DNR Proposal for .243 and up rifle for deer season?

[Willie]

When is the vote/final decision to be made on this?

May 2015


See - http://www.in.gov/nrc/files/lsa14453_timeline.pdf

 

[bowtech83]

I am not sure how I feel about the DNR letting people use HPRs here in Indiana. I know the land that I hunt is very flat. I wonder if there will be regulations on where you can use them in the state?

 

[Dead Duck]

I am not sure how I feel about the DNR letting people use HPRs here in Indiana. I know the land that I hunt is very flat. I wonder if there will be regulations on where you can use them in the state?

Why would this regulation have anything to do with the land?
The only restrictions I've ever heard on this is from hunters that are worried about stray shots. Not from DNR.

It's not about the land.

It's just about giving us our calibers back.

 

[singlesix]

I am not sure how I feel about the DNR letting people use HPRs here in Indiana. I know the land that I hunt is very flat. I wonder if there will be regulations on where you can use them in the state?

 

[shibumiseeker]

I am not sure how I feel about the DNR letting people use HPRs here in Indiana. I know the land that I hunt is very flat. I wonder if there will be regulations on where you can use them in the state?

I can squirrel hunt with my .50bmg currently...

 

[The Bubba Effect]

I can squirrel hunt with my .50bmg currently...

The worst thing about doing that is you cannot tell if you hit or missed.

 

[Dead Duck]

You watch for the red mist cloud.
POOF

 

[bowtech83]

I can squirrel hunt with my .50bmg currently...

Much more deer hunters in the woods than squirrel hunters. Also there are a lot of trigger happy gun hunters out there without a certain discipline or responsibility to make an ethical shot. Add these dummies with HPRs in public land on the opening day of firearm season, good luck with that. I dont have to worry about it that much though, I have never hunted public ground. And the land does play a role in HPRs, these bullets can travel a much flater trajectory at a much further distance. Hey man, Im not here to argue, if you cant kill a deer in Indiana with a bow, shotgun, or muzzleloader, hang it up. Why do we need to add HPRs? Hell, deer numbers are already going down due to the enormous amount of antlerless tags Indiana has allowed.

 

[Dead Duck]

Much more deer hunters in the woods than squirrel hunters. Also there are a lot of trigger happy gun hunters out there without a certain discipline or responsibility to make an ethical shot. Add these dummies with HPRs in public land on the opening day of firearm season, good luck with that. I dont have to worry about it that much though, I have never hunted public ground. And the land does play a role in HPRs, these bullets can travel a much flater trajectory at a much further distance. Hey man, Im not here to argue, if you cant kill a deer in Indiana with a bow, shotgun, or muzzleloader, hang it up. Why do we need to add HPRs? Hell, deer numbers are already going down due to the enormous amount of antlerless tags Indiana has allowed.

It's not that we need to add them, they shouldn't have been taken away in the first place.
Other states that have more calibers don't seem to have these problems.

Maybe you shouldn't hunt if you think it's too dangerous.

The land was not the reason they made the change before or now. (God Willing)

 

[bowtech83]

It's not that we need to add them, they shouldn't have been taken away in the first place.
Other states that have more calibers don't seem to have these problems.

Maybe you shouldn't hunt if you think it's too dangerous.

The land was not the reason they made the change before or now. (God Willing)

I hope you are surrounded by orange next opener, all equipped with 1000 yd .308s

 

[avboiler11]

Other states that have more calibers don't seem to have these problems.

EXACTLY...including the state immediately south of the Ohio River (which some may have noticed, is pretty darn flat in a good portion, too).

So either Hoosiers are more stupid and reckless than people in other states, or they're more NIMBYish.

Clearly, we're at the point where it is one or the other.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Much more deer hunters in the woods than squirrel hunters. .

Yeah, and squirrel hunters never shoot up into the air like deer hunters do to get those crafty bucks hiding in the treetops.

 

[BigMoose]

Not good, they really should specifically ban these.

I just want to make sure all the Is are dotted and Ts crossed. I don't want any chance some idiot will be out there with something underpowered that is legal wounding deer.

7.62 Tokarev is another one that squeaks thru.

Me personally? I will be headed to the woods with my M14 with core-lokts

Edit, Have gotten a reply from DNR... While the 25-20, 32-20 and M1 Carbine are restricted from handgun despite meeting the dimensional requirements it is not at present the intention to similarly exclude them from long guns, that is if the proposal is enacted as is, message text from DNR below......



The changes that have been proposed governing rifle cartridges for deer hunting would allow rifle cartridges that have a bullet at least .243 in diameter and have a minimum cartridge case length of 1.16 inches. This would include the 25-20, 32-30, and 30 carbine. Please note that this is still just a proposal at this time. We still have to receive approval from several other agencies and get final adoption from the Natural Resources Commission, which will not be until next year. There will be a public hearing next year, then we have to go back to the Commission for final adoption (likely in May of next year).

