Mule Deer

[Mav714]

I searched for more info on anyone that's hunted Mullies with their Grendel. I think there was one guy that shot a doe.
Seeing that they can grow to 200-300 lbs what bullets would you suggest or just stay with the 123SST
THANKS.

[Joseph5]

I haven't shot a Mule Deer with the Grendel yet, but I have shot a lot of Mule Deer with rifles ranging from 300 Weatherby down to 22LR. The 123gr SST will kill any Mule Deer you run across quite nicely no matter how big it is. Joseph

[jfornelli]

Tagged for future responses.
I should be heading out for a mule deer hunt with my Grendel next year. (It'll either be that or the 270 or maybe the 300Wby.)
This year it'll be archery.

[terrywick4]

I haven't shot a Mule Deer with the Grendel yet, but I have shot a lot of Mule Deer with rifles ranging from 300 Weatherby down to 22LR. The 123gr SST will kill any Mule Deer you run across quite nicely no matter how big it is. Joseph

What state lets you use a 22LR?

[Adam Lilja]

What state lets you use a 22LR?

Montana for one

[JASmith]

Look in Volume 2 of the 6.5 Grendel Reloading Handbook, there is a good discussion of bullet weights and game classes there. Yes, the 123 gr lead-core bullets should be fine with the standing caveat that you do your part and put the bullet in the boiler room. One could even go a tad lighter if using premium bullets like bonded, partition, or all-copper expanding.

[Von Gruff]

My friend who also built a Grendel-Max shoots the 100 and 120 C&C bullets and kills red deer and goats quite handily. I would think a good red deer would be very similar to a mulie.

[Joseph5]

Yes, Montana. A 22LR works good with head shots and even a broadside double lung as long as the ranges are close. I wouldn't recommend it for everyday use but in the right situation it can be very effective. From what I saw of Red Deer in Australia they are bigger than the average Mule deer.

[Mav714]

I'm surprised any state allows hunting medium size game with 22LR. I'd think there would be more wounded animals running around then necessary. Yes a well placed shot is the answer but there was a case of native Alaskan girl shot and killed a grizzly with a 22LR but not recommended.

[Joseph5]

It isn't recommended in Montana either, but we value our freedoms and still allow people to exercise their own judgement on how they want to do something instead of regulating the masses to protect the bottom 5% from their own stupidity . We have no caliber restrictions or magazine capacity restrictions here. I don't know anyone who grabs their 22 and says hey, lets go deer hunting. But when you have a pocket full of B tags and you look out the window and there is a nice fat freezer filler standing in your back yard a 22 is a good choice if you can shoot.

[Adam Lilja]

It isn't recommended in Montana either, but we value our freedoms and still allow people to exercise their own judgement on how they want to do something instead of regulating the masses to protect the bottom 5% from their own stupidity . We have no caliber restrictions or magazine capacity restrictions here. I don't know anyone who grabs their 22 and says hey, lets go deer hunting. But when you have a pocket full of B tags and you look out the window and there is a nice fat freezer filler standing in your back yard a 22 is a good choice if you can shoot.

Ya 22LR is a yard gun haha not for the woods. Do they still have the mass swarms of deer in Helena or did they get rid of them all?

[Joseph5]

There are still deer all over Helena, I have only lived here since December so I haven't seen them being to much of a problem yet but there are a lot of 6-8 foot tall fences around gardens here. I work out at Ft. Harrison and I was told that two years ago a very large Mule Deer buck attacked his reflected image on a glass enclosed walkway during the rut. By the time he had broken out the glass panel and couldn't see himself anymore he had broken both antlers and had blood coming out of his ears and nose. The Fish and Game had to come out and shoot him. When I lived in Lewistown from 2000 to the end of 2006 there were so many deer around there you couldn't throw a rock in a bush without hitting one. I had 5-7 deer tags every year the first 5 years I lived there and I rented a house from a guy that raised horses and there was a round bail feeder 40 yards out the bedroom window of the house. He would always put Oats hay or Barley hay in it so between the deer and the Pheasants I ate pretty well :^).

[6.8 KLR]

I searched for more info on anyone that's hunted Mullies with their Grendel. I think there was one guy that shot a doe.
Seeing that they can grow to 200-300 lbs what bullets would you suggest or just stay with the 123SST
THANKS.

I have used the Barnes 100 grain TTSX and the Nosler 100 grain Balistic Tip. The Tipped Triple Shock Barnes bullet has had the best weight retention..nearly 100 %....every time. Also full penetration out to 300 meters in my experiences. As far as the Nosler bullet is concerned , it sheds a little to much weight after nearly full penetration on most Bucks. Since you start out with only 100 grains, 30 to 40 % weight loss is a little to much for my liking, even though it kills well with proper shot placement.