Your ultimate deep woods deer gun?

[nralover]

I am not sure if this has ever been asked- but what is your idea of the ultimate lever for hunting deer in a heavily wooded area? What make and model? Best caliber? Barrel length? Sling or no sling? Barrel mounted sight, peep, or scope?

[Tycer]

Winchester 94 Trapper, 360 Dan Wesson, 207 grain hardcast 1875 fps.

[2ndovc]

I do most of my hunting in Northwestern PA these days. A long shot up there is about 75 yds. These have been my favorites for the last few years.
Marlin 450 and an LTDIII/ 45-70


My 95 SRC/30-06 has accounted for most of my deer.

[Mike-in-WV]

Said it before and I'll say it again. For hunting in the eastern mountains or the deep bush and swamps of Canada there is nothing beats Winchester 94 Trapper in the 30-30 Caliber with Ghost Ring sights and a sling. The biggest reason I like a sling is when you get that Deer, Bear, Moose,Elk or whatever it makes it nice to put that rifle over your shoulder or neck and have both hands free. It also helps when you need both hands to climb a steep wet mountain side.
Never seen a reason for any other caliber than the 30-30 for hunting or self defense.
Here is WV the Winchester 94 Carbine is known as the "West Virginia assault rifle" Mike

[TedH]

It's a toss up between my Guide Gun and my Marlin 30TK 30-30 Ackley Improved. The 30TK is a mini version of the Guide Gun, 18.5" barrel, half mag, straight stock.

[Pete44ru]

[hunting deer in a heavily wooded area?]

That pretty much describes where I use all my leverguns !

That includes the ones both with and without scopes, peeps, tangers, slings and things.

Some times I sit for the day, and some times I wood loaf, and other times deer driving is the order of the day - so I go with whichever one suits whatever.

[FWiedner]

Trapper length lever in .30-30 or .35Rem, peeps or ghost-ring and quick-detach scout-scope, and quick-detach sling.

Carry it without the scope and without the sling, but carry those items with you.

Very light, fast shooting in heavy cover.

[1894]

I am not sure if this has ever been asked- but what is your idea of the ultimate lever for hunting deer in a heavily wooded area? What make and model? Best caliber? Barrel length? Sling or no sling? Barrel mounted sight, peep, or scope?

The one that carries easily and gets on target quickly and acuratly for you

For me, it's any of my 3 Marlins , .32 WS , .35 Rem , and .44 mag . All have 20" barrels , reciever sights , I generaly just use the sling to carry an extra coat around my waist , but it's there if I need it .

Phil

[Hobie]

I've tried bow, musket, rifles and handguns. All give a special satisfaction to the experience. All can be effective. Just about any lever gun chambered for a legal cartridge will work as range and trajectory just simply aren't much of an issue. The ultimate for me would be one an ancestor used... no such for me, I've got to settle for one of mine. I'm hoping to eliminate that problem for the grandson!

[Old Ironsights]

If by "deep woods" you mean a whole bunch of brush might be in the bullet path then I have to say any good Guide Gun length .45-70.

No heavy brush busting needed? All bets are off.

[SmokeEater2]

By Deep woods I assume you mean thick brush? For that I've been really happy with my Marlin .41 Magnum. light, short enough to be quick and handy,can be slung when 2 hands are needed and the .41 smacks 'em like the hammer of Thor.

[Modoc ED]

Winchester Model 94 Carbine, 20" barrel, .30-30, 170gr Winchester Power Point or 170gr handload.

I specified a Winchester because that is what I have but a .30-30 Marlin rifle would do just as well and I'm sure the new, upcoming Henry rifle in .30-30 will get the job done too.

[Dastook]

Win.1886 Ultra light, 45/70. It's the one at the top

[Old Savage]

Marlin 375

[Blaine]

Any lever that shoots a 45-70

[Jason_W]

My ultimate actually wouldn't be a levergun

[canonsix]

"92 Rossi, 357,16inch , 180 gr lfngc, saddle ring sling( ala Junior) Williams 5d, green fiberoptic front. Doug

[txpete]

BB94 375 win williams reciever sight.
220 gr hornady sp with RL-7.just doesn't get any beeter than that
pete

[Sixgun]

Just the way this is set up. 1886 solid frame in 45-70, tang sight with fold down barrel sight, ivory bead, and a Hunter 110 sling. In addition to deer, I can add, well, just about anything-------Sixgun

[J Miller]

I am not sure if this has ever been asked- It has. but what is your idea of the ultimate lever for hunting deer in a heavily wooded area?

