I'm kicking around getting a semi-auto rifle for this year's deer season.  I'd like something in a .30 cal ... so it would be limited to ...

- Remington 750 Woodmaster (updated 7400)
- Ruger Mini-Thirty 7.62x39
- Ruger Deerfield Carbine (OK, so I know it's 44 mag)
- AutoOrdnance M-1 carbine replica

I had thought about getting a different upper for my M4forgery, but I don't trust the continued availability of either 6.5 or 6.8 ammo. Why not an SKS?   I already have one, and it throws bullets all over the place after about 75 yard ~ minute of barn door.


So ... suggestions?

Not knowing the terrain---whether 300 yard shots across farmfields are normal or a 75 yard shot in thick woods is considered a long shot---its kinda hard to recommend. But heres my 2 cents

I heard the 7400 was being updated, and I would have to study the updates before recommending becaues i've owned the 7400 in the past and would NOT recommend it. This is my personal experience, and I know alot of Michigan guys that love theirs. I do like the 7600 series and can run the pump action almost as fast as the auto with about the same accuracy---and the 7600 is utterly reliable, IMO.

The mini 30 would be a good choice if you choose a GOOD soft point (Rem. 123 grainers)and keep the distances within reason.

I've owned the 44 deerfield also, reliable and accurate UNTIL you remove it from the stock for cleaning (you have to to clean the gas system)---then when you reassemble, you have to RE-ZERO! The forward stock band is the problem, it never tensions down the same--so there is always minor variations in your zero---even if you mark and count your turns of the screw to retighten to the exact same place, didn't matter, it would be 5-6" off at 100 yards.
This is of course with a scope--with open sights I imagine the variance is less, but still there.
I've heard of others having this same problem and others say theirs returns very close to zero.

I would NOT personally use the 30 carbine round on Wisconsin whitetail.

anyways, my 2 cents

7.62x39mm makes an excellent short range (<150 yards) deer gun. It is ballistically equal to the .30-30 which has probably taken more deer than any round in North America. While somewhat crude, the SKS is more accurate than a Mini-30, much cheaper, very reliable, and tough as hell. If you want something more of a dual purpose gun, an AK clone with 5 round hunting mag would be good as well. However, the AKs are usually less accurate than the SKS.

ETA: a Saiga in .308 would be the best all around choice if you can find one.

Quoted: I'm kicking around getting a semi-auto rifle for this year's deer season.  I'd like something in a .30 cal ... so it would be limited to ... - Remington 750 Woodmaster (updated 7400) - Ruger Mini-Thirty 7.62x39 - Ruger Deerfield Carbine (OK, so I know it's 44 mag) - AutoOrdnance M-1 carbine replica So ... suggestions?

You forgot the Browning BAR.

Quoted: You forgot the Browning BAR.

And the Benelli R1

you will not go wrong with either a old school Remington 742 series..or a BAR.

hell get both..i did..

i use a HK G3 clone in .308.  i get some funny looks, but i don't care.  i know plenty of people that use the BAR, Rem 7400, and SKS.  they all take deer reliably.  it all depends on what feels good to you and which cartridge meets your needs.  the only Semi rifle i would stay as far away from as possible is the Rem 742.  they were taken of the market for a reason.  the bolt locking lugs beat the recesses to hell in the receiver and a large number have had explosive failures.  the info i got on the reason for this is that they were designed for a specific bullet weight/ pressure/ powder burn rate combination.  when heavier loads or re-loads were used the damage happened.  since you don't have any control on what the previous user did, a used Rem 742 is a gamble.  the guys that i know that use the SKS have replaced the military stocks with the Choate, and say they are more comfortable.

AR-10 carbine or rifle depedning on terrain.



5sub

My short list would be AR10, FAL, M1A in that order.

Quoted: 7.62x39mm makes an excellent short range (<150 yards) deer gun. It is ballistically equal to the .30-30 which has probably taken more deer than any round in North America. While somewhat crude, the SKS is more accurate than a Mini-30, much cheaper, very reliable, and tough as hell. If you want something more of a dual purpose gun, an AK clone with 5 round hunting mag would be good as well. However, the AKs are usually less accurate than the SKS. ETA: a Saiga in .308 would be the best all around choice if you can find one.

+1

My first deer rifle was a Ruger Mini 30 and at best it could shoot a 4" group. It was a good gun, but not very accurate.

Since you live in WI there are no mag restrictions for deer hunting so why not look into a black rifle? If it is within you budget.  Right now I use a HK91 .308 and my Dad uses a DSA FAL 16" and they are great deer rifles.

For sporting rifles I would check out Benelli R1, Browning BAR, Remington 7400/750 in that order.
Also, the HK SLB2000, HK 770 and Winchester Model 100 are great for deer.

For Black rifles look into a PTR-91, FAL or M1A  If you are going to spend the money why not get a fun military style rifle

I just use my Del-Ton M4 with an Aimpoint Comp2.  Does the trick.

Nobody has mentioned the M1 Garand yet!

Garands are very fine weapons. They are sturdy and reliable. They can be had for cheap, too! The CMP sells surplus M1 Garands for as low as $300! Don't be discouraged by the fact that the $300 Garands are labelled as "Rack Grade"; it's really the luck of the draw and many people receive rifles in very good conidition when they order rack grade.

the 742 was never taken off the market..
only updated...to a 7400 series.. much like other firearms and evolution.

i have known dozens of hardcore shooters and der/elk hunters that use this gun in every caliber in the inventory and have heard of very few failures..or issues.

i have probably 1200 rounds thru my 30-06 ...0 gun failures..wickedly accurate ( 1moa) with winchester silvertips 180 gr.

the firearm is one of the biggest sellers ever to hit the market..for a reason.

they work.

