338-06
375 H&H
7-08

The 338-06 must have been set up perfectly. The 225g Hornady Interbond transferred energy like nothing I’ve ever saw and still always exited. I’m sure I was simply launching it at the ideal speed for that bullet design to give perfect performance.

The H&H speaks for itself.

The 7-08 with a 140 Fusion is another that seems to be a perfect speed for bullet combo.

300WM
25-06
30-06
30-30



243

The most deer I’ve seen wounded when I was guiding were with a 7mag. But that’s because most of the folks that showed up with one couldn’t shoot it worth a damn. Killing animals is all about where the bullet is placed. I don’t agree with the behind the shoulder shot. If you’re shooting a big gun shoot them in the shoulder and don’t worry about the meat. They’ll flop over. If you’re shooting a small bore just whistle at them and shoot them in the center of the neck when they look at you. Most folks these days are shooting a deer from a blind with a rest under 200 yards. There’s no reason to have to follow a blood trail.

257R
6.5x55 SE
6.8 SPC
308 Win
338 Federal

30-06 DRT

.270 always seam to run

1) 30-06 100+
2) 270
3) 7mm-08
4) 22-250

The most DRT’s for me is my .308 with 175 Sierra Match Kings and Barnes 130 or 150 TTSX’s, which has tallied more than all of my other rifles added together and then by multiples.

.270 is in second with about 30.

7 WSM, .300 Win Mag, and .338 Lapua will lay them down with authority.

The Barnes TTSX’s (not TSX) are producing consistent results in all of my rifles and my go to choice for every hunting rifle except the one that uses SMK’s.

Overall, I have used .243 Win, 6mm Rem, .260 Rem, .270, 7-08, 7 WSM, .308, .30-06, .300 Win Mag, .338 Lapua, and .45 ACP.

The .243 is the only one to not have a Barnes bullet exit, while the 100 gr TTSX from the .260 has very consistent and decisive terminal results. The .243 works, but I prefer the .260 and larger, all of which work fine with TTSX’s and good placement to the CNS or heart.

300 win and 270 wsm are about tied at first.
7 mag and 35 Whelen are clearly next.
270 seems to give shorter blood trails than 30-06
60 gr Nosler partitions at 3500 fps really put a hurting on em.
308, 7-08, 260 all work great too, but drt's depend on CNS hits.

270 wsm is probably my favorite deer/pig cartridge.....stuff just falls down with it.

.300 wm
7/08
.260
.243

300 mag
30-06
30-30
308
44 mag
357 mag
.40 s&w
50 cal muzzleloader
223
204
300 blackout

35 Whalen with a Nosler balistic tip 225gr. To 300 yards DIT. Been my go to gun tor ten yrs

Most of my deer have been killed with .300WM, .260 and 30/30 in that order. I can't compare them because of the differences in shot placement and bullet construction. .300WM deer almost always ran because I almost always put the bullet as far back in the lungs as I could without gut shooting them. Can't say about 30/30 because I quit using it before the new Hornady bullets came out.

.260 120gr SST was pretty sweet with heart/lung shots in tight to the bone. 25 WSSM 115gr NBT seems about the same, but I haven't killed many with it yet.

Another factor to consider if we shoot different types of rifles better. Whether a 6.5CM and 6.5x55 kills better might well be how well the rifle it is in matches the shooter.

308
300 BO
30-30

.357 mag
45 Colt
44 Special
45-70
30-30
270
308
12 gauge

Ive dropped hog and deer in their tracks with every caliber I've hunted them with. The key is shot placement not how big a bullet diameter is or how much powder you can pack in a case.

270
308
6.8 SPC
223

Want to say thanks to the people who have made a list in order as requested in the OP,and if you didn't/wouldn't/couldn't do that maybe this thread wasn't for you.......

Did JG just say the 7mm-08 is BETTER than the 7mm-08 A.I.?

