Pennsylvania Game News - February 2019 - 59

Cover Painting by bob SoPChiCk
As the artist walked along the edge of this cornfield during the
archery season, the number of squirrels that came pouring out
between the picked corn rows seemed almost comical. Squirrel hunters
know woodlots with mast-producing trees are good places to hunt,
but find a picked cornfield next to a mast-producing woodlot, then
get ready! Prints of this month's cover, "Finders Keepers" are available
from the artist. The 12- by 18-inch prints sell for $95, which includes
shipping. Order from Bob Sopchick at 200 Wynwood Road, York, PA
17402. For more information email Bob at sopchickstudios@msn.com.

remain immensely popular.
But over the past 10 years, powder
companies have developed specialty
powders - CFE223, LEVERevolution,
Enduron - that burn cleaner and more
efficiently for higher velocities within
cartridge-specific pressures.
Additionally, bullet manufacturers
have added better ballistically designed
polymer-tipped bullets.
The combination has increased velocities by more than 200 fps for some cartridges, and extended accuracy another
100 yards.
With new scopes and ammunition,
100-year-old lever-action "brush busters,"
such as the .30-30 and .35 Remington, no
longer are 150-yard deer rifles.
New powders and bullets have led to
some interesting new cartridges, such as
the 7 mm Winchester Short Magnum and
Remington Short Action Ultra Magnum,
which duplicate - if not surpass - older
longer-belted magnums.
The 6.5 Lapua and 6.5 Creedmoore
cartridges also have drawn the attention
of match shooters and hunters.
They essentially have duplicated the
6.5x55 Swede ballistics - long recognized
for excellent accuracy and ballistic coefficients - in shorter cartridges, housed in
shorter actions.
FEBRUARY 2019

If you don't need magnum ballistics
and stout recoil to harvest a deer, these
light-recoiling cartridges will get the job
done.
The 30 TC cartridge duplicates .30-06
ballistics in a case shorter than the .308
Win. The even-shorter .308 Marlin
Express duplicates .308 Win. ballistics in
a lever-action.
If you prefer larger calibers for biggame hunting, the .325 WSM and .375
Ruger and others provide plenty of punch.
A couple of years ago, Nosler introduced its .26 Nosler cartridge that throws
a 6.5mm, 140-grain bullet at 3,300 fps
and is housed in a standard-length action.
Recently the company introduced its .28
Nosler cartridge that also pushes a .284
caliber, 160-grain slug 3,300 fps.
Short, efficient cartridges are nothing
new. Just look at those that have been
around a while, like the .300 Savage and
.260 Rem.
But as is the case with anything,
improvements always will be made, and
the wide options available to today's deer
hunter result from such initative.
While you, like me, might never give
up your well-seasoned and trusted deerrifle setup, know that these new combinations get the job done, and might offer a
lot more.
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Pennsylvania Game News - February 2019

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