Sold my Savage 30-06 for a fair price this summer, and I ordered a Thunderbeast Ultra 7 .30 cal direct thread to use for deer hunting this year here in South Dakota. Well, NFA tracker makes it look sketchy if my Ultra 7 will show up in time, although it might. I also have a Liberty Mystic-X that is safe for either .223 or .300blk full power loads. I have a laser beam Remington 788 .223 24" I had threaded, so with the Mystic it's a long, muzzle heavy combo.

My .300 is an AAC Handi Rifle, with the Mystic X it's almost laughably short and light, downside is it's a single shot. I've seldom shot more than once at any of the many deer I've harvested over the years, so I'm pretty okay with one well placed shot, in perfect circumstances of course. Part of me wants to shoot a deer with a single shot short range rifle, just to say I did. I've not stretched the legs on this yet, mostly just plinking around with subsonics, so I need to either load or buy some supersonic hunting loads to try it out to 150-200 yards. I don't know how accuracy will fare, so if It's lousy, I won't bother with this.

 I realize that either of these is a compromise, and some of the deer I've gotten have been over 400yds here in our wide open fields. Many have also been under 50 yards, so it all depends on how I choose to hunt. I'm thinking a 110ish grain .300 blk would be a sub-200 yard cartridge, and that's about as far I'd probably take a poke with a 55 or 62 grain .223 as well. I have always used .243, 7mm mag or my 30-06 in the past, so range was never an issue.

 I prefer lung shots, so as long as either bullet penetrated both lungs, you get a nice clean, quick kill with no meat wasted.

 Sorry for the novel, I prefer to explain myself in the first post rather than answering 15 follow up questions. So, basic question, single shot .300 blk suppressed supersonic ( very short), OR bolt action 788 24" barrel, suppressed (very long). Which sub-optimal rifle would you pick? Thanks!

Between those? 300blk all the way. Ounces turn into pounds and all that, and a super 300BLK will deliver more energy on target than the 5.56 will.

I hunt Minnesota every year so I now how big those white tails can get up that way.  I wouldn't use a .223 on a white tail...  In a lot of states the minimum caliber is .243 for "big game" which deer normally fall under.

Thanks for your answers guys, I'm leaning more towards .300, but I'll just have to pick my shot carefully. I'll just pretend I'm archery hunting with a very loud bow!

  .223 is minimum allowed here, and I know many guys use them and other .22 cals, a lot of 22.-250 and .220 swift, although those would be far from my first choices. That said, I have only hit one deer in the shoulder, I'm not hunting in the mountains where I need the deer to drop where it stands, if it runs 100 yards across a cut corn field, it makes no difference. Most any centerfire with a proper bullet will easily poke a hole through both lungs. I've seen guys that have taken shoulder shots with light, fast bullets, the results aren't pretty, and they lose a pile of meat, plus it's a mess. I've lung shot deer that have literally not lifted their head from eating, and then trotted a few steps and fallen down dead.

  If I get a call from my dealer and my stamp rolls in in October, I'll likely just get another 30-06 in a factory threaded flavor and stick another Leupold on top, and this will all be a moot point. We're trying to get bills paid off and some more in savings, so If I can get away with not dropping another thousand dollars on a rifle that will get used to shoot one doe in November, that'd make the wife happy!

With a .300blk, I'd treat it like a 7.62x39, and keep shots under 75-100 yards for a clean kill.

I'm in the same boat OP - only my selection for deer rifles was an open sited milsurp or my XCR in .300 Bo.

Doing some research, bullet choice is key in the .300 bo. Many bullet MFG with the .30 cal 110 gr say around 1800 FPS for reliable expansion. The only stuff I found under that was Barns TSX-TAC which they clam expands at 1300, the only source for those projectiles that I can find around here is factory loads that are $45/20.

doing some basic math with what I have for my info here, if I can get 2400 out of my 18" barrel with reloads, the .300 will retain enough FPS (1800 with Barnes 110 blue tips) to 200, maybe 250 if I push it, and retains 800 and some pounds of energy.

I vote bigger caliber in a smaller rifle.

You're flat out wrong.  

http://www.hornady.com/ballistics-resource/ballistics-calculator

By the numbers, Barnes 62gr TSX .223 delivers more energy on target than the Barnes 110gr 300blk from about 60yrds all the way past 600.  For example - at 300yrds the 62gr has 660ft-lbs whereas the 300blk has 607ft-lbs.  This data was found using the muzzle velocities listed in their factory ammo plugged into the Hornady ballistics calculator.

The longer barrel on the 223 will also help give you a little more velocity; thus, more energy.  Finally, the .223 gets a major win with a huge difference in drop.  At 300yrds, the .223 drops 11.8".  The 300blk... 24"  That's more than twice as much.  You'll find similar results in windage.  Unless you're a pro at range estimation and holdovers, including windage, this should be a major consideration.

Remember that the suppressor is removable, bud.  If it's awkward to carry, leave it in a pouch or your belt or in your pack until you get seated.  This is what I do when hunting with my suppressed 308 bolt action.  If you end up taking a shot without threading it on, oh well.  (But know the POI shift and adjust accordingly)

I think the .223 is the clear winner and, with practice and a good bullet, you should be confident taking a shot out to 300yrds with one.  If you end up going with the 300blk, definitely put in the practice to learn the real world holdovers and get to know how much the wind affects the bullet.  

Again, this is all just by the numbers.  I'd be interested to see what a 110gr 30cal would do to ballistic gel traveling at 1580fps (300yrd velocity) versus what a 62gr 22cal would do at 2190fps (also 300yrd velocity).  My guess is that you're going to get a lot better expansion and overall terminal damage with the zippier 223.  That 300 is still doing work though - to put things into perspective, at 300yrds it would still have the energy to be like shooting it point blank with a 357 magnum loaded with very hot, light loads.

