Thread: 223 for deer hunting?

take nothing for granted with .224 centerfires but with experience, correct shot placement and care for projectile construction you can have some excellent performance on the larger medium sized game.

if you are recoil intolerate or just feel more comfortable with the .224 centerfires it does not limit you in your choice of game in new zealand. although for optimal and consistant performance a premium projectile is required such as the barnes TTSX or scrirrocco swift II which are constructed to allow entry and exit on the largest of red deer at ultra velocities.

i would be wary as a projectile falls below the 2500-2600 FPS mark as massive trauma and hydrostatic shock dwindles under this point of velocity which can lead to prolonged kills in larger animals if you do not have a well placed neck / head shot or sufficent damage through frontal locomotive muscles and the vital organs inside.

ill keep it at that for now as it is a bit of a baffle with bullshit but if you want to know more i will gladly share

Draw a 1.5 inch black dot on a piece of a3 paper. That’s what you need to hit every time you shoot a deer with a .223. Then draw 3 circles about it 4” apart. You need to be inside the first circle with the likes of the 243 through to the standard 6.5mm, and inside the next circle with the .270-30 cal class. If you can only shoot inside the last circle, get closer or practice some more. Or give up, what you are doing is cruel.

I just made that up. But it looks like not a bad rule of thumb by my experience. You can argue the exception, but as I say to my students “ask me questions about what is most likely to happen, not about what is least likely to happen”.

Originally Posted by Tahr

Draw a 1.5 inch black dot on a piece of a3 paper. That’s what you need to hit every time you shoot a deer with a .223. Then draw 3 circles about it 4” apart. You need to be inside the first circle with the likes of the 243 through to the standard 6.5mm, and inside the next circle with the .270-30 cal class. If you can only shoot inside the last circle, get closer or practice some more. Or give up, what you are doing is cruel.

I just made that up. But it looks like not a bad rule of thumb by my experience. You can argue the exception, but as I say to my students “ask me questions about what is most likely to happen, not about what is least likely to happen”.

I'd be happy to get inside that out to 250-300m with my 223.

Have shot more deer with a 223 than the other calibre's I've owned and cheap to run.