Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Hornady 55gr SP on deer?

Was reading over in the varmint forum about 223 hunting bullets and figured I'd ask this here.
There were several comments on how good the 55 SGK is on deer/hogs/lopes.
I was wondering how the Hornady 55 SP compares to it.
Is it as tough/good?
I'm trying to find an inexpensive deer/hog load that shoots very close to same POI as 55 FMJ so my son can practice a lot this summer with the FMJ and switch to SP for deer this fall.
Obviously I'd check zero before just switching.
I can pick up Hornady 55 SP locally for $24/50. I don't hand load.
Is this a viable option?
Keep in mind a first year hunter sending these things toward a deer shoulder.
Shots will be kept under 100 yards.
Thanks in advance.

The non-cannelured version has a good reputation for holding together. My late brother loaded up some for the guy who owned the land we hunted years back, and they were good killers in his .22/250. He shot a doe end-on at about 100 yards and the bullet ended up inside a hindquarter. He whacked a few others as well. I'd shoot heart-lung on deer, like with everything else; 1/3 way up.

you will have no problem if you make PROPER SHOT PLACEMENT... they will NOT alleviate a poor shot.

Since you’re planning on shoulder shots, I’d pick a stouter Bullet. should work ok for broadside lung shots.

I put one through both shoulders of a big doe {140 lbs} from 80 yards a few years ago. She dropped instantly. The bullet was recovered from just under the hide on the offside. It was mushroomed nearly to the base but core and jacket were still in one piece.

They will work for deer and small hogs behind the shoulder. Not for use on big pigs.

I can't speak to how well they hold together on an onside shoulder hit. The one and only time I used one on a WI whitetail the shot did a good job tearing up the lungs and hit the offside shoulder. It tore up pretty well all the meat, blew into bitty fragments, and cracked the shoulder bone. This was on a little bitty 120# doe during an antlerless only hunt. The range was about 90 yards with a fairly small shooting lane. Honestly, I'd not use this bullet in 223 for WT again, as the 60 gr NPT works much better, as does their 64gr BSB.

Funny, I've killed a bunch of whitetails with that bullet and never had a problem. Have two 8 point bucks on the wall that fell to that bullet.The bigger of the two dressed 172 lbs. and fell instantly to a quartering away lung shot.

For clarification, I won't be instructing him to bust the shoulder.
Just saying that might be where it ends up if he gets a little buck fever and was wondering if it'd be up to the task.

Slip, years a go I shot a nice doe in the shoulder with this bullet from a .223, she did run, but only a shot distance.. I read where the boys in Montana have shot quite a lot of deer, antelope and a couple bear with the 55 Horn.. But they did use them from Swifts or the .22-250..

What about a Barnes for hunting?

Hey the 55Hornady works perfectly if you place it in the lungs/heart/shoulder.

Shot in the ass or the fuggin' guts, maybe not so much

Nothing the matter with the 55-grain Hornady in the .223 Normal at all.

I've killed maybe fifty mulies, some rather big, with that combination and I NEVER had a repeat customer. One shot ... one dead deer.

Pretty simple, actually.

Blessings,

kd

Someone somewhere said something like "Shoot 'em in the front half."

There are lots of uncontrolled variables in this sport that we love. Not judging, just find it interesting that some folks on this thread have good success with a 55gr CnC bullet ostensibly designed for varmints, and at the same there are folks on a nearby thread who have had poor results from a 120gr CnC bullet at 7-08 velocities.

I've used them with excellent results from my 22-250, 220 Swift and 220 Wilson Arrow. My hunting partner has had great results from his 223 with them. This one is fell to that bullet from the 220 Wilson Arrow at 175yds. MV was about 3800fps.

A .224” diameter bullet 50-70 grain wouldn’t be my first or tenth choice for deer hunting.

BUT, if that was all I had ( my 222 Rem and 50-55 grains soft point jacketed bullet) and I was hungry, within a reasonable distance ( under 100 yards) and able to get a good shot ( neck) on a non-running deer, I would be eating venison.

