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

[Unclecroc]

Have done it with a 35 grain Berger varmint hollow point out of a 204 straight on shot. Looked like a blender in the chest cavity. Was before had a camera phone and never carried a camera with me. Was my fur load for coyotes.

Good deal. That impressive penetration on a frontal shot. You’re not the first person I’ve heard of to shoot a deer with a 204 in the chest cavity.

 

[mt terry d]

Did I make anyone look?






P

I was more concerned I’d see a rainbow flag.

 

[S-3 ranch]

The 62gr Barnes isn't very stable if at all out of the 1:12, it's long.

The better choice would be 64gr Win PP, Nosler bsb, or the 50gr Barnes TTSX. But none of these give the same reach as the 77gr TMK

Thank you for the kind reply, I found some barns 50gr & some tsx 55gr
It’s going to be a ranch truck gun and lead is no issue here for hunting

 

[SBR Sarge]

With the Barnes 50 gr, be sure to read what you are getting.

Black Hills loads an ‘optimized’ 50 gr for LE use. That bullet is apparently made stouter than the regular 50gr.

If you buy Black Hills, that is what you’ll get. If you buy Barnes ammo or loose bullets, you should be getting the regular stuff, which is what you’d want.

 

[Beauseph]

Not a thread I expected to have 368 pages. Yikes

 

[Dorian Gray]

Not a thread I expected to have 368 pages. Yikes

It can be a bit of a daunting task to read it all, but it's most definitely worth it.

 

[ElPollo]

Not a thread I expected to have 368 pages. Yikes

Check out the cheat sheet that is linked on the first post. It will help navigate to the important stuff. If your initial response is BS, you’re in for an interesting ride. It may change a few of your preconceived notions about ballistics.

 

[Beauseph]

Check out the cheat sheet that is linked on the first post. It will help navigate to the important stuff. If your initial response is BS, you’re in for an interesting ride. It may change a few of your preconceived notions about ballistics.

I'm not one to discount any theory, claim, or the like without some research and experience. I was just surprised at the vastness of this discussion.

 

[ElPollo]

I'm not one to discount any theory, claim, or the like without some research and experience. I was just surprised at the vastness of this discussion.

It’s a polarizing topic because many have strongly held opinions that are not always based on data.

 

[Beauseph]

It’s a polarizing topic because many have strongly held opinions that are not always based on data.

It's funny because I've often thought about using .223 for whitetail deer.

I've heard it has good result with good shot placement (that is the key to any ethical kill with any cartridge).

I don't have a desire or purpose to use a .223 since I have other calibers in hunting setups ready to go.

I get a little skeptical with larger game like elk, moose, bear, but it seems that, again, with proper shot placement, a cartridge with good ability to penetrate can take almost any size game.

I think the biggest question is not whether you can, but whether you should - ethically.

 

[ElPollo]

It's funny because I've often thought about using .223 for whitetail deer.

I've heard it has good result with good shot placement (that is the key to any ethical kill with any cartridge).

I don't have a desire or purpose to use a .223 since I have other calibers in hunting setups ready to go.

I get a little skeptical with larger game like elk, moose, bear, but it seems that, again, with proper shot placement, a cartridge with good ability to penetrate can take almost any size game.

I think the biggest question is not whether you can, but whether you should - ethically.

The primary point of this thread is that bullet construction matters more than headstamps. It was stated in the first post. Bullet construction, as long as a shot is within the terminal velocity range of the bullet, determines wound channel volume and depth. What you’ll find if you take the time to go through this thread is that the right bullet in a 223 will result in more than enough damage and penetration to ethically harvest any game in North America and it will do it in a package that has less recoil and is easier to shoot accurately.

 

[Beauseph]

The primary point of this thread is that bullet construction matters more than headstamps. It was stated in the first post. Bullet construction, as long as a shot is within the terminal velocity range of the bullet, determines wound channel volume and depth. What you’ll find if you take the time to go through this thread is that the right bullet in a 223 will result in more than enough damage and penetration to ethically harvest any game in North America and it will do it in a package that has less recoil and is easier to shoot accurately.

