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Old January 18, 2012, 09:45 PM   #1
JGC
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223 Kills

http://thefiringline.com/forums/atta...7&d=1326819682
Feel free to post pics of kill/rifle/load used.
Looking to compare wounds for hunting load and would also like to see what some can/have done with their 223.
Will be using my Ar for hogs/Deer/varmints starting next month. Any Tips will be greatly appreciated.
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Old January 18, 2012, 11:20 PM   #2
Art Eatman
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Be picky about the sort of bullet you choose. Stay away from those which are mostly intended as varmint loads when you're going for deer and hogs; use the heavier bullets--although they'll work just fine on coyotes and such.
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Old January 19, 2012, 12:25 AM   #3
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At first I thought the spotting scope was attached to the rail.
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Old January 19, 2012, 12:52 AM   #4
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lol no i just figured id include it in the picture, its a nikon and works great with up to 45x.
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Old January 19, 2012, 11:18 AM   #5
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I guess I am with Art Eatman on bullet choice. I like the varmit bullets for deer, but only use my AR for close, walking around hunting. It looks like you (Photo) are planning some long shots.
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Old January 19, 2012, 11:27 AM   #6
12-34hom
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223

223 fine for varmint hunting - not suitable for deer sized game.

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Old January 19, 2012, 11:41 AM   #7
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JGC

I've used Remington 55gr SP Core Lock on deers and hogs for past two years and didn't have any problems. We never lost any game with this ammo and only one deer required a second shot to finish it off. It's usually used in the Rock River AR Carbine with 1-9" twist barrel and we keep the range to 100 yards or less. I don't use my AR for hunting but when kids are here the adjustable stock make it more comfortable for them and they shoot better with them. This year I want to try out some heavier bullets to see how well they work.
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Old January 19, 2012, 02:02 PM   #8
Art Eatman
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When you get down to what I'd call the "marginal" cartridges, odds are that the shooting skill becomes more important, and maybe even moreso, control of adrenalin. For some people, it's all fairly easy. Others, not so much.
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Old January 19, 2012, 03:08 PM   #9
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Art i know where your coming from, ive seen guys get too excited and shoot themselves on accident, patience is a virtue hard learned in life. Iam planning on staying inside 200 yards, prefer inside 100, here in florida there arent too many longshots from what i hear and its main purpose is for hog. i just want to make sure the bullet will hold its integrity and penetrate but also expand, seems like most either fragment on impact or go right thru and dont expand, iam planning on head shots for these hogs because from what ive seen they can dissapear fairly quickly in the dense marsh, shot angle is also very important and very well ignored variable in the field, elevation can also play tricks.iam just wondering if the bigger 400lb ones would take a hit and laugh but i cant see their skull being that tough..then again i hear of 44 mag bullets ricochet off their heads??
lot of confusing, i got armor penetrating rounds and i know they cant stand up to a head shot from that but i cant use them, so in essence something with good penetration to at the minimum crack their skull open,
also heard of the varmint rounds shattering and not even penetrating on impact...i find that hard to believe and either way iam looking into the bthp's. sorry for the mess and questions just wana get it right, iam a firm believer of one shot kill to the right spot.
Reason i included deer is because in florida supposively they arent that big and well a shot to the ear should do the trick, sorry i dont like slow dying animals and if i cant take the shot then i just dont, its not my style and iam extremely comfterble inside 100 yards on a head shot. would rather go for the vitals though with a decent round but then again we run into the chasing game.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/467...sting-_-467277

http://www.venturamunitions.com/223-...ion-20-rounds/

http://www.venturamunitions.com/223-...match-hornady/

http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/66155-5.html#Reviews
so many options..

Last edited by JGC; January 19, 2012 at 03:19 PM.
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Old January 19, 2012, 03:31 PM   #10
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Check out this video!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ln1qLy3xSf0
is that good shooting or what? someone passed thru the military at some point.
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Old January 19, 2012, 04:22 PM   #11
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We normally take neck shots on hogs as it puts them down quickly and it's a large target. We recover the hog within 20 yards of where it was shot and most are within just a step or two. If they are real close (under 35 yards or so) we take head shots just under and behind the ear. Head shots hogs usually DRT. Another good thing is that both neck and head shots means very little meat loss. A 223 will to the head will drop any hog including 400+ lb. boar.

When I take my little ones to hunt I'll usually take my 308 rifle to take any back up shots but so for it has not been necessary.
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Old January 19, 2012, 05:00 PM   #12
JGC
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1t that sounds like solid intel, should i bother jumping from a 55gr to a 62gr or higher ?
i fear loosing too much velocity in this 16" barrel and decreasing penetration too much,
or in retro if too fast not enough expansion, would 55 be too fast?
or would 62 be a good happy medium between 55 and 75? 75 just seems too heavy and due to speed lose=decrease in penetration..
if anyone has tested different loads or experiences id really like to hear about it, pictures a bonus.
seems deer are easier than hogs, being hogs are heavier and have thicker shoulders/bones. maybe 62 is a good all around happy medium ?
those corelokt seem promissing as far as integrity and expansion, not too sure on how they would do guess i gota grab a box and find out but i wouldnt be suprised if they dont outshoot my hornady rounds, so far my best luck since i ever shot a firearm is hornady rivals remington ammo on paper at least by a huge factor but with this setup the margin should be minimal.
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Old January 20, 2012, 08:58 AM   #13
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Art is correct, hunting with the .223 requires some self discipline when making a shot. More over when not to take a shot.

When you take the shot open both eyes, take your finger off the trigger and get out of the scope. If more pigs are present, its gonna be absolute mayhem and you wanna be alert.
Since you have an AR, put the safety on. As you frolic towards your pig doing a victory dance, we don't want your rifle going off.
Don't have any dreams of shooting another one.



