SUCCESS! .204 ruger on a deer. [pictures]

[RedTwo]

Rifle season started yesterday up here in northern idaho so i went for an afternoon hunt today with a buddy of mine. Got out to our spot at 2:45pm and watched some clear cuts for awhile. Around 4:45 we started to make the journey back to our rig. walking the trail back, my friend spots a "long deer shaped stump". turns out to be a 3pt muley buck. This deer stood only 80 or so yards from us. The only problem was that the sun was setting literally right behind it. It noticed us and was gone in a flash. My buddy ran down the trail hoping to cut it off at the next clear cut, while i opted to chase after it. 15minutes later of sneaking around and glassing the hills in the distance i spot butt end of this deer casually walkin around on a hill quite a bit aways. he stopped in between a couple trees. i could only see from behind his shoulder to his head. i ranged him at 332 yards. i got the crosshairs on him and held about 5 inches above him. Pulled the trigger and bang. i see the deer run off, unsure if the bullet had made contact. Jump ahead another 15-20 minutes and we're over where he was looking for blood. shortly after we find a single drop, look up and there he lies. not 60 yards from where i shot him. The bullet landed right in front of the shoulder. after dragging/carrying this deer out a mile back to the jeep we were exhausted for sure. Just wanted to post this because awhile back i posed the question of whether or not using the .204 on a deer was practical. a lot of the comments were doubtful and questioned the ethics. Just wanted to post this to show proof that this little pill of a bullet has some serious power. I shot a factory 40gr Hornady V-MAX out of my remingotn 700 VTR.

[RAMOS]

Red Two,
I don't think anyone said it was "impossible". The general consensus was that it was not, well never mind. You probably would not understand it any better this time than the last time. Congratulations on a clean kill, hope your luck holds.

[Song Dog]

I know a guy in the Boise area that has taken alot of big game with his 20 TAC. As he states they never went more than 50 Yards before they flopped. One elk went drt. He probably has more by now.
But he will say over and over its bullet placement.
Congrats on the Muley.

[Mike]

i see the deer run off, unsure if the bullet had made contact. Jump ahead another 15-20 minutes and we're over where he was looking for blood. shortly after we find a single drop, look up and there he lies. not 60 yards from where i shot him.

I'm glad that you had a successful hunt and recovered your deer, but the portion of text quoted above shows just how small your margin for error is. I have no interest in firing up the debate again (pun intended), so I'll congratulate you and leave it at that.

[NHS]

Oh, to be young, arrogant, and carefree again.

[Guy M]

Hey, congratulations on the buck! It's always great to put one down.

That said, my .204 is staying in the gun safe until I take it out for coyotes or varmints again. I've killed a few mulies with a .223, and although it works, I've gotten much, much better results just stepping up to a .243 or .25-06 class cartridge.

Still, congratulations on the buck. Putting one on the ground puts you ahead of about 75% of hunters in the Northwest according to averages!

Regards, Guy

[Critter]

Hey, congratulations on the buck! It's always great to put one down.

That said, my .204 is staying in the gun safe until I take it out for coyotes or varmints again. I've killed a few mulies with a .223, and although it works, I've gotten much, much better results just stepping up to a .243 or .25-06 class cartridge.

Couldn't agree more. However, those .204 Factory rounds are a special breed of cat. They are loaded for the most part to higher velocities than I find possible with hand loads. They hit very hard and deliver wound channel all out of proportion to their size.

Bleeding suggest tremendous internal damage that is consistent with breakup of varmint bullet. In my experience these things tend to eviscerate prairie dogs, basically turning them inside out. Looks like the excellent shot placement was the real story here!

Feels to me like hitting a moose with a .38 special. Something I wouldn't do except in an emergency.

[Snoplop]

Glad you recovered it. Once your older you will understand. It wasn't if it could be done. Its if it should be done.
Eskimos reportedly have used 22 mags and 222 to shoot polar bears in the right circumstances. I would pass on that also.
Most would agree the 204 and was developed for small thin skinned game and that is its specialty. To use it on larger game is a risky proposition.
Might opt to brain one with a 204 if it kept eating my garden but have no idea why anyone would hunt a deer with it.
But yes, it could be done.

