# How many rounds in a magazine for deer



## Aaryq (Jan 25, 2007)

Howdy folks. What's the maximum amount of rounds you're allowed to load in a magazine (or is it the maximum rounds a magazine+chamber can physically hold) while hunting deer in ND? Reason being, is I leave for the big sand box in late Sept, so I figure if I know what deer rifle I want to get now, I'll have 7-9 months to save up for it (a long with a bunch of other goodies).


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## nate_dogg (May 16, 2007)

This is the website for the 2006 Deer hunting season regulations from the ND game and fish. I couldn't find a number of rounds though.

I have always used 5. 4 in the clip and 1 in the chamber.

http://gf.nd.gov/regulations/deer/index.html#g


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## People (Jan 17, 2005)

Here in ND you can have what ever you want. If you want to use a AR-15 with a 100rd Bata-C mag you can. Want to use a 308 with a 20rd mag you can. Now you go any where else you can be severely limited. If I can remember correctly from Nebraska when I hunted there you can only have 5 rds in your gun. That was total round count in mag and chamber.

I have never needed more than a few rounds when deer or antelope hunting but it is just nice to have them ready to go. You never know when a group of rocks will attack.


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## iwantabuggy (Feb 15, 2005)

In Idaho it only takes one shot to kill a deer.............



The only problem is that sometimes it is the third, fourth, or fifth shots.....Of course, I prefer to do everything I can to make the first one count.


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## Aaryq (Jan 25, 2007)

Follow up question: I know this is the deer forum, but is it the same for hunting other types of game and non-game animals?


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## coyote_buster (Mar 11, 2007)

Do the hunting laws apply if you are hunting a nongame animal. Say it is illegal in your state to roadhunt. What if it is a nongame animal? Is it legal now?


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## Aaryq (Jan 25, 2007)

I don't know a lot about ND laws. Before I left, I was only a "sometimes" hunter. In CA, non-game animals are things like coyotes and crows. When you're hunting non-game animals, the only difference in the laws are the magazine restrictions. Game animals require you to use a weapon that cannot physically hold more than 3 rounds total (2+1). Non-Game animals have no such restriction.


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## MossyMO (Feb 12, 2004)

I may be mistaken, but I believe you just answered your own, original question.


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## coyote_buster (Mar 11, 2007)

I think that he is talking about California laws but he asked about Nodak.


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## SoCal Kid (Apr 10, 2007)

So how many can my muzzleloader hold?????


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## People (Jan 17, 2005)

SoCal Kid probably only 1 it is never good to fire the arrow (push rod) out with the bullet. :lol:

If you do fire the arrow out also it will take much longer to reload.


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## cbas (Apr 3, 2007)

I don't see why anyone would need more than 5 unless they were hunting in an area with really big nasty hungry bears. For deer you only need one shot spitting out something with good expansion/energy transfer.

Other than that if you are not sure of hitting them the first shot then don't take the shot. Or if you miss the first time and perhaps even the second (if you can get an accurate quick one off) and want to try and snap shot 20 rounds at 75 - 200yards you're a danger to yourself and others in the field.

I don't like the sound of bullets whizzing by me. Not good. Down right unsettling.


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## cbas (Apr 3, 2007)

Oh ya if you're wondering about what to get - just get yourself a nice bolt action 30.06 with a 3-7 round clip and you'll be good to go for a long time . Not bad on the 'ol pocket book too.


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## People (Jan 17, 2005)

It is not that you need more than one shot it is simply the fact that you can. I know it does not make since. Back in the day our regulations stated semi-automatics could use a 8 round clip. This was made for the M1*. Now we can have any capacity feeding device we want, but can not use a rifle that is 50cal using smokeless powder. I guess what is what happens when you use pot and make laws.

Having a semi does not mean the user will spray and pray out his whole ammo supply. It comes down to the individual who is firing the weapon. I have seen plenty of so called hunters with bolts, lever, pump, and semi-auto action weapons spray and pray.