My wife has a friend that has taken something like 21 deer with 21 shots from her 222 Remington, Model Savage 340, and factory 50 or 55 grain loads. She shoots from a tree stand on her father’s farm. Shots are under 50 yards. 4x Weaver EL Paso scope ( 1960’s vintage and regular cross hair). Her shot is a high neck shot, just under the base of the skull. Not a lot of tracking was ever needed, and she has dropped 200+ lbs dressed-out whitetails with that system ( Albion, Maine).

A 222 Rem is legal for deer hunting in Maine.

With the 55 grainers from your 223, you may want to focus on neck shots.... and keep it inside 100 yards.

Hunting deer with a .224" 55 gr. bullet is a stunt like riding a bicycle no handed. Some day it won't be the right choice.

The load that you mentioned will work fine. I’ve used them on body shots and they held together fine. As some others have stated large hogs might be a different story. Extended family have used them, mostly on WT neck shots I think...though my FiL likes to neck shoot them with his 270 as-well....

55 gr Hornady spire point, 223 Rem, about 80 yards, 120 lb doe.

DRT!

I’m not saying they want kill a deer. My question is why use a varmit bullet on Deer. Barnes, Nosler etc make bullets that are designed for larger game. They are not that expensive and you probably want be shooting a lot of them. Hasbeen

I have shot two turkeys with the Hornady 55 SP out of a 223 and I had mixed results. The bullet expanded pretty violent on one and really mild on the other. For shots of 100 yards or less the velocity is still going to be high enough for violent results. I would not advise it unless you can handload and slow them down.

They work just fine on whitetail deer. They will break a shoulder with no problem.

They are not what I would describe as an actual "varmint" bullet anyway. They function as simply a softpoint.

Years ago in Texas I shot several deer with that bullet in a short barreled .222....it worked great.....it's all about bullet placement....and very little to do with muzzle energy.....I'm not sure about this but I suspect the same results would be had with the .22 Hornet.

Perhaps, but the company that designed and manufactures them says they are varmint bullets

Not a 55 hornady, but a federal blue box 50 gr, buck was bedded 350 yds across a canyon, touched er off, he flipped 150 yards through the clearcut to the bottom. I’ll be using my no 1 22-250 with 55 hornadys this fall on bucks, I’m not even second thinking it....

They worked well in a Kimber of Oregon .223 for what goes as a large deer in the Hill Country of Tejas about 120 field dressed. Shot probably six deer and twice as many hogs with the Federal load that used the Hornaday. I thought they might be too soft for the faster 224s but others in this thread reported to the contrary. Only had one deer go more than about 20 yards, this due to a shot near the last ribs. Have not tried the Sierras but the 62 grain is supposed to be good.

Thanks for all the input guys

THIS !!!! ALL about proper shot placement.

THIS


Ive killed a number of deer and just last week a couple Blackbuck in Texas with the Hornady 55 SP

Shot placement is key.

You might want to consider the deal Midsouth Shooter Supply has on 62 grain Hornady BTHP in bulk bags for about 11 or 12 cents a bullet. They are sold as hunting bullets and I can attest to their efficiency on hogs. Normally I wouldn't consider .223 on big game but the AR15 with low recoil and fast target recovery means a lot on large numbers of targets. My .30-06 is the weapon of choice for big game but it is too slow for 10 to 20 hogs at once. For that matter the AR15 is too slow in my hands but this 62 grain bullet works for me as well as Barnes at about 20% the price.

ss, My neighbor borrowed my Browning Micro Medallion .223 for his daughter to use for deer hunting for two seasons. She's 2 fer 2 on decent bucks with the 55gr Hornady SP. Both heart shots.

Pappy348,

I bought a few hundred of the 55gr sp with cannelure. You mention the non-cannelure version has a reputation for holding together. Are you implying that the cannelure version does not hold together? My both bullets are the same just one has the cannelure and the other one does not.

I dont think he implied that at all...cause we know from a looooong track record the ones with the cannelures DO indeed hold together.

I Have such faith in them that Ive never loaded and hunted with a non-cannelures version...they might work just as swell....but Ive never bothered to try.

Thanks ingwe. This is the first post I seen someone mention "non-cannelure" and was wondering if they are that different.

I was intrigued by this as well. Nice to hear reports from those who've actually used it. Thanks.

