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Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 17,756 Likes: 4
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 17,756 Likes: 4 |
I have taken 4 does with my Savage 22HP made in 1917. Between 20 and 50 yards. I shot in the lungs went about 75yrds, without snow I don't know if I'd have found her. The other three were neck shots and all dropped, never found any bullets. Used rem 70 grain sp. I know it's not in the same class as the 223, 22-250 ect.
Deer Camp! about as good as it gets!
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Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 2,286
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 2,286 |
I've used 55gr Remington soft points, V-Max and Ballistic Tips on hogs and deer out of a .22-250rem. The noslers seemed to give the best performance. I've since switched to 60gr Hornady soft points and that is a very tough bullet. It always exits on broadside shots, even at 300 yards. I question if it would even expand enough out of a .223.
The 55gr V-Max seems to work better on large game at .223 velocities but still not great. It needs a heavier but still fairly soft bullet to perform it's best imo. The one spike I've taken with a 63gr Sierra smp worked flawlessly and exited at about 200 yards.
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Joined: Apr 2017
Posts: 3,295
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Apr 2017
Posts: 3,295 |
I've used 55gr Remington soft points, V-Max and Ballistic Tips on hogs and deer out of a .22-250rem. The noslers seemed to give the best performance. I've since switched to 60gr Hornady soft points and that is a very tough bullet. It always exits on broadside shots, even at 300 yards. I question if it would even expand enough out of a .223.
The 55gr V-Max seems to work better on large game at .223 velocities but still not great. It needs a heavier but still fairly soft bullet to perform its best imo. The one spike I've taken with a 63gr Sierra smp worked flawlessly and exited at about 200 yards. I have recovered a fair number of bullets 0f 60 and 62grn. Soft points provide a picture perfect mushroom out to 300 yards or so. Truly impressed with all of them.
"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die, I want to go where they went" Will Rogers
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Joined: Jan 2020
Posts: 5,210 Likes: 5
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2020
Posts: 5,210 Likes: 5 |
A .223ai is my doe - meat gun, I like watching the head snap. FYI, you get no blood shot meat when you shoot deer in the head. So far I never recovered a 62gr ttsx or 68gr bthp out of a .223.
Life is good live it while you can.
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Joined: Dec 2021
Posts: 2,352 Likes: 1
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Dec 2021
Posts: 2,352 Likes: 1 |
I killed a couple deer with a .223 bolt rifle years ago, using 55 gr. Sierra Spitzers. Worked good with behind the shoulder shots. The wildest .22 centerfire I've ever heard of, is a 6mm Rem. case necked to .224 diameter.
It is designed around a fast twist barrel and heavy controlled expansion bullets. The designer called it a .224 Texas Trophy Hunter.
Last edited by roverboy; 08/01/23.
Why do I have to press 1, for English?
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Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 78,307 Likes: 2
Campfire Oracle
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Campfire Oracle
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 78,307 Likes: 2 |
What is the main reason you use it for deer? The main reason is that it works, in spades. Easy and comfortable to shoot , and doesn't ruin any more meat than the bigger cartridges do.
"...the left considers you vermin, and they'll kill you given the chance..." Bristoe
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Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 69,469 Likes: 26
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 69,469 Likes: 26 |
The main reason I have used it is because it works.
It works on whitetail deer, feral pigs, coyotes, bobcats, javelina, and all sorts of small varmints.
In my .223's, a 64 gr Federal Fusion bullets over a suitable charge of TAC, CFE-223, or Varget gets the job done.
Ed ^^^This^^^^ A 62 gr TSX or 60 gr Nosler Partition works well too.
"Allways speak the truth and you will never have to remember what you said before..." Sam Houston Texans, "We say Grace, We Say Mam, If You Don't Like it, We Don't Give a Damn!"
~Molɔ̀ːn Labé Skýla~
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Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 523 Likes: 2
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 523 Likes: 2 |
I took a 3x4 Mule deer buck 20 years ago with a borrowed .22-250 shooting 55 grain Sierra Gamekings after discovering a scope issue resulting in a miss with my .300 Savage.
The little 55 grain bullet was planted behind the shoulder into the lungs at 200 yards and dropped the buck right away.
My Dad has shot lots of deer and some feral hogs with his .22-250 over the years.
For some reason I would like to use my .220 Swift to take a deer or antelope at some point.
I have seen lots of deer taken with .224’s and largely they kill as well as the .243 or .250-3000 in my experience. I have seen a handful of flub-ups but I believe these were largely due to improper bullet selection and improper shot placement.
I tend to eschew plastic tipped bullets for deer in .224 caliber. They are designed for varmints and coyotes.
A sierra gameking, nosler partition or accubond, even one of the monometal bullets are what you want.
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 217
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 217 |
The main reason my family used it was when my kids were smaller, they handled the light recoil from a .223 much better than a .308 or larger caliber.
