.22-250 on deer?

[HB]

I've heard several people mention using a .22-250 on deer and it never seemed quite right. What bullet would be suitable for taking a deer and what ranges? I'm actully looking for a rifle to tackle deer hunting and coyote hunting when my winchester 30-30 isn't practical (although it usually is)
Shooting will be focused more on varmints than deer so I might try a .22-250 over a .243


Thanks
HB

 

[Win75]

I am loading 37.8 grs. of H380 behind a 60 gr. Nosler Partition.

According to the 5th Edition Nosler manual, 38.5 grs. of H380 is max. My Winchester Coyote is showing pressure signs above 38 grs. so I backed off a little.

I have experience with one deer with the above load and it went straight down with a shot in the heart/lung area.

 

[Seafarer12]

I would go for a 243 personally they have more reach than a 22-250. Nosler makes a partition in 22 its a 60 gr I believe. I know someone makes it in loaded form I just can't remember who. Barnes also makes some 22's, A heavy jsp would be good for deer as long as the jacket wasnt too thin. Thats the only problem with 22's most bullets are made to explode or not mushroom any. I would use an fmj but they do tend to tumble when they hit. I have no problems shooting a deer with a 22 as long as it is legal.

 

[DnPRK]

55 grain 224 diameter bullets have killed plenty of men who have similar body mass as deer.

 

[moojpg2]

As Win75 pointed out, the 60gr. partition is great for deer, just put it in the right place and Bambi will drop like a rock,I know my father has used that load on white tail.(not in ma of course, we're stuck with muzzle loaders and shot guns here in the commonwealth)

As for what range it would be effective to, I'd say you'd be more limited to how far you could effectively/humanely shoot in the field (especially unsupported) than by the load in the rifle.

 

[Bartkowski]

I have seen a .223 used on deer and it worked great, so a 22-250 should do a fine job taking down a deer. And for coyote I would rather have a 22-250 so there is less damage to the fur, so 22-250 gets my vote.

 

[ThomasT]

I know a man who kills his deer every year with a 22-250. He has done this for the last 22 years that i know of.

If you use a small bore like this or a 223 or even a 243 buy the best bullets you can get. Barnes X or triple shock would be my choice. I think these are available in factory loads also. I handload for everything so don't look at factory stuff too much.

 

[Jason_G]

If you reload, I'd go with the 6mm Remington over the .243 any day of the week. Same bullet diameter, but a more versatile case. I don't own a .22-250, but I have seen it take down deer and coyotes. Personally though, .243/6mm is the lowest caliber I would use on anything whitetail-sized or bigger. Shot placement is key, but humane kills are a hunter's responsibility, and I think you should be 100% sure that you've brought enough gun to do the job quickly. JMHO.

Jason

 

[Art Eatman]

Modern bullet design has made the centerfire .22s far more reliable for deer than was common in the past. Sure, there were kills with the varmint-type bullets, but there were also wounded deer which got away to die elsewhere.

DnPRK, when shooting people, the issue of "quick, clean ethical kill" is not a factor in the equation.

 

[K3]

I have used a .223 in the past. When doing so, I try to keep the range under 100 yards. I like the 65gr Gameking leaving the muzzle at about 2875fps.

I shot a funky looking 6 point a few years back at about 60 yards when he was trotting out of the canyon. His antlers were bone white and he had no browtines to speak of. I thought he was an 8, as the only view I had was a side view.

 

[dagger dog]

just make sure the bullet you are going to use is for larger game and not of the varmint class you want that bullet to hold together long enough to penetrate to the vitals . the longer bullets will have trouble stabilizing in barrels of 1-14" twist. Nosler has a 60 grain Partition for deer size game but it is quite long .their CT ballistic Silver Tip hunting bullet looks like it may be the ticket in 55gr with H380 powder gives 3736 fps in the max load.
it's hard to find a 22.250 thats not accurate, if you can pop a dog at 200 yds the accuracy is enough to put that 55gr slug where it can stop deer size game dead in their tracks!

 

[skinewmexico]

I think 55g soft points work better than the Partitions, at least on the smallish deer we have. The Partitions tend to blow thru without expanding. And they cost a lot more. But I wouldn't hesitate to use a 22-250 on deer (if legal). My 12 year old daughter shot 3 last year with a 223, and they all dropped on the spot.

 

[GooseGestapo]

Having shot in excess of 100 deer with the .22Hornet, .223Rem, and .22-250; I think I can anwser your question.......

In distant past, the bullets were generally much poorer than we have today.

Now, read carefully what I'm relating.......

