Everyone loves a soft-shooting rifle—until that mild recoil turns into a lost deer or a long tracking job. Some calibers look great on paper but don’t carry enough energy past 100 or 150 yards to make a clean, ethical kill. These rounds either drop off too fast, fragment inconsistently, or lack the penetration to reach vitals once they hit bone. At the range, they’re pleasant to shoot and accurate as can be, but field performance tells another story.
The trouble isn’t always poor marksmanship—it’s physics. A lightweight bullet or low velocity can’t make up for marginal energy at impact. Plenty of hunters have learned the hard way that some calibers are meant for varmints or paper, not for medium game beyond bowhunting distances. Here are thirteen calibers that tend to disappoint when the target isn’t a tin can but a living animal standing 150 yards out in real conditions.
.22 Long Rifle
The .22 LR has probably dropped more small game than any other cartridge, but it simply runs out of steam too quickly for larger animals. Past 75 yards, even high-velocity loads lose energy fast and start dropping dramatically. On deer-sized game, it lacks both penetration and shock, often resulting in wounded animals rather than clean kills.
The bullet design doesn’t help—it’s made for small targets, not heavy muscle or bone. Hunters who’ve tried stretching it past its limits usually regret it. It’s quiet, cheap, and accurate, but it’s a varmint and plinking round, not a deer cartridge. At 150 yards, you’re looking at less than 100 foot-pounds of energy. That might work for pests or dispatching trapped animals, but it’s nowhere near what’s needed for ethical hunting.
.22 Magnum
The .22 Mag is a step up from .22 LR, but not by much in terms of ethical range. It’s fast and flat for small game, but at 150 yards, it barely carries enough punch for coyotes, much less deer. Most loads hover around 250 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle, which drops to nearly half that by the time it reaches common hunting distances.
It’s accurate and useful for varmints, but it’s not built for medium game. The lightweight bullets lack sectional density, so penetration is poor even with well-placed shots. At close range, it’s fine for foxes or raccoons, but pushing it further turns clean kills into recovery missions. It’s a fun round for the range or pest control, not a dependable choice for serious hunting distances.
.17 HMR
The .17 HMR is blazing fast and laser-accurate, but it hits like a mosquito past 100 yards. Its tiny 17- or 20-grain bullets fragment on impact, which works beautifully on prairie dogs but fails miserably on anything bigger. Even a perfect shot on a coyote often won’t exit, and wind drift makes it unreliable beyond moderate range.
Hunters fall in love with its precision and flat trajectory, but velocity isn’t everything. It simply doesn’t have the mass to penetrate effectively on deer or hogs. Even headshots are inconsistent because the lightweight bullets shatter instead of driving deep. It’s one of those calibers that’s spectacular for target shooting but simply doesn’t deliver enough real-world energy at typical hunting ranges.
.22 Hornet
The .22 Hornet was a marvel when it debuted, but by modern standards, it’s underwhelming. At 200 yards, you’re looking at a trajectory and energy profile that struggles to stay lethal on anything bigger than a coyote. Its 35- to 45-grain bullets don’t carry enough sectional density or momentum to reach vitals through shoulder or rib bone.
In perfect conditions, it can work—but most hunters don’t get perfect conditions. A small amount of wind or a less-than-ideal shot angle turns the Hornet into a liability. It’s a fun and nostalgic cartridge for varmints, but for real hunting distances, it’s fallen behind. There’s a reason it’s been replaced by faster, flatter small-bore rounds like the .204 Ruger and .223 Remington.
.204 Ruger
The .204 Ruger is blisteringly fast, but speed alone doesn’t make a good hunting round. Its 32- to 40-grain bullets expand instantly, dumping all their energy in the first few inches of tissue. On varmints, that’s ideal. On larger animals, it’s a recipe for poor penetration and long tracking jobs.
At 150 yards, even the heaviest .204 loads have less than 500 foot-pounds of energy left—barely half of what’s considered ethical for deer. That means even a perfect shot may not reach the lungs if you hit shoulder bone. It’s an excellent round for prairie dogs and groundhogs, but for deer or hogs, it’s simply too little. Hunters often underestimate how fast that tiny bullet loses both speed and stability once it leaves the barrel.
.25-20 Winchester
The .25-20 Winchester is a classic, but it’s out of its league beyond 100 yards. Originally designed for small game, it never had the velocity or energy to perform well on medium animals. Even with modern loads, you’re lucky to see 1,200 foot-pounds of muzzle energy—and less than 500 by the time it reaches common deer ranges.
Penetration is shallow, and bullet expansion is inconsistent. Hunters who use it for nostalgia’s sake often end up disappointed. It’s fun to shoot, sure, but when it comes to putting down whitetails or hogs, it simply doesn’t do enough. Even with perfect shot placement, it lacks the power to reliably reach vitals once it meets muscle or bone.