The .223 has been a mixed bag for us. My son nailed a medium sized boar hog with his bolt .223 and rolled it on the spot, no tracking. However, the first deer he ever shot with the same rifle involved a 4 hr. Tracking job and it was just a miracle we were able to find it.
My daughter shot her first deer with a 16” AR-15 and it didn’t make it 20 yards. However, we lost the second one she shot with the same rifle.
I’ve shot one deer with my sons .223 bolt gun, straight through the shoulders and we almost lost it. Blood trail ran out after about 50 yards and just got lucky doing circles out in the woods when I came across it. The bullet left a decent size exit hole, and I’m not sure why it stopped leaking.
All shots were using factory Hornady red box 5.56 TAP with the 75 grain T2 bullet. At the time it was supposed to be one of the most devastating.223/5.56 rounds available.
As the kids got bigger, they’ve moved up to 300 Blackout super sonics, 30-30s, and .270s. They’ve had much more consistent recovery results while hunting with these rounds. They simply put the game down faster on average than with the .223.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure every deer they hit with their .223s died. But we only recovered about half of them.
Last edited by JohnnyMac007; 08/01/23.
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Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 4,771
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 4,771 |
Back in the early 1970s worked with a guy, whose only "deer" rifle was the same 22-250 he killed woodchucks with. He used Winchester 64gr Power Points for deer, some 55gr varmint load for the rodents. Never any issues with deer that I can recall, as he usually got one each year.
I loaded up some of the then new Nosler 60gr Partitions for one of my 22-250s years back. Hit on a load that printed within a half inch at 100, of the varmint loads I used. Kiiled two doe with that load, both dead on the spot.
If three or more people think you're a dimwit, chances are at least one of them is right.
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Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 28,981 Likes: 26
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 28,981 Likes: 26 |
Not yet, but it’s on the list. I have a bunch of Nosler 64gr bonded, maybe some TTSXs I can load. Would also consider Gold Dots. Very little doubt about the outcome on deer. A bear would make me think about it some…
What fresh Hell is this?
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Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 60,236 Likes: 29
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 60,236 Likes: 29 |
Have a local friend who hunts elk with a .220 Swift--but he only hunts cows anymore, and they're often in herds, and he doesn't want the bullet to exit and possibly hit another elk. (He's a retired outfitter/guide, among other things he's retired from. For guiding he carried a 7mm Remington Magnum, and the bullets often exited.) He shoots cows with the Swift behind the shoulder, using the same 55-grain softpoints he uses for coyotes, and they die pretty quickly.
“Montana seems to me to be what a small boy would think Texas is like from hearing Texans.” John Steinbeck
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Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 42,928 Likes: 13
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 42,928 Likes: 13 |
Cousin who lives back in West Virginia. bought a 22.250 model 700 back around 1980 or so.. He got Orchard Permits in WVA for $2.00 each year and can shoot 25 deer a year on it, but NO one is is ever counting.
His wife's family was up from Florida for hunting season and left their guns at home, since Ben had so many at the time. so Ben's deer rifles were all being used. it was a " bad season" and they were almost seeing nothing. They get home and Ben's wife tells them, there is a big dead buck up across a 5 acre field she shot dead from the kitchen window, under an apple tree.
Been asked what she used and she told him, what ever gun you left behind here... the 22.250 Didn't believe her, but they sent one of the kids up there to look and he found a fairly large buck up there dad, running back to the house with his pants on fire. Gloria's brothers and Ben walked up there, to retrieve the deer. Before they left, they asked where had she shot it at, doubting it all. Answer was, you said it was light for deer, so I aimed at its eyeball.
When they got up there, that is exactly where the deer had been hit... right in the eyeball. She shot from a rest on the high window ceil. Ever since that time, Ben has used nothing but his 22.250 for deer, to the tune of 25 to 30 animals a year. Ammo used has been Remington 22.250 ammo with a 55 grain SP bullet, nothing fancy.
was back east last summer, and we dropped by the see Ben and Gloria. Told me had given away all of his rifles to others, when he turned 70 and that season shot his biggest buck ever. But he kept the 22.250. That is all he uses, but then since 1980, that was about all he has used.
He went from a 270 down to the 22.250, but says its a better killer than the 270 because shot placement is easier due to lack of recoil. That is 25 plus deer a year, for 40 years. His boys grew up on venison and pork. Beef tastes funny to them. That 22.250 has taken down anything he shot on his property down there.
just plain worked.
"Minus the killings, Washington has one of the lowest crime rates in the Country" Marion Barry, Mayor of Wash DC
“Owning guns is not a right. If it were a right, it would be in the Constitution.” ~Alexandria Ocasio Cortez
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Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 17,253 Likes: 1
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 17,253 Likes: 1 |
When I was growing up there were two neighborhood boys (friends of mine) about my age and their father bought them new deer rifles when we were all around 14 years old. Turns out that they thought the .270WCF kicked a lot more than their 22-250 and .222 Rem Mag, so they went back to the .22cal bolt guns. They killed the heck out of deer with them, using green box Remington PSP ammo. They shot those rifles pretty well.
