.223 for deer?

i know the .223 isn't the greatest deer round, but if you had to use it for deer, what load would you use?

Federal Premium 60 grn. Nosler Partitions.

yup that one

I shot one once with a 55 grain Winchester Supreme Balistic Silver Tip. This would not be my first choice. 55 gr Trophy Bonded Bear Claw by Federal Premium would be.

Shot placement and you will be ok with it. I shot plain ole factory Remington 55 grain PSP.

The 2 deer I killed with my AR were done in by Wolf 55gr SP.

We took a cow elk with a .223. Of course, it was a head shot. I wouldn't be too excited about a lung shot with that round. If they run any distance at all you won't have much of a blood trail to follow.

55 grain SP Black Hills (Blue Box)

I killed a doe this year with my .223 with a 55 grain bullet. I shot it in the neck and dropped it instantly.

This exact topic pops up at least once every year before deer season! LOL My answer is yes, it is plenty for even the biggest S TX buck if you've got the right ammo, accurate rifle, and the guy behind the gun puts the bullet where it belongs. I use ours with 55 gr Sierra GK bullets and have dropped many deer and hogs with it. Rarely do you get one that drops in it's tracks but most of the time it is usually a 50 yd or less tracking job!

By the way, I've lost 0 deer using a .222 or my .223 and have probably killed in excess of 50 with them. If you put the bullet where it belongs, they are as dead as if you shot them with a 300 Rem UM, with a lot less blood shot meat! LMAO

I was thinking it came up at least ten times a year but I am probably just running them together with the 30-06 vs 270 threads.

Plenty of gun with good shot placement.

That's true for any deer cartridge.

In all my 35+ years of hunting white tails, I can honestly say that its the guys who sling the largest bullets who are the most likely to shoot and miss. But then, maybe a lack of shooting accuracy with something smaller is what drives many of them to shoot something bigger.

I don't think that is it. My main gun is a 30.06. I do have a 22-250 that I have shot several deer with and so far have not lost one, Like everyone is saying shot placement is the key. Good luck

X2 on the bigger callibers. 270's have wounded, lost or plain missed more deer than any other calliber.

On the other side of the coin the .243 has drt'd more deer than any other. All good clean kills. I think this goes back to shot placement and a gun that is comfortable to shoot.

.223? Yes if you can hit a clay @ 100yds.

S H O T P L A C M E N T

x2

I was told by a man who had a wounded deer tracking dog once that the most calls he for a wounded deer by caliber was the 7mag...he was not sure why. I think the caliber that shoots at the most deer is going to wound more just due to the odds not just because it is a caliber. Being able to shoot your rifle with a certainty is what makes it a great shooting rifle in your mind not the caliber. Confidence in your rifle is worth more than one thinks.

Do you have any data to back up those definitive assertions. Or are they just your personal opinions?

I agree proper bullet placement! with an accurate person behind the gun is all it takes, no matter what caliber! Usually its the person behind the gun, lack of training or practice with the gun, not installing the scope properly or sighting in the rifle properly; that leads to missing deer or bad shot placement and having to track down a deer. I hate snakes and we have a lot of rattlers on my lease, so its head shots only for me with my .223 out to 350 yrds(my comfort zone). If I can't make a proper kill shot I pass on that deer. Oh yeah I disagree on the .243, the .22lr probably leads the .243 on the deer DRT list(lol).

It is not the caliber of the weapon, it is the experience of the shooter as to whether a caliber is the right one. An experienced shooter can bring a deer down with a 17HMR but an inexperienced shooter is more likely to have a wounded deer regardless of the size of the bullet.

True, and the bullet is more important than the headstamp on the cartridge.

Or shoot and loose deer! Or atleast it is on my lease

That is the best way i have heard it put, and its 100% true.

We have a place with MLD permits so my boy does alot of shooting. He has taken nearly 20 deer and a dozen hogs with a .223 55gr and lost 1. The 1 he lost was shot low and got onto the neighbors place, all other deer were hit properly and died properly.

62 gr Corbon DPX (Barnes X Bullet) or 60 gr Federal Nosler Partition. Keep your shots reasonably close.

Originally Posted By: highlonesome1
270's have wounded, lost or plain missed more deer than any other calliber.

On the other side of the coin the .243 has drt'd more deer than any other.


Do you have any data to back up those definitive assertions. Or are they just your personal opinions?

No data just an observation from the hunts we conduct on our place.

http://www.texashuntingforum.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/1024105/Re_223_or_243#Post1024105

no matter caliber , its all about the distance to the target and the shot placement... if both of those are done right the target/animal will be right where you shot it......

It's legal so use it!

The .223 is a varmint caliber period, and it will never be proclaimed a deer catridge, no matter how bad someone wants it to be, and good shot placement or not, you are pushing it's limits, but if you are proficient with it, and that's all you've got, then do it!

That said there are better choices out there and even the 7.62 X 39 which is cheaper and available and about the same amount of recoil would be a better choice for a young shooter IMHO!

This is the one I would use, and it even has a deer head on the box!

I would use Ultramax 55gr SP only because I can get a 10shot group you can cover with a nickle @ 100yds. I have taken it deer hunting and have shot the mess out of hogs with it, but I have never felt comfy shooting something behind the shoulder with it. (except for hogs)

Had a guy on our lease shoot a deer last year with a 223. It looked like the deer was hit with a 308 there was so much blood. Deer ran 20yrd and expired.

X2

Everyone keeps saying shot placement, but where would be the best shot placement for a 223?

Some will say behind the shoulder. I've never shot a deer with my 223, but it's a tack driver so if I did shoot one with it I would either shoot it in the head, or in the neck. And it would have to be under near perfect conditions with a steady rest....but that's just me. Since that isn't always possible in hunting conditions chances are I will never deer hunt with my 223, but I'm not going to knock somebody who does. I have witnessed them kill deer, I just like to make a little bigger hole.

I've killed over 350 deer with .223. It is my tool of choice. You use yours, I'll use mine. Because of its velocity, neck shots are best. Your target zone is bigger and there is little waste of meat.

BTW - .243 was the most wounding caliber, ie, deer hit & not recovered. I will try to find the documentation on this. It was a survey by TP&W conducted at deer check stations in the 70's. Of course, things do change.

for ME it is a headshot on a doe, if I've still got a buck to hunt chances are slim to none I will have a 223 with me.

There is a product on the market that recommends shot placement on deer as they present themselves at different angles.

http://wildlifeenterprises.com/Aim.htm

My opinion i believe neck shots should be the shot most taken. Def with to 223. It's a hit or miss and you don't waste any meat like Quisdraw mentioned. If you clean and process your own meat and actually eat it then you prob do this already. If you don't do any of that then what does it matter. But ballistic tips are great for neck shots but not shoulder shots. If you have to track a deer the main blood comes from and exit hole and you will not get an exit hole with a ballistic tip behind the shoulder. Therefore making tracking difficult if not impossible even with good shot placement.

Dont use BT or hollow point bullets. I think you are better off with a good 55gn sp of some type. Last year my son killed a nice doe with a Federal 70gn hp but it wasnt pretty and penetration was dismal. I think you would get better results from a plain old sp. I do like the 60 something gn bear. In the green box I think.

Whether a bullet is a HP or SP tells you nothing about it's construction. Most bullets for the 223 are designed for varmints, and will expand very rapidly whether they are SP's or HP'. There are a few (62gr PowerPoint, 60gr Partition, 53gr TSX, for example) which are designed for deer. The TSX is a hollow point, but it is monolithic and will penetrate better than almost any SP.

i would use 55g.. but its all placement