fgdcd

My dads friend hunts with a 223 and is extremly accurate and he shoots them right at the base of the head in the neck and they just drop.

driftrider

I just love how people justify going badly undergunned by citing "IDEAL" circumstances, when in the real world, truly "ideal" circumstances seldom present themselves. Under "IDEAL" circumstances a .22 Short will kill a deer deader than a door nail, but since ideal shots are rare in reality, why do people feel that hunting with a weapon that is only appropriate under those rare circumstances is ethical and appropriate?

Bottom line is that there are far better alternatives to the centerfire .22's that are still shootable and controllable, and if you can't handle the likes of a .243 Winchester in a mid-weight rifle, then you shouldn't be hunting deer in the first place. If that hurts your feelings because you can't play too, I'm sorry about your luck. Think about it this way, if you can't reach the pedals, should you be allowed to drive a car? Same goes for hunting. If you can't handle an appropriately powerful weapon suitable for the game you intend to take, then you shouldn't be hunting that game, period.

If you can't handle a 7.5lb .243 with a decent recoil pad, the you ought not be hunting deer. Have you ever thought that there might be a good reason why there are minimum caliber restrictions in most states...they are there to ensure that undergunned hunters who aren't patient enough to pass up deer in their quest for the "IDEAL" shot don't litter the woods with wounded and lost deer. Sometimes the guys who make up the law get it right. This case, IMO, is one of those times.

Mike

Wolf killer

Yes you could kill a deer with a 223. I never have done it myself, but it will kill them. I read an article in a hunting magazine about deer snipers. The person they interviewed was a contract deer killer. He only shoots deer with a 223. The reasons why? He shoots inside city limits, recoil is very light, muzzle blast is not loud & accuracy is good.

tanzian

I do alot of contract deer control work and we are REQUIRED to use only a .223 since it is done mostly at night. Looking back at my records ( we are required to keep them and turn them into the county and state every year) over the last 5 years of the 1262 deer shot only 21 were not recovered. All were shot with my handloads using a 64 gr Power Point bullet from Winchester. I can almost guarentee you that in the same number of deer shot by hunters using larger calibers dont have as good a recovery rate. Do I recommend it for the "adverage" hunter??? No. In the hands of a capable markman, it CAN be use quite sucessfully.

Briman

I would rather have a person use a .223 provided that they spend alot of time at the range shooting the cheap ammo and getting to know the rifle very well than to have someone buy a 30-06, 30-30 or whatever the newest whizbangsuperduperultrashortmagnumdeerdisintegrato r cartridge, put a 20x scope on it, shoot one 3 shot group with it every year and thik they are ready to go deer hunting with it.

Use the .223, but only if you are committed to putting 500 rounds down the barrel every year in practice.

DANTHEHUNTER

I agree with you Briman, but I still think its on the small side . And I have killed two deer with one and shot a million rounds in the Army/ Rangers ,but for someone that shoots alot it will take them down. They are legal in Mo. but you should use the higher grain rounds. I would like to see it made where a .243/ 6mm is the smallest round for whitetail.

oldelkhunter

Well even with the best of bullets it would be marginal at best.

pharaoh2

Why must everyone always argue? The fact is the .223 Rem, or similar cartridge will quite simply, kill deer as dead as dead can be. That is, provided you are using a quality bullet, and put that bullet in the right place. I don't belive anyone will say you can kill a deer if you shoot him in the left foot with a .338 right? You still have to shoot the deer in the vitals no matter what you shoot it with. The point is, alot of folks can't shoot a larger rifle. So why must they shoot a gun that will kick them silly and affect their shooting due to flinching and such, when they can comfortably shoot a small calibre rifle with deadly accuracy? I have a friend who lives in British Columbia, (where it is legal) and she is looking for a .223 to hunt deer. No, she can't shoot a .243 very well. She is not a big girl, and just the thought of a larger gun makes her flinch. On the other hand, she is deadly with small calibre rifles. If you can sit back and shoot at the range all day, affordably and comfortably, to the point where you are considered an expert marksman, than go for it. This is why Nosler builds the 60 grain Partition bullet, just for this reason. When I do move into B.C, myself, I will take a .223 with me.

oldelkhunter

I don't think anyone said they wouldn't work just that there are much better choices that will work better in marginal situations, heck I owned a 7 TCU which is a 223 Rem necked up to 7MM and it worked great on deer with very little recoil in a handgun. Perfect broadside shots are few and far between and head shots will work on deer also. I want something bigger if I am going to rake a shot into the vitals.

eldeguello

I have not. But I once worked for a gunsmith in Las Vegas NM, who used the .22/250 for deer, and he did just fine, even on large mulies, and this was before suitable bullets like the 60-grain Nosler Partition and the 64-grain Winchester were made. The .224" Barnes X's should be excellent too.

Several years back, the late Finn Aagard wrote an article, I believe it was in the American Rifleman, about shooting deer with the .223. It was his conclusion that the .223 can be used as a deer rifle, if the right bullets are used, and a PERFECT unhurried broadside shot can be taken, like you get from a Texas Tower or good tree stand.

If you read the bit in one of Ackley's books about killing power, there's a chapter on shooting wild burros. The culling of these critters, which are much more massive and tenacious than any deer, was done with three rifles: an 8mm Mauser, a .30/'06, and a .220 Swift. There were more one-shot, drop-on-the-spot kills made with the .220 Swift than with either of the two larger caliber rifles!