Deer Hunting ?

I am going to be going white tail deer hunting this season for the first time and I'm not quite sure as to which type of rifle will best suit me. I live in NY and will be hunting in the Catskill area (small, rocky type mountains with thick forests) and am wondering what type of rifle and which caliber you guys would recommend and why. I've been leaning towards a Marlin 336C lever action 30-30 since I love the feel (quick handling, quick sight picture) and look of those rifles. I also feel that the shortness and light weight of the rifle will be helpful in the thick brush I will most likely be in.

The other rifle/caliber I am looking into is some version of a Remington 700 chambered in 30-06. I know I would not be let down by this choice but the thing is that I really want a lever action as opposed to a bolt rifle. But as an inexperienced hunter I want to be sure that the 30-30 is enough gun to take down a big deer like the ones in upstate NY since I would feel terrible if I were to wound a deer and have it get away. Any help is appreciated.

 

that marlin 30/30 will serve you well....very well. i have an old marlin 30/30, and wouldnt trade it for anything. very accurate rifle for how short the barrel is, but it focuses really better than anything as a close quarter/brush gun. get a good scope for it, and dial that scope in good.....you'll be very pleased with your results.

 

I have a Marlin 30-30 myself and i love it... i could ask for a better rifle personally..... it gets the job done just fine for me.... any deer i have ever killed with it has never ran more than 10 steps prob.... its got plenty of stopping power for these little deer we have down here in georgia

oh yeah forgot to mention the accuracy..... mine is dialed in at 100 yards and it keeps a group of about 3 inches or less.... very accurate rifle

 

haha how did i know you'd chime in so quickly ...im just worried since the deer up here in NY are a lot bigger than the ones down in SC.

 

yeah...they may be bigger........but a 170 grain bullet has plenty of stopping power....even for those big deer up your way. you can even buy hornady lever-evolution ammo for that gun......can make for long range hunts.

 

the marlin 30 30 is a great gun for deer,hog and other med size animals.people have been taking game animals for many moons with the marlin and the winchester lever actions.cant go wrong with the marlin for a first gun for hunting. good luck

 

cool, thanks guys. im pretty sure im gonna go with the 30-30. now i just have to decide between blued or stainless. i like the look of the blued but i dont want to have to worry about rust, i know if i keep it clean and oiled then it shouldnt matter but im used to idiot proof military weapons.

 

def agreeing with everyone, especially from the conditions your saying youll be hunting in, anything thick were animals will be fairly close to you the shortness and caliber of this rifle will serve you well...and go with the stainless my 270 in stainless with the synthetic stock. its just badass lookin imo, but its gona glare way more when the sun hits it then the blued possibly catching the attention of animals...also like to add on to what tacomaman said, get a good scope and look into some over/under mounts (lets you view through the scope and the open sights) so if you have a far shot you have the scope but also if something pops up quickly at short range youll be covered since youll still have the open sights to look through. i have heard a few people say they dont like them though so youd have to try them out, i myself have never had them so i wont judge

 

Can't go wrong with a 30/30 for a short range deer gun. If you ever plan on going out west for a "deer" hunt though a 30/30 would be at the bottom of my list. I'd be more apt to go with a .270, 30-06, or .308 that has potential for a much flatter trajectory and better ballistics at longer ranges. All would serve you well for the type of hunting you do now also. Just a thought if you think you might do that.

Also remember that your gun is only as good as your scope. Leupold, meopta, zeiss...

 

That there is the gun i learned to hunt with.... now its a remington model 700 bdl lss dm 30-06

 

good to know, i would imagine the terrain out by you is similar to the catskill region of NY too.

 

on my 30/30.....i have the normal weaver style mounts and a bushnell 3x9x40 scope, and have zero problems with it out to 100 yards. but....on my .270, i have the over/under mounts where i can still use my iron sights if need be. alotta folks dont like them too much,because they have a tendency after a few rounds to loosen up a bit. what i have found is using a little red loctite on the mount screws takes care of the mount vibrating loose. i like them just fine......gives a bit of an advantage for if something comes up super close and the scope may get in the way.

 

i have a leupold mk2 3-9x40 scope that i could mount on a 30-30 but dont they (leverguns) have much different trajectories than most rifles? i think i saw a scope somewhere that was made just for leverguns for that reason.

 

bullet trajectory is a all different....but about any scope would work on the 30/30.....but i wouldnt go any bigger than a 3x9x40. even a 32x scope would do a nice job with the 30/30.

 

i think you would be better off with the 30-30..the 30-06 has some serious kick for a first time hunter..just remember not to blast the first thing you see, and have some good judgement which will help make a great deer heard

 

this is what i was talking about...i guess its not for leverguns in particular, its for Hornady's LeveEvolution rounds.

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...&parentType=index&indexId=cat20760&hasJS=true

 

yeah.....that kinda goes with the bullets,since it has the compensator built in, but you dont need that..or those bullets, unless you plan on hunts over 150 yards or so.

 

true, and im sure my leupold is a much better scope too. honestly i want to see how i am with open sights anyway. i doubt any of my shots will be too far.

 

I love that 30-30. My first "Wisconsin" deer I got with one of those. She didn't take one step and it was a done deal.

 

shooting with open sights is fun......but for hunting, i think you'd be better off with a decent set of see thru mounts and your scope mounted on top of them......that way you know for sure,if you have the scope zeroed........that your shot is gonna be placed exactly where you want it to be....less chance of hitting "around" where you want to and possibly injuring the deer and not finding him. just my thoughts anyway.