. For Hogs though I am not sure 223 will be enough. .
Nothing wrong with a simple .308
I vote M1A
I second his concern about .223 for hogs. I am sure somebody has tried, I just have not heard anything. We have had great results with a .243, but .223 only puts about 55-70% of the energy of a .243 downrange.
Our foreman at the ranch stopped by this weekend with a new .223 AR, but he was just sighting it in at our range. I should know how it does by Christmas, but I'm sure somebody will chime in with more info before then.
For varminting purposes I've always been a fan of the Ruger Mini-14. It's not a tack driver by any means, but it's cheap, there's tons of accessories, the ammo isn't too bad but it still packs a punch (especially the 45-grain JHP stuff). Plus, if you drop it or knock it around a bit, it's no big deal.
People use AR's for Hogs, heck I have a friend who has a kill with 22lr. Placement is everything. That said, you wont find me trying to kill a hog with a 22lr.
SKS in .308??? Never heard of that one, you sure it wasnt a 7.62x39?? There would be another good choice for an AR upper. Pleanty of cheap ammo available.
I am of the opinion that it is totally inhumane to shoot a hog with a .22LR, regardless of how great a shooter you think you are......but that isn't what this thread is about so I won't dwell on it.
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I kill them all the time with .22LR. Mostly in traps, and one behind the ear puts them down clean and fast. I will take a 10/22 target model sometimes if I am stand hunting. Put down the dominant sow with the .308, and the piglets will often come back and bang, bang, bang, bang with the Velociters. Lots of smokers for the grill.
Try not to preach outside your areas of expertise.
As for the hogs, as far as I am concerned, anything goes.
We have 1000 acres in NC Texas that have been absolutely overrun by the wild hog explosion....it's not at all uncommon to run across a bunch of 20-30 at a time while making the pasture rounds. These animals are pure destruction the likes of which we have not seen before. My interest is not ensuring that they die to quickest of deaths even though I am not impartial to the plight of animals by any means but rather I'm interested in seeing them reduced in population dramatically.
My dad, who still lives on the place and is a retired TPWD game biologist, is vehement in afflicting them in anway possible due to the pressure they are putting on the other species of higher value........deer, quail, turkey, etc., without prejudice. We are now to the point of leaving coyotes largely alone hoping that they can grow and impact the pig population as another weapon against them. Increased coyote populations can adversely affect deer and other animals as well so it's a calculated balancing act in the process.
Wild pig meat is very good, some of the best barbecue I've ever had, but these animals are not in short supply nor worthy of serious concern with regards to how they die.
I am currently hunting them with a #4 sporter Enfield (shoots fine as a fiddle) and have just introduced a .223 CZ to them. Dad is using everything from .17s to Mini-14s. The idea is to hit for a kill while also hitting as many as possible.