Some recent kills with the 55 Grain Hornady....out of a .222

And another one..on a deer, since that was the OPs question...223AI 55 gr. Hornady

For a simple bullet cup and core, they are great bullets.

The 55 gr. Winchester sp's work just as well.

I've always been under the impression that the cannelured versions actually hold together slightly better than the plain.

The cannelure strategically weakens the jacket so that it folds back a bit more at that point, tucking everything together a little tighter.

Probably one of my top ten favorite threads on the fire. I’ve read it about a dozen times. I haven’t landed a 222 yet, but I did happen across a nice 1:12 twist 223 Rem chambered M77 Ultra Light! The 55gr Power Points should do the trick.

The 55gr Hornady SP has a small boat tail now, how does it compare to the older flatbase version on deer?

No worries with the 55 SP. My son has had used them in my 22-250 with no problems.

GreggH

you guys can draw your own conclusions on this post, involving something I saw using Hornady 55 grain SP and FMJ bullets.

A bunch of 4 x 6 steel plates were left at the local range on one of the banks at 100 yds. Their thickness was 3/8 of an inch.

I shot one of them with a 223, loaded to 2650 fps MV. 10 Shots and I had 10 holes in the steel plate. I was thinking I shouldn't be seeing this, but there they were.

So I went home and loaded up 40 rounds of 223 ammo, divided into groups of 10.

2 groups each, with ten 55 grain SP Hornady bullets and ten with 55 gr FMJ Hornady Bullets. The load gave 3150 fps MV at the Muzzle, for both bullets. This is military MV specs for an M 16.

The second two groups were loaded with the same two bullets, ten each, with an MV of 2650 fps at the Muzzle. 55 gr Hornady SP, and 55 gr FMJ.

So the results I saw, when shooting at 100 yds, with several of these same Steel plates.

When leaving the Muzzle at 3150 fps, ALL of the 55 grain SP and 55 FMJ Hornady bullets, did nothing but splatter when hitting the plates.

Next, I shot ALL of the other group of bullets, leaving the Muzzle at 2650 fps at two plates. One for the 55 gr SP and one for the 55 gr FMJ. ALL of the bullets leaving the MV at 2650 fps, managed to penetrate right thru the same steel plates EACH time. I didn't expect to see this, but there it was, right in front of me. However that is not what I expected to see.

I went home and had to put some thought into why I saw those results. Finally it came to me pretty clearly:

The answer was structural integrity. The Steel plates have a certain amount of structural integrity to them. The bullets have a certain amount of structural integrity to them also.

Leaving the barrel at 3150 fps, and contacting the steel plates at 100 yds, the Structural Integrity of the Steel Plates, had the ability to overcome the Structural integrity of the Steel plates. So the results were seeing ten 55 gr FMJs and ten 55 gr SPs hitting the steel plates and splattering EACH TIME.

The next pair of groups were leaving the Muzzle at 2650 fps, and in contacting the Steel Plates at 100 yds, at the lower speed, the structural integrity of the bullets were able to overcome the structural integrity of the Steel Plates. Results were that I had ten holes in each of the two Steel Plates. One with 10 holes from the ten SP bullets and the other with ten FMJ bullets.

Conclusion to this project test: Bullets have certain parameters that they can penetrate a media they are shot at. At least on these Steel plates, when the speed of the bullet is slowed down, they have the ability to penetrate more than the faster moving bullets. So if people compare the results on game, with a 222 vs a 223, the slower speed of the 222 will do better in penetration than the 223 running at a faster MV.

AS I said, draw your own conclusions. But since this experiment to find an answer to my question, I've seen a lot of different bullets out of different caliber guns, in distance under 200 to 250 yds, work better at the slower speeds. Hence at my age now, I am down to using the 6 x 45 and the 6.5 Grendal for my deer hunting for the number of seasons that I have left in me.

seafire...
May 4, 2024.

good post Seafire. I have noticed the same

Don't people have something more to do than ask these stupid questions day after day???????

I find this subject matter about 1000X’s more interesting than another thread about a 30-06.

The 64 grain Power Point is designed for shooting antelope and deer with the 223 and 22-250 as loaded by Winchester in their factory ammo. I shot a whitetail doe several years ago with that bullet fired from a 223 WSSM. There was snow on the ground and I have never seen an off-side blood spray like this bullet/cartridge combination produced.

