300 blackout for hunting

[trixter]

I recently purchased a ar15 and now I am so hooked I want to buy a 300 blackout complete upper and hunt deer with it. Do you?

Pluses and minuses if you would.

Thanks

[missionary5155]

Greetings
I have a 300 BLKT and I would use it for corn crunchers where I hunt. When up north there I hunt in river bottoms. My longest white tail shot to date is at 33 yards. That was 20 years ago. Most are taken at 10 yards. So for me there is no long distance and the 300 BLKT is well capable of all the power and accuracy I need. But as of yet ILLinois does not trust us to use center fire rifles. Hand held lead slingers are OK. And again for me it is no issue. Last deer I stuck an arrow through was at 6 yards. My revolvers that start with 4 something will all do what I need.
So as I see it for my close up hunting any caliber 30 that can come close to the 30-30 will do the same. A 155 gr lead boolit chugging along at 1500 fps at 30 yards will easily harvest a deer through both lungs or through the spine.
If I was looking at 200 yard shots I would have to ponder reality. That 155 grainer probably is not going to have the "Umph" I want. It will not expand much and may not exit. I am getting to old to crawl about on my knees tracking little blood spots.
Mike in Peru

[RP]

I have one I shoot the 247 gr boolits in, They shoot great problem is speed of the bullet I believe. I shoot three deer with it first one ran off like I missed her. I looked for blood even got my dog that tracks blood trail chalked it up as a miss. Second deer I shot dropped in his tracks nice little 8 pointer but was almost at the base of the tree I was in. When I cleaned the deer not a lot of tissue damage more or less a in and out shot. Third deer was a real monster for this area, I have a deer on my wall that was 200 plus lbs I have two deer mounted last one was the 8 pointer I took with this weapon. When I went to hang him up the big deer makes it look a lot smaller then it is. This deer was a nice 10 pointer and in the 200 plus lb range took the shot at 50 yards I am sure it was a good hit but never found blood hair or the deer. Buzzards never showed up and I checked for awhile afterwards. Oh I also looked for the deer 4 hours after I took the shot. Since then I put that gun in the safe no longer going to use it for a deer rifle odds are I will not see another deer in that class. My rifle twist will not shoot a lighter bullet well enough to hunt with so if you looking a 300 BO for hunting I would strongly suggest a twist that will work well with the lighter 150ish gr boolits to get the results needed for killing a deer. Do not make the mistake I did thinking the 247 even at the slower speeds would work like a muzzleloader using soft alloy letting it expand looks like it still just punches a hole in and out leaving very little trauma. Well that's my two cents.

[bikerbeans]

I have (3) 300 BOs, two M4 platform and one single shot. The semi autos are great for plinking or 3-gun shoots, the single shot is a nice garden gun for woodchucks with a subsonic 230 or 247g cast boolit. I would never hunt deer with a 300 BO, everything has to be perfect for a good, quick kill. If I had to hunt deer with a 300 BO, I would go with Mike's advice and use a 150g bullet or boolit and push it as fast as I safely could.

BB

[IraqVet1982]

They work (not as well as a 450bm, but they work). I used a 150gr SP this year on a doe. Ran maybe 20 yards, hit a tree and dropped.
As always, shot placement is key. Through the breast and out the ribs hitting the heart on this one.

[bnelson06]

I would have no problem shooting deer with a "hunting " bullet in the 150gn range. On the other hand trying to take a deer with a heavy solid subsonic bullet seems like a bad idea.

[timspawn]

My nephew and son in law both killed deer on my lease in GA with my Handi Rifle in 300 BLK. 125 grain Nosler Ballistic tips. The buck went 30 yards and the doe fell in her tracks.

[Smoke4320]

A blackout is just fine for a 100 yd deer rifle using 125-150 gr bullet ..done it several times already.. Mi hec 312-159 HP 50/50/2
None of them went more than 35 yds some drt

[Gunnut 45/454]

Have a 300 blk AR but haven't been able to punch a deer with it yet my load will be the Speer 150gr Hotcor BT's runin 1950 fps. They mushroom nicely at 200 yards as Speer says they would all the way down to 1500fps. The Speer 130 gr HPs will work as well but energy says to keep them at or below 150 yards. Since the 300 Blk is just slightly less than a 30-30 in power why would one use it for deer. Many have taken bear and a few elk with it.

