Hey fellow members, just wondering if any of us use a more tactical based platform for your deer hunting rifle of choice? I am old school myself, but I see more and more black and plastic in the woods. What are your thoughts ?

In Pennsylvania...

No semi-auto ( self-loading ) firearms are permitted.

Capacity is limited to 3 cartridges in the chamber and magazine combined.

That being said...synthetic stocks are great for hunting in foul weather...but I still prefer wood and steel.

I have actually hunted with an AR chambered in .223. I had to use 5 round mags.

Not a round I would recommend for deer unless you are willing to pass on anything but an optimal shot. Definite need to use bullets in the heaver end of the 223 spectrum, 70gr+

Shooter... I live right on the edge of NY and PA, in the Upper Delaware River valley. I live on the NY side, and am fortunate enough to be able to hunt both states. In PA, as always, I see alot of 760's. In NY now, I see guys carry all sorts of things, depending on where you are hunting, exactly. Last season, I saw two guys carrying modified AR style rifles, and was wondering just how popular a platform that is for hunting. Clips were small, looked like legal hunting implements, just a different looking rig.

MikeD, I would agree with that. I don't even really care for the .243, though I know it's a capable round for deer hunting. Just feels light to me. I don't have any experience with the .223.

Know that area pretty well Buck

...as I also hunt yotes on my friends property in Vestal, NY...off of 17 West. He and his neighbor raise chickens and other livestock and have a coyote problem that I try to help him with every 3 months or so.

We hunt over a FoxPro Game Caller and have bagged quite a few. We also use AR platforms...with the 5 round magazines installed. ( http://www.gofoxpro.com/site/ )

I would love to be able to hunt in PA the same way...and would probably get a .308 AR platform for that purpose. Right now I own an Olympic M4 in 5.56x45.

My daughter hunts with AR -15. She has taken one deer with that rifle.

ncturkey wrote:My daughter hunts with AR -15. She has taken one deer with that rifle.

Do you mind sharing what load she was using and the barrel length, etc?

What kind of damage did it do?

Just curious.