What is the best deer hunting gun for a woman?

I live in Georgia and am thinking about purchasing a gun. I have heard .243 is good but you have to almost have a perfect shot to make the kill. Then I have heard .270. I want something that will kill with out much kick(recoil). What are your suggestions?What is the best deer hunting gun for a woman?
Go with the .243





You do not have to split hairs with it.





The broadside kill zone for a deer is easily the size of a 9'; paper plate. You should be able to do that well before you go hunting with any gun.





Practice with a 9'; paper plate at 100yds. When you can hit it every time you are ready to go hunting.





The .243 has very little recoil.What is the best deer hunting gun for a woman?
243 is a threshold cartridge between deer and varmint. With a 90 to 105 grain bonded core bullet and proper shot placement it is a good deer cartridge. Issues with 243 are improper bullet selection,poor shot placement and not sufficient penetration because it is a small,relatively light bullet. You need a good broadside presentation with 243,quartering shots are less sure (penetration).


There are similar short action cartridges like the 260 or 7mm-08 or even 308 that have a moderate recoil with enough energy and weight to do better. 270 is a near perfect deer cartridge IMO,and isn't bad for recoil. A 130 or 140 grain bullet would be hard to beat. Most southern deer aren't huge,but you can have some open fields to cover so a 270 or it's little sister the 25-06 would be good choices.


I know some women who can shoot rather large rifle calibers,and that comes down to practice and technique, so you might want to take a shooting class to improve your recoil tolerance by learning to relax and have proper mechanics. Proper Gun fit and a good recoil pad can really improve your recoil tolerance too. They do make after market replacement butt pads and you can get a PAST type shoulder pad to wear;then you could use that for other rifles or shotguns too.


There are a few non-mainstream cartridges like 6.5 x 55 Swede,250-3000 and 300 Savage that are light recoiling,but very effective. The Savages are harder to come by. Another less used cartridge is the 257 Roberts, which is having a renaissance lately,that is worth looking at.


Personally, a 270,25-06 or 7mm-08 would be my selections in your situation. Each is available,but not on the same level as 30-06,but get the job done. I shy away from 30-30 because there are so many cartridges that perform much better for energy,range and accuracy beyond the limited envelope of the 30-30.


223 IS NOT a deer hunting caliber.


EDIT: I did forget to mention the ';Managed Recoil'; loads that Remington has available in 30-06,308 and 270,maybe a couple more-they use a lighter bullet and specific powders to reduce recoil,but range is cut to about 200 yards max. That would be something you could use to ';work up to'; more fully loaded ammo--basic principle is lighter bullets don't recoil as much.
The .243 is a decent round. My daughter has taken several deer with hers and they were large South Dakota mule deer, a lot bigger than the whitetail you will hunt in GA.





But we were very careful and limited her shots to reasonably close standing broadside shots. Also as a competitive shooter my daughter is a very good shot.





You might consider just a tad step up in power to a Remington .260 or a Remington 7MM-08. These are both the same cartridge with slightly larger and heavier bullets. They will deliver more punch on the receiving end will little difference on your end. (by the way, the 7MM bullet is .284'; in diameter for reference)





No matter how big a gun you use, it will not be a substitute for poor shot placement. So I'd rather see you shoot a smaller caliber that you can shoot well instead of a more powerful caliber that you shoot poorly.





Bullet selection is very important as well. Make sure you are using premium ammo in these smaller caliber rifles. And practice, practice, practice!





Good luck!
The most important thing is that it fit you reasonably well. The average rifle comes from the factory with a stock for a man of average height, so it's a bit too long for many women. If you're under 5'6'; or so, you may want to be especially careful about that. Your gender itself has nothing to do with it. Caliber need to be adequate, but there are plenty of good choices there. And you've gotten good information about 243 Winchester. It's a fine varmint cartridge, but it's stretching its capabilities when used on deer. The 243, by the way, is a necked-down version of the 308 Winchester case. Others that make fine deer cartridges are the 260 Remington and the 7mm08. Likewise, good deer cartridges based on the longer 30-06 case include the 270 Winchester and 280 Remington. 7x57 Mauser is also a pleasant and very effective choice, though it's offered by fewer and fewer manufacturers as time goes on, and 6.5x55 Swedish Mauser is also a fine option.
The .243 is a great gun, very little kick. Shot placement needs to be good, but not perfect. I have taken three deer in the past three years, all one shot from a .243 not all were heart shots.





The .270 would work but it has a heck of a kick. It would allow more forgiveness is your aim is off. I would go with the .243 if you are just hunting deer. It keeps you honest with keeping up your shooting skills.
My wife uses, and shoots very well, a Remington A Bolt, but in youth model. She is about 5' 3';, 110 lbs. It is the .308 cal, and shot a pile of deer with it. I'm thinking about having my 10 year old hunt with it this year since in wisconsin, they opened up the ';mentor program';. Good luck to you. Try many out, and listen to what some ';pros' have to say.
The 243 Winchester is your Best choice or a 6mm made by Savage or Remington.* My Remington Model 700 in 243 Winchester has never disappointed me in harvesting Whitetail Deer, Mule Deer, Black Bear, and Antelope.* Use the 100 or 115 grain bullet.*
25/06, right between the 270 and 243. Recoil of the 243 with that extra speed and bullet weight you want and very, very flat shooting. 75 grn bullets to 122 grn factory brands. In just about every make of rifle and style to fit you.
I would go with a .243, especially if you shoot alot, you might start flinching with a .270. Remington makes a managed recoil shell for both the .270 and the 30-06.
a 7mm08 is a necked down 308 and i have one and it is super accurate and just right for deer
A .243 will work find, and as long as you hit the deer in the hollow behind the shoulder it will go down within 100 yards
My own very first hunting gun was a Marlin 30-30 it gets the job done.
The BEST thing to hunt deer with is a CAMERA... take their photos, not their lives.
I've always heard a 270 was a womans gun and so that would be my guess ....same goes for a 20 guage shot gun!

beauty