What level of accuracy do insist on for a deer rifle?

[BillMe45]

As already stated, I deer hunt thick woods. I use the same stands for bows and rifles. In fact last season my bow kill was at 30 yards and my rifle kill was at 10-15 yards. My 35Rem and 45-70 get a 25 yard zero. I then confirm at 100 yards (it will be a few inches high) then I'm G2G. I can hold dead on as far as I can see a deer in my woods. MAYBE 150 yards (in just a few spots that a deer has never stopped in) . Let me find some wood to knock on here but I've never lost one. I have long range rifles but I dont call them my "deer rifles" the subject of this thread.

 

[Bear44]

Clarification: I'd be OK with a 4 m.o.a. deer rifle and limiting my shots to 200 yards. But I wouldn't be happy about it, and I would be thinking about getting a new gun for my next hunt. I want to be able to take a 300 yard shot if it is presented.
So I'm saying 3 m.o.a. (reliably, with no uncalled flyers out of that group) is the minimum accuracy that I would accept on a more or less permanent basis without planning on a new gun or shopping around for better ammo.

Man, accepting a 9 inch group as best accuracy is seriously pushing it. That means with the slightest variant, (a gust of wind, a tiny unexpected movement of the deer....) it can be a wounded animal, rather than a dead one.

 

[Bear44]

At least tell me you run a dry patch through it. I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight....

Nope. Have a good night.

 

[MRH]

Dirty bore?!?! I can't sleep at night if it's not clean. What kind of sick demented person are you anyway?

I am anal retentive about keeping my guns clean, but yes, I leave the bore as is before I hunt.

Last deer I shot was literally standing at the bottom of my tree stand.

In the hardwoods of Georgia the average is more like 50 yards or less, although I have shot several deer at 150 yards through the hardwoods. My biggest buck was taken at 150 yards in the hardwoods. I'm only saying that there are lots and lots of places in Georgia that offer very long shot opportunities.

There are also a lot of flood plains that will offer 300 yard shots even when they are wooded. It's just that most people don't even watch for deer at that range.

Exactly

 

[MRH]

Yep. It was an old raggedy Vanguard in 270 Win that I had picked up at a pawn shop for next to nothing. The first time I took it to the range I told a kid I was mentoring that if he put his next round completely inside a half inch bull's eye at 100 yards that I would give him the rifle. My requirement was that the POI wasn't even toughing the line of the bull. He was shooting my very accurate 223 Rem 700, but still....

Well, of course he did it. I didn't think it was any great loss and was thinking of this kid when I bought it anyway, but when we started shooting it and it consistently and effortlessly printed 0.5MOA, yeah, I felt some regret.

Haha...It was a Weatherby and they are fine rifles...even the less costly Vanguard. Still, you did a very cool thing for the kid.

 

[DinkyDau]

Each time I leave than range after shooting, I run an Appropriate bore snake through.

 

[Bear44]

Exactly

People would be very surprised with what they see if they picked up a set of binoculars and started looking "out there" for game.

 

[Bear44]

Haha...It was a Weatherby and they are fine rifles...even the less costly Vanguard. Still, you did a very cool thing for the kid.

Man, 10% of the bluing was gone and the stock was so old it had the integrally molded sling attachment points. It looked like one of the very first synthetic stocks offered. It was a serious sleeper.

 

[Bear44]

Each time I leave than range after shooting, I run an Appropriate bore snake through.

It's really not necessary with modern powders. The residue has no detrimental affect on the bore. A rifle shoots most consistently from just after the bore has been fouled to X number of shots. In most rifles, X = around 15 rounds.

Shooting cold bore is when you should see the most pronounced change in POI. Why compound the problem by making it a clean cold bore? Especially when you take into account what GeauxLSU pointed out. 90% of hunting shots will be cold bore.

 

[MRH]

It's really not necessary with modern powders. The residue has no detrimental affect on the bore. A rifle shoots most consistently from just after the bore has been fouled to X number of shots. In most rifles, X = around 15 rounds.

Shooting cold bore is when you should see the most pronounced change in POI. Why compound the problem by making it a clean cold bore? Especially when you take into account what GeauxLSU pointed out. 90% of hunting shots will be cold bore.

^This is how I see it. There is no doubt that a squeaky clean bore is going to be a touch off with that first shot. I believe it affects accuracy more than a cold bore. I can't say for certain but it seems that way to me. I have made many thread the needle shots on a deer with a cold bore.