.30 Carbine
The .30 Carbine earned its reputation in military service, but it’s marginal at hunting distances. It pushes a 110-grain bullet at around 1,900 fps—less than most intermediate rifle rounds. That translates to poor terminal energy beyond 100 yards. On deer-sized animals, you’re depending entirely on precision shot placement and luck.
The bullet doesn’t expand aggressively, and the cartridge loses speed fast once it leaves the barrel. At 150 yards, it’s barely delivering 600 foot-pounds of energy—half of what most states recommend for deer. It’s a fun, mild-shooting round and great for plinking, but as a hunting cartridge, it’s underpowered for common real-world distances. It might drop a small deer up close, but you’ll be stretching its limits past the edge of what’s ethical.
.32 Winchester Special
The .32 Winchester Special was once marketed as a mild alternative to the .30-30, but that’s exactly why it disappoints today. It launches heavier bullets slower, resulting in more drop and less energy retention beyond 150 yards. While it can certainly kill deer, it loses velocity so quickly that clean kills become inconsistent at moderate distances.
Many hunters find that the .32’s lower velocity leads to poor bullet expansion, especially with traditional soft-point loads. The result is pencil-through wounds that don’t create much of a blood trail. It’s perfectly fine inside 75 yards, but beyond that, you’ll wish you brought something flatter and faster. Nostalgia keeps it alive, but in real-world performance, it falls behind modern cartridges.
.30-30 Winchester (With Reduced Loads)
The .30-30 is still a capable cartridge when loaded properly, but some of the reduced-power loads on the market turn it into a short-range only gun. Subsonic or “low recoil” variants lose too much energy and flatten trajectory so severely that accuracy past 125 yards becomes unreliable.
With less velocity, expansion suffers, especially through ribs or shoulders. Hunters using these loads often report pass-throughs that don’t drop game quickly, resulting in longer tracking jobs. The .30-30 can still shine with full-power ammo, but watered-down versions simply don’t do enough at common hunting distances. It’s another example of how trying to make a cartridge “comfortable” often makes it ineffective.
6.5 Grendel
The 6.5 Grendel is excellent within 200 yards, but beyond that, it loses its authority fast. Designed for the AR-15 platform, it sacrifices case capacity for compatibility. At 300 yards, it’s still accurate—but you’re working with less than 1,000 foot-pounds of energy. That’s marginal for deer-sized animals, especially with expanding bullets.
It’s perfect for varmints, hogs, or close-range deer in thick woods, but for open-country hunts, it struggles. The heavy, slow-moving bullets don’t carry the same impact you’d get from larger 6.5mm cartridges like the Creedmoor. It’s a capable little round, but its real-world performance plateaus at distances where most hunters need consistent power.
7.62x39mm
The 7.62x39mm, famous for its AK and SKS roots, can take deer at close range, but it fizzles quickly after 100 yards. Its blunt, slow bullet design sheds velocity fast, and energy drops below 1,000 foot-pounds not far past that. Expansion is also inconsistent, especially with FMJ or military-style loads.
At 150 yards, you’re already pushing its limit for clean kills on medium game. Even soft-point hunting rounds don’t expand reliably when velocity falls off that sharply. It’s great for short-range brush hunting or hogs inside 75 yards, but it’s underpowered for anything farther. Beyond that, you’re gambling with terminal performance.
.350 Legend (With Light Loads)
The .350 Legend gained traction in straight-wall states, but lighter factory loads don’t always deliver the punch you’d expect. When using 145- or 150-grain bullets, it loses energy quickly and struggles to expand beyond 150 yards. The round’s low velocity limits hydrostatic shock, leading to clean holes but poor blood trails.
Heavier loads perform much better, but too many hunters rely on those lighter options for deer and end up disappointed. It’s an efficient, accurate cartridge, but when underloaded, it performs more like a pistol round than a true rifle cartridge. It’s another case of a good design losing effectiveness because of poor ammo choices.
.410 Bore Slugs
Plenty of hunters love the .410 for its low recoil and manageable size, but the truth is, it’s barely adequate for deer-sized game beyond bow range. Its slugs carry so little energy at 100 yards that even perfect placement won’t guarantee a quick kill. Penetration is shallow, and drop is extreme past 75 yards.
It’s an excellent youth or close-range option for small game, but not for deer at common distances. Even modern high-velocity slugs can’t change the fact that a .410 is limited by bore size and case capacity. It’s ethical only under ideal conditions—and those don’t happen often in the field. If you’re planning to hunt past 50 yards, step up to a 20-gauge or centerfire rifle and save yourself a long, frustrating track.
*This article was developed with AI-powered tools and has been carefully reviewed by our editors.
