Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Have you used the .223 for deer/antelope?

I’m going to go heavily against the grain here. With hunting I have personally shot around 80 deer with 223/5.56mm’s, have been physically present (behind the spotting scope) for at least double that many. Using all the normal bigger rounds and including culling, well into four digits. A lot of these deer had field autopsies completed. I have seen “rodeos” with every single caliber with a multitude of bullets. Some deer just die hard. I have put multiple rounds in the chest of deer (usually bucks) with 243’s, 270’s, 7-08, 308, 7mm RM, 300 WM, 300 RUM, 338L, etc. All we’re good shots hitting both lungs.
Yet the buck with the 300 RUM took two rounds center chest at less than 250 yards, and nearly got a third because he just continued to chase a doe. Both exit wound were baseball sized, and both were placed correctly. A smallish 8pt took two rounds to the lungs at 280 yards from 95gr NBT’s, fell in a river and was still alive 5 minutes later. A decent 11pt took three rounds of 178gr Amax from a 300WM. This combo creates horrific wound channels yet he lived for almost ten minutes and it wasn’t until the CNS was cut that he stopped A doe took 4 rounds of Winchester 140gr CT 270WSM at 400 yards. She fell at every shot, then got back up, shot, fell, got up, etc. All bullets hit both lungs, performed as designed, and exited. There was nothing left of the front half. Exit wounds were 2-4”, and she still stumbled out of sight after the fourth hit. Multiples and multiples of deer have taken 2-4 rounds of TSX/TTSX/GMX/etc. One yearling button buck took four 139gr GMX’s in the chest from a 7-08 at 200 yards. All rounds hit lungs, and he still had to have a finisher a couple minutes later when we walked to it.


The point is that if you shoot enough deer with ANY chambering and bullet you will eventually run into a deer that just doesn’t want to die. However, way more “rodeos” have happened with hard, deep penetrating bullets than with soft bullets that penetrate deep enough to reach the chest and create wide wound channels. It’s not even close in ratio.


The 223 is capable of creating damage that makes most 30/06’s blush. There is no issue in the biggest of deer with a 77gr TMK inserted in the lungs. You can expect 20’ish inches of penetration, even going through a shoulder, with a three to four inch wide wound channel. If you hit a shoulder, it’s pretty much gone.

This buck was at 110yrds quartering to.



The 77gr TMK centered the near shoulder, through ribs, both, lungs, and was stopped under the hide behind the last rib. About 22” of penetration after hitting shoulder and ribs.




The recovered bullet.





This mule deer was at 303 yards.





Through the shoulder/leg knuckle, ribs, lungs, caught in the offside skin behind the last rib. Again- 20-22 inches of penetration.





This one was around 100 yards as well. Shoulder, ribs, lungs, ribs, exit.







No one walks up and says- “that’s marginal”. Quite the opposite. One person was very aggressive about 223’s being too small. After seeing several deer killed with the TMK and the wounds, he knows says it’s does too much damage and wastes meat.....




Worried about the Texas heart shot? Don’t be. Put it into the tailbone or hip and the deer drops. Like mist all rear ended shots regardless of bullet or caliber, it’s a stoping shot and requires a finisher. I was with someone that did just that a couple days ago with a 77gr TMK at just over 200 yards. First shot broke near side shoulder and lung. The buck stumbled 20-30 feet and stopped facing away. Second shot hit 3/4” below the head of the left femur (ball joint) completely shattering it, traveled just to the left of the right joint breaking it, and stopped about an inch from exiting the offside hip. The deer collapsed. Having done read shots with nearly every make and model of bullet, if I have to take that shot- I want a bullet that does as much damage as possible regardless of caliber or cartridge. I have had multiple TSX’s just miss the spine and fail to drop the animal. Everyone that had taken an Amax/ELD-M, TMK, Berger, etc. has collapsed immediately.





I have zero issues with any deer walking- 80lb southern does, to 300lb northern bucks out to 550-600’ish yards with 75gr Speer Gold Dots, 77gr TMK’s, 75gr ELD-M’s, etc. 223’s encourage surgical shooting, allow anyone to spot their own impacts, and used with the right bullets will cause more damage than anyone wants. For new hunters, I would always rather them use a 223 with one of the above bullets.




TTSX’s kill fine, but they create relatively small wound channels. I would highly suggest 62gr Federal Fusion, and if your barrel is 8” twist or better- 75gr Speer Gold Dot or Blackhills 77gr TMK. Both, vutvthe TMK specifically can and will create massive damage especially if bones are hit.