Fur friendly 223 load?

L

lpel

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A buddy of mine has asked me to work up a load for his Browning A bolt in 223. He is using it to shoot coyotes out to 200 yards and will be selling the fur. He would like minimal pelt damage as he will be skining/selling the hides.

Any suggestions on bullet type and what grain would be greatly appreciated. Preferably from someone who has used the suggested load.

As well how would Winchester Factory white ox 45 gr HP work for this?

Thanks for any input.
 
I have loads with Barnes Varmint Grenades in them. I haven't shot a coyote with them yet, but lots of groundhogs and raccoons. The bullet fully expands going thru a grape. Sometimes there is a pass thru on a groundhog and rarely does it go thru the raccoon. The video for these bullets is on you tube, just type in barnes varmint grenade. They are lead free too!
 
I have killed hundreds and hundreds of coyotes with a 55 grain vmax, 23.3 grains of h322 and a cc1 450 primer. It is a safe load in my Savage 16flss 223. This load shoots 10 shot moa groups all day long and chrono's right at 3000 fps. Of the many coyotes i have killed with this load, only a handful have ever exited, and when they do it is usually an extremely small coyote. Most of the coyotes I kill with this gun are less than 50 yards. Hope this helps!

Norm
 
Try some 55gr Hornady SXSP bullets. They are designed to be explosive at lower velocities. I have used them for years in all my 22 calibers. Usually no exit hole in a coyote, and their cheap too.
 
I shot a few coyotes with WWB 45 gr in found them to be to destructive for pelts collecting, if you hit them in the boiler room the damage is limited because you wont have and exit but hit them on the outer edge of the animal and they will destroy the pelt... JP.
 
X2 on SXSP's no exit on coy's from 243 Winchester. Unfortunately Hornandy stopped making them in this caliber.
 
Some literature claims Hornady SX's coming apart in flight [mini-14] with either excessive speed or with faster rifling twists..................Harold..........they were devastating out of a 1-12"
 
Scott_N said:
I would go with the Hornady SPSX too, only I would go with the 50 gr weight. Like skhunter said, often they don't exit.
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I have personally used this exact SX bullet in my 222. A great varminting choice. I wish I could suggest the 46 grain HP bullet in 222 handloads, made by Winchester for the Hornet, but I've only used it on gophers & one very unlucky beaver.
I have a poor opinion of most FMJs in a 222/223 case. Most will not transmit enough shock into the varmint (IMO this bullet demands perfect standing still head shots) unless there is more kind of rounded profile.
Heard of some fur hunters using this pionty FMJ, with some success in the 22-250. Word is, if one uses this at extended ranges even in the 22-250, expect some furry critters to escape your clutches and die somewhere else far from you and your rifle.
 
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Hornady SPSX

Used the 55 grain exclusively in my 22-250's for many years now but recently bought a 223 so have loaded 24.2 grains of IMR 4895 behind the 50 grain version of the SPSX for great accuracy.
Have not tried them out of coyotes yet but they flip gophers 10 feet in the air.
Older SPSX used to have a warning not to exceed 3600 fps on 55 grains so I have loaded them at about 3400. Backed off the speed on the 223 a bit as well for the slow twists favor lower velocity and lighter bullets.
Rob
 
Another vote ofr the 50 grain SPSX for the 223 and the 55 for the 22-250. I have a 1:9 twist 223 Savage, and even at max velocity I have never had problems with them coming apart. They will if you jsck them up in the 22-250, that is precisely what Hornady made the 55 for, along with the 220 swift.

Cheap, tremendously accurate out of every 22 I have shot them in, explosive as all get out on gophers and rarely exit larger critters.
 
I use the 52 Sierra HPBT match and 36 varmint grenade in my 220 swift at 3800 and 4500 fps respectively. Both work great. The 52 must go into the shoulder or just behind on broadside, straight into the chest head on. If it exits, small hole the size of a nickel. The 36 varmint grenade at that speed exits every time, even through both shoulders, but very small hole penny sized on exit, even through the ribs, or neck. I have used the 55 vmax and had shoulder splashes.

In my 223, I have used 45 winchester white box, which never exit on chest/lung shots, but don't hit in the back of the ribs, or spine the dog. Big holes result. I also use 60 vmax, great through the ribs or shoulder shots, but again do not hit the back of the ribs, top of the back, or put it too far back on a quartering on shot. Big holes result.

I have been told that speer 50 HP work very good as well, a gentlemen I met loads his 22/250 to 223 speeds with these and says saves fur well.
 
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