Thread: 223 on deer

Originally Posted by NoMis

While doing research on another calibre (6.5x55, 160 gr round nose soft point), I came across this Kiwi website that has a lot to say about the .223 as a hunting round. The page briefly recounts the history of the calibre, discusses its performance, compares factory and handloads, and then makes a few concluding remarks. One of the author's performance observations is: "Apart from the use of FMJ ammunition, hunters using the .223 on medium game will achieve best results with neck and head shots. Typical sporting loads with conventional soft point ammunition can penetrate through the chest walls of medium game but kills are always slow if the CNS is not destroyed. The .223 does not have the power to initiate hydrostatic shock."

I'm not capable of determining the accuracy of the author's remarks but wonder whether those of you who do have such a skill set would agree or disagree with his observations?

I would call Nathan Foster One of the most knowledgeable people worldwide on the subject of terminal ballistics. I own several of his book, the most recent one he wrote on the subject does cover the more modern heavy projectiles for the .223. He speaks quite highly of the the likes of the Hornady ELDM and the Sierra TMK's. He tends to recommend the Match grade projectiles for longer ranges because they tend to expand better than some of the heavier jacketed projectiles like the Barnes Tripleshock intended for game shooting.
His writings on Long range shooting and bullet performance on game are great reads, I recommend them for both seasoned hunters and newbies.