[BK7saum]

I think this boils down to two camps, heavy subsonic and light/midweight jacketed at high velocities. I have found the heavy subconics to be questionable. I have no doubt that j-words in the 125-150 range at 2000ish fps +/- will cleanly kill deer as that is nearing the 30-30 and 7.62x39 cartridges.

I have killed deer and lost deer with subsonic 300 blackout. Its fun to shoot suppressed and does great on armadillos, and I may try it on deer again, but shots will be close (archery range) where I am confident I can put it right in the heart area. I plan to let my daughters use the 300 when they start to deer hunt. But I'll be loading 125 grain noslers or Hornady bullets as as I can safely push them. Maybe 150s in some flavor if they will open up well.

Brad

[JSH]

This type of discussion in a caliber of this type always has me raise an eyebrow. The 300 blackout is nothing new. It has been around in various types, variations and names for well over twenty years.
Bob Milek was killing deer with the 30 herret back in the 70's. One of the bullets of choice because there were a LOT less choices was the 110 soft nose for the 30 carbine.
When it comes to cb's I will take a shoulder shot every time. You get way more expansion along with some bone fragments that act like shrapnel. Weight is always a plus IMHO but shot placement is key. I have read and discussed with neck shooters a lot. I still dislike it and won't use it myself. I am not crazy about lung shots unless the angle is so I can get up front into the engine room.
Bottom line is design and shot placement.

[dk17hmr]

My personal thoughts on subsonics for medium game is you need weight and diameter. You can get the weight part in the 300blk but you can't get the diameter.

300 blackout makes a great close range deer round when loaded SUPERSONIC with 110-150gr bullets. I killed a couple antelope with a 300 whisper and 125gr Nosler Ballistic tips a few years ago and it worked great.

[popper]

130 Gr. bullet @ 2200 fps from 14" barrel.
125 Gr. @ 2300 fps, Nosler Ballistic Tip preferred.
These two bullet weights perform great on deer and give you a good trajectory and plenty of energy for 200 yard shots.

30 Bellim/herrit specs easy reached with commercial 300BO ammo.

[Gunnut 45/454]

With the 300 Blk as with the 30-30 you must use bullets designed to open up at 2200-1500 fps range or less-most .30 caliber bullet are made for 1800 fps and up. Think '06,300 win mag etc. For the 300 blk think varmint bullet in .30 caliber. The 130 gr HPs I mentioned earlier act like a good soft pint at 300 blk velocities.

[Digital Dan]

Methinks for the most part what has been said here is quite realistic, but will add a couple of comments FWIW.

It is common for shooters, particularly those new or somewhat new to the sport, to focus on metrics which may or may not be relevant to such inquiry. For the record, there are 3 fundamental foundations of physics involved with shooting that begin with primer detonation. They are interior, exterior and terminal ballistics. If these three elements are dealt with is such fashion that they are complimentary and the shooter is able to apply acceptable precision to target, there will come a satisfactory conclusion to work in the field.

Without belaboring the merits of the .300 BO, but doing so with any cartridge which operates in the lower tier of energy/velocity, there comes a time when one must take a hard look at what the performance envelope is and more importantly, what that performance can accomplish. On assumption that placement is assured we are left to look at bullet performance in the terminal phase.

What was not stated by the OP was what range of velocity is considered for his rifle and therein is a very relevant point. Supersonic or subsonic? The difference goes to how bullet construction will respond to impact in tissue/bone at 'X' velocity. This is significant in context of wound parameters. Simply put, a bullet that neither expands or tumbles makes a very narrow wound channel and if intent on disruption of the cardiovascular system will quite possibly result in a long and possibly unsuccessful tracking adventure. Differentiate this from placement which disrupts the CNS via spinal or cranial wounding. The two parts of physiological structure, when disrupted, have very different responses. We all know that. So, the questions to me becomes not so much is the .300 BO suitable for hunting, but more of a question in reply, "How do you intend to employ it and with what style of ammo?"

