Any Western hunter who is a lover of books on rifles and shooting is familiar with Dr. Wayne Van Zwoll. He has authored ten books on hunting and is well versed in Western hunting. He earned his doctorate in wildlife policy from Utah State University and resides in Northern Washington State. Anyone who reads his work in a variety of magazines knows that he has smelled the sage and seen his share of deer through the sights west of the Mississippi.
Dr. Van Zwolls writing is both factual, and flowery. Each chapter starts with an anecdotal tale that relates to the chapter’s subject. I have come to see that Wayne is a hunter first and a shooter close behind. Perhaps that is why I appreciated his approach to this book.
I came to appreciate the history of the firearms companies, and designers profiled in the book. Winchester, Remington, Marlin, Savage, Mauser, Ruger, Weatherby,Browning, as well as other, newer manufacturers. Each action type is discussed in detail and with equal regard. I appreciated that he gives the same attention to carbines and lever actions, pumps and slug guns as well as the cartridges that perform well in them.
While there is plenty of ballistic information in the book, it is far from being a manual. Rather it is an in depth discussion of the evolution of today’s rifle designs, and the features that the author found useful and unique in each of them. It seems that Dr. Van Zwoll has been fortunate to kill deer with nearly every modern rifle design, and cartridge.
His discussion of sights, and shooting form is well tailored to the hunter. He is quick to point out that rifles can only be as accurate as the shooter will allow them to be. At the same time he admits that a deer rifle only has to put bullets in a 6 inch circular area to be effective, much less than Minute of angle accuracy.
If you are in search of a new rifle, you owe it to yourself to be aware of the variety of actions, and calibers available from a wide variety of gunmakers. I am also willing to bet that even the most seasoned of gun afficianados could learn something new about the history of American rifle manufacturing!
Discussion of rifle optics, and shooting accurately is presented in a no-nonsense manner paying attention to the fact that the audience is hunters, not paper punchers. A deer rifle must be able to be used in a variety of positions, and it’s sights must be able to work effectively in less than optimum conditions. These topics are both covered by Dr. Van Zwoll’s book.
In my opinion, this is a book that the Western hunter needs to have on his shelf or by the bedstand. I know I will be referring back to it in the future.
Deer Rifles & Cartridges (ISBN 978-0-88317-348-0) has a suggested retail of $19.95 and is available at your favorite bookstores and sporting goods retailers, online at Amazon.com, www.StoegerBooks.com and other online retailers, as well as at Benelli and Stoeger firearms dealers nationwide.
