.223 for bear, mountain goat, deer, elk, and moose.

[Flatlanderintherockies]

“Bullets matter more than headstamps.”

“Spent primers offer the supreme tutorial”.

I’ve read it here and elsewhere online. It got my attention. I started digging and asking questions and listened.

The 77gr TMK delivered by a .223 is where I ended up after many discussions and objective data regarding bullet performance and numerous pics of field results.

Now for the delivery system. Accurate. Repeatable. Reliable. Reasonable weight to afford steady shot placement and the ability to spot my own impacts yet packable. Tikka T3x, vertical grip, Sportsmatch rings, SWFA 6x MQ in mills. Replaced the trigger spring with a yo Dave, adjusted to my liking, then degreased everything and locked all of the screws down with loctite and got started.

The package checks all of the boxes. Plus, it’s FUN! Time at the range is spent learning to call wind, trigger control, spotting your own impacts and figuring out why a shot did or did not end up where you wanted it. No brake. No flinch. Inexpensive to shoot. The fun factor plus the ability to be able to afford to shoot a lot goes a long way to learning and understanding shooting, accuracy and precision.

With all of that said, I’ve decided to use 77 TMK out of a .223 from this delivery system for bear, deer and elk this season.

Opportunity presented itself a couple of days ago. I killed a mature, dry sow with the 77 TMK. Bullet performance exceeded all expectations! The terminal performance is on par with anything I’ve seen in a .284 or .30. Unreal performance. The bullet is a BEAST!

Practice will continue throughout the summer in preparation for the upcoming deer and elk seasons.

Based on my sample of one, the 77 TMK out of a .223 is truly a lethal combination well suited to a dedicated lower 48 big game rifle.

Would love to hear about others experiences with this bullet or similar bulletts!

.223 kills a lot of whitetails

 

[bsnedeker]

yup...another youngster dowting my wisdom...u should have more respect for ur elders kid...still have rectal prolaps from that deer that woke up. and then when i went to the office for my intestinal disability benifits guess what i saw in their...lots of deer hit with MATCH BULLETS! so i know im right. and arguing with those federal aid workers was something id never wish on any deer...talk about a slow and painful death LOL!!!

@mods let me know if this is filling the thread with too much trash at this point, I didn't expect that first post to get such a followup.



u must be another one of those kids that says 20mm APFSDS is too much. well let me tell u a real man drinks wisky and ive never heard of anyone who wanted less penitration when they took the shot. i hear all the time, use high explosiff in 20mm instead...well guess what, if the deer is turned at an angull, that aint gonna work!!! lol...broadside shots only with HEI. no thanks. and besides, wastes too much MEAT!!!

Sorry for going off topic, but what are your thoughts on those Dukes of Hazzard exploding broadheads for archery? They are the only heads I use if I'm shooting a frontal.

 

[woods89]

in my experieints...it is very comon for deer and moose to play dead. even with 4 inch holes in there body. once i hit a deer with 20mm DU penetrator APIFSDS. after a 120 yard run i thought the lihtes had left him...dressed and preped him to cook. later at dinner i got the worst hernea of my life when he woke up and sprinted out of my ass. anyways my point is leave the varmit rounds for varmits. light match bullets like those dont have enugh energy and will blow up on the ribcage. or they will pencil through and leave the deer colecting disability benifits for the rest of its life wasting my taxes. you dont have to believe me but i have 60 years of hunting experieints and kno what ive seen and what im comfertable with...so...take it or leave it. just dont come crying when you lose some game

This was good for a laugh over breakfast this morning.........

 

[Gorp2007]

Back in stock at Midway.

Sierra Tipped MatchKing 22 Cal (224 Diameter) Bullets 77 Grain Polymer

MatchKing rifle bullets are super-accurate bullets with very thin jackets and are held to exacting tolerances in diameter and weight. Their accuracy has...

www.midwayusa.com

 

[Juan_ID]

Back in stock at Midway.

Sierra Tipped MatchKing 22 Cal (224 Diameter) Bullets 77 Grain Polymer

MatchKing rifle bullets are super-accurate bullets with very thin jackets and are held to exacting tolerances in diameter and weight. Their accuracy has...

www.midwayusa.com

Just seen the discord notification, got 500.

 

[fightthenoise]

Dang three hours late and still got some. Christmas in July.

 

[davsco]

skipped to the end (mostly). are match HP's in .223 a decent choice for whitetail deer (eg 69g sierra match kings or related hollow points)? or stick with pure hunting bullets?

 

[mstei4]

skipped to the end (mostly). are match HP's in .223 a decent choice for whitetail deer (eg 69g sierra match kings or related hollow points)? or stick with pure hunting bullets?

HP’s have inconsistent expansion, much better to stick to a tipped match bullet (eg 77g sierra tipped match king). That particular bullet is an emphatic killer (more so than a pure hunting bullet), evidenced by the pictures throughout the thread

 

[BigNate]

You're asking a very broad question. I'd tend to say that most hp match bullets are not a good choice. I'd even suggest that although the Sierra 77gr Hpbt Matchking is useable, it just is outdone by the TMK version.
There are other good bullets as well, but It would benefit you to read this thread because there's so much information here.
There are many other bullets mentioned in this thread as well. Some from Barnes, Nosler, Winchester, Speer, Hornady, and probably others.

 

[Juan_ID]

Not quite sure how I feel at the moment…

 

[Sandstrom]

My box from Midway just showed up today also!!!

Ryan

 

[Lawnboi]

Cheap practice! They blow predators to shit too

 

[Shraggs]

Jake what are the red tips?

 

[Lawnboi]

Jake what are the red tips?

Those are 75eldm.

 

[Bcleck90]

Change of subject kinda but who has a hunt or hunts planned this year using 223/556? I have an Antelope and Mule Deer tag this year along with Whitetail in my home state. Looking forward to more pics and updates

 

[PNWGATOR]

Bear, elk and deer for us.

 

[Lawnboi]

Change of subject kinda but who has a hunt or hunts planned this year using 223/556? I have an Antelope and Mule Deer tag this year along with Whitetail in my home state. Looking forward to more pics and updates

Got a trophy doe hunt in Montana since I didn’t draw anything else and gun season here in WI. As of now I plan to use the 223 again, with 77tmk. I see no reason to carry more especially back home.

 

[Shraggs]

Elk. Either this or my 358 win depending

 

[BigNate]

Jaun_ID, Where's the California Howdy pic when I need it!?

 

[TheGDog]

I'm in a quandry... I want to try the .223 Rem for Mule Deer in CA's D-14, and I know it would work fine for the place I have in mind because timber limits the distances. But... there are also Bears there, and just because I've never taken one, AND never taken a deer with .223 Rem yet... my thought process is:

Well... I supposed I'd better take something with me where I know for sure from lots of historical data that it should work no problem. ... Then... after I've finally taken a Bear, any Bear, and gotten that cherry out of the way... I'd then totally be down to risk walkin' around with the lesser caliber.

I may still end up saying EFF-it and bringing the .223 Rem w Barnes TSX. I also happen to have scored a box of 70gr TTSX a year or so ago. And I see today that I can't find this same projectile listed. So meh... I dunno... might even mess-around and load-up some of those 70gr's to see what kinda havoc they can wreak!