Now with even more aplomb
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Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 46,748
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 46,748 |
The deer we have shot with a .223 couldn't have had anymore damage if they were shot with a .300 WM. Mulies or WT's from 50 to 150 yards, shot with 55gr TTSX, none of WT's took a step. The mulie ran about 40 pouring blood out of both sides, that we could see as it ran.
No bullets were recovered.
Camp is where you make it.
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Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 17,253 Likes: 1
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 17,253 Likes: 1 |
The deer we have shot with a .223 couldn't have had anymore damage if they were shot with a .300 WM. Mulies or WT's from 50 to 150 yards, shot with 55gr TTSX, none of WT's took a step. The mulie ran about 40 pouring blood out of both sides, that we could see as it ran.
No bullets were recovered. I shot a handful of deer and hogs with the 62TSX at 3300+ and it worked well even on lung shots, so long as the animals were close enough for impact speed to still be high. Performance/damage didn't look much different from high-speed .257/.264/.284 mono bullets I've also used. I've used that same bullet a bit at lower impact speeds and the results/damages were not as good.
Now with even more aplomb
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Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 5,250 Likes: 6
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 5,250 Likes: 6 |
I started shooting .22 caliber bullets about 15 years ago when I got my first can for a 5.56... Did it just to see the results mainly and now, it's what I shoot 95% of the time. Just don't stretch it out too far on deer/hogs and place your shot.
If I think I am going to shoot 300-600 yards I bring a bigger gun.
I have killed stuff with a lot of 62, 60 and 55gr soft points. Also killed a fair amount of hogs with FMJ's at 100 yards or less in the neck.
No bullet/caliber will make up for POOR SHOT PLACEMENT. Shot placement is king, but it’s definitely a lot easier to blow the guts out of a deer with a 30/06 than a 223.
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Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 18,970 Likes: 5
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 18,970 Likes: 5 |
I started shooting .22 caliber bullets about 15 years ago when I got my first can for a 5.56... Did it just to see the results mainly and now, it's what I shoot 95% of the time. Just don't stretch it out too far on deer/hogs and place your shot.
If I think I am going to shoot 300-600 yards I bring a bigger gun.
I have killed stuff with a lot of 62, 60 and 55gr soft points. Also killed a fair amount of hogs with FMJ's at 100 yards or less in the neck.
No bullet/caliber will make up for POOR SHOT PLACEMENT. Shot placement is king, but it’s definitely a lot easier to blow the guts out of a deer with a 30/06 than a 223. Saw a buck shot with either a TNT or an SXSP from a 22-250 one time. Probably last rib. That deer lasted about 2 steps and fell over dead. Pushing a frangible bullet nearly 3800 fps and he got sick in a hurry. Not saying that would be the case every time but there's something to be said for turning things loose on the inside.
The last time that bear ate a lawyer he had the runs for 33 days!
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Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 18,970 Likes: 5
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 18,970 Likes: 5 |
I took a 3x4 Mule deer buck 20 years ago with a borrowed .22-250 shooting 55 grain Sierra Gamekings after discovering a scope issue resulting in a miss with my .300 Savage.
The little 55 grain bullet was planted behind the shoulder into the lungs at 200 yards and dropped the buck right away.
My Dad has shot lots of deer and some feral hogs with his .22-250 over the years.
For some reason I would like to use my .220 Swift to take a deer or antelope at some point.
I have seen lots of deer taken with .224’s and largely they kill as well as the .243 or .250-3000 in my experience. I have seen a handful of flub-ups but I believe these were largely due to improper bullet selection and improper shot placement.
I tend to eschew plastic tipped bullets for deer in .224 caliber. They are designed for varmints and coyotes.
A sierra gameking, nosler partition or accubond, even one of the monometal bullets are what you want. Those 55 grain Gamekings are a fine deer bullet from a 223 or 22-250. We probably tried em in a 222 or Swift but I don't recall.
The last time that bear ate a lawyer he had the runs for 33 days!
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Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 8,887 Likes: 11
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 8,887 Likes: 11 |
What is the main reason you use it for deer? The main reason is that it works, in spades. Easy and comfortable to shoot , and doesn't ruin any more meat than the bigger cartridges do. When I was a kid starting out hunting in the early 80’s all my Dad had was a .222 and a 22-250 so it’s what we used. All my friends used 222’s and 22-250’s as well with some 223’s also thrown in. As I grew as a hunter I used a lot of larger cartridges for deer and such. After several years I realized they didn’t do anything the 22 CF’s didn’t do, except recoil more and cost more to load and shoot.
Last edited by LBP; 08/02/23.
Will Munny: It's a hell of a thing, killing a man. Take away all he's got and all he's ever gonna have.
The Schofield Kid: Yeah, well, I guess they had it coming.
Will Munny: We all got it coming, kid.
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