Deer/hog hunting with a .223?

[H&Hhunter]

Just MHO. You've seen where the brain and spine are on a hog now. If you are a good shot, and are willing to pass the shot when you can't place it where you should, then go hunting. If you get close, pick your spot, and practice lot before you go, you should do fine.

I 100% agree and also just MHO..But why would you want to limit yourself like that when there are so many adequate choices available for the job.

OK but let me ask you this

You shoot porky and he's PO'd and coming for you which would you rather have? One shot at most from grandpaws remchester bolt action 243 with a 3x9x40 scope, one shot from your old faithful open sighted 336

OR

4 62g TSX'es en route from a semiauto carbine fitted with a very fast reflex sight..


HMMMMMMMM! let me think about that for a minute???

Your platform choice has some merit no doubt. But having stopped porky when he was running directly at me I've found that hitting the head is pretty tough so give me some horse power for deep penetration for that frontal shot that needs to get to the vitals. A 225 gr TSX out of an ghost ring sighted .358 works like a charm. In fact I think a ghost ring sighted .358 win might well be the best hog medicine on the planet when not hunting from a stand but jump shooting and spot and stalking. Plenty of penetration very little recoil and can be had in a short fast handling package for not very much money.

 

[ZeroJunk]

I would use a bigger rifle if I had it, but I don't

From the OP.

There are a lot of hunters who kill deer with a .22 caliber centerfire of some sort and swear by them, so it certainly isn't a hunt stopper. Personally, I don't see any downside to using something even much bigger if the recoil doesn't bother you. My thinking is that meat damage is more the result of a bad shot and even then unless you hit the deer in a ham or the loin it doesn't amount to much waste.

But, if it is all he has it is all he has.

 

[Oceans]

The 64 grain Winchester Power Point gets a lot of good reviews, also, it is often unavailable.

 

[P30shtr]

I dont personally hunt but am getting more interested as I get older ( no one in my family hunted growing up so... no one to go with). Any way was wondering if wild hogs are good eating or not. Kind of like wild turkeys arent that great.

 

[Art Eatman]

P30, it's like any animal: Young wild gobblers are better eating than the trophy critters with long beards. Same for hogs. 100 pounds and under are better than the 200 pounds and up sizes...

Folks around Blountstown, Florida, commonly trap wild hogs and only take the shoats up to 40 pounds or so. Phantasmagorically fine eating!

 

[AKElroy]

I knew it was illegal to hunt deer in TX with a rimfire, but I didn't know about the .25 caliber-minimum size.

Texas has no such minimum. This restriction would take out myriad 6mm's; including the .243.

Took my first deer @ 12 yers old w/ a .22-250. Heart / lung shot; ran 300-400 yrds. I have had identical responses from that exact shot placement w/ 7mags & .270's.

Pigs can be taken with an airgun if you hit behind the ear. Your .223 will do just fine.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

It was back in the early 80's in Tennessee, He shot it at a pretty steep angle quartering to him and if I remember correctly it was with a .243 but Im not 100% sure on that, The hog covered 40 yards in a heartbeat and yes sir it was attacking not simply evading. Hit him in the calf first, ripped a chunk out of his leg, guy went down and it got a hold of his thigh. The tusk missed his femoral artery by 1/2 of an inch. That is not the first or only time that hogs have attacked. You just don't read about it often but it is not as rare as one would think.

LOL, why do we call it an attack when we shot the animal first and it is acting in self defense?

Great story, but then again you can find all sorts of failures of various calibers where animals attempted to eliminate the threat. I have no doubt any caliber has failed given how well I see people shoot and hit/miss animals.

Pigs can be taken with an airgun if you hit behind the ear.

Just curious, just what is it that the pellet will be hitting behind the ear to put down the hog?

 

[FLAvalanche]

Just curious, just what is it that the pellet will be hitting behind the ear to put down the hog?

