Back in the dark ages when I was young and living in Tennessee, I hunted Bob Cats quite often. They are a soft bodied animal and a hard bullet won't open up in them. If you use a solid built bullet like a monolithic or a FMJ you will get caliber holes in and out. Fox and Yote are a slight bit tougher but again, a solid built bullet will not open up in them very much if any. I poke holes in Yotes on a weekly (sometimes daily) basis with a 22-250, 220 swift, and .223. I could care less about the pelts on them so I use varmint bullets. MOST of the time I don't get an exit since the bullets pretty much blow up inside them. If they are out to between 100-200 yards I will get a pretty good exit hole because the speed has reduced and they don't blow up but they do expand and there have been some mighty drastic holes in them there critters. But again, I use bullets designed to blow up in little critters.

Yes. I understand that fully.

What I'm picking up in other places is that this doesn't always work out well. For instance, while I certainly agree that shot placement is key, sometimes you don't always make the best shot, hit the shoulder, and end up with a mess/ruined pelt.

I'm consistently reading that the 22 hornet is a round that is more forgiving in this respect, but guns chambered in it are relatively harder to come by.

Hence, I'm curious about a .223 loaded down.

Due to unusual circumstances, I could be stuck with the gun for awhile. That "Father" in my title refers to my occupation: I'm a priest and a monk, and that means I'm under restrictions as far as spending allowances. It could be awhile before the funds are there for a different gun.

What part of NE KS?

223rem can be loaded down pretty low. Hornets typically use short ogive bullets so they get away with moderate velocities and slow twists - given a stubby bullet, the 223rem will still stabilize.

I went on the same journey several years ago with 22-250, and then again with 223rem. The ultimate answer was to buy a 22win mag, or use harder pills in the 223rem. Never hit anything hard, you'll be ok. I shoot cats and fox every year with 223rems, rarely ruin any of them unless I pitch a V-max at them.

I'll be easier to get down in speed with a shorter barrel in 223rem. A 16" carbine is half way there even with max loads compared to a long barrel. Getting that slow in a 24-26" tube might be more difficult.

Out of curiosity, do you have an older left handed rifle with a worn barrel that you can have re-barreled to a .22 Hornet? Or maybe buy one cheaper? Maybe even buy a single shot to get around the bolt issue.Just thinking out loud here. I've never researched left handed rifles so I honestly don't know how rare they are or not.

On the Missouri boarder.

Those are options that might be worth exploring more. What I've seen advertised in single shots were pricey guns.


Edit: I just came across an ad for a handirifle. Somehow, I had overlooked it in my earlier research. That's a definite option.

Lefty rifles, once you get away from Savage, are generally available only in pricier guns. e.g. Remington offers a left hand BDL but not an ADL nor a model 783. The Savage 110 and its variants are designed in a way that left hand versions can be produced easily. Savage dominates the left hand market.

There are some affordable older savages in 22 hornet, but they are right handed. I might have to go with one of those. I want the caliber more than anything.

Not wanting to be with out a good squirrel rifle and both 22 Mag ammo and 22lr ammo being nearly impossible to buy local and what I consider pricy I set out to see about down loading my 22 swift.
I never did find anything on it so I would feel safe doing so.
How ever in the quest I ran across a article in Hand loader Magazine on down loading the 22 hornet and 223 to 22lr speeds.
If you can down load a 22 hornet and a 223 to 1350FPS and 1500 feet per second then some thing in between should be OK too. I hit all the guns shops with in 100 miles of home looking for a used 22 hornet rifle bolt action. Never did in 7 months find such a critter. Had just about decided to go with a 223 when I was able to buy a New Ruger in 22 Hornet Yup pricy but new and does a great job on squirrels.

I did get a notice from one of the shops a few weeks ago they had a used CZ in 22 hornet come in if I was interested. With a Simmons 3x9 scope it was 10.00 more than my New bare bones Ruger.
As for the holes in the hides learn to sew them up. Fur buyers don't mind buying hides that were properly sewn.

:D Al

Way back in the day I was doing some critter control work at a very restrictive locale and had to be selective on what I could use. I took my 22-250 and loaded it down with 45grn Sierra Hornet SP's and I cant remember the powder but had to use a tuft of filler to keep the powder charge flat and they shot great out to 150yds. No sight adjustment at all. Dead on. So, with that being said, it can be done as others have said, just go to Hornady or Sierra website. Or call them directly and tell them what you want to do and they should be able to help you out.

Checked my Lyman #49 and they show Min. charges of 3031 about duplicate Hornet top loads. I would also look at 18 or 19 gr. of 4198. Other options are aa5744, blue dot or 4756.

Thank you, gentlemen. This is all very helpful.

As a fellow leftie, I see no problem. I've learned to use a RH bolt but since then I've purchased a few LH ones.
Back when I started hunting 50+ years ago there weren't many manufacturers that offered LH bolt actions. At least that I could afford. Savage was about the only one that was in my price range. Today just about every leading gun manf. has a LH model. Some of them even offer one in the Hornet.