Well fck
When did they change that one lol
Well still if you are out with a 223 during game season after yotes its going to get complicated
Minimum caliber for big game change in Saskatchewan
- Thread starter saskgunowner101
- Start date
Well fck
When did they change that one lol
Well still if you are out with a 223 during game season after yotes its going to get complicated
There was an interesting article I read (IIRC it was in Gun Digest, but not sure) about hunting deer with the 223. They used them on some cull hunts in forest and prairies. The 223 was quite effective on open ground, where tracking deer was not an issue, but in forests, tracking and finding them was more difficult. The authors concluded that in capable hands the 223 was good for deer in open country, but not a very good choice for forests. [This is not my opinion. I have never hunted with a 223. I am simply reporting what I had read
Glock4ever
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Edmonton, AB
The calibre is definitely capable of killing a deer but I have too many shots on a deer with a .223 Rem (boiler room) that had the deer on the ground crying that I decided to switch. I shot them with everything from Soft Points to Hollow points. I still remember the last one I shot with a .223 Rem over 9 years ago, a nice 6 point buck, he was trying to crawl away on his front two hooves before I could cover the 60 yards or so that I needed to run to finish him off (Shot him around 70 yards). I switched to a 300 WSM and I get the bang-flop almost every time now, the most I had a deer run was maybe 20 yards. By no means is this definitive but it was enough for me to make the switch. I really didn't have a good reason to be hunting with a .223 except that I wanted to (I used to hunt with the SL8-4 and later the XCR).
Having seen several hundred Animals killed I have yet to have ever witness anything other than a bear crying. Now I’m curious though, maybe time to start a thread asking who all have witnessed a deer cry...
In fact, I wonder how that is even possible with a lung shot in the “boiler room”, as a hole in the lungs generally makes breathing difficult, much less “crying”.... YMMV I suppose though, as I probably haven’t seen every possible reaction yet.
In fact, I wonder how that is even possible with a lung shot in the “boiler room”, as a hole in the lungs generally makes breathing difficult, much less “crying”.... YMMV I suppose though, as I probably haven’t seen every possible reaction yet.
Rabbits cry just like a baby. I have hear deer cry as well.
Sask_Hunter
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Saskatchewan
I’ll be ready for deer this fall and I doubt they will bounce off
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Maybe 25-30 years ago? Right after all protection was taken off coyotes in the Southern Fur Management Zone. The reason of course is so people without a big game licence or already tagged out can't tag along while "hunting coyotes" or more recently "hunting boars".
In what has to be the height of irony, I'm not aware of any law stopping someone from tagging along while "hunting rabbits", "hunting raccoons","Plastering porcupines", "Blasting beavers", "snuffing squirrels" and any number of things that have no licence or closed season or caliber restrictions. Heck, just about anything but coyotes. Coyotes would be bad.
Glock4ever
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Edmonton, AB
It was definitely crying, you don't forget the sounds. I hit it with a quartering shot through the side and out the front. Maybe it hit only one lung, I don't know but it definitely was crying. Sounds almost like a bleating sheep for lack of a better descriptor. I shot a nice buck a bit high and the fragments went into the spine. The back half of that buck was dragging as it tried to keep running away on its front legs. The .223 can kill as these animals did die but slightly imperfect shots gave some marginal results. I have shot deer with .30-06, .308 Win (3 different rifles), .300 WSM, .,243 Win and .223 Rem all whitetails. I don't know if the projectile weight was a problem (i.e. 55-60 grains) so when it hit the ribs and broke into little pieces that the fragments weren't big enough to down an animal but most bullets just explode regardless of design. The monolithic bullets may be the ticket but I stopped hunting big game with 223 before they came on to the scene and the areas I hunt now 223 is illegal. That being said I am not a calibre Nazi, I don't care what people hunt with as long as its legal but I just prefer not to use a .223 any more. I still use my 223 for coyotes.
That right there answered all the questions I had.... That is an operator problem, not a cartridge problem.
Bullets matter more than headstamps. Choose an appropriate bullet, put it where it is supposed to go.
Bluedevil25
CGN Regular
- Location
- Saskatoon, Sask.
Lots of Ruger Mini-14’s are going to be out in the field this fall!
Glock4ever
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Edmonton, AB
So you never had a bullet hit a rib? I used SP and HP bullets that are commonly available loads - how is this an operator error? The crying deer was hit quartering away entered left side ribs - that is a normal clean kill shot for every other calibre I have used. The bullet went where it was supposed to. The second deer hit a rib slightly high on the right side and some fragments hit the spine. I have hit plenty of ribs with other calibres and they punched through and didn't explode apart, probably because the bullet is travelling slower and of heavier construction.
This post exactly sums up why this is operator error. If you are using a "commonly available load" and the bullet exploded on a rib, the OPERATOR did not choose an appropriate bullet for the task at hand. If you are choosing a varmint bullet meant to expand on a ground squirrel, instead of a properly constructed bullet meant to hold together and penetrate to the vitals on a deer, then that is operator error. That isn't the fault of the bullet or the cartridge, that is entirely on you. I have shot several deer with proper deer bullets sent from .224" caliber rifles, and have hit several ribs. Not one of those bullets have come unhinged because they were chosen for the specific task at hand.
Were I to only have a varmint bullet available and for some reason needed to kill a larger ungulate, then shot placement would be chosen based on the bullet at hand. I wouldn't expect a 36 grain Varmint Grenade to penetrate a quartering away rib shot on a road injured moose at 3800fps impact velocity, but I would place it in the ear if that was what was required.
I was thinking more T97 s and beowulf mags lol