Each person needs to get what he wants. Aaryq if you want a semi get a semi get what will make you happy. Keep this in mind if you want to hunt in other places you may have some problems with a semi.

* U.S. Rifle Cal .30M1 (M1 Garand)


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## cbas (Apr 3, 2007)

I donna know. I have never seen a deer stand around after more than two shots. Sure with a semi pull twice. Smaller calibers maybe three quick ones. If you can't immobilize a deer in that time and you actually took the time to aim then you're doing something wrong. ie, caliber too small, need heavier bullet, see an eye doctor, learn a bit about placements, be more sure of your shots before taking them etc..

Bad shots mean injured and wounded animals. Seriously man. A few well placed shots doing clean kills are much better than several that don't kill the thing in the first one of two any day of the week.

My apologies though for not reading the original posters question before answering. He was asking what the MAX was and not what my opinion was so sorry about that.

Up to the choice of the hunter? I do see your point and if the law allows for _banana mags for bambi _then do whatever makes you happy.


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## stevepike (Sep 14, 2002)

Remember in North Dakota we can also get extra multiple doe tags. With the right wind and terrain, you can certainly get more than two shots off before they run away. I have shot up to 3 deer in one location, with none being running shots. They could not pinpoint which direction the shots came from and didn't run blindly away.

As already answered tho, ND dropped the maximum magazine capacity law a few years back.


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## szm69 (Apr 28, 2006)

cbas said:


> I don't see why anyone would need more than 5 unless they were hunting in an area with really big nasty hungry bears. For deer you only need one shot spitting out something with good expansion/energy transfer.
> 
> Other than that if you are not sure of hitting them the first shot then don't take the shot. Or if you miss the first time and perhaps even the second (if you can get an accurate quick one off) and want to try and snap shot 20 rounds at 75 - 200yards you're a danger to yourself and others in the field.
> 
> I don't like the sound of bullets whizzing by me. Not good. Down right unsettling.


You are correct, you shouldn't need more than 5 - but I had the same question about mag capacity last year. I have a 25 WSSM that has a 8 rd mag + 1 in the chamber. I only loaded 2 or 3 into the mag when I hunt to keep weight down, but since it has the capacity to load more I didn't know if I was legal or not........................

So give the guy credit for asking and _*don't assume *_it is just because he wants to spray 30 rounds when he is hunting.


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## jimbob357 (Jan 2, 2006)

In NoDak the old 8 round mag capacity was only for semi auto rifles.

IIRC correctly they even had it 10 rounds for a couple years, due to the popularity of SKS's, before they dropped the mag limit.


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## Plainsman (Jul 30, 2003)

> I do see your point and if the law allows for banana mags for bambi then do whatever makes you happy.


Bambi? Bambi?  Please don't use that animal rights terminology.



> Other than that if you are not sure of hitting them the first shot then don't take the shot.


I don't intend to pick on you cbas, you just made a statement that I have heard on here and many other places dozens if not hundreds of times. 
Stop and think about this. If you notice my posts I am a slow deliberate shooter, so this is not in my self defense. My point is that most who say this are handing out bull excretion. I hear this from someone then I listen for a few minutes and hear about the two or three shots he missed. I thought the guy was supposed to be sure of his shot. Does this make the majority of the people who say this unethical or stupid? 
The vast majority of people I know miss one maybe two deer every fall. Maybe we should throw those guys out of the field. I don't like to wound deer, but if the shot is absolutely without a doubt going to connect where is the excitement. Walk away and go buy some burger. I am not promoting the wounding of deer, and out of over 60 with a bow I have only wounded two. I hate it whenever anything suffers, but I have a hard time taking serious the idea of being absolutely sure of your shot. 
Perhaps I just take the idea more serious. To me being absolutely sure means laying out the papers for your house, your car, your boat, and anything else you own and saying if I miss this shot all this is yours. How many of you who say this would be willing to do that? As you might notice there are not a lot of things I am sure of. Those who are, --- well, I don't buy it.


