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Rifles, Reloading, Optics, Equipment
Rifles, Bullets, Barrels & Ballistics
What can't .223 kill?
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<blockquote data-quote="FAL Shot" data-source="post: 508966" data-attributes="member: 27328"><p>The .223 Remington can be loaded with varmint bullets or with big game bullets such as a 75-grain Swift Scirocco II. That bullet could kill a Cape Buffalo, but maybe not before the buffalo killed the shooter. A killing round and a stopping round are not the same thing. A mule deer at 200 yards and a cape buffalo ready to charge you are two different things. </p><p> </p><p>The original question is hard to answer because it was poorly asked. Being able to kill and being able to kill quickly and reliably are two different things. I would use a .223 Rem cartridge, provided it had the right bullet, up to about 300 yards on an average size mule deer, under good shooting conditions. How soon do you need the animal stopped and dead, and under what conditions?</p><p> </p><p>For really long distances and windy days, you should move up to a 6.5mm to 7mm bullet, and bigger than that for really big game like elk and buffalo. </p><p> </p><p>However, at short enough ranges where you can definitely place the bullet properly and where you have a clear shot at vital organs, a .223 Rem with a heavy-for-caliber and tough bullet should be able to take game bigger than mule deer quite reliably.</p><p> </p><p>This only applies to those who will hold the shot if everything isn't right. In situations where you feel you MUST shoot at any opportunity that comes along, or where you may be in danger, then a bigger cartridge is called for. I live in a state with no caliber restrictions on big game, as it probably couldn't be enforced anyway. If anything, it seems most people use too heavy a cartridge to cover up their inadequacies. Automobiles do most of the killing of big game that is not recovered and thus wasted, so that is a bigger concern than subcaliber firearms.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="FAL Shot, post: 508966, member: 27328"] The .223 Remington can be loaded with varmint bullets or with big game bullets such as a 75-grain Swift Scirocco II. That bullet could kill a Cape Buffalo, but maybe not before the buffalo killed the shooter. A killing round and a stopping round are not the same thing. A mule deer at 200 yards and a cape buffalo ready to charge you are two different things. The original question is hard to answer because it was poorly asked. Being able to kill and being able to kill quickly and reliably are two different things. I would use a .223 Rem cartridge, provided it had the right bullet, up to about 300 yards on an average size mule deer, under good shooting conditions. How soon do you need the animal stopped and dead, and under what conditions? For really long distances and windy days, you should move up to a 6.5mm to 7mm bullet, and bigger than that for really big game like elk and buffalo. However, at short enough ranges where you can definitely place the bullet properly and where you have a clear shot at vital organs, a .223 Rem with a heavy-for-caliber and tough bullet should be able to take game bigger than mule deer quite reliably. This only applies to those who will hold the shot if everything isn't right. In situations where you feel you MUST shoot at any opportunity that comes along, or where you may be in danger, then a bigger cartridge is called for. I live in a state with no caliber restrictions on big game, as it probably couldn't be enforced anyway. If anything, it seems most people use too heavy a cartridge to cover up their inadequacies. Automobiles do most of the killing of big game that is not recovered and thus wasted, so that is a bigger concern than subcaliber firearms. [/QUOTE]
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What can't .223 kill?
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