Best load for a 5.56/.223

THF family,

I'm about to purchase a m-4 bushmaster as soon as my CFO (wife) releases funds after tax returns lol.

What round do you experienced pork snipers recommend to bring down large hogs with? Keep in mind I dont want to do any tracking I wan't D.R.T. effictiveness.

I'm all ears fellas

Well i would say that it depends on what you plan on shooting with it. I am new to the 223 myself but did not buy the gun to drop them in their tracks. A well placed shot is always the best bet but that does not always happen. I shot one last weeekend with a 53 grain hornady varmit load below the ear and he dropped. but i did have to shoot him again when i got to him. I have also seen other hogs shot with 223 that we never found that were hit behind the shoulder. I like mine so far but ill tell ya it is a long shot from my 300rum. which you could hit him in the a$$ and he would fall over.

well I was going to buy it mainly for hog and predator waxing also the two legged variety that like to break into your house.

I've heard from many folks that the AR is a good hog gun especially if you need take multiple shots in rapid succession
(like four or five at a time from a chopper or vehicle)

YES SIR THATS PRETTY MUCH WHY I BOUGHT MINE. PLUS ITS A FUN AND GOOD GUN FOR THE WOMAN TO SHOOT AND IT DONT HAVE TO TAKE OUT A LOAN TO SHOOT IT.

factory loads that do well on bigger game are winchester 64gr powerpoints and remington premier 62gr ultrabond. i have shot a traincar load of pigs and deer with these no proble. I also shoot 55 and 60gr hornady softpoints as well as 64gr powerpoints in my handloads.

yeah I have a good old tried and true bolt action remington 30-06 for deer season and I used it hunt hogs. however its just not a practical gun for pork sniping not to mention a tad more expensive to shoot

I like the 60gr Nosler partition bullets. These work very well!

Why is the 30-06 not practical for sniping? I was thinking of turning my dad's 300 Win Mag into a hog gun...

I would say that the 30.06 would more expensive to shoot. There is cheaper ammo out there in smaller calibers that would get the job done. There are guys that use the cheap Russian steel case ammo and drop hogs all day long. You can catch the .223 monarch steel case on sale at Academy for $3.99 a box. You can't beat that.

I've been shooting a 64 grain soft point bonded bullet by Bitterroot Valley and it kills pigs and deer pretty efficiently.

62 Grain Federal Fusion has taken 13 hogs, 5 deer, 3 Rams, and a SH Oryx...

All animals were taken by a 12 year old girl with a Wilson Combat M-4....

All Animals were one shot kills.....

I have killed them from 50 to over 300 lbs with cheapo Wolf/Monarch/PMC/Bahrnaul(sp?) all 55 grain, mainly FMJ have not lost any of them, some DRT, some go maybe 50 yards or so,

Main thing I think is shot placement.. ear hole them, or just BEHIND the shoulder.. not IN the shoulder, behind the shoulder you double lung them, they dont go far, dont try to go thru the shoulder with a 223 because of the plate..

Of course this is just from my experiences... And I cant really tell you how many I have killed at this point, 4 this year tho

Probably too many answers for this question- What's a good price for an American made .223 caliber rifle?

my 45/70 guide gun blows right thru the shoulder 325 grain leverolution ammo by hornady

Just my .02 but I have been hunting hogs extensively with an ar in .223 now for about six months. The best round IMO by far is the Barnes TSX 55grain. I have yet to have a hog run more than 30 yards with most of them dropping in their tracks. These things are legit. I was skeptical myself until I tried them and will not shoot anything else. They are kinda pricey but well worth the money if you are looking for the best. Once again just my opinion.

On a side note we hunt with these on thousands of acres of wheat fields and my guess is we have taken over a hundred a month for the past 3 months.

That's my favorite as well and just about any twist rate from 1:14 to 1:7 will shoot it fairly well...

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/891153/...ition-box-of-20

BVAC 55 gr psp $155.00 for 500 rds. Silver bear. Brown bear 62 gr. Hpbt for
about $130.00 for 500 rds. These have worked for me. I like the barnes bullets but they are expesive and I shoot a lot of hogs. Find something your gun likes and go for it.

Handloaded 69gr OTMBTs were working well for me with a 1/9 twist 16" barreled AR.
That was before I switched over to a 300 Blackout barrel and I haven't looked back since.

no my brother I was simply saying that the ammo is a bit expensive for hoggin' its a great round to use and I've killed a few hogs with my 30-06. However its not that practical if you were going on a chopper hunt and had a shot at 5 or 6 hogs at a time. Imagine trying to work that bolt in time to get them all.

the AR and the AK/SKS are great hog guns for that type of hoggin' but make no mistake I love everything in .30 to put meat on the ground!

That's exactly what the Aussies have to do. No autoloaders down under. It seems that the Remington 7600 is popular for pig hunters there.

Don't try to shoot light( sub 55gr) rounds through an AR. The really fast twist will sometimes rip the jacket off as it exits the muzzle crown. The 1in8 and similar barrels are designed for 62 and up projectiles. I like a 68gr hornady hpbt. It's super stable and still flies around 3000fps.

sub 55gr rounds through an AR don't work super well. The really fast twist will sometimes rip the jacket off as it exits the muzzle crown. The 1in8 and similar barrels are designed for 62gr and up projectiles. I like a 68gr hornady hpbt. It's super stable and still flies around 3000fps.

Get a AK for hogs and leave the AR at home. I have several of both and I haven't found a round in .223/5.56 that will drop a hog like the 7.62/39 AK. The AK is way cheaper, ammo is way cheaper and it has 2 or 3 times more knock down. The AK kills the AR in durability comparison to. It may not be as accurate past 300 yards but who cares when your killing hogs.

My Sig556 w/a 1:7 twist seems to really like the Hornady TAP FPD's in 75gr.
I'm buying a lot of different ammo at the moment trying to stock up a bit for a trip to the range where I can see if I can get the same kind of accuracy w/o having to spend 25.00/20 rds.
With the setup I've got right now I can put 3 rounds on paper in about the size of a quarter at 50 yrds.

55 grn Rem pointed soft point corlokt behind front shoulder, can't gaurantee DRT but shouldent go far. That's what I have seen.

65gr SGK's group outstandingly for me. I have not tested them on game, but expect good things.

Try the BVAC 75gr BTHP. They work great in my Spike's 1:7 twist barrel. And they run right around $10 for a box of 20.

Thanks for the heads up.
Tax refund comes in tomorrow and I plan on making a run up yo Cheaper Than Dirt at some point this week to see what all they have in the heavy stuff.
I saw the BVAC on their site but haven't heard anything about it before now. Glad to know someone has had some good experience with it.

I plan on making lots of notes and taking a few pictures and doing a little range report of all the different ammo I use.

Anything that goes bang.

Hornady Steel Match 75gr HP has worked well for me. It's the same as TAP but in a steel case. I've killed 3 pigs and one spike with it and all fell where shot.