22-250 for dear

Sako300 said:
If memory serves correctly, when I was in Nova Scotia, one needs a rifle .23 or larger to hunt big Game. Feel free to chime in Bluenose folks!
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Still true .... light, HV bullets tend not to do well in woods cover, which is much of the game turf here - too easy to be deflected by small twigs that are not always apparent in the scope image ...
 
.224 bullet will get the job done. It's is not my first choice (or fifth for that matter). I'll reserve my .223 for gophers and coyotes.
 
Any centerfire period to hunt anything other than bison in BC, and bison requires "ammunition to hunt bison must be constructed with a 175 grain or larger bullet, which retains 2,712 joules (2,000 ft lbs) or more energy at 100 m."

Hell, you can hunt grizzly with a longbow in BC if you want... I hope that you can hunt a deer with a 223.
 
Never shot deer with a centerfire .22 but have shot impala and seen a few others like sprinbuck and warthog taken (all with a.222 or .223 and conventioanl core/jacket Rem or Sako FL).

When it works it works really well - they usually go down very fast but with a conventional bullet it is unlikely you will get an exit and the .22 cal entry bleed very little, that means an animal that dashes in thick stuff or brushy ground can be very difficult to find....

You also dont have the luxuary of good penetration for quartering away shots and the risk of bullet break-up on bone is ever-present.

That said, by using a premium .224" bullet like a the partition, GS, rhino, barnes X or even going up to the 64gr Win PP or 70gr Speer certainly up the ante (the last two I would not push too hard, and are probably better in the .223 than the .22-250, assuming the later wil shoot them accurately anyway).

Its doable, but if you want to use a small cal rilfe I would just stick with a .243 which is a 'real' deer-size cartridge.
 
You guys have to remember when using the smaller calibers you have to pick and place your shots/bullets perfectly if you can't then don't use them.

I have never taken a quartering shot on a deer when I used my 22-250 I waited for the perfect shot or I didn't take the shot not rocket science just didn't shoot if the animal is not in a perfect position.

I shot an average sized wolf @ 220 yards with my 22-250 and 60gr Sierra Varminter HP's the bullet hit perfectly centered broadside thru the chest taking out both lungs and then exiting.

The wolf was down instantly and doing it's death quiver before I came out of recoil.

Smaller deer chests aren't much bigger than a wolf so I see no issue if you can place your shot perfectly but don't shoot if you can't.

I am not promoting the use of .224" bullets for deer and I usually recommend against it recommending .25" as the smallest caliber but the .224" do work if you do your job right.
 
IMO 22 centerfire for deer is like taking a pen knife to a sword fight.FOOLISH
there are much better calibers for deer.I own a 22-250 but theres no way I would carry it for deer when I have a .243 ,.308 and a 30-06 sitting right beside it in the safe.
 
I'm too laxy to look up the ontario regs, but I could have sworn there was something in them that said .243 and up for deer. .223 or 22-250 are, IIRC illegal, but someone with more energy than me will have to look it up in the regs.
 
Ive never tried it, but I hear the 53 gr TSX is borderline for stability in a 1:14 twist 22-250. I have a few of them but have yet to try them in my '250. I think a 1:9 twist 22-250 that will shoot the 62 gr TSX would be a fine deer slayer inside 300 yards, given precise shot placement and avoiding bad angled shots. The 45 gr TSX should work fine, I shot a deer last fall with one out of a 221 Fireball @ 3250 fps. It's impact velocity on the 100 yard shot should of been about 2700 fps, about what a 22-250 will do at 225 yards. It zipped right through her, and she made it about 10-15 yards before going down. :)

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todbartell said:
Ive never tried it, but I hear the 53 gr TSX is borderline for stability in a 1:14 twist 22-250. I have a few of them but have yet to try them in my '250. I think a 1:9 twist 22-250 that will shoot the 62 gr TSX would be a fine deer slayer inside 300 yards, given precise shot placement and avoiding bad angled shots. The 45 gr TSX should work fine, I shot a deer last fall with one out of a 221 Fireball @ 3250 fps. It's impact velocity on the 100 yard shot should of been about 2700 fps, about what a 22-250 will do at 225 yards. It zipped right through her, and she made it about 10-15 yards before going down. :)

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It missed the ribs on both sides...Yessss Sir!
 
Tod, interesting you brought up the stability of the 53 gr TSX. I bragged up the .224 TSXs to a fellow at work who shoots big game with his .22-250 and he went out and bought a couple of boxes, but instead of the 45 gr he got 53 gr and they won't stabilize in his 1:14 barrel. So now they sit on my bench (I load for him) waiting for me to get a .22 center fire. Should be a good layer of dust on them by then.
 
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