With the .223 and .22-250 (or similar .22cf's) use at least a 55gr Pt.Spt bullet, preferably 60gr or heavier. I lke the Sierra and Hornady offereings. The Noslers are much more expensive and likely don't offer a significant improvement in .22"

Place shots well......... This is most important..!!!!!

I've killed a number of deer with the .243WCF as well. For statistical purposes, I've had better results with the .22cf's due to bullet failures with the .243. In reality, there is little difference between a 60-70gr .22cf and the .243 with 80-100gr cup and core bullets. Both can kill DRT, and both can cause lost deer with poor shot placement.

Losses of deer with the .22cf's (my experience) are due to same reasons as deer lost with .30'cals. Poor shot placement!!!!!!

I lost more than my normal average this year, even though I DIDN'T use a .22cf. Lost one with a .257WBYmag. (bullet failure-115gr Nosler BT blew up on a shoulder shot @ 90yds w/3,550fps mv.) Other was a poor hit (too high to shoulder) with a 200gr Rem Corlelokt @ 2,300fps mv @ 195yds. Both deer were located several days later after coyotes and vultures had done their thing.....

If I'd been shooting a .22cf, both would likely have dropped DRT to the shot, since both my larger .22cf's shoot 1/2moa or better and shots would have been better placed...........; and performed better when they arrived.. (the 200gr Corlelokt is superlative, but still has to be placed properly............

 

[41magsnub]

I would use my 22-250 on deer in some cases but short of reloading (an investment I have not yet made) the only thing the gun likes are the ultrafast and ultra light frangible or HP rounds that would be a terrible (and in MT illegal) choice on deer. I tried some regular old winchester 55gr SP rounds the other day just to confirm and they did an 8" pattern at 100 yards from the bench where as with the ammo it likes off the bench I can keep it in one hole at 100 yards.

Plus.. it has a heavy varmint barrel so I don't want to carry the sucker and offhand shooting is brutal with it.

 

[Shawnee]

You're getting a lot of good info re: the .22/250 and - GIVEN GOOD SHOT PLACEMENT - there isn't any reason at all not to use it on deer. I (personally) would stay with 52-55gr. bullets. My neighbor has killed at least 150 with a .22/250. I know a rancher who has killed probably at least 300 deer with an old .225 Winchester, and it doesn't equal the .22/250.

An observation about .243 ammo. The "conventional wisdom" - which was actually little more than Marketing Dept. slickery - has always been that you use bullets of 85gr. or less for "varmints" and the 100-grainers for deer. That bit of legerdemein was used because when the .243 was first brought out in commercial production the Marketing Dept. wanted to sell it based on its' "dual-purpose ability" or "versatility". Of course it has been repeated for more than a half-century so now everybody "knows" the 100-grainers is for deer. Frankly, in the real World, that's horse mustard.

I have a lot of experience with the .243 and can tell you that the Hornady 87-gr. BTHP is a tremendous deer slayer and I, personally, wouldn't even consider using any of the 100-grainers on deer no matter how much the shooting press crowed about it.

 

[xringer3]

I know several guys that use a 22-250 for dear as they are about the same body mass as a man. If I were gonna use one, I'd load the 60grn partition from Nosler, or the Barns copper bullets in 60 grain or heavier. The Barns don't have lead to shed weight and should have better penetration.

If it were me though and wanted a dual purpose rifle, I'd probably go with the 243, it's a little more versitle and harder hitting with the heavier bullets.

 

[ccd]

I know of plenty of people who just bought regular old 55gr Rem softpoints as their ranch load irrespective of season, and were quite satisfied. Personally I like the Nosler, Trophy Bonded(I still have 5 boxes of this Fed ammo in 223) or the Barnes. Finn Aagard had a good article on hunting deer with .22s in Rifle or Handloader magazine just before he died.Hit them where you are supposed to and that is all that matters.

If you know someone in Law Enforcement I can highly recommend the Federal 55Gr TBBC 223 ammo as being effective(unfortunately Federal no longer sells this to civilians...I guess we are all evil or something.)The 64gr Winchester PP ammo has a lot of backers but for the same price you can buy the partition load from Federal in 22-250.

 

[B.A.M.F]

I know a guy who is a butcher. He uses a triple deuce (222 rem) to put down domestic buffalo with frontal brain-shots from 50 yards out. Personally owning a 22-250 I know that it would take down deer even though it is illegal in my province to do so. Use good bullets and shot straight partner.

 

[Eb1]

my AR15 with Black Hills Blue Box 55 grain soft point smashed a deer with a heart/lung shot @ a 45 degree angle this year.
Broke both shoulders, heart and bottom of the lungs.

No Problem. Keep shots to a respectable distance.