I personally have never been a fan of the 223 for deer but have shot quite a few hogs and deer with the round anyway. Never lost one using it. For some situations like hunting from a blind watching a feeder it is as good as anything else if you know where to put the bullet and can do so. I have used the 55 and 60 gr, Hornady SP's along with the Hornady 60 gr. HP with good results overall. I personally feel the 22-250 is a step up giving a bit more range.

This again. I have killed several does, one smallish buck, and a pig or two with this bullet from my 527 in .223. Like most bullets it works fine-just have to put it in the right spot. Wound channel looks a bit like that of a .243. How true it is I do not know but I have been told that Joyce Hornady designed the bullet so it would work in a .220 Swift as a decent varmint bullet. In the slower cartridges like a .223 it acts like a regular softpoint.

55gr. Sp works on Pigs, 1 per customer. Rio7

My grandsons and I have taken several deer and hogs with Barnes bullets in the 223 with good results.

For me the Barnes have a narrow wound channel (tsx) but the ttsx may be better. They need velocity to work well.

Out of my .22-250 I've dropped a couple WT does with the 45gr tsx. Placement and velocity is what makes the copper ones work.

There are a lot of references to proper shot placement in this thread. So is the proper shot placement with the
Hornady 55gr SP (for deer) on the point of the shoulder, to break some bone, or just behind the shoulder (heart/lungs)???

I'm sure either would result in a dead deer.

But what is the preferred shot with this bullet?

My preferred shot on deer with ANY bullet is behind the shoulder. Admittedly I hunt wide open country 99 percent of the time so a 100 yard runner isn’t a big deal. My experience with deer and a 223 has been great with all of them being DRT scenarios even with the behind the shoulder shot. These examples being a mix of 55gr SP and a 53 TSX.

I've lost count of the number of deer and coyotes I've shot with a 22-250 and 55 grain sp on top of 36 grains of varget. I do however remember shooting a few in the chest at about 100 yards that looked like they got hit over the head with a sledgehammer. I have had a few rodeos with light bullets and deer though......one instance I was calling coyotes and had a mid 150s 8 point stand up in a thicket about 300 yards out. Lucky for me it was rifle season and I had a .243 win and not the 250 that day. The little 75 vmax anchored the buck. When I got about 50 yards from home he jumped and took off. He was headed to the river and started walking slow at about 450 and I gave him another. About 10 yards later he fell. If I would have had that 250 I would have made a stupid decision and more than likely lost that deer. I wouldn't use it as a dedicated deer sized bullet, but it can work.

I have seen lots of deer taken with .22 and .24 caliber rifles flinging bullets of between 55-80 grains. They are adequate under proper circumstances. Certainly not ideal but adequate.

Interesting, Seafire. That kinda makes a mockery of my local range’s velocity limit for shooting at the steel they have set up.

There are youtube videos that compare the effects of different cartridges on steel plates. The higher velocity cartridges are always the ones that punch through where the lower velocity ones just dent or splatter. This jives with my own exoerience on steel plates of which I've shot quite a few with various cartridges. My .30-30 for instance will just dent plates that my .223 or .22-250 with full velocity soft point loads will punch holes through. What a bullet does to a steel plate has little relevance to what it will do when it hits meat and bone. A 170 gr. .30-30 bullet for instance will far out penetrate a 55 gr. sp .223 bullet in flesh.

Interesting this bullet was brought up... I had a box of two of this bullet, 45 grainer. They had the blue coating on them.
These were loaded up for a younger handicapped scout, and then for his little sister.

They were going to 'hunt' off the front porch at Grandpa's house. The scout was in a wheelchair ( para pelagic ) and his sister was handicapped also. The rifle was a single shot H&R break open, with some cheap 3 x 9 Walmart scope on top.
Grandpa didn't move to fast either, but he had plenty of blacktail grazing in the front yard, all the time.

They weren't looking to kill a monster, just letting the grandson, and of course the daughter wanted to get in on it, with her own deer ( doe ). Even the fincky Potlandia liberals allow a handicapped kid to take a deer of either sex.