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## People (Jan 17, 2005)

off topic but I would like to see that person who will take that bet and take the shot and hit a bird or the bullet just not make it to the target. You never can be 100% positive that your round will make it any where.


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## Aaryq (Jan 25, 2007)

I have no intentions of grabbing an M1A with a 100 round Beta C Mag and dumping the entire magazine on a deer. That's not how I conduct operations. I've been in the Marines for over 3 years and 1 shot 1 kill has been engrained in my head. I was just concerned about the max capacity because I'll be going back and forth with a Mosin Nagant (5 rounds), SMLE Enfield (10 rounds) and an M1A (right now I only own the 20 round magazines). So if I load up one of these guns with 3 or 4 even though it has the capacity to hold more, I'd be right?


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## cbas (Apr 3, 2007)

Regarding bambi terminology. Who says it belongs to the animal rights activists. Those hypocrites can bite my firm but hairly white ***.

We all call it Bambi at our house. We also eat Bambi but I must admit that we do call it "deer" now and again. This year we had our first Bambipolloza and will be having our second next year late July.

What do we do at Bambipolloza? Well several of my friends and their families come to town from all over the country, we catch up, drink and eat a whole bunch of sweet tasting BBQ bambi. Most likely be adding goose to the menu next year - we shall see. A freind of mine is a chef and he is very much on board for making Bambipolloza 2 a freaking sweet awesome goodtime with very good eating.

Many folks around here have never had venison. Very few actually hunt any more and even fewer have any idea where thier food comes from and its connection to the land around them. I look at this as my way of sharing what we have been blessed with and maybe open the door to a greater appreciation for where they live and their place in the food chain.

Anyhow I realized later that the OP was just "asking" what was the max and I appreciate his response. I did over react a bit. Kind of got off on a "just cause you can carry 20 rounds why would you thing".

Is the guy who was not sure of his shot unethical or stupid? Maybe he or she is. We could also add careless in there as well. I don't know them nor do I know the situation.

Would I say the guy who popped off 20 rounds at a fleeing deer initially from say 100 and onwards to maybe 350 (the deer would be running at this point) as unethical or stupid well they could very well fit into the stupid term. We could even fill them in for somewhat reckless as well. I would even go as far as to call them sadistic depending on the circumstances. It is they who should be getting a burger and maybe stick with playing Call of Duty at home on their PC.

"Being absolutely sure of your shot" - to me anyhow also means that the target you are shooting at in the field is actually a deer and not me or another hunter out there in the bush with you.

With pieces of metal ripping along at 2500 fps I like to think that my fellow hunters would take the time to be sure of their shots.

I have stopped to think about this.

I have been on the "beyond" side (of the "target and beyond" schick) of hunters snapping a dozen rounds off at a fleeing animal. It was one of the reasons why I stopped hunting for several years (combined with an incident a year later involving my buddies 12 gauge and a smoking hole by my left foot  that was the last straw...).

Perhaps the reason you have read this on so many other sites is because there are others like myself who see the risks involved with 1) badly placed shots resulting in wounded animals and 2) safety of fellow hunters/folks in general.

I have probably passed up more shots on game than I have taken. I have missed just like anyone else but once the animal is running. Well too bad so sad for me. Off they go to live another day. No need to keep shooting.

The guy you were talking to missed 2 or 3 shots. Good either he stopped at 3 or he hit his target. I have seen deer start fleeing on the second. It is conceivable for me that it could be done with relative safety on the third.

Like you I also dislike the idea of animals suffering unnecessarily. In fact this is one of the reasons why I hunt and prefer wild meat to factory raised.

Anyhow to each their own. I am sure we all have our reasons for doing what we do.

Good luck this season.



Plainsman said:


> > I do see your point and if the law allows for banana mags for bambi then do whatever makes you happy.
> 
> 
> Bambi? Bambi?  Please don't use that animal rights terminology.
> ...


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## cbas (Apr 3, 2007)

Also Aaryq sorry about highjacking your tread.


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