .270 Win Mag. I personally shoot a .270 Remington 700 with a Nikon Monarch 2.5-10x50 Scope. I do say that the Scope cost more than the Rifle. It really does the job of light amplification at dawn and twilight. That is the single most important reason I can think of for using a good rifle scope in the south.

None of us hunt deer with a shotgun and none of us have ever owned a rifled slug shotgun. Shotguns are for hunting ducks, squirrels, rabbits and turkeys. We bow hunt and muzzle loader hunt during early season also.

I would highly recommend the .270 round in 130 grain lead tip for whitetail deer. Also the Barnes Triple Shock round.

 

[Bear44]

My entire family hunts whitetail deer and have done so for generations. None of us use a .308. I'm not sure why. A couple members of my extended family use a 30 06. They are the ones who never touch a gun until it's hunting season and then expect other family members to sight in their rifle. The rest of us who are seasoned shooters use bolt guns chambered in .223, .243, .270 and .270 Win Mag.

The kids in the family shoot .223 and .243. The women shoot .243 and the men shoot .270 and .270 Win Mag. I personally shoot a .270 Remington 700 with a Nikon Monarch 2.5-10x50 Scope. I do say that the Scope cost more than the Rifle. It really does the job of light amplification at dawn and twilight. That is the single most important reason I can think of for using a good rifle scope in the south.

None of us hunt deer with a shotgun and none of us have ever owned a rifled slug shotgun. Shotguns are for hunting ducks, squirrels, rabbits and turkeys. We bow hunt and muzzle loader hunt during early season also.

I would highly recommend the .270 round in 130 grain lead tip for whitetail deer. Also the Barnes Triple Shock round.

Good advice. I think the 270 may be the perfect Whitetail round. Also, pay attention to the low power on his scope. Most people use scopes that have to much magnification.

 

[strokin99]

Let's not forget about the 7mm08. Get round for the georgia deer.

 

[yellowhammer]

Get a rifle.Get what YOU like.Not what others like.I`ve done well in Ga.and out west,with .243,.270,30-06,.444. .32 Win.Spc.was my first Ga.deer rifle,back in the 70s.Don`t get something that you won`t enjoy shooting.I finally got kicked enough to stop hunting with a .444.I killed white tails and muleys with it(and a bear),but came to hate practicing with it.If you limit yourself with a shotgun,you`ll end up needing to make a long shot.Most of my deer have been killed at way less than a hundred yards in Ga.,but a few times I was in a place where I had a 200 +yard shot.Go to a range with some friends and shoot some of their guns and see whatcha like.

 

[AFTON]

As well as i know about this that in the every territory of the world the deer haunting has been banned then why we are listening this in some places again.Is there no law at their places ?

 

[robster31316]

Spent some time at FT Sill, OK and had to either hunt with a Muzzle loader or shotgun, that was before all the high tech muzzle loaders they have now too. So if you can find one would recommend a Mossberg 695