Quoted: Nobody has mentioned the M1 Garand yet! Garands are very fine weapons. They are sturdy and reliable. They can be had for cheap, too! The CMP sells surplus M1 Garands for as low as $300! Don't be discouraged by the fact that the $300 Garands are labelled as "Rack Grade"; it's really the luck of the draw and many people receive rifles in very good conidition when they order rack grade.

+1

Quoted: Quoted: Nobody has mentioned the M1 Garand yet! Garands are very fine weapons. They are sturdy and reliable. They can be had for cheap, too! The CMP sells surplus M1 Garands for as low as $300! Don't be discouraged by the fact that the $300 Garands are labelled as "Rack Grade"; it's really the luck of the draw and many people receive rifles in very good conidition when they order rack grade. +1

+2

I have used a Garand to hunt deer for the last 3 years, and I will again this year. If you want to mount a scope its not the best choice, but the way I see it is the issue sights are excellent, and they were designed for hunting enemy soldiers, so they work just fine for hunting deer. Just my two cents.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Nobody has mentioned the M1 Garand yet! Garands are very fine weapons. They are sturdy and reliable. They can be had for cheap, too! The CMP sells surplus M1 Garands for as low as $300! Don't be discouraged by the fact that the $300 Garands are labelled as "Rack Grade"; it's really the luck of the draw and many people receive rifles in very good conidition when they order rack grade. +1 +2 I have used a Garand to hunt deer for the last 3 years, and I will again this year. If you want to mount a scope its not the best choice, but the way I see it is the issue sights are excellent, and they were designed for hunting enemy soldiers, so they work just fine for hunting deer. Just my two cents.

+1

I used a M1 Garand for deer hunting one year and as much as I love the Garand, I could not use it because it did not have a scope.  

You can scope a Garand. There are handguards available that provide a rail for scout-style scope mounting.

Where we hunt, a 100 yeard shot is almost unheard of ... most are well within that range.

I'm a little surprised about the comments about the Mini-30.  I understand that the bore diameter was the cause of most of the minute of barn accuracy, i.e. .311 vs. .308.  Has this been sorted out?

I did drop my SKS into a sporter stock, and it's a lot of fun to shoot, but like I mentioned, I found lousy sights and not terribly accurate with older wolf ammo.

I've an M-1 ... and it's a heavy beastie.  Not one I'd want to sling around on a deer drive through a swamp :)  I've also heard that you almost have to roll your own due to powder burn rates with bullet weights.

Like some comments, I've not heard much good about the earlier 742s.  Basically, if you sent the rifle back to Remington for repairs, they replaced it!  I used to have a 7400 in 308 about 10 years ago, but found the recoil a little too much - probably due to a lousy stock design combined with a gas system that didnt' work that well.  I was curious as to whether they've changed the rifle over time.

Maybe I'll stick with my "sporterized" Springfield Trapdoor carbine in 45/70.  But, it would be fun to hunt with something on the full opposite end the firearm spectrum!

If you already own an AR, there are uppers in 7.62 X 39, .300 Whisper, 6mm X 45 and the various 6.5's and 6.8's that you mentioned.  Plenty of ammo out there for them (except the 6X45), or you could handload.  Then there are the custom offerings like the .458 SOCOM.
DSA did offer the FAL in 7-08 and .243, and IIRC Armalite offers those calibers too.
For the repeatability on the Ruger, I would suggest something like an inch pound torque wrench to ensure the same amount of pressure each time, probably would'nt eliminate the problem entirely, but should help alot.

I have a Mini-30 that I have used for deer. Mine will shoot 2" at 100 with Silver Bear, a cheap scope, and kneeling in the mud while using a 4-wheeler as a rest. I think with a better rest I could get MOA out of it with the Silver Bear. I would definately reccomend the Mini-30, and I plan on continuing using it when hunting stands with 175 yard shots or less, and leave the .270 at the camp. It's size makes it very handy when sitting in a tree-stand when deer are in close.

Look on Gunbroker or other used gun sources for an old Winchester Model 100 carbine.  It looks like an overgrown Ruger 10/22, is light and handy, and mine shot about 2 MOA.  I sold it a couple of years ago and have regretted it ever since.  Mine was in .308 but I believe it was also made in .243.

m2 browning?

My suggestions: M14/m1a, ar10/ars in .308, fal, m1 garand.

I also use a scoped Finnish M39.  With the right ammo I can get consistant MOA groups at 100yrds.  It is a little heavy though, but not any heavier than an M1.  Also there is nothing wrong with a .223.  Me and several of my friends hunt with M4's as well.  Great out to 200yrds even with an Aimpoint.

Quoted: 7.62x39mm makes an excellent short range (<150 yards) deer gun. It is ballistically equal to the .30-30 which has probably taken more deer than any round in North America. While somewhat crude, the SKS is more accurate than a Mini-30, much cheaper, very reliable, and tough as hell. If you want something more of a dual purpose gun, an AK clone with 5 round hunting mag would be good as well. However, the AKs are usually less accurate than the SKS. ETA: a Saiga in .308 would be the best all around choice if you can find one.

You never get over the fact that a 124 grain (7.62X39) will never equal a 150 or 170 grain 30/30!

Why in the hell triburst1 don't you STHU!

You seem to read alot,but know nothing from real shooting!

Bob