frizzellr

Ah yes, the good old head shot where you shoot the deer's lower jaw off and it starves to death. Thats ethical too.

DANTHEHUNTER

You know this has got to be the most I have heard the head shot theory. I dont know about you guys but my first instinct is not to shoot the head because if I am shooting it will be worth mounting . But that is just me , If you look at the size of a deers head verses its body in the heat of the moment which one presents the best target ? That would not be the right time to worring about a head shot and exact bullet placement. Most deer hunters shoot there deer rifles less than 10 rounds per year ( atleast the ones around me ) that is not going to give them the skill required to pull off head shots. So it shouldnt be allowed (.223) as a deer cartridge if the only way to kill humane is a head shot !! Thats ridiculous , why waste a deer for that, every life has a soul !!

Pro-Line

I have made a couple headshots...years ago. I never will again. Had one experience that was so bad I won't even post it. As a matter of fact, I finished off a deer last year in doe season in WV that some expert marksman SARCASM) tried to "head shoot".

It's risky, and stupid. Like Friz said...you shoot off the lower jaw and the deer dies a slow death over a 2-week period. OR you hit the bridge of the nose, and get a deflection. That's good. NOT

Hell, I've seen butchers miss brains on a steer with a 22. AND THE STEER WAS 1' AWAY.

T/C fan!

We're all hunters here and we all know that taking a "risky shot" is just another bullet in the anti's gun. So why use a "risky" caliber? And yes, a 22cal is a "risky" caliber for deer!! Using a caliber that has low downrange energy, possibly major wind-drift and lightweight bullets are not what I call an "ethical" round. I'm not trying to ruffle anyone's feathers, but what are the "good" things about using a 223 for deer? The only thing I can think of is the lower recoil. Other than that, what else is there?

JagMagMan

There is nothing ethical about a head or neck shot! As Frizz saidjaw shot deer die a slow agonizing death! The head of a deer is a small, seldom still target! It is not a paper bull's eye at a known distance from a bench rest! The neck of a deer doen't present much better of a target either! If you don't hit the spine, you've probably got a long difficult tracking job!
The thing I hear most from the head/neck shot crowd is, "its either a clean kill or a clean miss!" BULL! How many of those "clean misses" are running off to die a slow death!!!???
I agree with T/C, the only positive quality of the .22's is their low recoil. The .243/6MM offers three times the power, with not much more recoil! Then there are muzzle brakes and quality recoil pads to boot! There is no good reason to use any .22 on deer!

ELKampMaster

JagMagMan,

Other positives about a .223? Maybe $.05 per round cheaper to shoot.... an exclusive motivation factor for a large portion of the hunting community.

A lot of talk on the forum about Walmart.
Ever heard of the "little bird special"? Cheap, Cheap, Cheap.
I like a "good deal" as well as anyone but the product has to heartily capable to handle the assigned task.

A larger rifle costs coin and the ammo costs could be 5 to 7 cents higher.

EKM

JagMagMan

Yeah ELKamp, the price of ammo is cheaper in the .22's, but with the price of hunting in general, the price of ammo has to be a very small factor! If a nickel a round keeps someone from hunting, they probably can't afford to hunt at all!
As far as this goes, I see people "recommending" the .22's to buyers! I say if you are going to buy a gun, do it right the first time, and match the caliber to the game!

bigcountry

Guys, I hate to say this, but if you can't wait for a decent shot, and wait for a broadsided shot, and can't recover a deer shot with a barnes bullet from a 223, then you shouldn't be allowed to hunt. From your guys posts, I have a feeling, you kinda get up and just start banging away with a gun and need 338Win mags to down you animals. I may be wrong, you guys might really keep animals in the distance you can recover them and are very ethical and hope you are.

bigcountry

Frizzellr, have you ever found a deer wounded by a lung shot from a bow? Just curious? I have. From the amount of time you say you spend in the woods, you probably have too.

Pro-Line

BC...I don't "just start banging away with a gun and need 338Win mags". The fact that I don't use a less than marginal caliber would probably indicate that I don't take marginal shots.

BTW...a deer shot through one lung will often die wounded, outrunning a novice tracker. Both lungs is a different story.