[rayfromtx]

I use my 204 to harvest deer from my home but it is from a coaxial rest at 100 yards and the accuracy of my rifle allows an absolutely certain result. I put the bullet right between their eyes every time. They do not go anywhere but straight down. In a less certain situation, in the field, I would opt for a 6mm projectile of at least 80 grains. I have missed with that combination though. I have never missed with the 204 from a bench rest setup. I would not use the 204 to make a body shot on a large mammal.

If we get into an argument about the ethics of what we do or how we do it, we are on shaky ground to begin with. I can easily argue both sides.

[chicoredneck]

Congradulations!
The 204 obviously worked great for you as it has for myself and others in this scenario.

[maverick]

Just wanted to post this because awhile back i posed the question of whether or not using the .204 on a deer was practical. a lot of the comments were doubtful and questioned the ethics. Just wanted to post this to show proof that this little pill of a bullet has some serious power. I

I don't think your success does anything to help argue practicality or ethics of the .204 for deer. The fact that you hit him in the shoulder and it wasn't obvious that you hit him tells me something.... A body shot with the .204 could just have easily resulted in a lost/wounded animal.

Everyone on this website knows the .204 can be deadly, fortunately most also know that there are a lot better options than the .204 for hunting big game. Glad your hunt ended well and you got your deer. Also bear in mind that you'd not be welcome to hunt deer on my ground with the .204, as the likelihood of wounding them and losing them is too high, and I don't particularly like watching wounded deer and elk struggle during the winter (much less, dealing with their carcasses in our pastures in the spring.) I'll step off my soapbox now.

[WnMag]

Congrats on your kill.
I'll admitt I have killed deer with a 22, and .223. But I only head shoot deer with those. I dont like wasting any meat. Chances are if its a big Buck and it really excites me I will use the .300 win mag and take out the neck.
Bullet placement for sure matters with any calliber

[Sam in Perth]

Can you remember why so many people said using a 204 for dear was a dumb idea? Because it is likely to cause unnecessary pain and suffering to the animal.

You see, redtwo, it is normal for human beings to feel compassion and empathy for animals. The rest of us here hate seeing animals in pain.

In the lead up to deer season others were loading rounds for their deer rifles and putting the varmint rifle away for another season.

What where you doing? Probably putting air rifle pellets into your neighbors dog for a laugh.

And that, redtwo, is why you find yourself desperately short of friends.

[Ctrimfire]

This is my first post here, just getting into small cal centerfire. So i hate to be a nag but, please be carefull with your gun. Look at where it is aimming in the second to last picture! Not safe, empty or not. Bolt open or not. Lots of excitement after a big kill. Thats when mistakes happen. Please be safe.
Thanks

[Neil S.]

Ok so I'm coming in a little late on this one, but this post became active after Ctrimfire posted this morning and I noticed it for the first time. My father owns a 190 acre farm/orchard in NY and we hunt it a lot along with my brother. We take care of our deer (food plots, make sure there is access to the apples, thin out the preditors ) and we have rules about how big/old a deer has to be to be harvested. However, some of the people that hunt around us like to blast everything that moves. I personally saw TWO injured deer this past season. The first was a small 3 pointer that had a black hairless patch behind his shoulder right over his lungs. Probly from an arrow durring bow season. He was happily limping along after a doe and I let him pass thinking he would be alright. I still regret that decision. The second was a dandy 4 pointer that I watched chase a couple doe through a field, grunting the whole time! I couldn't stop him and I just didn't feel comfortable with the shot so I let him go. 2 min later I heard a BANG and I knew my brother had him . Turns out besides the kill shot he had a nice fresh hole in his brisket RIGHT BEHIND his heart that looked like it was from a typical deer rifle round. I mean it was CLOSE to his heart. The message to take away from this is that deer are tough and I for one never have and never want to wound one. I also never want to tell anyone what to do, so use whatever caliber you know will cleanly kill your game with a not-so-perfect shot.

-Neil