For the boy, who was 11 or 12, we used a charge of 12/12.5 grains of Blue Dot. Toned it down to 10 grains for the little sister. 50 to 75 yards, but took a deer cleanly, not run offs only bang flop. Shot right behind the shoulder.

Duplicated the same thing for both kids the following season...

After that, they evidently left Boy Scouts, or Grandpa passed. The mother worked at the hospital as a Nurse's aid or something of that sort. But for two seasons, it made a very happy handicapped wheelchair bound kid and his little sister both very happy, right along with a proud grandpa.

My minor payback was just being able to be involved in that, and making it all happen. It was fulfilling just giving some happiness to a young man, his sister and grandpa...

and the 45 grain Barnes, did its job, with no muss or fuss...

The short answer is yes.

I used the 55 Gr. Hornady Spire Point w/ Cannelure out of my 220 Swift, 223 Rem. and 222 Rem. to thin out the deer on family property (we had a depredation permit from SC DNR) in the Low Country of SC. My cousin used them out of his 22-250 and 223 Rem. with no issues.

Over two years we killed almost 150 deer and probably 30 pigs over 1700 acres of corn and soybeans (and my grandparents garden) at ranges out to 350 yards with my Swift and the 22-250, nothing went more than 10 yards.

Shot placement matters.

StarchedCover

Things must be slow again, the stupid questions are being asked over and over again.

6 year old thread.

Slow learning?

Just kidding, I'd rather answer honest questions for noobs than argue with someone who doesn't want to learn anything new.

Thank you. I’ve never shot a deer with a 223 and I have one with 1:12 twist, so this old thread has been very informative. I’m not new to deer hunting, and I’m not new to the 223, just new to deer hunting with a 223.

Large Doe slightly quartering @ 80 yards. Double lung. Usually exits. 16” 223

Yes, many ask even more stupid questions such as this one.

White tail, Mule Deer. Coues, Sitka, Black Tail??

The smallest buck I've shot was a white tail in Missouri 4 points on a side. The largest was a whitetail or maybe a Mule Deer out west?? We shot a white tail that was evidently eating out of the feed bunks. After cleaning it and cutting off that neck and head. Dad, my younger brother, and I pulled him up using a pulley mounted on the ceiling of out barn. Dad asked us to get something. When my brother and I let go, dad went into the air and the deer came crashing down. Dad weighed 230 lb. That was a big white tail.

I always wonder when someone says deer, just what size deer and what cartridge/bullet etc. are they talking about. A big mule deer buck or in this case that whitetail can be more than twice the size of that small Missouri white tail.

When hunting hogs in south Texas I saw a few Coues deer I've seen Coues in AZ also - they are small deer in comparison.

I shot a whitetail doe with a 22-250 and 55 grain bullets - I shot it between the eyes. Doesn't prove that the 22-250 with a 55 grain bullet is right for "deer".

Better than the 55gr Hornady, I've had good success with 64gr. Winchester PP or Nosler 64gr BSB. Both still work out of 1:12.

You may also find the Speer 70gr semi-pointed or semi-spitser don't remember what they called them, but they are also blunt nosed. Your elevation may effect your success with these.

i have shot deer in the past with these smaller bullets, including a nice doe with my 22 K-Hornet in neck DRT ,one huge buck with a 55 gr. s.p. thru both lungs 2 holes one in / one out i did have to track this buck about 150 yards in the snow plenty blood. this past deer season 2023 grandson used a 257 Roberts with a Hammer 75 gr. bullet shot a doe thru lungs went about 30 feet and fell over dead , son`s sweetheart shot a big doe at 100 yards that dressed 141 lbs. with my 220 Swift 60 GR. Nosler Partition ,doe went 70 yards and piled up , bullet enter rib cage behind shoulder and out the center of the opposite shoulder and bullet kept on going. > maybe for many a smaller cartridge would be better ? these smaller cartridges have little recoil ,are very accurate and are by far more fun to practice with . i use a 257 Weatherby mag. with a 100 gr. bullet and have killed some very big bucks , i don`t understand why so many feel they need a heavier grained slower bullet ? speed kills better with a well placed bullet , less recoil and better accuracy helps the young ,ladies and recoil shy shooters much more .