Ft/lbs to kill a coyote?

S

Squirrelhunter91

New member
What is a range of ft-lbs that will kill a coyote on the spot? I know to kill a deer you need atleast 950 ft-lbs - 1,000 ft-lbs. So what is a range that will drop a coyote in his tracks? I say this because we just recently acquired an AR in .223 and I was on the Hornady website checking out the ballistics of their 55gr V-Max and it has a a Muzzle Velocity of 3800 fps with 1282 ft-lbs, then at 100 yds it is humping along at 2854 fps with 995 ft-lbs, at 200 yds it is going 2500 fps with 763 ft-lbs, then at 300 yds, 2172 fps with 576 ft-lbs, at 400 yds it's moving at 1871 fps with 427 ft-lbs and last but not least at 500 yds it is going 1598 fps with a whopping 312 ft-lbs. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif I was joking about the whopping part. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
I know these are all according to a pre-made graph without me actually testing it. But here in the hardwoods of NY I'm not actually gonna have a shot past 100 yards at most and that's really pushing it in the woods. But if I hunt an open field, I do have possible 150-200 yard shots, but not many oppurtunities to take a shot like that. But if I ever have to, will my gun in .223 shooting a 55 grain V-Max at 300-500+ yards drop a coyote dead in his tracks?
All opinions and firsthand experiences welcome. Thanks.

https://www.hornady.com
 
Ive never seen a foot pound kill anything. Bullets,and thats most any bullet, traveling at a modest velocity, poked thru the lungs of a coyote will always kill it.
 
I am positieve that you will not get 3800 fps out of your AR safely with 55 grain bullets. The speeds you will be getting will be more like in the area of 3000 fps on the extreme low side and if you are lucky, you will get close to 3300 on the high side. You should expect to see around 3100-3200 fps range as being the normal velocity from a standard length barrel and around 2800-3000 fps with a short barrel.

Any well placed shot will do, meaning the bullet even delivering 22 lr velocities will kill the coyote if hit right, but YOU are the one who must place the shot. Most people cannot deliver the accuracy that the rifle can at long range whether it be shooting skills or range estimation. Then you have to add in all the other components needed to place those long shots. The .223/5.56 can deliver if you can do your part....JOHN
 
Out to 300 yrds, your good to go. Anything past that, if you think you can hit them and hit them proper (heart lungs or brains) you should be good to go. Sometimes they dot realize they are DRT no matter how you hit em.
 
I use 62gr.HP in my NEF .223. I'm a wimp about long shots...so I don't take any much past 200 yds. (The weapon will perform, but not sure about myself) /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smiliesmack.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

I took 50+ coyotes this winter w/ this weapon only, & 90% were bang/flops. So, if you hit 'em where you should, it's all good. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif I don't follow the "ft# kills" philosophy. I follow the "put the bullet in the right place" one. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
I recently chronied some 60 VMAX out of my 18" AR and they were moving around 2,900 fps. Zeroed at 100 yds this load well be almost 58" low at 500 yds. It would make it tough to hit a coyote accurately from 0-500yds. My nikon mil dot set at 14.5 power only has about 3-4 inches between the dots, I am only comfortable out to about 350 max. with this set up for now.

Good Luck and Good Hunting
 
Quote:
I know to kill a deer you need atleast 950 ft-lbs - 1,000 ft-lbs. So what is a range that will drop a coyote in his tracks?



Thousands of deer and elk are killed every year with anywhere from 35 to 75 ft lbs. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Course, it's done with arrows and sharp broadheads, but it illustrates as well as anything that ft. lbs needed is not a realistic guide for anything. It's just a widely accepted "conventional wisdom"

It's fair to state that bows and arrows and guns and bullets are two different things, but the single common denominator is the destruction of vital tissue and a wound channel that reduces blood pressure to zero as rapidly as possible.
 
Quote:
Ive never seen a foot pound kill anything.



Dude, you've never stepped on a mouse? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif


Thanks for all the replies guys. Like I said, it'll be difficult to say the least in terms of getting a shot past 60-70 yards in the woods, really stretching it if you want 100 yards. Fields are limited here, but pretty long shots if you are presented the oppurtunity.
 
I've shot deer with my long bow yielding about 40 ft. lbs. of KE...True, they did not drop on the spot, but it killed them just the same...I think your scenario should be fine with Coyote...
 
I saw a study one time that promoted the idea of 454-ft lbs. Like it was said above, arrow does a pretty good job.
 
223 is ideal out to 250-300 yards and adequate out to 400+, providing you can punch the vitals with a hunting bullet

hitting them past 350 yards is the hard part... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif
 
A bow doesn't kill with ft./lbs. Broadheads operate on an entirely different principle than a bullet does. This isn't an apples to apples comparison.
 
GS is right broadheads kill by hemmoraging and bullets of course kills by shock,
a guideline to use is 10 lbs of energy for every pound of critter, close ranges have more energy of course hence the 22lr killing a few coyotes at under 50 yards and not many at 200 yards, So check down range foot lbs of energy and you will see your rifles maximum killing range, this is just a guideline and not a hard fast rule.
 
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