Deer Rounds

[Dos]

sure 223 will kill deer...but why not use an ice pic in hand to hoof combat and save that 223 ammo for assaulting other things.

 

[robsc]

People who have hunted deer for 40 years are not fools when it comes to common sense caliber choice and experience.

The .223rem. is toooo light for deer. It`s a varmint/target cartridge. However, too many people have used it successfully deer hunting for the varmint argument to hold water.
Most importantly, shot placement is critical. Anyone hunting deer with a .223rem. should only use the heavier 62gr., 65gr. 68-69gr. or the 70gr. and heavier weight bullets. Head and neck shots only.

All those guys who gotta kill a deer to brag about it will learn that when you get older, having seen so much sorrow and death in your lifetimes and being able to go into any restaurant and order anything you want to eat, will realize less and less pleasure to destroy an animal`s life for food when you really don`t have to. At some point. the hassles of hunting are no more challenging.

 

[Decker]

my 2 cents

I don't see a big problem with killing deer with 22 caliber bullets. Its 2008, the availability of premium bullets in all calibers for every situation is there.

While i haven't specifically seen the 223 in action on deer, i have seen a pile of them drop to 22-250's and 220 swifts, extremely effective. I realise the 223 is slower, but i am sure it will knock a deer silly out to at least 200 yards.

I'd rather see more people shooting accurately than see them shooting bigger at the end of the day, that is the final say in any gun battle......

 

[Shawnee]

"I'd rather see more people shooting accurately than see them shooting bigger"


High-5 to that, Decker !

A guy who spends all Spring and Summer sniping varmints with his .22/250 isn't going to shoot for just "someplace between nose and tail". All the wounding is going to be done by the slob who drags his over-powered .30 caliber out once a year to shoot at brown deer, gray deer, maybe deer, and sounded-like-a-deer.

 

[WormCan]

I cant tell you which is the best deer round from your gun or mine. There are three popular loads I can tell you about. I personally have some Federal 60 gn Vital Shock NP on order. Some other rounds to consider is...
Federal Power Shock Jacketed soft point 64 gn
Winchester Super X Power Point 64 gn

Im sure there is a few more out there but these are three of the major ones I can think of and have recently seen during some research.
Good luck.

 

[XD-40 Shooter]

In Colorado, the minimum deer caliber is .243. .223 is illegal for deer hunting, in Colorado.

 

[tblt]

bigger gun
243 is min here

 

[UnTainted]

243 is minimum in Nevada also, though in Idaho that doesn't apply. I think the 243 and 223 are similar, with the edge for bigger deer like mule deer going to the 243, but bullet construction, range, and most importantly shot placement will rule what happens to your deer.

I like a 30-06, but it's in a heavy gun with a heavy piece of glass, so the recoil is very, very soft comparable to a lighter weight bolt rifle. I also shoot a lot, so that helps, but I agree that some people do bring more gun than they are trained to use effectively.

 

[Shawnee]

"....223 is illegal for deer hunting,"


The government agencies of many states draw the line to exclude the .22 centerfires and, in particular, the .223/5.56.

Personally, I don't think their true motive is due to the .223 really being inadequete for deer.

I think the bureaucrats are afraid the EBR types are going to go out hunting with their AR-15s and spraying the hunting grounds with so many bullets that citzens are mown down by the truckload. I also think the many state wildlife officers who may have to arrest hunters would rather those hunters not be armed with AR-15s etc. And too, if a state recognized such rifles/caliber as legitimate hunting rifles - the antis would scream because it would be tougher to portray them as unnecessary EBR murder machines.

 

[XD-40 Shooter]

In Colorado, you can hunt with an AR-15 style rifle, but it has to have a 5 round magazine.

 

[corncob]

"It's illegal to take deer in VA with a 22 caliber bullet, but only if you're caught."

Integrity is what you do when no-one is watching.

To me, being ethical is following the letter of the law.

You guys can't be serious. The laws in this country are so numerous that no human can even know them all--and game laws are often the most arbitrary of them all. Conversely, any 13-year old knows right and wrong.

I thought we were talking about bullets anyway. A heart/lung shot is a heart/lung shot. If you're aiming for the spine (head/neck), you might want a more significant wound channel in case you miss, but I would think a small, fast bullet would get you there better than a heavy, slow one. With any bullet, though, you only have so much kinetic energy to blow. Every bit you spend on expansion, making a terrific wound, you don't get to spend on penetration. Remember that only blood-loss and shock or nervous system damage will kill a deer, but you have to know where the bones are if you don't plan on shooting through them to get to the cardiovascular or nervous parts.

 

[tnieto2004]

I took this one with a 55gr soft point, behind the shoulder.

