[wyominghuntfish]

for my first deer, should I use an old Savage .250-3000 or a 25-35?

 

[Lil Sand Bay]

No brainer, .250-3000

 

[wyominghuntfish]

I have shot that MANY times and that is as very nice, strait shooting gun. I was kinda thinkin that to begin with. However, I really love the way the 25-35 shoots, too.

 

[ndm]

The .250 Savage is a much better round. It's capable of taking deer well past 200 yards The 25-35 is limited to under 100 yards. At 100 yards you only have 900 ft pounds of energy with the 25-35. Good Luck with your first deer.

 

[jimbob357]

I'd say shoot your first deer with the .250.
After you gain some experience and when you want to put a challenge into a hunt, then use the .25-35. 100 to 125 yards is about the max humane killing range for the .25-35. Use proper bullets, like the Hornady 117gr Round Nose if you reload.

Good luck on your first deer.

 

[sdeprie]

You didn't say anything about the guns that would be used. I will have to assume (always dangerous) that the 25-35 will be a lever gun with a tubular magazine, the 250 could be either bolt or lever, but with a box magazine. With these thoughts in mind, the 250 will have more range, but is still no powerhouse. You also didn't state how long the shots would be. If it is reasonable to expect a shot over 100 yards, the 250 is obviously the best choice. Whatever you use, good luck and enjoy yourself.

 

[varmit b gone]

I'll do some answering for him, for he's hunting very close to were I live and I know him fairly well. He informed me the 250 is an old bolt action Savage. The shots, if the deer do what I think they'll do around here, will be around 200 if you aren't very sneeky, but you can get closer, too.But you never know, either, I mean, it's hunti'!

 

[wyominghuntfish]

no, it is a lever action. and i am using that for sure

 

[varmit b gone]

The 250?

 

[wyominghuntfish]

yup

 

[julianbrachfeld]

You didn't say anything about the guns that would be used. I will have to assume (always dangerous) that the 25-35 will be a lever gun with a tubular magazine, the 250 could be either bolt or lever, but with a box magazine. With these thoughts in mind, the 250 will have more range, but is still no powerhouse. You also didn't state how long the shots would be. If it is reasonable to expect a shot over 100 yards, the 250 is obviously the best choice. Whatever you use, good luck and enjoy yourself.

I can tell you from personal experience that an 87gr pill moving at over 3000fps is more a powerhouse than you would imagine. It literally turned the heart and lungs of the first 2 deer I took with it to pulp. Downside: Very little to no blood trail. Upside: One DRT, the other went about 10 yards. No need for search and rescue with properly placed shots. I wouldn't hesitate to shoot out to 300 yards or even more, not that I've ever had to shoot that far. What it lacks in size it more than makes up for with the hydrostatic shock it generates.