Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Campfire Antelope Cartridge/Rifle

I have only killed 4 antelope. Hardly an expert, but they are not hard to kill with a well placed bullet. The three rifles I used were .257 Weatherby, .270 Winchester, and 7x57 Mauser, twice. All worked fine.
Today there are so many good cartridges to pick from it would be hard to go wrong with any of them. My sentimental choice is my #1, 7x57 with 150 gr BT.
My favorite game animal, fun to hunt and the weather can be pretty nice.

Rem Model 700 Classic in 6.5x55 Swedish.

About 20 years ago, I was hunting more Coues whitetails and pronghorns than everything else combined. I asked my friend (and gunsmith) Roy Bedeaux (now retired) to build me a lightweight rifle on a Mexican Mauser action. I decided to have it chambered in .257 Ackley Improved. Roy used a 550 featherweight Krieger barrel (1 in 10 twist), finished at 24 inches, bedded in a light-weight Rimrock stock. The action was fully spruced up with a new bolt handle, relieved cocking knob, side swing safety and a re-contoured trigger guard and bottom metal.

Since receiving the finished rifle from Roy, I have used nothing else for any of my whitetail, mule deer or pronghorn hunts. It's a joy to carry and is deadly accurate.

Our antelope killing has been with .243, 6mm-06, .257AI, and 7mm-08. All work for the purpose. In my mind something in the 6mm class shooting a bullet with a decent BC is hard to beat if purpose building/selecting an "antelope" rifle.





One nice thing about antelope is they tend to be a fair weather adventure in open country so if you are partial to fancy wood and deep blue finishes you can probably use that type of rifle fairly regular.

257 Roberts for me.

Montana in 7-08 throwing 120 gr TTSXs and wearing VX2 2-7x33 glass.

I have taken Antelope with a 223, a 6MM Remington, a 270 and a 30-06. One with a 30-30 14 inch Contender. The 270 and 30-06 are very effective and somewhat destructive. The 270 with 130 gr. Partitions were not so bad. I used the 6MM Remington back in the early 80's. I used the 105 Speer HotCore on top of various 4831's out of a Remington 788. Today I would take another 6MM Remington, a 257 Roberts, 260 Remington or a 6.5 Creed. To me as hard as it is to judge the wind in south central Wyoming those cartridges provide everything you need out to as far as you should be shooting. The longest shot I took was around 450 yards. With a 30-06 and a 150 gr. Speer Hotcor, hit him right in the neck. Most shots I have taken at Antelope Were inside 300 yards.

Most of my 2 dozen or so have been with a .25-06, 100gr. Barnes X or TTSX, from a B-78. I've also used 100gr. ballistic tips, .257Wby with 110 Interbond, .260/120 TSX or Ballistic Tip, 7mmRM/150TSX, .32Rem/170Speer, and 8mmRM/200TSX. All worked well, and I see no reason any reasonable bullet in a 6mm wouldn't do just as well. Hunting on the open prairie seems a good match for an accurate single shot and fast cartridge.

.257 AI, .257 Rob, & 6mm-250 have all proven effective for me.

.22-250, .223, .243 Win, 6mm Rem, .25-06, .270, .280, 7-08, 7x57, .308, .30-06, 8x57... can’t think of many cartridges I wouldn’t think were solid choices for pronghorn!



Totally agree with that; a 6mm-06 with fastest twist you can find would be a tough one to beat. 6mm Creedmoor for factory.

T/C Venture 25-06, Sierra Game Kings 117 grain BTSP

Add one more mid sized antelope to my .223 Rem's tally. The 62 TSX at about 200 yards entered the left shoulder as he faced me, traveled lengthwise down his left side, cutting over half of the left side ribs in half, just below the backstrap without hitting anything vital. First time I had seen that happen and it was a bad shot on my part. He ran about 2-300 yards out of sight and bedded down. I found him again and snuck up and put another round in him, this time as he was broadside. He didn't go anywhere after that, but kicked and took 2-3 minutes to die, which I wasn't too keen on watching.

That first bullet may still be in the ham, as I didn't see an exit, but also didn't look too hard as I wanted to get him cooled down ASAP. I'll look for it when I cut him up. I won't totally blame the bullet here, as I didn't make the best shot ever, but I have to wonder if a more fragmenting bullet would have sent shards into the lungs on that first shot, killing him faster. As it was, he was awake and totally conscious when I got closer and shot again 10 minutes after the first shot. Despite this, I still think the .223 Rem is the quintessential antelope round. The bullet? Maybe. Maybe not.

Same thing happened to me at 240yds 2 years ago on the first shot with 60 gr Hornady 's with some frags in the lungs. Hit high on the second shot in the neck down she went. Half way out to the doe she started to get up and I had to shoot her again. The same shot as the first with a 243 would have put her down and out on the spot. I don't use the 223 on antelope anymore anyone else can do as they like. MB

May I ask how you're so sure about this?

way old school love it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

T_Inman botched his shot and said so. You botched your shot and blamed the cartridge. That's ridiculous. You should have brought a 20mm something. That would have solved your poor shooting.

Tikka T3 in 7mm-08, 150 eldx handloads in case you need to shoot a ways.



P

Haven’t shot one yet. Got long ways to go to draw one here in Oregon.
But when the time comes. T3x SL in 6.5CM with 130 game changers

Anything accurate, from .243 on up. What a bunch of anal crap.

TinC**k,

Explanations on not doing the 69 ShameKing agin'.

Danke.

I have killed speedgoats with .270 Win, 25-06, .243, and .22-250. I prefer the .243 and that is all I carry anymore.