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The recoil generated by the ought-six is at the upper end of what most shooters can manage without developing a debilitating flinch. It strikes a good balance between power and shootability. It really is the best all-around hunting rifle caliber. You won’t find another round with a more versatile array of offerings. I’ve also hunted with it across North America and in Africa, using 150-grain soft points, 180-grain Triple Shocks, 200-grain Trophy Bonded Bear Claws, 180-grain Accubonds, and a bunch of other bullets I can’t think of at the moment. Shooting 165-grain ballistic tips I put hundreds of pounds of corn-fed Michigan venison in the freezer over the years. Like many other hunters, my first real deer rifle was chambered in the ought-six. Without question, it is the number-one big-game round of the 20th Century. It’s been around forever, packs a punch, and helped us defeat the Nazis in World War II. 30/06 is the Captain America of big-game cartridges. 30/06 pictured with Nosler 180-grain ballistic tips. The author’s first big-game rifle, a Ruger 77 in. And who has better taste in such matters than me, the Shooting Editor of Outdoor Life? Glad you agree. Picking the best deer hunting cartridge also comes down to taste. These are the superstars of the whitetail world, with the numbers and longevity to support their claim to fame. Being a top deer hunting caliber requires more than just knock-down power. How I Picked the Best Deer Hunting Calibers And more people, by far, search for “best deer hunting caliber” than the technically correct “cartridge.” With that out of the way, let’s proceed. Anyone with a scrap of ballistic sense knows that it should say the “best deer hunting cartridge.” But, alas, in a world where Google dictates our fate, we must follow the digital mob. It isn’t that I have an issue with the subject.
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I am writing about the best deer hunting caliber under duress.