Thread: Minimum foot pound/ velocity for animal kills

Been talking with a few mates lately on distances vs energy, velocity and bullets.
What everyone’s thoughts on it?. Projectile construction has a big part in it.
You hear a lot of people saying 1000 f/lb and 1800 fps.
I’ve shoot plenty of deer with a 223 using about half that amount of energy in the boiler room and bugger all lost animals. Also lots of goats with a 22lr for dog tucker. A few compound bow shot on goats, pigs and deer with only 68 f/lb energy and then there’s my 300 Blackout running subs at 988 fps / 420 f/lb at 100m. Pushed other calibers a lot further distances with minimal energy.
The long range rifle I’m using at the moment has sh#t loads of energy 2000 f/lb at 1000m and hits deer like Mjölnir (Thor’s hammer).

I had to give a possum a pounding with my foot once, so 1 foot pound beat that

Originally Posted by Gibo

I had to give a possum a pounding with my foot once, so 1 foot pound beat that

I squashed a mouse with the heel of my boot once so is that 1/2 a foot pound or possibly 1/3 ?

No, sounds like you used a boot

Originally Posted by Gibo

No, sounds like you used a boot

What if the boot was 12" long

I shot a mouse with the mighty poohseventy once...it was effective,must have used enough gun...
under 1000ftlbs under a hundy yards,under 500ftlbs under 50yards seems about right.
but like above the .223 has done the job out to 200 yards plenty enough to know its doable IF the placement is correct.

Would be better if it was 1’ long sorry

thats what she said....

Originally Posted by tikka

Been talking with a few mates lately on distances vs energy, velocity and bullets.
What everyone’s thoughts on it?. Projectile construction has a big part in it.
You hear a lot of people saying 1000 f/lb and 1800 fps.
I’ve shoot plenty of deer with a 223 using about half that amount of energy in the boiler room and bugger all lost animals. Also lots of goats with a 22lr for dog tucker. A few compound bow shot on goats, pigs and deer with only 68 f/lb energy and then there’s my 300 Blackout running subs at 988 fps / 420 f/lb at 100m. Pushed other calibers a lot further distances with minimal energy.
The long range rifle I’m using at the moment has sh#t loads of energy 2000 f/lb at 1000m and hits deer like Mjölnir (Thor’s hammer).

I'd treat the 1000lb thing as a rough guide only.

Originally Posted by dannyb

I squashed a mouse with the heel of my boot once so is that 1/2 a foot pound or possibly 1/3 ?

Actually its a lot more.
Say for example you weigh 100 kg (224 lbs) thats 112 lbs per foot. Say you are shoe size 10 thats roughly 57 sq inches, say the heel is 25% of the total area thats 14 sq inches impacting the mouse with 112 lbs. There are 144 sq inches in a sq foot and the area of the heel is approx 10% of a square foot so to get ftlbs we divide 112 by .1 which would be the amount of weight the mouse would recieve in foot lbs, and we get 1120 ftlbs.
So stomping on a mouse with your heel is the same as shooting it with a 223.

Originally Posted by Marty Henry

Actually its a lot more.
Say for example you weigh 100 kg (224 lbs) thats 112 lbs per foot. Say you are shoe size 10 thats roughly 57 sq inches, say the heel is 25% of the total area thats 14 sq inches impacting the mouse with 112 lbs. There are 144 sq inches in a sq foot and the area of the heel is approx 10% of a square foot so to get ftlbs we divide 112 by .1 which would be the amount of weight the mouse would recieve in foot lbs, and we get 1120 ftlbs.
So stomping on a mouse with your heel is the same as shooting it with a 223.

Oops! That would be lb/ft² for units, a measure of pressure.

Originally Posted by gadgetman

Oops! That would be lb/ft² for units, a measure of pressure.

Hes right but my ancient brain seemed to recall that a foot pound and pounds per sq foot are similar, just expressed in different ways.
Wont be the first time Ive been proved wrong, I still remember the other occasion back in 1981.

They have minimum Calibre requirements in most eu countries.
Here not 223 222 on any deer apart from Muntjac. Makes me laugh that one, when I think of how many animals nz cullers have taken with they 222. Not the mention most military use 223 but NOOO its inhuman on animals ok to let people suffer though
France also as a wide selection of what you can use on what as dose Germany.
Translating the French Calibres was quite some chore as even though the wife writes for one of there newspapers hunting is not her chosen subject (why the feck not) basically driven boar the smallest is 270 with 180 grain bullet. But I can use 7x57 with 180 grain. So 270 with 130g is a no go. Them is the rules and it’s there country don’t like it don’t go

For NZ and a new hunter I’d advise bigger than 223 till they have some experience then they can load up a GIBO and use what they like

Originally Posted by Phil_H

How does that work out with my high heels then....

Can't unsee that. Dammit.

Sideshow...I have a very small dwindling supply of old old old speer 170grn projectiles for the mighty poohseventy....never seen a 180grn loading..lapua put out a 160grn mega which is a good load on deer.