What make and model?
I'm partial to Winchester top eject 94s.

Best caliber?
30-30, this has been a winning cartridge for over a hundred years. No need to over think the situation now.

Barrel length?
20", the carbine length is a very handy package that gives a good sight radius with minimal excessive weight or bulk.

Sling or no sling?
A quick detachable sling of some sort would be used.

Barrel mounted sight, peep, or scope?
If your eyes can see them there is nothing wrong with the factory iron sights. A lot of people bad mouth them, but these open sights have been serving riflemen for a very long time.
However receiver sights with a post front sight are my preferred choice of sights. I find them more precise for my eyes.
I would NEVER scope a lever gun. That totally ruins the balance and handiness of the gun design.

Joe

[dr walker]

My ultimate heavy woods deer rifle is a Marlin 1894 44 mag. I have XS ghostring sights and I use a Galco Orion sling
I really like the XS front sight it is a thick post with a thin white line painted down the middle.
I have put the XS front sight on most of my rifles.

[gumpond]

Whichever lever I pick up. Lever because of weight. Any caliber for the game. I won't shoot through sticks so the caliber is not the issue, handling is.
If I'm hunting alone, it is in the brush.

[Jason_W]

I thing a remington pump or auto carbine in .35 whelen would really hold its own in the deep woods.

[El Chivo]

I would say caliber is not as important as set-up. A big bullet would help though.

This year I plan to mount a 1x-3x scope on my new 336 in 30-30 and see how I like it. Leave it on 1x for short shots and defense and get the benefit of low light enhancement.

[Griff]

IF... :I were to hunt in such an enviroment

.30-30 Winchester "Trapper," or


.45Colt EMF/Rossi "Short Rifle"

[Bigahh]

The 30-30 is tough to beat. I plan on loading the 170 grain Flat Point Bullet in my 308, and give it a try. Heres an interesting article on this very subject if anyone is interested.....

http://www.chuckhawks.com/woods_rifles.htm

[Dave]

I am a big 30-30 guy and love the round and the guns, but for ultimate I would say a Marlin 1894 in 44 Magnum with a scout rig on it. Little gun, big hole, plenty of power, the advantage of an optic without too much magnification and heads up sighting.

[edsguns]

Make and model: Marlin 336ER (only becuase it's about 1 1/2-2" shorter than my BLR in .358 tho)
Caliber: .356 Win and shooting Speer hot core 220grFN bullets at 2350-2400fps
Barrel length: the 20" barrel is just fine with the 2/3 magazine (same weight and balance as a 18" with full magazine!
Sling: fitted with QD swivels and a sling along, but not attatched til I'm dragging the deer.
sights: scoped with a Leupold 1-4x24 Euro 30mm with German reticle in QD rings. Shooting at low power with both eyes open, or if time, at 4x at longer range. I'll opt for a custom base with flip-up ghost ring for driving rain or snow!

[tman]

win94 bb .356wcf. factory sites and of course, a sling, shooting 200gr. factory loads.

[bigbore442001]

Hmm. Okl. I know it seems odd but I don't own a lever action rifle but if I did for deep woods it would be this.

A Marlin M1895 Guide Gun in 45-70, no muzzle brake. I'd equip it with a sling for carry when needed and an Aimpoint sight for fast shooting. I know the Aimpoint will amount to heresy for some but they do work well.

[505stevec]

"Deep Woods", Well for hunting it would be a 30-30 here in New Mexico. For generally just going up into the hills for whatever? AK-47 and S&W 686 in .357 mag.

[Bronco]

If it was a standard modern rifle it would be a Marlin guide gun in 45/70 with barrel sites and a see-thru weaver mount for a aim-point if I wanted it on, 20" barrel. Large loop lever, in case I was wearing gloves. If I could dream it would be a Win. 1886 in 50-110, set up the same. Either way I would be comfortable hunting deer in the deep woods any where and have the stopping power for anything that was hunting me in the same woods.
John

[cutter]

It has to be my sisters Ruger 44 mag carbine. Too bad the new ones are so ugly. Short, reliable, accurate, and light.

[jeepnik]

These two work well.
Marlin GS in 45-70 of course, and Blackhawk in .45 Colt

[LeverBob]

"Deep Woods" means to me that you are a long days ride or better on a good Nag into the wilderness. An overall best gun for that and suvival is my 336CS scout in 30.30 AI. Handy & deadly on anything in N.A. if you can shoot & stay cool.

