Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Wanted: real experience stories with 22 caliber rifles for deer

I'm not sure. I've had a few twofers and even threefers with pigs, guess it would/could happen with deer. That's kinda like a half shot or less per critter. And there is the question about short rounds. A 1911 will whack a water buff with one pop and that's sorta like a half shot as well. Mathman might have some insight on this.

Pop'n flop

heard that water buffalo makes good phò ...

This real experience cracks me up... Fake experience!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Buddy of mine shot a deer in the foot and killed it , it was scratching it's ear.

The ballistic gack is good but the old photos are great. Thanks, Pat.

Super nice light in this photo.

I’d bet that journal will be a valued treasure to your boys some day. This is a great thread.

What's fake about it.

Vince Dougherty was another proponent of the 220 Swift. A google search should turn up some interesting rid bits.

Me, I've used the 14 twist 22/250 to take whitetail. 55 grain Hornady and 60 grain Partitions mostly. A couple fell to the 55 grain Remington Power Lokt copper clad softpoint.

Admitting to use of the 22 on deer would be a crime in this state. Even possession while hunting for deer is a crime in This state.

I have killed my 2 largest whitetails with .223/ 55 gr. soft points. 1 right below the ear the other high/tight to the shoulder, both about 30 yds. DRT.

Glad to see he's keeping the rifle going. Slightly bummed he's not sticking with the Swift, but get it.

That's some major league baseball hair!! Practices here are going in earnest. Best part of summer...baseball.

Then move to Colorado where possession while hunting is just fine.

I've killed quite a few deer and antelope with a .22-250, but they were mostly from my high school and college days and they're on 35mm hard copies....I need to digitize them some day.

Of my recent 22 CF kills, I've put these pictures up here more than a few times, but what's once more?

Here's a Wyoming mule deer killed via vanilla .223 at about 80 yards with the 62 TSX. This instance had a "failed" bullet that didn't open correctly, but I honestly don't know if I hit a branch in front of the deer or if the bullet somehow was at fault.



I know we're talking about deer here, so I apologize for throwing an antelope into the foray. Same 62 TSX load as above but at 558 yards. Zero fuss.


Here's a Montana mule deer that that took one shot from my .22 Hi-power at about 20 yards with a .228" Sisk (still a .22 CF right?). Not much of a test at 20 yards, but this buck didn't go anywhere but straight down.

One buck each with a .221 Fireball and .225 Win. Barnes original X in both, 45gr and 53gr respectively. I'm gonna try to bloody a .222 Rem Mag this coming season.

I am more than a bit late to this party. But I have to thank Pat for sharing his wonderful pics and memories. There are some gorgeous mulies in those pics.


Lots of talk on this thread about bullets, as there should be. Someone here once said bullets matter more than headstamps.

Shooting a 225 Win w/ a 14 inch twist barrel, I heartily recommend the Hornady 60 gr spire point for deer. I have burned thousands of them in a couple 22-250s over 34.3 gr of 3031 at 3600 fps.

Your 225 will not make 3600 fps, but my old manuals show loads up to 3450 to 3500 fps which will stabilize the Hornady 60 sp. (but 14 inch will not stabilize the Nosler 60 gr ballistic tip.)

I do not have Pat's record of game killed with a 22. I only shot one mule deer with a 22-250, at about 200 yds. It ran a bit over 80 yds after the shot, just like dozens and dozens of mulies I have seen heart shot with the 30-06. The only difference being, the '06 is likely to leave an exit wound and a better blood trail.

Dressing the deer showed the entire thorassic cavity pulverized. One lung was collapsed into a ball of tissue smaller than the heart. The heart had several slices through it like it had been cut with a knife. The aorta was decimated. And there was a large bruise on the inside of the opposite ribs, but no exit wound.

A 22 cal w/ varmint bullets would not be my first choice to try to break the pelvis with an ass shot. But it will excel with any head, neck, or broadside heart shot.

Good luck with whatever you choose and have fun!

What rifle is that? What power swfa?

Cbeard, by your own admission you don't have experience with them, yet somehow you judge them lacking despite the first hand evidence to the contrary. You're repeating the same baseless wives-tale with nothing but your gut-feeling to back it up.

I challenge your assumption that reports would be skewed to the positive. I believe anyone who lost a deer with a .223 would be shouting from the rooftops how unsuitable the caliber was (of course blaming the caliber, not the shot). The reason they're not is because it WORKS. It's easy to shoot well, and good shots kill deer.

I'd wager (now into MY baseless assumption) that MANY more deer are lost from poor shots from 30-06, 300 WM, etc than are lost by underperforming .223.

Am I the only member of this august group who has killed deer with a .22 Savage Hi Power? I have a weakness for cartridges designed by Charles Newton and have killed deer with most: .22 Savage Hi Power, .250-3000 Savage, .300 Savage. .256 Newton. The first deer I "harvested" with a Hi Power was facing me at about 80 yards. I shot standing, unsupported and hit him right in the middle of the chest. Field dressing revealed that the 70 grain .228" bullet had turned the lungs to soup and the buck never moved out of his tracks. I can recommend that cartridge, as well as all the other Newton designs unequivocally. (I have a particular weakness for the .256 Newton, perhaps because I have several 1916 Newton rifles in that caliber.)