Check on the legality of using .223 for hunting WT first. It may be a moot point.

 In SD, any centerfire rifle with 1,000 ft/lbs of energy at the muzzle is legal to use, handguns must have 500 lbs at the muzzle, for any big game. I'll do some more looking at ballistic charts, and I need to see how the Handi Rifle shoots at distance. Thanks for you opinions everyone!

You'll have to follow up and let us know how it goes.  To eliminate all concerns, I think the best bet would be to borrow a buddy's deer rifle or find the funds to pick up a new one.  You can find a nice Tikka 308 for $500. Throw on a $150 Prostaff BDCin quality rings and you've got a deer slaying machine.  If I didn't already have my trusty Savage 30-06 I'd be all over that.

.223 has worked fine for me. I've taken 4 using Federal 62 gr bonded ammo. All one shot kills, all under 100 yards.

That was, and still may be, plan "A", and if I was going after a trophy buck, I wouldn't even have asked the question. I just figured that since I've only got an antlerless tag this year, and I can likely find somewhere to set up under 200 yards, why spend the money on a new rifle this moment.

What I WANT, is a 70's era Remington 700 BDL with full checkering, not the skip line, black fore end tip, gloss stock and blued steel, with a medium profile barrel that I can thread 5/8-24 for my Ultra 7. The only way I'm going to get that is to assemble it myself. I'm not necessarily stuck on 30-06, I'm the only one in my family with one. Everyone else uses .243's or 7mms, but I got a deal on the 30-06, and have a bit of ammo and reloading gear for it, plus the old workhorse still does everything I'd ever need it to do. That said, If I found a good deal on a .243 or .284 or 7mm or .300 wm, I'd be fine using any of them as well.

 If I do decide to go all Davey Crockett with my single shot, I'll definitely let everyone know how it goes!

Arizona deer though? We have skunks up here bigger than southern deer!  lol

 I was actually thinking that would be the load I'd use, as long as the slow twist in my 788 shot them into tiny little groups like it does with 55s. Thanks!

Sounds like a fun way to add a challenge to your antlerless tag hunt.  Good luck to you.  Good taste in the BDL by the way.  I don't think I'd have the heart to mess with threading the barrel, but to each their own.  I'm headed to SD for pheasants in a few weeks.  Beautiful land you've got there.  

I took my 5.56 AR deer hunting a couple of years but never got any shots with it.  I'd be real interested to see how a TSX will do.  I have a feeling they would be more than adequate.  Having said that, you should've never sold your 06.  

300 blk all the way

300blk is the way to go. I have used my 9" SBR to take whitetail deer at 100 yards with hornady 130gr sst hand loads in the 2100fps range. I have also used subsonic maker ha floats at 75yrds on whitetail with well placed shots. I just got some Barnes 110 tac-tx to load and can't wait to try them this season. I have also never had the chance to get a second shot on a whitetail so I wouldn't feel under gunned with a single shot 300. Have fun and good luck!

My friends and I have used .223 for whitetails. 55 SP Hornady and 62 BSP Fusion. It did the job quickly and effectively. Just pick your shots and make them count.

I would use whichever one you have the most confidence in. If you use appropriate ammo and place a shot in the vitals either will work. I have some 223 62 gr tipped tsx handloads I might try out this year.

After playing around with stuff last night, going online and looking at ballistic charts and scope dimensions, I'm leaning towards my 788 .223. This option costs me nothing other than a couple boxes of ammo. Found a few 60-62 grain loads that look promising. I'll pick a box up and see how they shoot, and I should be fine with a lung shot on a doe to around 200yds, as long as the bullets holds together. Thanks for the opinions guys, I appeciate them!

I have shot 4 SD whitetails with .223 64 gr power points. They work just fine.

I finally got out yesterday to do some shooting, with my new Thunderbeast Ultra 7, which sounds fantastic!! I decided to just use my 788 .223, this is my least costly, and easiest, route to take. It's already set up. I believe it's a 1/12 twist, so I had planned on sticking with 55 gr bullets, but I brought along a box of Speer  Gold Dot 64 gr LE rounds, just to see if it would shoot them ok, and it shot them just fine.

 They grouped well at 100, and I popped a water bottle at 275 yards on the 4th shot, after I realized I was dropping them in just underneath it, held a bit higher and nailed it. I'm thinking the Gold Dots are built heavy enough to hold together, any thoughts otherwise? Thanks!

Speer 64gr

Should do good!  I hope you post some pictures of a dead deer come November.

I say it's a good choice and should do the job.   Would love to see pics!!   Actually, can we get a pic of your current set up?   For some reason 788 doesn't ring a bell with me.  Was that one of them Remingtons with a Mauser actions that were really nice looking but short lived?

The 788 was made in the 70's and early 80's, supposed to be a budget gun, but they ended up shooting great. I was going to post a pic, but I got mad at the ads on Photobucket and it crashed my computer, so I said the hell with it haha!

Ok, Google images showed me this. Different scope, and picture it with an Ultra 7 suppressor on the end!

Ive killed a bunch of deer with 556s with nuisance permits.They worked ok. Ive had bullets hit sideways after going through tall grass. It actually was a fast kill but was deflected a couple inches from where I was aiming. Happened 3 times.

I've got some Hornady 5.56 55 grain Superformance GMX that I'm going to get one of my ARs sighted in with. I have no doubt that the GMX through the lungs or shoulders at a reasonable range 25 - 200 yards would drop a deer.

It have killed the shit out of whitetails with Federal 62 gr Fusion ammo out to 100 yards. I don't have any problem recommending it for deer hunting at all.