Any lever IMHO is THE choice...they are just great in a scabbard tied to a saddle. Ergonomic & real fast.

Everyone here already knows this stuff though...Heh!


LeverBob

[Mike D.]

Sorry, NO deep woods out here.

[marlinman93]

A 336ADL in .35 Rem would be my favorite for woods.

[AJMD429]

Right now, my Stainless 20" Marlin 44 Magnum with Williams Peep mounted in the forward scope mount holes, and a nylon quick-adjust sling, and Winchester 240 SP factory loads.

I'd like to try the .357 with stiff loads though, or one of the 357 Special Magnum conversions (http://ammoguide.com/?catid=247). That handy little 16" Marlin is SOOOO nice to carry and go through brush with.

[Marlin .35]

Actually my choice for DEEP WOODS, where a long shot is 75 yards, would be a 12 ga pump slug gun, with ghost sights a stock ammo holder, and a leather sling. Art

[Lastmohecken]

I love all kinds of leveractions and I have used most of them for deep woods deer hunting, and open country. While I love carrying an ironsighted 30/30 (preferably a pre-64 Winchester), or others ranging from .357mag to 45/70, I don't kid myself, the best deep woods rifle is a resonably light leveraction with a low powered scope.

My favorite and most used for serious hunting is a steel framed Browning BLR in .308 Win. with a Leupold 2x7 variable, in medium rings which are just high enough for me to operate the hammer without an add on hammer spur sticking out the side. This is my favorite gun because it works better then anything else, and can be used effectively from 5 yards to 300yds, and even though I hunt deep woods, there are always opportunitys for longer shots.

Granted I will admit that a scope sighted Marlin would be almost as good, for 80% of my hunting, and I may fix up a nice little straight gripped pre-safety model just to see if I can shave a pound off of the BLR's weight, but havn't so far on my other rifles because when I compaired them, I was gain nothing in weight loss or handiness over the BLR, but this little Marlin I have now just might beat it.

I have struggled with scopes vs irons, vs receiversights all of my life, and still use all of them, but I am not kidding myself into thinking that anything other then a scope is the best choice. Sure at spitting distance open irons are all that is needed, but even at 40yds in the brush, a scope can pick out an animal and thread a bullet to the kill zone that, many times, can't be done with irons near as easily. I have proven this to myself many times.

Now, for jump shooting at very close range, maybe irons or receiver sights win out, but not by much, and granted we are talking deep woods here, but I have had much better sucess on running shots with a low powered scopes then irons or receiver sights. And the other big advantage is available light that many times isn't too good even at high noon in the deep woods or brush, but let the evening shadows move in and a scope has it all over any metalic sight.

But I still love my iron sighted guns, and will often accept the tradeoffs for the fun of using other guns, but it cost me a deer this year, that I would have killed dead with my BLR, but I was using my 348 win at the time with a recevier sight. It wasn' a trophy buck, and I didn't have to go hungry over it, but that doesn't change the facts, a scope is still the best even in the deep woods.

[iceman]

Mod 94 BB 356 win FP rear Skinner brass front blade and a QD sling. Works for me.

[dbateman]

winchester trapper 45colt with peep sight
short handy and plenty knockdown power

[Old Shatterhand]

1. My Win 99BB .375W
2. My Win 88 .308W with Pecar 4x32 in pivot mount for fast choice between irons and scope.
3. A light-weight drilling with two shotgun barrels and one rifle bore.

Old Sh.

[45-70]

My custom 1895GS with scout scope setup and my handloads, hard to beat for the "woods".

[Blackhawk]

In no particular order.

308 Winchester 150gr - 180gr
307 Winchester 150gr - 180gr
45/70 300gr - 400gr
30/30 150gr - 170gr
45 Colt 255gr - 325gr
7.62x39mm 125gr (Yes I consider this a deep woods gun.)

[Jason_W]

As much as I love levers, I wish more optiones were available in pump actions. For me, the action of a pump is much more natural than a lever (this probably stems from getting a Remington 870 for my 12th birthday). A pump action .44 mag or 45/70 would rock.

[GANJIRO]

Mine is not a levergun but has been reliable, accurate, and handy, and not afraid to drop in mud or on lava rocks, should be even handier with the sawed-off barrel, I haved dubbed her "SHORTY"!