It seems like this debate gets brought up continually on this sight and at deer camp. Ralph the rifleman said it best, it's what cal. you can shoot best. I know a guy that uses a 243 and wounds more deer than he kills ( bad shooter) every year, and I know another guy who gets a deer every year with a 243. It's all about what you can successfully drop a deer in one clean shot with, I personally use a 30.06 and sometimes a 7.62x54 or my 50 cal M/L.