Finally: The best deer rifle

By V. Paul Reynolds

At any deer camp there is no question that will get the conversation rolling like this one, “What’s the all time best deer rifle for the Maine woods?” Much has been written about this hot topic by me and many others, whose credentials in the realm of firearms far surpass my own.

For deer hunters the rifle of choice can be a somewhat personal thing, a discussion of which can spark strong opinions. And no matter how compelling your logic or statistical evidence, you are not likely to change any minds or inspire a switch from one favorite deer rifle to another.

But fasten your seat belts. Before this entreaty is finished you will know, finally, the answer to the proverbial question. First some background. 

With deer guns, not unlike art, beauty tends to be in the eye of the beholder. There are a good half dozen deer rifles that wind up being raved about as the “best Maine deer rifle.”

Downeast guide and outfitter John Floyd is unequivocal. “The best Maine deer rifle is the Winchester .30-30, period.  In my new book, “The Deer Hunter’s Digest,” outdoorsman and columnist Bob Noonan says that, while he used to claim the .270 as the best Maine deer rifle, he has had an epiphany. He now says that hands down the best deer rifle today is the relative newcomer, the 7mm-08. He likes the cartridge, which is purported to be very flat shooting, mild in recoil and highly lethal on deer. For his money, Noonan would prefer the Browning BLR in a lever action 7mm-08.

The Reynolds gun safe holds, among other guns, a Ruger 7mm-08 and a Ruger One .270. Both have been used successfully on elk, moose and deer. There is, however, another deer rifle in that safe that stands out, not only for its versatility, practicality and good looks as a deer rifle, but for what it represents. It is a Marlin 336 lever action .35 Remington.

This rifle was first owned by Ken Davis of Milo, my late wife’s father who carried it in the fir thickets near Buttermilk Pond in the late 1940s. When multiple sclerosis put him in a wheel chair he passed the gun on to me, and I hunted it proudly for years.  Then, when Diane retired from teaching and took up hunting, she needed a deer gun. Guess which one she wanted? Yep, the one that belonged to her father originally. She carried that gun for 30 years and with it she brought to the Reynolds game pole deer, moose, bear, and elk.

This family firearm is now being carried in the deer woods, not by me, but by our son, which is as it should be. That’s the thing about guns. They can be passed on generation to generation. And only if they could talk, what stories they could tell!

Gun writer Jim Allard says that the .35 Remington  was introduced in 1906. He says that this rifle is “the best all-around game rifle for the northern tier of the United States. A great choice for Mainers hunting deer, black bear, or moose.” Better yet, he says that it has far better knock down power than the .30-30 under any conditions and at any range. He calls it a “practical choice for most North American big game.”

Now you know,  finally. The best Maine deer rifle is a lever action Marlin 336 in .35 Remington. Today, according to Allard, only Marlin manufactures the lever action gun in .35 Remington.

Allard and I rest our case.

The author is editor of the Northwoods Sporting Journal. He is also a Maine Guide and host of a weekly radio program “Maine Outdoors” heard Sundays at 7 p.m. on The Voice of Maine News-Talk Network. He has authored three books. Online purchase information is available at www.sportingjournal.com, Outdoor Books.