#1 for drt is my 257 whby speed kills or its the one I remember the most with. I've killed deer and hogs with (not in order) 45-70, 375 ruger, 300 win mag, 308, 30-30, 223, 25-06, 30-06, and 243. Bigger faster bullets cause more damage.
257 (100 mk)
300 win (200 Berger hybrid 208 bthp 208 amax 180 silver tip)
375 ruger (270 hornady sp 300 hornady solid)
45-70 (300 gr something)
308 (178 amax 168 amax 168 bthp
243 (105 amax 16" barrel)
30-06 ( 150 sp)
30-30 (150 so 150 hp 156 hardcast)
223 (50 vmax 75 hornady sbr 55 gk 75 bthp)
( Some have been used more than others screwing the order and shot placement and bullet construction)

I didn't really give it a particular order. I'll take the A.I. over the standard 7mm-08, personally. Actually, I keep the 7 Rem Mag off whitetail. For me, it is too much gun for them. Hogs? Yeah, whatever I have next to me, and however far out they are.

It would be interesting to see these posted per the original request, I'm pretty sure I can guess but would like to see the real results....

Well... Since I'm in the ammo business and speak to hundreds of customers about calibers and bullets and terminal performance, there's one thing I know. Shot placement! If you have an adequate caliber with a good bullet, the round used is null and void. I have spoken to customers about building the "ultimate" round for a 300 RUM while spending lots of money on the project. Then for the customer to not even be able to shoot the rifle accurately to get a round on target. So does a 300 RUM on paper have more killing power than a 300 blk out, sure. But a well placed shot from a 300 blk out is much better than a poor shot or a miss from a 300 RUM.

Moral of the story- Get a round and caliber you can shoot very well, practice with it, get proficient with it, then go hunt with it.

Exactly why I hate seeing kids, or women (some grown men, too) getting handed a .270 or a .30-06, to start out with. There's no point in getting behind something that will cause a constant flinch, which causes very poor shooting. There's plenty of power in many short action cartridges, to get the job done, and not cause the flinch.

This is exactly what i was trying to avoid. Please reread the OP. I was not interested in paper figures, others testimony that you heard, etc, etc. Only what YOU have shot, and YOUR PERSONAL results, in list form from best to worse. My list is compiled with MY EXPERIENCES, with similar shot placement on animals, for me that means heart/lungs. I am not trying to convince any one of anything and for this thread, neither should you, just make a list. If in all of your hunting all cartridges performed exactly the same relative to each other then i guess they can all be #1, this has not been my experience at all, but i am looking for YOUR EXPERIENCE

I think one thing this thread has convinced me of, is that reading comprehension is in short supply on THF

RJH,

Chad’s reading comprehension is fine.

The premise that the cartridge is the biggest factor in producing DRT results is the flaw.

The single biggest factor in lethality is shot placement, followed by bullet performance inside the body.

The cartridge only determines velocity when it leaves the barrel.

Bullets in the brain reliably produce DRT.

Shots to the thoracic spine between the shoulder blades also reliably produces DRT.

Shots to the heart are third place for DRT, but more dependent on a more frangible bullet and more energy.

Shots to the lungs are very dependent on a frangible bullet and even more energy to produce a DRT, and even then are not going to reliably produce DRT on a reliable basis.

That the answer to your question is different than you expected is basis for discussion rather than complaint.

As I put in my response, numerically I’ve killed 100’s with a .308 and 175 Sierra Match Kings, but every other cartridge I’ve used was equally capable of DRT results with shots to the brain or thoracic spine, other than the .243 which did not always penetrate as reliably through heavy bone on large hogs. The .243 with TTSX’s penetrate into the heart fine, but they will run 50 - 100 yards.

Here is a photo from two days ago with a 100 grain TTSX .264” at 2950 at impact through the ear canal into the brain producing instant death. The result would be the same whether from a .260 or 26 Nosler, a .308” 175 SMK from a .308 Win or .300 Win Mag, or a 300 grain SMK from a .338 Lapua. They all will produce equal results with this shot placement.

So bottom line, shot placement and bullet selection to match with a reliably accurate shooter must be considered. Chad is spot on.

RJH1 I believe my answer was in line with your question. I understand it’s frustrating to you for people to not follow your rules because it defeats the purpose of your post. Surely you realize though that this is a public forum and people are going to do whatever that want. It’s generally not so much that they lack reading comprehension it’s generally that they don’t read the OP completely or at all. At any rate don’t get too frustrated or you’ll be mad all the time around here.