using an AR or military style rifle for hunting?

grumpyvette

Administrator
Staff member
I've been hunting in several states for over 40 years now, I lived in florida , where we mostly hunt for whitetail deer and hogs, deer here rarely reach 140 lbs, I've got to point out the over all visual reaction has and is changing, 30 years ago IT was RARE to even see an AR style or military semi automatic hunting rifle in the field , in fact I can,t remember seeing an AK, SKS, AR, or FAL,HK, or similar rifles in deer camp back when I first started deer hunting, and in some states restrictions on 22 caliber, or magazine capacity limitation's or semi automatic action restrictions makes the use of that rifle difficult or impossible.
now 39 states allow the 223 rem use on deer.
I moved to TEXAS recently and have not yet looked into the fish & game law's.

no deer will ever know if the bullet came from a bolt action or a semi auto rifle, there's zero difference in the result,

if that shots been placed correctly and all the military calibers can be hand loaded or purchased with expanding bullet ammo designed for hunting use. and there's no deer or hog that can survive a well placed soft point from even a 223 let alone a 7.62/39 or 7.62/51
or 308 or 30/06.
yet over the years I've seen a constant increase in the percentage of hunters carrying.

AK, SKS, AR, or FAL,HK, or similar rifle style or military semi automatic hunting rifles in the field.
any states limit hunting rifles to a 5 shot magazine capacity.
now a great deal of this is in my opinion related to the fact that both,
the type of rifles are now much more popular and the bullet quality they fire and selection has vastly improved.
30-40 years ago if you showed up with an AK, SKS, or AR rifle you were looked at by many as some kind of marginally crazy guy ,
no one wanted to be near you, because the pre-conception, of many hunters who were really , not all that gun, savvy,
was that you were going to be spraying bullets like a fire hose, randomly, through the brush.
but as the firearm type became MUCH more common in the hands of the majority of firearms owners,

I think the realization set in that ,while the military rifles might look ,"... well...,MILITARY"
the function was no different, than the typical semi auto hunting rifles many guys carried,
and most of us owned similar rifles and once the bullets improved the effectiveness of a single well placed shot from those rifles,

did exactly the same thing as the more common lever or pump action rifles had done for decades.
I know many guys brought the rifles to camp just to try them out,
but a few guys found they actually preferred them for hunting,
and as acceptance, and AS the percentage of hunters owning similar rifles grew, the stigma,

that you had to be a "NUT CASE" was greatly reduced, until its now fairly common to see those rifles..
especially the SKS with a 5 round capacity magazine installed here in Florida.
I know that 30-40 years ago I would not be all that comfortable with some guy carrying a AR 15 style rifle on a deer hunt,

but during the last decade or so its become common enough that I doubt many people give it a second thought.
I also know from experience that the common 55 grain soft point hunting ammo of several decades ago is VASTLY inferior to the current 62-80 grain bullets available in .223 caliber rifles and there are now 5 round capacity mags available for most military rifle look alike clones making them useful hunting tools that are legal in most areas.
If you think about it ,there's a historical parallel, lever and pump actions were partly phased out slowly, at least to some degree,
after the first world war, as bolt actions became the primary military rifle style and now as the self loading military style rifles have become standard over the last 60-70 years they have started to be rather common, in the hunting fields also,

maybe not yet the preferred style in all areas of the hunting fields, but much MUCH more common.
while the 223 rem can be fired in most 5.56 mm rifles the chambers are not identical nor the pressure levels ,
so firing the higher pressure 5.56 mm ammo in a 223 rem is not always a good idea
there are several bullets designed for use on varmints in 22 caliber 223 chambered rifles with very thin jackets ,:facepalm:
that are far too fragile to use for the best effect on deer.

there are also several 62-77 grain bullets specifically designed to use a 223 cartridge on deer size game:like:



remember the bullet(projectile) does ALL the work, nosler, barnes and several other brands have bullets designed for deer hunting.

as always precise shot placements critical to getting good results


223vs556.jpg

223vs556c.gif


use a rifle chambered in 308 win or 7.62/51mm like an M1a1and a decent quality 165-180 grain bullet and any deer or elk within reasonable range should be easily taken by a good marksman.
will a 223rem work? without any doubt, in the hands of a good shot it will... but a 308 win chambered rifle still maintains some advantages on deer size game.
http://dpms-gii.com/full.html
http://www.onlylongrange.com/bn36.asp
 
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When I go hunting I use an AR 10, chambered in 308 Winchester. I've gotten comments, but ignore them. It is more than enough power to drop a deer or hog, plus it is easy to use and clean.
 
I brought a M1A1 rifle to deer camp one year, keep in mind they sell 5 round magazines that seat flush with the bottom of the receiver so when used for hunting you don,t have a larger capacity magazine extending below the stock
http://www.brownells.com/magazines/...nes/m14-m1a-308-7-62-magazines-prod27330.aspx


5-10-20.png

FAM14ServiceRifle4.png


I made the mistake of only bringing about 40 cartridges ,
as I was in theory only there to go hunting and figured having 39-38 extras,
was far more than Id need,

but damn near everyone there wanted to try a few shots, with that rifle at the near by sight-in area.
(the day before the season opened) while we checked the rifles and decided on the area to camp and hunt. the rifles a bit heavy and a bit longer in length than many of the more common hunting rifles but with a quality scope mounted and high quality ammo used it leaves nothing to be desired in accuracy as 1.2"-t0-1.5" 5 shot groups at a 100 yards of a bench rest are rather common. and I can,t remember ever having a mis-fire or jam , as with good ammo its nearly flawless if kept carefully cleaned, and its a whole lot less light reflective or flashy than my browning BAR semi auto rifle.
BARBOSS.png

the BAR may be more traditional as a hunting rifle but ID strongly suspect the M1a is going to prove easier to care for under field conditions and theres zero contest if you want a rifle for defensive use
 
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I like AR -AK style rifles but I'm not sure that I want a lot of idiots with semi auto fire out in the woods around me & I'm not worried in any way about the group that I hunt with its the ones I don't know about that we find on our posted land all the time
 
I like AR -AK style rifles but I'm not sure that I want a lot of idiots with semi auto fire out in the woods around me & I'm not worried in any way about the group that I hunt with its the ones I don't know about that we find on our posted land all the time

I'd want a semi-auto rifle if I was bear hunting and didn't get a first clean shot. You would too if the bear came at you and you couldn't do a FAST reload for the next shot.

And I would hope that where you hunt, and with whom, that all KNOWS GUN SAFETY. Put up signs on property that ALL TRESPASSERS WILL BE SHOT ON SIGHT, NO QUESTIONS ASKED, watch how many show up on your property to hunt ILLEGALLY. I have one that reads---[Ain't nothin' worth dying for here.]
 
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