.223 grain for hunting coyotes

I did control work in the 70's and 80's with Herters 50gr soft points. My go to load now in the 223 is 50gr NBT'S over old school 3031 and never had any problems. Most of my other 224s get 52gr Speer FB HP's again a solid performer. For a number of years I ran 40gr NBT'S in a hot stepping 22-204 for winter pelt hunting and again a great performer. I was never impressed by the lighter Vmax and never found a need for heavies.
 
Originally Posted By: CaliCoyoteCallerOriginally Posted By: hate2workwouldnt trust anything under 6mm for coyotes, ever.

Are you hunting elephants? Killed a lot of yotes with a .22 and a .223....why wouldn't you trust anything under 6mm?????

maybe he is shaky and not a real accurate shooter?
 
I use 50 and 53 gr Vmax and have only had a couple of coyotes take more than a few steps after being hit. (those were my fault) and that is over 100 coyotes.

The large majority are in the same spot. Usually on 10% need any sewing for the pelts, when stretching and fleshing. (for fox, bobcat and Coyotes)
 
Originally Posted By: hate2workwouldnt trust anything under 6mm for coyotes, ever.

Really?




The 55 NBT's not my favorite bullet for hogs in the .223, but when hunting coyotes, that's what is in the chamber, and if the opportunity presents itself, well, they work for me.

Regards,
hm
 
Originally Posted By: hate2workwouldnt trust anything under 6mm for coyotes, ever.

i'm almost afraid to ask what your minimum caliber for whitetail deer would be....
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I see the problem now... It's a simple fix - don't gut shoot them. Problem solved, you're welcome.
 
Haven't looked at this post for a few days. I posted earlier, I shoot 60 grain vmax in my ARs and 75 grain vmax in my 243. My experience has been this.

I've shot a couple of hundred coyotes in the last few of years with my ARs (mostly 60 gr vmax) and had to shoot maybe 20% again to assure they didn't run. Some might have stayed down anyway and some I missed the second shot and they ran away.

I bought a new tikka 243 and shoot 75 grain vmax. I've killed over 25 coyotes with my 243 since December and have not had a runner. I also continue to shoot my ARs (love em both)

Now before you respond, I'm not saying you ever have a spinner or a runner with a good hit but I do not always make a perfect shot. I'm just sharing my experience. Those 243 75 grain vmax hit ALOT harder and kill much more effective, than a 223 especially on a questionable hit. I feel like I'm almost to confident shooting my 243 and I'm sure I'll pay for it soon. I still always shoot my ARs at night.
 
I really like the .243 Winchester/6mm Remington cartridges. I use the .243 a lot, both for predator hunting and also for deer hunting. I have no complaints with the cartridge and completely agree that it's a hammer on coyotes. But the idea of the need for a "hot 7mm or .30 cal" for coyotes so gut shot animals don't get away is a bit over the top to my mind. Now, if a guy says "I have this custom 7mm Whizzer that I love to shoot, so I use it for everything" or whatever then that's a different thing. But you don't need the Whizzer to effectively kill coyotes, you just like it and shoot it well, so rock on with it. My view anyway...
 
243 Win with a 60g Sierra, 75g sierra, 80g Sierra Blitz BT does a great job on coyotes shot behind the diaphragm.

Even the 60g Sierra will NOT explode on shoulders, ribs, and hip joints, and is amazingly accurate in a 243 at 3800 and in a 6 Rem at 4000 fps.

The 80g Sierra Blitz makes the loudest PLOP sound of any bullet I have ever shot on coyotes.

Perhaps 40% of the time, maybe more, shots may have to be taken on the move. So, get used to leading coyotes and follow through(don't stop your swing). If you don't leade them enough, they are hit behind the diaphragm(or hip), and this is where the 243 really pays off in killing powder if the bullet is fast expanding.
 
Ive used 53 and 52 gr Sierra Hp's with success and surprisingly the 50gr Vmax. I put up all my fur and want the least damage possible. Ive since gone to a .204 with 35 gr Bergers and am even happier.

Cheers!!
 
That is an important point I simply forgot to mention. The 243 is NOT fur friendly at all. So if you are hunting for fur stick with a lighter gun.
 
I've used the .223 50 grain V-Max exclusively for the last 4 years with GREAT success on coyotes. The friendliness to fur varies wildly from my experience though! If I was collect fur, but if I did, I would probably look at something a bit different.
 
69 gr Sierra HPBT Match, I like the length/shape of the bullet to help buck the winds we have out here. They also hold a good group well out to 400 yards and punch a clean hole in and out on a coyote. I would say fur friendly - more friendly than a 70 BT from the 6mm - .223 hole on one side and maybe a quarter or smaller on the other side - for a broadside shot, head on shots are retained. Haven't shot a ton of coyotes with this setup but none have left their tracks.
 
Shot one last year with a buddies rifle and he ran off never to be found. Coyotes don't come to the call around here but a couple times a season so that was enough for me nit to use the heavies. I'm sure the shot placement wasn't perfect but I feel that my lighter more fragile bullets would have had that one in the truck. But one coyote isn't much data. I'm sure some guys love them just didn't work out for my and now my confidence in the bullet is gone
 
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