223 bullet for whitetail

Originally Posted By: BusterI'd take a guy who can shoot a .223 over a guy who misses with a .300 Ultramag any day of the week. Proper bullet choice and placement are far more important than headstamp.


Agreed. I live in PA and every year I run into people out in deer season carrying one of the big belted magnums or some such foolishness. I've watched these same guys at the range before the opening day and they shoot one or 2 shots with their rifle and go home. Seems they don't like the recoil enough to shoot the gun much. I normally carry a 308 but I have taken deer with a 223 and it works fine. It was said several times already that bullet placement and choice are more important than how much horsepower your gun is spitting out. I personally don't see a need for any of these large magnums on north American game especially not for whitetail deer. All of the bullets mention above would be fine choices for a whitetail. Go shoot your gun and get familiar with it so when the time comes you can make the proper shot.
 
Originally Posted By: BusterI'd take a guy who can shoot a .223 over a guy who misses with a .300 Ultramag any day of the week. Proper bullet choice and placement are far more important than headstamp.

+1
 
Originally Posted By: BusterI'd take a guy who can shoot a .223 over a guy who misses with a .300 Ultramag any day of the week. Proper bullet choice and placement are far more important than headstamp.




Thats what im talking bout right there! The man know what he is talking bout.
 
Originally Posted By: sandhillshunterNever understood why someone would use a .223 for deer. Will it kill one? Sure. Is it a good choice, no. I know I going to hear about all the successful hunts with it. That still doesn't make it a big game cartridge. We need to show respect for the animals we hunt and use an appropriate caliber. Just my opinion.


I agree, the best .223 bullet for whitetail is a .243!!!
 
I see people hitting all over why you shouldn't use a .223 for deer hunting, but I have seen very few actually answer the originally stated question.

Only people that have killed deer (or seen deer killed) with a .223 really need to chime in here, everyone else is just throwing out their random comment that doesn't seem to do any bit of good.

A .223 is a perfectly acceptable deer round. It is banned in my state of VA, but I hunted in WV last year with a friend that used his AR on multiple deer. All were killed with 55 Gr. Winchester Silver Balistic Tips. All of the deer went down within 75 yards or much, much less.

Good shot placement and bullet selection are necessary for deer hunting with a .223, but if both are done correctly you have a perfectly acceptable deer rifle.

Obviously FMJ's and the like are not good deer rounds, but the load I mentioned before performed just as well as any round I have used in my .243, and I'm confident that all of the previously mentioned loads would preform well too.

To the OP. It takes much less to kill a deer then some people would think. I realize I am young, but I have been around the deer woods my fair share. I have seen deer killed with anything from 300 WSM's to .223's. Shoot a good bullet, make a good shot, and you'll come home with venison.
 
I've probably killed over 60 whitetail with a .22 caliber centerfire, namely a .222 and .223

They are certainly not my first choice, but heavy for the caliber bullets in a handloaded 60 gr. Hornady flat base, as well as a 69 gr. Sierra Match King worked well enough.

I've killed a great number of deer in my life and to be quite honest, if I never kill another one, I've killed my share and that of several others as well:) Yep, I've killed a bunch of deer in my 46 years. Shot my first whitetail 40 years ago and have never looked back!

A .223 will dang sure kill a deer, but there are better tools for the job in my opinion.
 
I loaded some Hornady 55SPSX in 223 for my buddy to hunt coyotes with he loves them for that and says "James you won't believe how great that works on deer". He has a small perserve with white tails and kills serveral every year.I believe him because hes not a BSer.I also know a farmer who killed 4 deer last year with 204 with 40gr ballistic tips.The only thing that has to do with this discussion is both these guys are expert hunters.Killing whitetails is second nature for them.Bottom line is hunter has to be up to the task!
 
Problem is the 60 grainers out of a 223 are pretty slow.

Ive shot several hundred crop damage deer with lots of different guns, You name it, Ive probly tried it.

I like a lot of "shock and awe" with a 22 caliber bullet (read +3500 fps). Its quite possible to do that with a 60 gr partition, but you need a bit more than what a 223 can give. Now Im not saying that the deer will run off like nothing has happened, there is a chance it will fall in its tracks, but theres just as good a chance it will run and the blood trail can be noticeably smaller. Just an observation.

Now, for me, if I was forced to use a 223 for deer, I would pick the most accurate round for you particular gun that you can find, and hold myself to taking head/high neck shots. Its a higher percentage DRT shot.