You can submit your comments to the Natural Resources Commission at: NRC: Current Rule Proposals and click on "comment on this rule" for the FW: Biennial Rule Amendment Package.

If you sign up for Wild Bulletin (our free electronic newsletter that comes out once a month), you will receive an email with information about the rule process, including the public hearing(s). You can sign up for Wild Bulletin at: DNR: Wild Bulletin

Sincerely,

Linnea Petercheff
Operations Staff Specialist
Division of Fish and Wildlife
402 W. Washington Street, Room W273
Indianapolis, IN 46204
Phone: (317) 233-6527
Fax: (317) 232-8150

 

[MRP2003]

There is always talk about how dangerous it would be allowing high powered rifles but as mentioned by many others, they are used in most other states and the safety incidents are really no higher than those states that do not allow HPR.
I have hunted in PA for years and typically see spots of orange in 3-4 spots within 200 yards with some being within 100 yards. Really how many areas are there on public land that you can take a clear 300 yard shot?

I have even raised the concern about semi autos being allowed but after thinking about it for a while, I am not concerned about it any more.

I do think that INDNR should change the rules for blaze orange requirements by requiring so many sq inches in addition to the hat. With just a hat, there is just not enough to see hunters waling around in wooded areas. I have seen it for myself with a good friend walking near my through a wooded area and because of my elevation and the trees, I could not see his hat. When I looked through my scope, I could see his legs and so the unusual mass moving around was him with his back pack on. Because of that, we instituted our own rules of having everyone wear a blaze orange vest in addition to the hat.

Also, if you think making a 200+ yard shot with a HPR is going to happen that much, your wrong. Most of us have trouble hitting the target at 100 yards from a stand or the ground. We typically do to use a bench rest to shoot from our stand. I know a lot of people are going to try those shots even though they only sighted their rifle in at 100 yards and have no idea what being 1/4" to the right at a 100 means when you shoot at a target that is 300+ yards and lets forget that the same will not accurately understand bullet drop or even understand how to judge distance.

Any way, I am excited that they are considering changing the regs and hearing that there is a good chance it will happen. I just hope that if they do pass it in May, that it goes into effect the same year. I use a Marlin 44mag lever action currently in Indiana but would love to use my .308 and my 300 WM. Heck, I may even break out my 300 Weatherby Mag or even my 325 WSM just to finally be able to hunt with them.

 

[ghuns]

I don't want any chance some idiot will be out there with something underpowered that is legal wounding deer.

You mean like a .410 shotgun? Or some caveman shooting pointy sticks with a string?

Good shots kill deer, bad shots wound them. Marginal shots can be made up for to some extent with brute force. Should we limit rifles to .300 WINMAG and up because of the idiots?

 

[Willie]

BigMoose,

you our got the true skinny from Ms. Linnea . That lady is the brains at the DNR .

 

[M4Madness]

I hope you are surrounded by orange next opener, all equipped with 1000 yd .308s

I can't speak for him, but I don't hunt field edges very often at all -- maybe one day a year. I hunt in the woods, where a long shot is 100 yards. Good luck getting a .308 to bust through all of those trees to get to me. LOL!

 

[roadrunner681]

I can't speak for him, but I don't hunt field edges very often at all -- maybe one day a year. I hunt in the woods, where a long shot is 100 yards. Good luck getting a .308 to bust through all of those trees to get to me. LOL!

i hunt field edges but theirs no way im going to send one out there with my 308 it can shoot that far, but theres no way in hell i can

 

[spaniel]

I can't speak for him, but I don't hunt field edges very often at all -- maybe one day a year. I hunt in the woods, where a long shot is 100 yards. Good luck getting a .308 to bust through all of those trees to get to me. LOL!

There are plenty of cases to show that standing trees make poor backstops.

 

[spaniel]

I do think that INDNR should change the rules for blaze orange requirements by requiring so many sq inches in addition to the hat. With just a hat, there is just not enough to see hunters waling around in wooded areas. I have seen it for myself with a good friend walking near my through a wooded area and because of my elevation and the trees, I could not see his hat.

Agreed 100%. I have a >50% orange coat I bought before I moved down from MI; I am lit up like a Christmas tree but must wear a full-orange had to be legal here. Yet most of the guys hunting around me wear only the hat (or gloves) and are very hard to see from any distance. We had one guy complain that someone shot near him; his only orange was gloves and they were inside his blind, the shooter could not see him at all from 400-600 yards away.

I say mandate so many square inches or a jacket/vest which is at least 50% orange. Especially if we all start using longer range weapons.