Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting 223 or 22-250 for deer

Today at the gun shop I was back and forth over what cartridge I want the TC Compass in. I was leaning 22-250 even though they'd have to order one in. They had the rifle in stock in .223 and .204 Ruger. I could have them get me in a 22-250 but I don't know if there's really a good reason to choose that over a .223 for deer? The .204 would be tempting too if there were deer bullets available.

Speed kills. But you will need a tougher bullet for the 22-250

Using a 70gr bullet:

22-250, 33-3400 FPS (+/-)

223, 29-3000 FPS (+/-)

None of your choices is suitably for long range (over 300 yards) in even the best of conditions. Not saying it can't be done - but wind will really get after the .22 caliber bullets. That said, for a 300 and in gun, you can't go wrong with the .223. PLENTY of CHEAP ammo choices and it kills stuff deader than it should on paper. I too, was considering going to a 22-250 or a 22 Nosler... neither one can give me more of what I want unless I want to trade off LOUDER,LONGER and MORE EXPENSIVE to shoot.

Stay with the .223 and you can shoot CHEAP forever. The 55gr softpoints and the 62gr softpoints shoot well in my guns and kill with authority. When I run out of the current box, I'm switching over to the Speer 64gr Gold Dot (softpoint) law enforcement ammo

.223 is your Huckleberry. Cheaper to load and shoot and usually the twist allows for more versatility than the 14 twist in .22-250s....

Given the fast twists in off-the-rack 223's today, the 223 is going to be more effective than a slow twist 22-250, imo.

If you're going bang for buck (read between the lines w/ your choice of a compass), get a Ruger American in 22-250 w/ a 1-10 twist. Mine is fine w/ any 69 grainer. Also, you could order one with a 1-8" twist from member SAS via his shop (whittakerguns.com) if you want to shoot any heavy 22 bullet you can find.

My two bits...

Well the Compass is 1-12" in the .22-250 but the .223 is still sounding like the way to go.

Find a fast twist 22-250

A 22-250 is great but they come in different barrel twists. 1 in 14 is very common and is great for lighter varmint bullets. For heavier bullets for deer, like 60 and heavier, you need a 1 in 8 barrel.

Ive got a 9 twist 22-250 and love it. Used it for a few years on deer and 600 yard F-Class. 80gr Bergers were nasty on deer at 3200FPS and shot extremely well. Cold bore and 2 more rounds were under 2.5" at 600 yards so deer were a piece o cake out to 500 yards where i hunted.
But saying that, i never had any issues with a 8 twist 223 either with heavy bullets on deer and hogs.
So id say get both and figure out which you like better.

My Ruger 77 puts Hornady 55 soft points into little tiny groups. I've dug a couple out of the ground behind a 200 yard gong that were perfect mushrooms. Makes me think I should give them a try, I know I've seen Ingwe post good things about them.

Just pick and choose your shots...Ive had good luck with them and will be using them on a hog hunt in March. Pat ( Scenarshooter) has had great luck with them in his .220 Swift....

If you're buying it specifically for deer and you reload, get the 22-250.

If you want a wider range of versatility and don't reload, I'd get a .223.

I think the 22-250 is the most underrated deer cartridge in the country. Whittaker has their American in an 8" twist if you want an accurate sumbitch.





Dave

That's fun for people to say but the reality is that if the wind is howling and you're going to shoot a deer at 400yds with you're 30-06, you're going to have to know WTF you're doing.

And if you're going to take the same shot with your 22-250, you're going to have to know WTF your'e doing.

The problem is most people don't know WTF they're doing, so they compensate by buying a bigger cartridge that they rarely shoot. So they just keep not knowing WTF they're doing.




Clark

Get laid off and have to sell all your guns except a 222, and actually get to the point where, by necessity, you're supplementing your families' food with game.

You'll find out right away exactly what you can do with a 50gr SP, even at extended ranges.

Yep! When you're starving, a 22LR out of a handgun will kill deer quite effectively.

deflave u said it right on good for u an its true

223 with a 75 HPBT is bad medicine on deer. It kills with much more authority than it sounds like it would.

Why did you settle on .22 caliber, when there are so many GOOD deer calibers? Why not a 6.5 Creed at least?