I don't personally characterize the thought of shooting large game with modest cartridges as "stunt shooting". Lot's of folks do. I do kill pigs, fair chase, with a single shot .22 RF using CB Shorts and over the last 7 years have dispatched over 100 in that fashion. All have been put down with CNS shots, two required a followup and one of those was with a LR gun. So the short version I guess, is know what you're about, know your limitations and don't rush to an unsuccessful conclusion. Virtually any game animal can be taken with any gun regardless of legality. It isn't the gun that limits potential, it is the operator.

For those with time on their hands and interest in the dark science of terminal ballistics as confused by a universe of variables:
http://www.rathcoombe.net/sci-tech/b.../wounding.html

[Certaindeaf]

My personal thoughts on subsonics for medium game is you need weight and diameter. You can get the weight part in the 300blk but you can't get the diameter...

You can if you can get it to tumble after it hits! That'd be my goal using almost 2"+ long? pencils going around 1000fps.

[dk17hmr]

You can if you can get it to tumble after it hits! That'd be my goal using almost 2"+ long? pencils going around 1000fps.

Don't get me wrong a tumbling bullet does some serious damage and will kill just as well as an expanding bullet. BUT insuring that the bullet tumbles after it enters is going to be really tough. If you take a 250gr 30 caliber and a 250gr 45 caliber both at about 1200fps which one would you be less worried about doing the damage needed to kill a deer cleanly....with a chest shot since head shots are taboo to some.

I use sub sonic 30 calibers a lot.....for rabbit hunting.....meplat does the killing there.

[clodhopper]

There are so many factors involved.
I have never killed a deer with 300 blackout, but I have killed them with 7mmTCU.
Lightly constructed (varmit) bullets will expand at the velocities a 300 can launch them. The sharp edges of the bullet can do a lot more tissue damage than a 247 grainer just pushing through.
Unexpanded bullets with small meplats can push organs and blood vessels aside at they pass.
The action of tumbling bullets can sure do lots of tissue damage, but having just enough stability to hit the target, then tumble is a very fine line to follow.

Then a whole uncovered subject, will the quarry be standing broadside unalarmed munching stolen hay?
Or alarmed by human sounds/smells and leaving in a hurry?

Sure a 300 blackout will kill deer, Do you want them to die where they stand? Or maybe across the fence where you do not have permission to hunt?

[Certaindeaf]

Don't get me wrong a tumbling bullet does some serious damage and will kill just as well as an expanding bullet. BUT insuring that the bullet tumbles after it enters is going to be really tough. If you take a 250gr 30 caliber and a 250gr 45 caliber both at about 1200fps which one would you be less worried about doing the damage needed to kill a deer cleanly....with a chest shot since head shots are taboo to some.

I use sub sonic 30 calibers a lot.....for rabbit hunting.....meplat does the killing there.

I hear you. I do know though that a lot of the killing goodness of our military FMJ's, though they of course scream along (55gr and 150gr), are because of reliable tumbling.
A tumbling 200 grain .38 Special (a quite long slug) going a piddling 700fps does an incredible amount of damage so I'd think that a 250gr .30 (much, much longer) going 1000, were it to tumble reliably (read the afore, those military rounds tumble reliably after hitting with quite good accuracy) would put the smack on 2-300lb critters.

[sparky45]

Grandson whacked a couple of Deer this season, on the same day, with a 300 BO @ approx 100 yards with a gun we built and ammo we crafted. Did the standard and took .223 LC Brass trimmed/formed it and loaded with Hornady V-Max 110 grain over a stack of H110. Reload data listed a 2200+ fps bullet. One of the Deer, a Doe fell in her place and the other, a Buck went about 30 yards. Doe was a through and through disrupting the Lungs and Heart and the Buck was taken through the Lungs and the bullet lodged in the off side shoulder. He's sold on the 300 BO and now prefers it over his 7mm WSM.