Caliber debate: 9mm for whitetail
I know this is beaten to death but I'm torn. Buddy swears by .40 S&W but I've always shot 9mm. For whitetail inside 200 does it really matter?
Convince me — or not. Just want honest opinions.
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Gotta agree with the others - neither 9mm nor .40 is a deer cartridge. Even from a carbine that's pushing it unless you're talking perfect shot placement under 50 yards. Pennsylvania requires minimum .243 for deer and that makes sense. Use the right tool for the job.
Hold up... you're talking pistol calibers for whitetail? That's usually bow or rifle territory. Are you in a pistol-only zone? If so, neither 9mm nor .40 is ideal - you want something with more oomph like .44 mag or .460 S&W.
Wait are we talking pistols or PCCs here? If it's pistol hunting you really need more power than 9mm or .40. But if you mean pistol caliber carbines... still not great for deer imo. My 308 loads barely drop them sometimes. What's your hunting situation exactly?
Brother neither of those calibers is what you want for whitetail. That's wounded deer waiting to happen. Minimum I'd use is .357 mag from a carbine, but really you want .308, .30-06, or similar rifle cartridge. Don't mess around with marginal calibers on game animals.
Gonna have to respectfully disagree here. I've seen too many people have issues with that.