I understand the point of the thread. I read the shortened version and some of the posts but honestly I'll probably never read the nearly 400 pages in it's entirety because I don't care that much about it. It's interesting, but I'm not going to sell all of my rifles for all .223 caliber just because of a Rokslide thread proving it.

I have other calibers that work just fine, if not better. Not going to fix something that isn't broken, isn't proven through MY experience.

 

[BigNate]

I have other calibers that work just fine, if not better. Not going to fix something that isn't broken, isn't proven through MY experience.

Other calibers work better? In your experience.
After stating you've "been thinking about using a .223" , you've decided based on your experience, that other calibers work better.

Now you've added length to the thread, without contribution, and made the decision based on your experience, that all the contributors are wrong. Gotcha. Move along.

 

[Beauseph]

Other calibers work better? In your experience.
After stating you've "been thinking about using a .223" , you've decided based on your experience, that other calibers work better.

Now you've added length to the thread, without contribution, and made the decision based on your experience, that all the contributors are wrong. Gotcha. Move along.

Not exactly. I made several points in my posts that you failed to recognize, address all while twisting phrases I used to reflect matter-of-fact rather than conjecture/prediction.

I said other calibers are available to me in hunting platforms, whereas .223 is not currently. I acknowledge the viability/usefulness of .223, but that doesn't mean all other calibers are inherently worse off because of that.

Just because someone else has used (x) with great results doesn't automatically mean it will do the same for me or others. Every person has to utilize the cartridge they feel is best based on their needs, preferences, experiences, and their opinions.

Contributors to this are not "wrong". They have their own experiences and evidence to support their viewpoints. I appreciate their experience, evidence, and opinions but that doesn't mean I must use .223 to hunt. It does mean that if I ever get the chance, desire to utilize .223 that I won't shy away from it and I'll use this thread to provide me insight of where I can start for initially good results. Using my experiences and data, I can then continue to improve my results based upon what I need for a hunting cartridge in .223.

Ill stay a while and continue to read / comment as I feel appropriate. Hopefully you can do the same without the side of flame.

 

[fwafwow]

I understand the point of the thread. I read the shortened version and some of the posts but honestly I'll probably never read the nearly 400 pages in it's entirety because I don't care that much about it. It's interesting, but I'm not going to sell all of my rifles for all .223 caliber just because of a Rokslide thread proving it.

I think, imho, that the bold text is what generates the response. If you don’t care, don’t comment*. And I don’t believe anyone in this thread has ever supported selling any guns, much less all of them, to change to 223 or otherwise. I’m pretty sure everyone falls into the “buy more” camp.

*This thread is so popular that probably hundreds get a notification when someone posts to it, so empty posts (yes, this one falls into that category) tend to clutter it up.

 

[Beauseph]

I think, imho, that the bold text is what generates the response. If you don’t care, don’t comment*. And I don’t believe anyone in this thread has ever supported selling any guns, much less all of them, to change to 223 or otherwise. I’m pretty sure everyone falls into the “buy more” camp.

*This thread is so popular that probably hundreds get a notification when someone posts to it, so empty posts (yes, this one falls into that category) tend to clutter it up.

I appreciate and respect that explanation and response. I'll continue observing from now on unless I have more pertinent information to provide.

 

[Dbevans]

223 on walrus


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[Drenalin]

@fngTony Thread title update please!

 

[Tahr]

I shoot a 53 vmax on groundhogs with my 22-250. Rarely do they exit 8-10 pound pigs under 250 yards with a muzzle velocity of 3650fps.
I’m not discrediting what youre saying but I would like to see pictures of carcasses and internals when hit with 45-55gr class varmint bullets in the ribs.
Does anyone here have on game experience with this?

There are examples in this thread. I posted a pic using a 52 ELDM about 3 pages back. VMax are very effective with lung shots. The 52 grn Sierra hollow point match is also a very good bullet on deer.

 

[Big_wals]

223 on walrus


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Thats awesome! What bullet?