The final step....... call all your buddies and let them pose with your pig so that they can put them on their Facebook page.
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Old January 20, 2012, 09:53 AM   #14
Art Eatman
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JGC, it sounds like you need to do some looking at whatever factory ammo is designed for larger-than-coyote hunting.

Me, I handload, and don't know much about what's on the shelf. If I'm thinking of hogs and deer, I'm going to use something bigger than a .223.

I have an AR, specifically set up for varmints. Slow twist, 20" barrel. I have a bolt-gun .223; 22" barrel. Prairie dog gun, mostly. I don't see either one of them as a first choice for deer or hogs. For hogs, I'd likely at a minimum use my .243, and not use my pet load with the 85-grain HPBT; I'd go up to something around 100 grains.

Hock shops are loaded with bolt guns. Generally, they have about half their asking price in them. Plenty of room for bargaining and arguing. That makes such as a .308 fairly inexpensive, and then life is very, very easy.
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Old January 20, 2012, 10:45 AM   #15
rickyrick
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If hunting pigs in the same setting as other sport hunting, I see no real advantage to using .223 when other options are available.

Will .223 work? Yes. Is it the ultimate pig cartridge? No.


When people ask about .223 it does work because I do it. I am not sport hunting and the number one reason is elimination. I use .223 for safety of domestic animals. Many other cartridges may exit.

the reason .223 works is neck shots and hydrostatic shock to the brain.

I have had the experience of trapping hogs also, and have been able to shoot them with many different guns and to determined what worked best for me.

You are not gonna be able to just take POP shots at them with .223. It's gonna have be a calm calculated shot.
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Old January 20, 2012, 11:28 AM   #16
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Quote:
223 fine for varmint hunting - not suitable for deer sized game.

12-34hom
Yeah, I have a buddy that gave me a hard time about the caliber, citing some African big game hunter whose catch phrase was apparently, "Bring enough gun." I had panic shot one of the lead hogs of a sounder that walked in on me while I was checking a feeder. The bullet came apart hitting the humerus at 15 yards and failed to penetrate the torso. So the razzing continued about how I needed to bring enough gun. It certainly wasn't a good choice for the shot I took, but the shot I took wasn't the shot I had expected to be taking. .223/5.56 is fine for hog CNS shots which it what I prefer to shoot when using the caliber.

A few months later using a 12 ga slug gun, he shot at a deer coming to the feeder, hitting the leg, and he lost the deer. Unlike my pig, the deer was just fine. He completely missed it. It was the feeder's leg that took the impact. Even then it wasn't a great shot and he failed to bring down the feeder. So now I ask him about how much is enough gun for a complete miss to bring down a deer and he has stopped razzing me about my lost hog.

As Art and others have indicated, it isn't about the gun or caliber so much as the shot. Smaller calibers require better shot placement and trajectory such that they penetrate to the intended vital organs. Smaller calibers are less forgiving on larger game when it comes to poor shots.

Quote:
When you take the shot open both eyes, take your finger off the trigger and get out of the scope. If more pigs are present, its gonna be absolute mayhem and you wanna be alert.
It is a very exciting time. Since nearly all of my pig hunting is at night, when multiple pigs are present and especially if there are some light colored pigs in the group, the first pig I will shoot is darker and/or not in front of the group. Once the pigs start to run, the lighter pigs are easier to pick up and track than the darker pigs and so are easier to shoot whilst on the move than the darker pigs.

The first time I did this, I was just so amazed by the amount of commotion that I never picked up a secondary target and lost the opportunity.

Quote:
Check out this video!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ln1qLy3xSf0
is that good shooting or what? someone passed thru the military at some point
I would hope that any hunter could make 30-40 yard shots, but it does show that the caliber can be used effectively.
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Old January 20, 2012, 01:12 PM   #17
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One of my inlaws hunts hogs with his AR in 5.56.
A couple of weeks ago he poped one weighing about 350-400.
He actually uses 55gr FMJs behind the ear with success.
That last one he killed managed to run 50 yards before he expired.
I normally use a M92 44mag or 30-06 for hogs,but if I had a 223/5.56 with the proper bullets I wouldnt hesitate to use it if a pig walked out.
My cousins son took his first doe this year with a 223 55gr SP to the boiler, she layed it down about 35yards from where he shot her. It's not the ideal cartridge for deer as many will tell ya. But if you play it cool and place your shots , it can work......
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Old January 20, 2012, 02:00 PM   #18
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I have taken 2 mule deer and 1 whitetail with my savage .223
55 grain sp @ 3200 fps tucked right behind the shoulder does the job inside 200 yards fine also on the whitetail i took a spine shot @ around 240 ish she dropped like a sack of potatoes with a god awfull whack. i think people get too hung up on caliber and while i prefer my .30-06, that season in montana, the only centerfire rifle i had was the .223. sure i passed on alot of shots including a nice 5x6 muley but when conditions are right and a cool shooter is behind the rifle the .223 works
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Old January 20, 2012, 02:47 PM   #19
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Winchester make a 60gr .223 deer round that I've heard good things about.

.24 caliber minimum here.
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Old January 24, 2012, 09:31 PM   #20
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deer

Bamaboy killed his first two (maybe 3) whitetails with a .223 Mini-Mauser mounting a 6x, and Federal tac ammo, 55 and 62 gr bonded bullets,

Much practice and ideal conditions, animals in the open from a shooting house (one from a ground blind and shooting sticks), me coaching.

All deer got dead about as quick as other cals, all things considered. But...no exit wound on one and no blood trail, though the doe went down in about 50 yds.

It'll work, used and applied right, but we moved to more gun very quickly.
I consider the .223 on big game a niche use, for specific circmstances, used with much discretion.
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