Which weapon is the best for deer hunting in each of the different categories? The answer is, there is no single best weapon for every situation.

The following information is pretty general and is designed to give the novice a better idea of what to purchase for a deer hunting weapon. I am sure as I can be, that if you ask 10 different people which weapon to purchase for deer hunting, you would get 10 different answers. The following is the opinion of Whitetails. com .

Purchase a weapon that is big enough for the job and you must be able to shoot it with a high degree of accuracy. If you can, shoot several different weapons before purchasing one.

Rifles - There are many to choose from, but I will only list a few.

• Light End - .243 Winchester, 6 mm Remington, .250 Savage, .257 Roberts, .260 Remington,
  30-30 Winchester
• Medium - .270 Winchester, .280 Remington, 7x57 Mauser, 7mm-08 Remington, .284 Winchester
• Heavy End - .308 Winchester, 30-06 Springfield, 7mm Remington Magnum
• Authors Choice - .270 Winchester - Is an excellent choice, the .270 has plenty of knock down power with a light to moderate recoil.

Pistols

• Light End - .357 Magnum
• Medium - .41 Magnum, .44 Remington Magnum
• Heavy End - .454 Casull
• Authors Choice - .44 Remington Magnum - The .44 magnum has enough knock down power for close range deer. The recoil is heavy so hang on tight.

Bows

• Light End - 40 pound Bow
• Medium - 45, 50, 55 pound Bow
• Heavy End - 60 pound Bow
• Authors Choice - 50 pound Compound Bow, The 50 pound bow is a good choice for deer. A compound bow, with at least a 50% let-off, is ideal when your waiting for that perfect shot at full draw.

Muzzleloaders

• Light End - .45 Caliber
• Medium - .50 Caliber
• Heavy End - .54 Caliber
• Authors Choice - .50 Caliber - The .50 caliber muzzleloader is a good choice for deer. It has a moderate to heavy recoil depending on load.

Shotguns

• Light End - 20 Gauge
• Medium - 12 Gauge
• Heavy End - 10 Gauge
• Authors Choice - 12 Gauge - The 12 gauge shotgun is a good choice for deer. Use #00 Buck shot or larger, or shotgun slugs. To reduce the heavy recoil of the 12 gauge shotgun, try a semi-auto.

Now that you have chosen your weapon, get out there and practice. If you can't hit a deer sized target under hunting conditions, you might as well stay home and watch the football game. You want your weapon to become an extension of yourself. Practice finding your target in the sights. You might only get one chance this next season, and you want to be ready.

Good luck and safe & happy hunting,

SPECIAL THANKS TO WHITETAILS.COM FOR THIS INFORMATION

www.whitetails.com