With the current shortage on sport rifles lol im looking for a new ar15 style to hunt with. Here is the issue i cant find a 223 or 556 and want a bigger round for whitetail deer. I dont have alot of experiance with other caliber ammo. Whats a popular caliber on the lesser expensive side if there is one. I can get a ar15 in .450 bushmaster BUT only 1 maker of ammo, they dont feed always reliably i have heard etc. Id like something that i can use a 20 round mag with minimal as well.
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.308 possibly, which in an AR platform is an AR10.
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Since C-Productcs fixed the ammo hitch in the 7.62X39 Ar 15 platform magazines I see no reason to not go that route. I had a 6.8SPC and I found it wanting on Virginia Whitetails which on average are 130 lbs. I reasoned that for a walking around the woods gun why not go on the platform I had been training and using for 10 years.
The AR-47 package covers a lot of ground and this year I was quite pleased with mine in up close shooting as well as a fair distance across the field. I double tapped a deer at mebby 15’ and she ended up another 10" from there, she did hit a tree head on tho. I tapped a buck at roughly 265 yards, he stagger stepped and fell over. That said no boolits recovered as all were through and through, the buck had an impressive wound cavity and exit wound. The doe, well she never knew what hit her in the back of the head.
Cheers,
Craig6
I hunt from “Oh $h!t close to across the field” and I am NOT about the trailing game thing. Outdoor sportsusa.com has a decent AR-47 but since Covid they have gone up about $100 because they do not include the bolt assy in their kits any more. AK ammo is cheap most days and performance rounds can be had as well as reloading.
Cheers,
Craig6
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@J.WoodSr .308 or 7.62x39 would meet your needs, I have only positive things to say about either caliber. Stick with the common calibers. 
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I use an AR-10 in .308 and I feel like it’s good for anything I am likely to hunt on CONUS.
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.308 is great. I have an AR 10 for deer hunting. I have also heard great things about the 6.5 grendel. It has 30/30 ballistics inside of 200 yards or something like that. Then all you have to replace is the upper receiver.
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Talley up another vote for .308.
@Craig6
A .277 projectile (I’m guessing somewhere north of 100 gr) moving at around around 2500 fps is insufficient for bambi at 130 lbs?
Musta been reaching into the next county… 
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I’m going to tag @Gunner502 here. He recently did an AR10 build and really likes it. I believe he did his build for the 6.5 Creedmore
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@Greg35 The 6.8 did the job but I found the boolit performance lacking on occasion, too inconsistent for me.
Now if we are talking AR-10’s I am straight up a 308 fan boy but compared to an AR-15 platform a might heavy for an all day walking around the woods gun. My Armalite AR-10B is probably the only AR that I got as a factory rifle but I traded for it, didn’t buy it. Always wanted to play with 7-08. Might have to build one so I can use the cheap mags
Cheers,
Craig6
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I am a recent owner of a 6.5 Grendel upper. This round always has some avialability and is my choice of an AR platform deer rifle. The Grendel is usually a 123 grain bullet but can be found in other weights. I will be hunting with a 120 grain Federal Fusion round or the Hornady 123 grain SST.
The Grendel is an easy way to get a lot more performance from a standard AR lower receiver. I bought a Grendel upper and had me a nice AR hunting rifle. You can’t hunt deer in VA with a .223/5.56. The round is very accurate with good ballistic coefficent bullets.
I can gladly recommend the 6.5 Grendel. I think it is an overlooked caliber that has much to offer.
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350 legend. 35 caliber, everything I’m seeing says it’s a deer killer at 325-350 yards. Mags can hold 28 rounds, and, ammo is about 10 dollars a box. It’s significantly cheaper than 450 Bushmaster.
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+1 for AR10 in .308. Not going to be cheap though…
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I’m 65 and never been deer hunting in my life. It’s something I want to do before I run out of time. I had a Marlin 336CS that I had to sell 10 or so years back…I hated having to do it.
I’m in TN and I just bought a S&W M&P15…and I’m gonna drop me a deer with it…or 2 or 3…
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Throw the scope of your dreams on this and you are set. I suggest .308 or 6.5 Creedmoor.
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