223 Deer Bullet/Factory Load

[shooter7]

I was impressed with the performance of Barnes factory ammo out of a 16" barrel. I shot a whitetail doe at 70 yards with the 70gr TSX. She was quartering towards me. I broke the close shoulder, put a nice hole through the lungs and had about a half inch exit. She ran about 20 yards.

 

[toddpipkin]

(EDIT: Todd Pipkin, above, says they work in 1:14 twist. I've never tried them in less than 1:9 but maybe they do!)

Better than in my 1-7" AR's and Mini-14. And the Remmy barrel has a pencil-thin 26" barrel!

 

[D2wing]

I have used 55 gr soft points with excellent results on big Minnesota deer including a 14 pt. buck. In my opinion you should be selective in your shots but it turns the lungs and heart into mush. Heart shots are the only guaranteed kill shots. Even a 300 lbs. deer is only 14 inches at the widest. I have more confidence in my 7-08 but a soft point .223 works better than say a shotgun slug or pistol by a big margin. I've used them all.

 

[gsr1578]

I have a Noveske Rogue Hunter and my 13 yr old daughter shot a buck at about 225 yards with Fort Scott Ammo 62gr bullet that tumbles. Deer ran 20 yards and down. There ammo is unbelievable as far as performance and wound channel. On top of that it's very fairly priced!!

 

[hoffbill]

223 is quite capable of killing whitetail deer effectively. They are thin skinned and light boned. As several posts have mentioned, range is limited and shot placement is critical. I have killed several whitetails at 80-100 yds with 55 and 60 gr Vmax bullets doing neck shots. All down in their tracks. For deer and especially hogs the 62gr Barnes bullets are excellent. I have used them in several calibers and found them very accurate and extremely lethal. They are an alloy bullet, no lead, and have a reputation of penetration and wound channel equal to heavier lead core bullets. Apparently that is a result of their reliable but controlled expansion and excellent weight retention.

 

[HOCOMO Hunter]

I have to vote for the 55gr Sierra GK

 

[nicholasjohn]

Nosler 64gr bonded. shot two whitetails already this year with 22-250 one at 279 and one at 50. Both had excellent wounds and pass throughs. Ive used 65 SGK in 223 last year great results. And for the naysayers each man has to know his limits.

I, too , have shot a number of deer with the 22 centerfire cartridges. Most have been with the 22-250, using 64-grain Winchester Power Point bullets. I've never had one take another step after being hit. As for the naysayers you mentioned, most of them have never tried it - but still like to condemn it. Some guys think they know everything.

 

[Simple11]

I have a Remington 700 223 that's been trued and a 1/7 muller works barrel installed. Timney trigger. Stockys stock that's bedded. Nightforce 20 moa base. Mark 4 30mm medium rings. Leupold Mark 4 4.5x14 optics. And I run a SICO omega suppresor on it. I'm shooting 75 gr hornady tap hand loads. I've taken several deer, several hogs, and several coyotes with this rifle / bullet combination. My shots have been from 45 yards out to 200 yards. I'm shooting for the ball of nerves that's above the shoulder just below the spine....if I can't get that shot I'm looking for a high neck shot. When I do my job and put the bullet in either of those areas the animal drops in their tracks and it's a clean kill. I've pulled my shot a few times or the animal will take a step in either direction and the bullet impacts a little off..... but with the 75gr hornady tap Ammo the furthest I've had to track an animal is 45 to 50 yards.
I enjoy shooting my 223 while hunting. But my shot placement is key and I understand that my personal preference is to keep my shots inside 250 yards.

 

[RAGGED EDGE]

Within your parameters the 60-grain Partition will do anything you might ask. It will kill the largest deer on this planet, and since recoil is out of the equation it is very easy to properly direct.

 

[John Klingenberg]

A 223/5.56 is not undergunned for whitetail with a good bullet. Hogs are marginally tougher bodywise and Ive piled up a lot of them with an AR. A lot of caribou get shot with ARs by the Inuit in Alaska every year. Its not a big bone smasher but anything along the line behind a shoulder does fine. I just finished culling season permits in Michigan. Big bodied deer. 42 were shot. The vast majority were 223 kills with a partition bullet. All under 200 yards.

 

[freddiej]

the problem I have is this.. I would never use a .224" diameter slug on a white tail or any deer. the smallest caliber/diameter I would use is a .257". as in 25 WSSM or 257 Rob.
now for the most devastating .224" out of a 223 rem or a 5.56 it has to be the 70 grain Barnes TSX. that is with a 150 yard max range as you said.

 

[nicholasjohn]

the problem I have is this.. I would never use a .224" diameter slug on a white tail or any deer. the smallest caliber/diameter I would use is a .257". as in 25 WSSM or 257 Rob.
now for the most devastating .224" out of a 223 rem or a 5.56 it has to be the 70 grain Barnes TSX. that is with a 150 yard max range as you said.

Did you have a bad experience with .224" bullets on deer ?

 

[DF7753]

I have used 65 gr Sierra Game Kings in 1:8" AR for deer and performance was admirable.
Accuracy is excellent.

 

[Jimtheobald]

I've killed a bunch of deer, hogs coyotes, crows, feral dogs, etc., with Speer 70 grain Semi-spitzers from my Mini-14 Ranch Rifle, from A Rem. Custom Shop 700 Mountain Rifle in .22-250, and from a few AR's.

I've killed SEVERAL bunches of each with Winchester 64 grain Power Points, also from several different rifles.

You'd think the Rem. 700, with 14" twist, would not do well with that long bullet. You'd be wrong, as I was! The most accurate of the bunch; always at sub 1/2 minute groups, when pushed about 2800 by a medium load of H-414.

I just started shooting Speer. Great results!!