.223 sucks for deer

[kyletxria1911a1]

Hence the marlin 336

 

[M. Sage]

The Power Point isn't going to expand a lot IMO, and it's really not designed to use in auto loaders. I wonder if the point of the second bullet was deformed enough to throw that shot even worse than the Mini normally would.

I've got some 62 gr Barnes TSX bullets downstairs, if I ever take on deer with my AR, those are probably what I'll use. That or 55 grain FMJ...

They were all like that. I 'm not sure about the newer models but Ruger ranch rifles/Mini 14s were all known for poor accuracy.

Add unreliable to your list. Try to run 'em as hard as an AR or AK and they choke. I've never seen one run a hundred round run and gun match without malfunctioning.

 

[Mike D Texas]

Don't know what to tell ya. I've killed a shit ton of deer with a .223. I don't use ballistic tips. I use Barnes TSX or Nosler Partition bullets. Can't say I've had one run any further than if shot with any of the larger calibers I have used.

Deer aren't that hard to kill. I new no need to shoot the big magnums like some folks think they need. I shoot most of mine with either my AR or a 22-250.

 

[TundraWookiee]

I'm playing with the idea of trying my AR this season. Definitely going to bag some hogs with it.

 

[Texas42]

Here is how I look at it. If you don't recover the body, you can't really know where the bullet hit.

I've only shot two deer with my 5.56, but both didn't go more than 10 yards. One was dripping blood, and would have had a decent blood trail with and exit wound probably just short of an inch. The other, barely any blood, just a dead deer. I'll take it next time I go hunting.

 

[just jk]

run with a shot thru both lungs?

ummm i'm gonna say no on that

i use a .270 for deer...the doe i took last year dropped right where i hit her - i have her hide - and when we were carving her up - the lung had a nice clean hole in it

 

[LJH]

Of all the rounds Ive shot deer with. 223 sucked the most at it.

Let me start by saying the 223 can drop a deer. But there are many, many better rounds for that task.

3 MOA at 100yds?
Is that even acceptable accuracy?

If you hurried that second shot, that 3 MOA could have expanded exponentially

Yes, 3MOA is more than acceptable for 100y large game shots. Many factory "hunting" rifles of days past could not hold 4MOA.

 

[LJH]

run with a shot thru both lungs?

ummm i'm gonna say no on that

i use a .270 for deer...the doe i took last year dropped right where i hit her - i have her hide - and when we were carving her up - the lung had a nice clean hole in it

It happens. It sucks when it does, but it can. I tracked a mulie over 400y that had pink jello for lungs and a heart that looked as if it had been through a blender.

 

[Vaquero]

It happens. It sucks when it does, but it can. I tracked a mulie over 400y that had pink jello for lungs and a heart that looked as if it had been through a blender.

This. Had 'em run 300+yd on a clean heart shot. Tough sumbeeches.

 

[Joseph Bell]

I have killed a lot of deer with a M16A4 and M855 (green tips), actually one every class when I was teaching for the Army. .223 calibers is more than effective on deer, it all boils down to shot placement, and that boils down to good marksmanship skills.

A lung shot from a .223 is normally not going to drop a deer dead, and guess what....Either will a lung shot from a .308. I have not seen very many deer take a hit to the lungs and not get back up and run off or walk at least a few yards away. If you are not shooting a deer in the right spots (heart, spine, head), you’re not going to see that deer just drop and not get back up.

All that said, I do prefer .308 over .223. Not b/c of wound sizes or the internal ballistic effect. I like .308, b/c I hunt from much longer distances than 70 yards (normally 300 +) and .308 is a bit easier to shoot snap shots in wind.

 

[TreyG-20]

I had a a doe my very first run over 500 yards with blown out lungs and half a heart. I used a Remington 700 in 7mm-08. When we found her there was a frisbee sized hole on the exit from the ballistic tip round and the back lung was hanging out. Adrenalin is crazy. Sometimes they run sometimes they don't. Shot placement helps more than the round used but nothing is garaunteed. As for .223 no experience on deer but it drops hogs just fine from what I've shot.

 

[M. Sage]

run with a shot thru both lungs?

ummm i'm gonna say no on that

i use a .270 for deer...the doe i took last year dropped right where i hit her - i have her hide - and when we were carving her up - the lung had a nice clean hole in it

Yes, they'll run a long way with both lungs punctured. I've seen deer run off and wind up lost after soaking up a 12 gauge slug to the chest. The one I killed at 10 yards with a 20 gauge slug dropped because its spine wound up broken. I still gave it a second shot because it was thrashing on the ground trying to get up. When I cut through the diaphragm, what seemed like two gallons of blood came pouring out. Everything inside was pretty well jacked thanks to two rounds from a shotgun up close.

I know people who've tracked deer hundreds of yards after tagging them in the lungs and heart with everything from arrows to 7mm magnums.

It's kind of like people - a heart shot isn't always an instant show stopper.

 

[deemus]

Interesting thread. I've been having accuracy issues lately with my Ranch rifle. Hoping that changes with removing the copper fouling last night.

That said, my first animal shot with it was a yote on a dead run at around 100 yds. My son got his first deer with it. 80 yds, and the doe didn't take a step.

I have found the Remington 55g Express Hunting round works great in the ranch and also the AR. The only deer shot that didn't take a step, were shot with 223. 190 yd shot, dropped like a rock.

In all cases, it was a doe, and was a lung shot, which hit a rib going in and coming out. It seemed to knock the wind out of it. I would not however ever shoot at a buck with it. But for does, I find it plenty effective.

 

[Texan2]

I have taken plenty with a 223.

Its not the optimum rifle for deer but I think once you get up to a .270 you are pushing the limit of overkill for the deer in Texas. I like using .223 or .243 and havent had any problems with either. Hunting up north? Different story.

 

[Mexican_Hippie]

I've shot quite a few with a .222, and I've had a big buck in rut we had to track for over a mile after a 30-06 shot through the lungs. On that buck I shot it there on purpose to prevent a hole on the edge of the cape (dumb on my part).

It's all placement.

That's why I try to shoot through a front leg into the heart. They are partially immobilized and die quickly. You don't get much meat off the front anyway.

 

[Muler44]

I used to think that the .270 was a little much for Hill Country deer but liked it to have some extra power for the occasional larger hog you might run across while hunting deer. Nowadays, I get to chase after Axis deer sometimes and this past June I whacked a good sized Axis buck. He was standing still at about 100 yards broadside. I put a 150g Hornady SST (loaded to about 2750fps at the muzzle) into the left shoulder. He took it, jumping forward and going about 20 yards or so before laying down and bleeding out internally. No blood until we got him loaded into the truck. The entrance wound was easy to spot but no exit wound. Once we got him back to the bunkhouse and skinned out, I found the jacket separated from the core just under the skin on the off side. It had shattered the shoulder going in and then deflected into the chest cavity before exiting the ribs on the far side and stopped under the skin. That buck took all of the shot energy and stayed on his feet long enough to make it about 20 yards or so. I no longer feel that .270 is too much rifle for the areas I hunt. It's more than I need for the small Hill Country Whitetail doe, but for larger hogs and Axis deer I don't mind the extra power.