Going on my first Axis hunt. Told they were bigger than average whitetail buck. But don't know what that means.
I'm an Average shot, so what rifle would you use?
Thanks for any information. .

7mm-08 would be a start.

They are not hard to kill. I've used a 7mm08 and 120 ballistic tips a few times, 140 accubond a few times, and a 6.5CM with 130 accubond a few times. Any non magnum whitetail rilfe/load combo will work great. Good Luck.

I should have just asked this question. My wife is going and she is 75, so she shoots a 30/06 in Hornady's lite load with 120 grain bullet.
Is that enough?

If you trust it to kill whitetail I would trust it to kill axis.

Yes, that is more than enough.

I have killed two good sized Axis bucks with a TC Encore in 6.5 Grendel shooting 105 grain bullets.

I had killed 3 Axis deer on a trip 3 years ago. Two big axis does and one trophy axis buck. All were shot behind the shoulder and the furthest one ran about 35 yards max. The big axis buck ran about 15 yards. I shot them with a 100 grain bullet form a .243 rifle. JUST HIT THEM CORRECTLY.

Bullet construction and shot placement trump head stamp nearly every time.
I wouldn't hesitate to chase axis with a 243 or larger cartridge with a good bullet....same rigs I would use for whitetail.
Most of the 7 or 8 axis I've killed have been with a 308 or 7/08.

25-06 with 117gn Hornady SST reload with RL23. Dropped in tracks at 85yds

Good luck sir

Yes, that will work perfectly!!!

What ever rifle that you shoot deer with...,. That you shoot best

I’ve guided tons of Axis hunters in my 20+ years of outfitting. We’ve taken Axis bucks with .243 and up. Whatever you use to whitetail hunt with, or you’re confident with shooting use that.

Lots of good stuff here. I run a 30-06 with Nosler 125 gn BT and there’s nothing in Texas I wouldn’t hunt except Nilgai with that setup, maybe.

I’ve killed several axis with a 95 gn bullet out of a 243.

Killed one last weekend with a 6.8spc 110 grain hornady

My one time was with 7mm-.08 140gr, went two yards straight down.

Killed a lot of axis with everything from 22-250 to 45/70 and everything in between! Shot placement! Took 2 in last month with 6mm Creed and both dropped.

Best advice.

Any caliber that will kill a Whitetail will kill an Axis just fine......HOWEVER..... Axis have a horrible tendency to not bleed. So I would advise going as big as you can comfortably shoot. I get a lot of flack for hunting deer and other deer-sized game with a .300 WSM....but I almost always get an exit wound. Two holes bleed better than one. Just sayin...

And for the record....I have killed 4 big mature Axis bucks, and none of them bled at all. Luckily 3 of them dropped in their tracks, and the other ran a short distance and fell within sight.

I have taken quite a few Axis in my life. They were all taken with either a 222 or now a 223. Use a rifle you are comfortable shooting. And don't get Buck Fever. Those two factors mess up more animals than anything else.

A healthy well nourished Axis buck in Texas can push the scale up to 285 lbs or more on the hoof. Probably an average would be around 250. A marginal normally results in a lost animal. They are incredibly tenacious when you stick ‘em.

Here is what I’ve noticed

They have more of a will to live than whitetail
Watch close as they sometime “ absorb” the hit better and don’t give as much indication and you think you miss, walk towards the last place you see them and they will be close by if they run, but no trail
They don’t bleed much
I didn’t get as many exits with body shots

I have used 22250, 308, 270wsm, 6.5 c

a mature buck is probably a bit tougher than a whitetail and they do have a bigger/thicker bone structure.


Most any standard caliber will work fine but i would stay away from .22 centerfires and smaller 6mm's like a .243.

I have never shot a axis, however I have shot several whitetail,mule deer and antelope over my lifetime with a 30 06 . Your wife will be just fine and remember it’s all about bullet placement