Thread: 223 on deer

@mickyDuck, I know I shouldn’t be using them on deer but I’ve dropped so many fallow with chest shots with the 50g max! 20-150m

Yip all about placement and range aye....that much is written in stone.

Unreal, I watched my mate kill a red hind tonight at 387 yards with a 73gr ELD-M from his howa mini. Using loads I worked up for him- only doing 2700gps from the 16” barrel.
Impressive performance for sure. No photos sorry, but took out the top of the heart and ran about 40m and lights out.

I see they're back in stock in a factory Hornady Match load now. That would be the way to go for a non-handloader.

I use the factory loads in my work gun and I rate them very highly

Originally Posted by gimp

I see they're back in stock in a factory Hornady Match load now. That would be the way to go for a non-handloader.

https://www.deltamike.co.nz/product/...ion-box-of-20/

$69.95/20

What ranges are you guys comfortable shooting a deer at with your .223 I have a Tikka with Nightforce NX8 running 73gr ELDM's - reason for my question is I have a spot where I shoot and there is almost always deer in one spot but it's 530yds away I have validated my loads and dope out to 550 and shot paper at this distance with very consistent results, i have shot deer out to 350yds with the same set up - with a good rest and plenty of time, would you take the shot?

Greetings,
A bit long for the pill I would have thought. Run the ballistics with your chronographed velocity to see what your terminal velocity (for expansion) and energy is.
GPM.

Can you hit a 2litre milk jug END ON consistently.first shot everytime at that range in those conditions??? Your asking a lot of a tiny bit of metal,you better be able to place it perfectly. Do you have a more potent rifle to use??? Can you get closer??? Can you retrieve animal after you have fired??? Are you confident you will find it after it's done a hundred yards dead run???

Originally Posted by MP270

What ranges are you guys comfortable shooting a deer at with your .223 I have a Tikka with Nightforce NX8 running 73gr ELDM's - reason for my question is I have a spot where I shoot and there is almost always deer in one spot but it's 530yds away I have validated my loads and dope out to 550 and shot paper at this distance with very consistent results, i have shot deer out to 350yds with the same set up - with a good rest and plenty of time, would you take the shot?

Wind drift will be the biggest factor

I'm back at the range next week hopefully, I will try the Milk bottle END ON cold bore, No issues on retrieving or finding it if it does a runner.

550yds,little pill running out of killing energy for deer.

With 70-80 grn bullets I use 1,800 fps as a max range as far as penetration and expansion goes and then factor in wind and other variables, and my ability. It usually means 350/375 yds pulls me up. Most comfy under 300. Most shots are well under that.

Originally Posted by MP270

What ranges are you guys comfortable shooting a deer at with your .223 I have a Tikka with Nightforce NX8 running 73gr ELDM's - reason for my question is I have a spot where I shoot and there is almost always deer in one spot but it's 530yds away I have validated my loads and dope out to 550 and shot paper at this distance with very consistent results, i have shot deer out to 350yds with the same set up - with a good rest and plenty of time, would you take the shot?

A way to assess effective terminal range is to consider whether your bullet will expand. Based on various sources of information, you should probably expect an ELDM to expand down to around 1800fps. Penetration increases inversely related to velocity - so sufficient penetration will not be a problem.

Do you have sufficient retained velocity at that range? If a heavier .224" ELDM hits the animal in the vital zone, and expands, it will kill it.

I'd expect effective expansion from my load (80ELDM) to about 475 metres. I have shot deer to about 420 metres with good results.

Hit probabilty is another consideration, however that is a similar problem with any cartridge at these ranges. You really need to be honest with yourself about your capabilities if you are concerned about missing or shooting animals in the wrong place. Can you regularly hit a 200mm circle first round from the positions you'll be shooting in, in the conditions you'd consider shooting in?

My .223 load outperforms a .308 with a 155gr ELDM in the wind. Many people would be comfortable to recommend the .308 load out to this range. I can make more consistent hits with the .223 in reality.

Originally Posted by Tahr

With 70-80 grn bullets I use 1,800 fps as a max range as far as penetration and expansion goes and then factor in wind and other variables, and my ability. It usually means 350/375 yds pulls me up. Most comfy under 300. Most shots are well under that.

snap