It's coming from the Gamo videos where they are shooting bobcats and hogs with their airguns.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

It's coming from the Gamo videos where they are shooting bobcats and hogs with their airguns.

That is nice and all, but origin of the concept isn't what I was looking for. What I was looking for was what biologically is being hit by the pellet/bb that will put down the hog.

You see, the ear is located very posteriorly on the head and fairly high up. Shooting just behind the ear just a short distance, can very easily result in a muscle shot only, impacting behind the head and above the spinal column, missing blood and CNS vitals. So I am interested in knowing the basis for the claim as it doesn't sound like a very good idea.

 

[PT1911]

it isnt directly behind the ear but rather behind and below... Hogs have a thick spine and if you aim.. say, 1" behind and 1-2" below the ear, the spine is a big target.. with a low caliber rifle or high speed air rifle, a hit here CAN take the hog down. It is the only shot I would take with a .223 as, it seems to me, it is a higher percentage shot than head shots which could be somewhat deflected (tiny target that itty bitty brain) and lead to a pissed and running hog.

Personally, I would probably just opt for a 45-70 and take out the shoulder.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

it isnt directly behind the ear but rather behind and below

You know, that is really a very important distinction. And while it may be a bit of hair splitting semantic keyboarding, such notations are fairly critical especially when there is so much hocus pocus hunting drivel being put forth. No doubt hogs and bears have a bizarre mystique about them that is near as I can tell, really isn't justified.

So it isn't that you are shooting them behind the ear really any more than you are shooting them behind the nose. It is a spine shot and yeah, the spine is located somewhere behind the ear. Then again, behind the ear would work for a shoulder shot as well. The phrasing is accurate, but too vague to be useful.

It is the only shot I would take with a .223 as, it seems to me, it is a higher percentage shot than head shots which could be somewhat deflected (tiny target that itty bitty brain) and lead to a pissed and running hog.

Personally, I would probably just opt for a 45-70 and take out the shoulder.

Most of the hogs I shoot are head shots with 5.56. They drop in place and life is good (for me). The head is presented as a viable target from more angles than is the spine. I can understand your concern about deflection, but I have yet to have that happen and the itty bitty brain has always been easy for me to locate.

I like the .45-70 for shoulder shots as well. I have taken two that way and they didn't run anywhere either. Problem is, my NV gear won't handle the .45-70's recoil, though I have handheld the scope behind the rifle and have been successful, but that involves having a rifle rest.

 

[PT1911]

I agree with you double naught spy. Also, I agree that for someone who is familiar with how to locate a pigs brain at various angles, it is the best shot to take with a 223 or similar cartridge. IMO, the spine offers a larger target and more room for error. Though, one must still be pretty familiar with the overall anatomy of the hog to make that shot appropriately as well.

For deer, a neck shot or even well placed heart/lung shot with the .223 is plenty.

 

[AKElroy]

The skull is very thin just behind & below the ear, and it poorly protects the lower brain stem. Lights out with any caliber if you can hit it. Since piggies are pretty much all stomach behind the head, that is your best shot. You really don't want to perforate anything behind the shoulder. Whenever I do, they get to lie there until the rest of the sounder finds them for dinner.

Either way, no mess by the next morning.

 

[RonDeer10mm]

For deer Im pretty sure .243 is the minimum but in some states .22 caliber (.223 rem) is legal for deer.

 

[AKElroy]

and are willing to pass the shot when you can't place it where you should,

I do not pass on shots on pigs. If they are safe to take, I take them. If it ruins the pig, so be it. If it is a wounding shot, I will track it and finish it, but I am still shooting it. Good presentation or not.

My hunting ethic is not the same on pigs as on other because I do not consider them game; it is pretty much the same as for cockroaches. They are taking over.

Feel free to flame, but coons are on the same "take any shot" list. And rattlesnakes. And O'Possum. That's it. And rats. That's it. Ferrel cats. But that's it.

 

[Art Eatman]

Looks like another "Is a .223...?" thread has gone as far as it needs to.