For what its worth, a couple of my favorites are 50 gr barnes x bullet in 22-250 or 22-250 AI ( both yeild a high rate of DRT's), 55 grain v max's in 223 for the head shot stuff (theres lots of soy fields we shoot that in late summer all you see is head/high neck), 100 grain ballistic tips in 257 weatherby mag (excellent long range combo), 375 rem ultra mag (whatever load you use in this one gives a DRT, very overkill), and probly one I used most this year is my ruger 44 carbine with 200 grain xtp's. Great walkabout gun with lots of firepower, also a fun gun for coyote hunting.
 
Thanks. I ordered some 60 gr. NPs. I know 223 isn't the "best" for deer, but I know it will work. Like most said. Good shot placement is key. I don't think I'd shoot at a deer 400yds across a field with it, but most of the deer I have killed were within 50yds. I hunt with rifle like most guys hunt with their bow. I know I can get close, so I don't take longs shots at deer. At that range 223 should be more than adequate with the right bullet. Which is sounds like that Nosler may be a good choice. Thanks to those who suggested it.
 
Originally Posted By: BusterI'd take a guy who can shoot a .223 over a guy who misses with a .300 Ultramag any day of the week. Proper bullet choice and placement are far more important than headstamp.
Or GAL

+1

While not the "ideal" all around whitetail round it can be very effective. If I read correct the person asking the question knew there would be limitations for his choice and was asking what the best bullet for that choice was, not your opinions of his caliber choice. I have "seen" deer killed with 22 rimfires VERY effectively. Also "seen" deer killed with 338 mags, 375 mags, and larger that went much farther after being shot. Again, shot placement being most important.

As per 5.56 in the military, an FMJ placed "correctly" will render a 200+ pounder out of service, while even a non fmj bullet would only send a man to the MASH under his own power if placed incorrectly. Apples and Oranges.

Back on topic...
I would opt for the Barnes TSX in a weight that shot good in your gun and make sure of good shot and bullet placement.

B
 
+1 for the 60 gr Nosler Partition! Federal loads them @ 3000fps= pretty good all-around 223 round here in SC also(hogs, coyote, etc)
 
I know a farmer who has shot hundreds of Whitetails, using the crop damage permits. This fellow was using a 22 LR, until he decided to get a "bigger" gun, and got a 22 Magnum. I'm sure he wasn't too concerned about the ethics of the situation, as he hates any animal that eats his crops. I suspect, that if we had a way of knowing, the 22 LR has probably killed about as many deer, as any other caliber. But, does that mean it is a good deer cartridge? Of course not. It's not even a marginal one. It just shows that deer can be killed with just about any caliber, if hit in the right place. I have hunted Whitetails for well over 40 years, and killed a bunch, and I have killed a few with the 223. It did just fine, but then, I did just fine in putting the bullet in the right spot. Here in Kentucky, I have taken several bucks that field dressed out at over 200 pounds. I am sure that under the right conditions, a 223 would have been just fine. But, we don't always get the right conditions, and in those cases, it becomes a marginal round, just like a 22 LR. If you want to use it, then that's your right, but I think it's too much on the light end of the spectrum, and there are better calibers. If recoil is a problem, use a 243. If you have problem with the recoil of a 243, then you don't need to be hunting.
 
I have shot 2 deer with a 223. This was mainly due to me being just divorced, very little money, and only having a 223. I loaded up Nosler 60 gr partitioned bullets and both deer were taken under 150 yards. Now I use my 25/06, but the 223 did a great job, both deer dropped in their tracks. Both deer were broadside with a slight angle away and those Noslers took out the farside front shoulder leaving golfball size exit hole.
 
Look at it like this, lets say you got your trusty little .223 while deer hunting and out walks a buck of a life time, now you are all shook up, you take the shot and hit his shoulder never to be found! You will NEVER forgive yourself for that mistake!
 
A 60g partition isn't just going to bounce off a buck of a lifetime shoulder. In reality, it only has to get through that 1 shoulder bone and halfway through the chest cavity into the lungs. Its going to be a dead buck of a lifetime.

Those little 60g partitons will easily penetrate 8-10" and thats more then enough to get into the chest cavity with a broadside or quartering shot.
 
More states are making the 223 a legal deer caliber all the time. The reason is that experience shows that it works well. Possibly even better than the larger calibers because more people are able to shoot it more accurately because they don't fear the recoil.

Jack
 
Back
Top