 

[mljdeckard]

I know guys who use .223 or 22-250 for mule deer, but I wouldn't do it.

White tails I might be a little more giving on, I honestly don't have experience with them. If the advantage of lighter calibers for hunting is lower recoil, and more confidence in the shooter, THEY SHOULD TAKE FULL ADVANTAGE OF IT. They should be training to the point where they are absolutely confident of the shot.

 

[Brian Dale]

I've taken exactly one deer with a .223, with a match grade AR-15. I had planned to hunt does that afternoon, so naturally a big, northern white-tail buck came walking through the woods toward me. When he was broadside and 25 yards away, I took the shot. He ran 25 yards and collapsed. I had hit him perfectly: heart and lungs with a Winchester Super-X 64-grain PowerPoint. He weighed 180 lbs after field dressing.

It's perfectly legal to hunt deer with .223s and with semi-auto rifles in this state; there's no magazine size limit, either. I used the same 20-rd. mags that I use for match shooting.

I won't do it again. That was the closest shot that I have ever had at a deer. I've watched deer travel (swiftly!) for hundreds of yards after having been hit properly (heart and lungs) with .30-'06s. The woods are heavy here, with lots of places for a deer to hide and to die undiscovered. Hence, I carried a Marlin 336 in .35 Rem this season, with 200 gr Core-Lokt soft points. It works just fine.

That's my answer: if you're going to hunt deer with a .223, then use good, heavy, well-constructed bullets, know deer anatomy very well and practice a lot before the season. mljdeckard expressed that very well in the post above this one.

 

[retsub]

^^^What he said about bullet weight and construction.^^^

Last year I helped skin a deer that had a perfectly placed .223 bullet lodged against its ribs. I don't know the bullet weight or how far the shot was but I couldn't believe it did not even penetrate the ribs.

I won't be one of the guys that says a .223 is not enough gun, but bullet weight and construction should be considered with any caliber-especially such a light one.

 

[moooose102]

180 grain soft point. you may have to run the cleaning rod through the barrel a few times to open it up to .30 caliber though!

 

[d2wing]

I have shot a large deer with the .223. Apparently it does what the told us in the army. I am convinced that the shock does alot of damage to soft tissue. I used 55 gr psp and was impressed with the damage it did. I have hunted many years with a wide variety of calibers and guns. The pentration was also excellent. However I was careful to shoot behind the front leg and there was almost no blood trail. It went 40 yards.

 

[groundhog34]

I shot a deer at 600 yards with a 17 cal air rifle he ran 30 yards before he fell. What is the best pellet to use?
Do the humane thing use a large enough caliber to kill the animal quickly. IMO it is at least 243 or 25-06 for a whitetail.

 

[Deer Hunter]

Groundhog,

Have you ever shot a deer with .223?

 

[BornAgainBullseye]

If you are going to use .223 for deer, then spring for a bonded bullet. Like the 55 grain SPEER trophy bonded bearclaw. There is a factory load usind this bullet in the Federal Premium line. It penetrates deep and does not frag like all others. I usually find the bullet in the hide if the shot is over 200 yards. Deer are still dead. Shot placement is key for a fast kill. Shoot them in the neck if you dont want to get on your hands and knees to find a blood trail.

 

[Jamyatunes]

The "conventional wisdom" that states the .223 is not enough bullet for a deer is the same "conventional wisdom" that claims you don't need to aim with a 12 gauge loaded with 00buck in a HD scenario.

The most inhumane thing to do to a deer is to aim for the deer and yank the trigger - with any caliber. Aim for the vitals, and hit them. You will drop the deer.

I use a .308, but if I were hunting deer with .223 I'd probably go for the 62gr DPX.

 

[stiab]

After reading this thread, it appears that many of the successful .223 deer hunting examples cited involve does and smaller deer. That seems to make sense.

 

[d2wing]

I wouldn't call a 240 lb 14 point buck, small.

 

[Deer Hunter]

Small deer, big deer, it makes no difference. Know your gun and make the shot count. You should do this with any caliber.

Most of the people who claim the .223 isn't enough for deer have never tried it and/or don't hunt and are spouting what they heard somewhere online.

The people that do hunt, on the other hand, know that caliber doesn't mean much in the woods.

 

[stiab]

I wouldn't call a 240 lb 14 point buck, small.

I said "many". In this thread there are 18 examples of people killing deer with a .223 where they identify if it is a buck or doe. Of those 18, 16 are does. See what I mean?

Most of the people who claim the .223 isn't enough for deer have never tried it

Why should we try it, when there are so many better options available?

or don't hunt

How do you know that?