octafoil

IPSCS...I never said it wouldn't work, I wondered "why" you would use it when there are SO many more well designed rounds for the job. "Why" would you choose the round over the others that are better suited. It's ok if you didn't understand my posts. Why compare the 30 cal rounds to the .223 round? "because they were military in nature, or comparable ballistically?" This was the question of "my" posts, not a argument for, or against, the legal use of the .223 for deer. FIVE .223's???

ipscshooter

I suspect folks use them because (a) they're legal, (b) they shoot them well, and (c) it works for them.

Debating whether one should use something "more well designed for the job" gets rather difficult. Everyone has an opinion that "their" round is the best designed for the job. I like using my .243 because it is more comfortable for me to shoot than my .30-06, and I shoot it better. Although my son and I have taken 9 deer with 9 shots out of our .243's, there have been folks on here telling me that the .243 is really just a glorified gopher gun and there are better guns for the job when deer hunting... Where does the argument end? Do we have a vote to decide the "best" round for deer hunting, and then bar the use of all others?

What exactly is wrong with owing five weapons in a particular caliber? If it's in the budget... go for it...

octafoil

IPSC....I like your .243. I would rather be a bow hunter only, but with the restrictions I've placed on which deer to take (QDM) off the property, I/we don't always see the good ones during bow, so there are times the gun gets pulled out of the case. I "live" in a shotgun only zone, so I use my 20ga Mossberg exclusively, and I get razzed for it's small GA. Kids gun, they say. But what they can't razz me about is the wall of fame. Using the 20ga Barnes Expandable Sabot, I'm flat out to about 90-100 yds. Funny thing with that is you can't see more than 50yds clear anywhere in my swamp. Got a 7.5 year old 8 point with my bow, and 2 doe with the gun this year. BtoD is starting to get straightened away. I use my .308 for rifle zones.

ipscshooter

You need to post pics in the "This Year's Deer" thread...

octafoil

OK Ridge, I've donned my waders and am ready now. Takes one heck of a shot @440 not to hit bone, how much space "is" between the 3rd and 4th rib? The mans name who designed the weapon is CPT Ole Herman Johannes Krag. He was in charge of the Norwegian Armory. He teamed with two different smiths, the first to come out was the "KRAG"-Peteresen 30/40. And the second edition was with Erik Jorgensen producing the, KRAG-Jorgensen which is the model purchased by the US Military that is now the collectors item. Why you choose to change the mans name twice is beyond me, but you're the expert again my question is "why" is the .223 a better round for deer hunting. And as I told you before, "I" have seen what the round does, good and bad. Get over yourself.

BarnesX.308

Each time I've shot a deer, there was much more blood coming from the bullet hole than the face. The lungs don't have to fill up to bleed from the bullet holes. The bullet hole is where the damage has been done. They are going to bleed from that wound. Your blowing mist theory has some "holes", too. When the deer tries to breath, air is escaping out the entrance and exit holes. Especially if you have a big exit wound.

Javabird17

.223 at 100 yards at the shoulder. Don't think so.

octafoil

Ridge.....I will keep my waders on when I read you, very entertaining. Yes a rib will, no windage either huh? Krag probably a immigrant? Keep em coming. LOL That 800 yarder you boasted about is a good one too. You're just too good for this ole war horse.

Chris_H

Back in '02, I shot a doe maybe around 80 lbs, right in the vitals from about 50 yds. The deer dropped and started kicking... it took more than 10 gut wrenching minutes for that deer to stop moving. I was only 12 years old at the time. I didn't know if I should shoot it again, or just wait. The whole time that deer suffered, I suffered. I don't think that a .223 would be an acceptable deer caliber.

That is unless you shoot it in the head or neck...

And that is a whole other "ethics" situation... let's not get started on that.

Killer_Primate

My 7.62x39 kills deer more efficiently than my 30-06. Why? I’m pretty sure that this is due to the 30-06 being too powerful. Too powerful? Yes; when you shoot an animal with an overly powered firearm, you simply waste energy in whatever is behind or beyond the animal.

Example given; if you were to shoot a groundhog with a rifle loaded for elephant, you’d do a lot less damage to the ground hog than if you’d have shot him with a .22 short. All the energy of the .22 will be delivered into the animal. The projectile of the big game rifle (say 375 H&H) will not even begin to expand inside of a ground hog. So really all you’ve done to the ground hog is push the equivalent of a .375 practice tip arrow through him.

I’ve shot quite a few deer with both the 30-06 and the 7.62x39 and conclude that the ballistics associated with the 7.62 are better suited for deer hunting than the 30-06. Don’t get me wrong, I love the 30-06, but this isn’t about opinions or favorite rounds, is it?

That said, (and I’ve got numbers to back this) the 7.62x39 and the .223 are very similar. The 7.62 is a little heavier and slower, the .223 a little lighter and faster. This translates to the 7.62 having a little more energy at closer ranges, and the .223 having a little more energy at further distances.

I’ve never shot a deer with a .223 but after reading this thread, referencing “shoot better II” ballistic tables, and comparing what I read with what I know, I’m pretty sure that the .223 is a fine weapon for deer hunting.

How much energy does a bow have again? Maybe you guys should go see what kind of deer the bow hunters are taking every year. Yeah, it’s all about how it (the energy) is delivered. Caliber, distance, bullet weight, sectional density, projectile materials and shot placement.