.223 for Deer in Colorado

your header said is a 223 legal. Then you said you want to buy a 243 wssm. I am figuring you meant 243 in your header if you did it is legal. but a 223 is not. My brother lives there and this is what he told me.
 
Indeed minimum caliber for all big game hunting in Colorado is the 24 caliber or 6mm projectile.

Page 7 Colorado Big Game Hunting Regs.

"Legal Hunting Methods
1. Centerfire Rifles
a. Must be min. .24 caliber (6mm)
b. Must have a min. 16-inch barrel and be at least 26 inches long.
c.If semiautomatic, they can hold a max. of 6 rounds in the magazine and the chamber combined.
d. Must use expanding bullets that weigh min. 70 grains for deer, pronghorn and bear, 85 grains for elk and moose, and have an impact energy (at 100 yds.) of 1000-ft. pounds as rated by the manufacturer."

The rest doesn't partain.....
 
Why would you want to use the minimum caliber for deer? What could possibly be the rationale for that? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused1.gif

Using a 7mm or larger makes a LOT more sense.

$bob$
 
Geez, I have taken lots of deer with smaller than 7mm cartridges. Never could tell I was doing it wrong??

What are your deer made of??

6mm or 25-06 work great and I have taken many with less.

Clayman
 
.223 in the neck works great! But if I was going to deer hunt and be confident in killing one, I wouldn't use anything less than a 243
 
I personally believe that it is all about the placement of the shot that is the key. But I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen it but when I was very young one of my first experiences hunting we were deer hunting with my grandpa, we saw some grouse so he pulled out the .22 from the truck and told us to follow him he shot 2 grouse and then look up about 25 yards in front of him was a 3 point buck. The only gun he had was the .22 and he just stood there for a minute and trid to decide what to do finally my brother and I watched him pull up the .22 as if he was going to shoot, well he shot one time and the deer dropped like a ton of bricks. He decided to shoot it in the eye and that is where he hit. Ethical, now I would say not so much but it worked. Now I believe that a .223 with a 75grn bullet placed in the bread basket is good enough on a regular deer, not the kind you have apparently.
I do agree with the fact that the minimum isn't always the best especially for poor shooter a bigger caliber would be better. I usually use a .308. But I am getting a new Dtech and thought it would be awesome to take a deer with it, I guess the only answer is to get a .243 WSSM upper from him.
 
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Geez....how big are them deer that you HAVE to use .24 or bigger?



Apparently not big enough. I find dead ones that wandered off and died from being poorly shot all over the prairie.

Its the law, your question could best be asked to the division. I just follow the law because it keeps me in the 'hunting'.
 
I think the minimum should be .270. The reason for the so called high minimum is for those hunters that pick up there rifle the day they leave home to hunt. They do not practice and can not make a clean kill with a small bore rifles. I know everyone on this forum can shoot /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif but not every big game hunter can. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/angry-smiley-055.gif I practice with my weapons as often as I can so that I do not wound my game and more important do not have to track it for miles. I do not like climbing up and down miles of steep mountain looking for and Elk/Deer/coyote. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
I think the .243 in a good minimum for deer and antelope (elk is another story). Seen many of them put down by it, but maybe I'm just old fashioned, I don't, nor will I ever own a magnum. No reason to.
bullpup
 
In recent years I have worked alot more with smaller caliber rifles for big game hunting than 'back in the day'. I guess I grew out of magnum mania. My son and I both hunt large mule deer in CO with a wildcat 6mm that is slightly less powerful than a .243. Our bigger guns were wasting way too much meat and we located better places to find deer that allowed for closer shots. All private land we are not rushed and can wait for the perfect shot.
Elk is a whole 'nother ball game.
 
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Now I believe that a .223 with a 75grn bullet placed in the bread basket is good enough on a regular deer,



I suspect you meant something other than the bread basket, which would be a gut shot! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

The .243 is compeltely adequate for mule deer. Biggest one I ever killed dropped immediately to a .243.

A 7 mag is fine, but I'm a meat hunter and don't care to have to pick through the destruction of a 7 mag to get whats left for eating.

Seems especially big for the Florida german shepards ya'all call deer. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
A deer wounded with a 270 is just as wounded as one that was hit with a 223,243,260,25-06, 30-06, 300 mag, 375 mag.

If you can't make a good lethal shot, the caliber don't matter.

It all about ethics, I feel.

I don't feel unethical taking a deer with a 223, if I want to, but that does not mean its right by the law.

Clayman
 
Nobody said anything about breaking the law, if it is against the law I wouldn't do it. It doesn't matter what the minimum is the same retards will pick up their guns the day before a hunt and wound 3 deer cause they don't know there gun or how to make a decent shot. A .270 or a 7mm isn't dig enough for those type of people nothing is. But any bullet 75 grains or bigger put in the right spot will kill it. Guarentee is this, you take your 7MM I take even a .223 if legal and we put a bullet in the same spot the deer is just as dead and I spent less money and keep more meat. If I were not confident in my abilities it would probably be best to stay at home and watch others on TV that are. But but I have NEVER had a game animal wonder off every one I have shot has been brought home.
 
I use several different calibers to hunt with, but our deer are smaller than yours. A big deer here is 130+, and a BIG deer is 180+.
 
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