It all started two years ago when Indiana changed its deer hunting rules to where you could now use PCRs (Pistol Caliber rifles) during the firearm portion of the season. Being a long time CAS shooter, it was only natural that I put up my shotguns and handguns and take to the field with a levergun.
The first year of the change, I was successful but did not report here because I used one of those J-word bullets, but this year I stayed away from the dark side and went afield with a Rossi Puma chambered in .357 Magnum loaded up with 180 grain rnfp gas checked bullets. I had done a fair share of studying on this combination, specifically by visiting Junior's websites, so I had worked up a load using Lil' Gun to push this bullet to near 1700 fps.
Opening day found me sitting in my treestand. Right around 8:00 AM I saw a buck working his way back to the swamps after feeding in the cornfields to the south of my stand. As he worked his way through the woods, I got my rifle into position and tracked him until he presented me with a wide open broadside shot. Line up the sights, breath, squeeze the trigger. At the shot, he hunched his back and reared up a bit, then dug in to run. I racked the action and as he was bolting through the woods lead him a bit and fired another round. He dashed maybe 50 yards and then piled up at the base of the tree. I watched him for a while to make sure he didn't move, then climbed down to get to work.
As I approached him laying there, I realized that this was probably the biggest deer I'd ever shot . I also realized that in those 50 yards he dashed, he'd leapt a small stream and made his way into the swamp.
The first round did the trick, it was a direct hit in the 'boiler room' and made a mess out of the heart and lungs. I had pulled the second round and it broke the front leg just below the shoulder.
Here's a picture of him after I'd spent nearly 2 hours getting him out of the swamp and woods and to the check in station. They estimated his weight at around 185lbs dressed, and he carried a scruffy 9 point rack.
OK, I followed your advice (on posting the picture), let's see if it works.
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