Is a .223 enough for deer???

Outcast

Outcast

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I'm a complete noob to hunting, just getting ready to take the core. I already own a Stevens 200 in .223 and was wondering If I need to up my caliber or is a .223 sufficient? Right now I'm shooting a 68g bullet but I suppose that could change if it's not up to the task. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
 
it depends on the SIZE if the deer- those little blacktails you have on the island yes, but it's considered MINIMAL and you should use at least 60 grain bullets-ie 62 grain sgks, or 69s, or better- in alberta it's a 243 or better anyway
 
It might be enough for deer (depending on a lot of factors including legality), whereas a .243 is enough for deer (if you want to keep it to a smaller caliber). Anything from that point up will do just fine and I'd recommend it whole-heartedly over a .223.
 
The Answer is NO
For any shooter.
It would be cruel to shoot at any deer with less than 120 grain bullet.
You can't guarantee a kill even with a perfectly placed shot. Deer are pretty tough buggers.

Edit. I remember a post a while back of a man finding somebody elses .243 bullet in his steak after he killed the deer with a proper caliber. Poor animal musta been walking around wounded for quite some time.
 
The 5.56 NATO (223 remington in civvie clothing) is designed to "destroy the enemy". In plain English, that means it was designed to kill big muscular communist humans.

A deer's "boiler" is not significanty larger than a human, especially a human wearing webbing or combat vests, chemical suits etc.

It is just as easy to blow off a leg and wound an animal with a 3oo Win Mag as it is with a 223. The secret to successful humane hunting is to be an accurate shooter and know when a kill is safe and assured. There are those that think that because they have a 338 Lapua magnum means they can hunt at 1000 yards... well, if you can confidently drop a SINGLE round in a 5" circle with a cold bore shot and read conditions, give it a try. Most (including me, a long distance competitive shooter using ultra-precision equipment and optics) cannot. The consequence is having to hike a kilometer away and track a wounded suffering animal. Therefore, smaller calibers with known limitations may actually be better.
 
It's generally not recommended, and would require you to be more selective about the shot you take. It will work if you have the skill and patience to place your shot carefully and pass up opportunities that don't present you with that option. I prefer something that will pass through more bone, if need be, and do enough damage to anchor the deer close to where I shot it.
 
Obtunded said:
The 5.56 NATO (223 remington in civvie clothing) is designed to "destroy the enemy". In plain English, that means it was designed to kill big muscular communist humans.

A deer's "boiler" is not significanty larger than a human, especially a human wearing webbing or combat vests, chemical suits etc.

It is just as easy to blow off a leg and wound an animal with a 3oo Win Mag as it is with a 223. The secret to successful humane hunting is to be an accurate shooter and know when a kill is safe and assured. There are those that think that because they have a 338 Lapua magnum means they can hunt at 1000 yards... well, if you can confidently drop a SINGLE round in a 5" circle with a cold bore shot and read conditions, give it a try. Most (including me, a long distance competitive shooter using ultra-precision equipment and optics) cannot. The consequence is having to hike a kilometer away and track a wounded suffering animal. Therefore, smaller calibers with known limitations may actually be better.
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i'll disagree with you there- it was designed to "wound little communist humans, not big muscular ones- look at the era that it comes from and what we were fighting back then- the 308 was built for the big bad russians
 
evilhaze said:
The Answer is NO
For any shooter.
It would be cruel to shoot at any deer with less than 120 grain bullet.
You can't guarantee a kill even with a perfectly placed shot. Deer are pretty tough buggers.

Edit. I remember a post a while back of a man finding somebody elses .243 bullet in his steak after he killed the deer with a proper caliber. Poor animal musta been walking around wounded for quite some time.
Click to expand...

This post is wrong on quite a few levels.

It is not cruel to shoot a deer with a bullet weighing less than 120gr;

A "perfectly" placed shot does guarantee a kill; and

A bullet in the "steak" is nowhere near a "perfectly placed shot.


Deer have be cleanly harvested with the .223 in the past and they will in the future. It is not an ideal choice for a new hunter, imo. There are numerous high quality hunting bullets out there but, unless I am mistaken, you need to reload in order to take advantage of them. Examples are the Barnes TSX/TTSX, Swift Scirroco and the Nosler Partition.

I believe you will be better served with something a bit larger. Also, you need to check the regulations in your province to see if it is even legal to hunt big game with that caliber.
 
You could also drive your bike on the 401 but it wouldn't be considered to safest way to get to work.

A 223 will kill deer all day long but we have way better choices. For a beginner? 6-6.5 mm as a minimum.

Just order another barrel from jerry (mystic precision) and the necessary parts from savage (bolt head etc...) And you got yourself an accurate and sweet switch barrel
 
Thanks for the in put guys, I forgot to mention I'm trying to keep the rifle manageable as by son who's 11 wants to hunt as well, so I'm trying to keep the recoil down a bit. He's a big kid, lots of shooting experience. I guess I'll have to up the caliber. I may have a nice 223 up in the EE soon.
 
This has been discussed a time or two.

The 223 will kill a deer just fine, especially if a nice barnes bullet is used. HOWEVER, it is still not the best tool for the job, and especially not for a noob. Here in alberta it isn't even, legal, although I'm not sure about the laws where you're at.

I think the perfect cartridge for a full grown adult noob who wants to kill a deer is the .270. You can find ammo cheap, and everywhere, allowing lots of practice. And it'll do a deer without any issues. Like with any cartridge, the vitals must be hit.
Also, if you want to go into moose or something, it'll be within your rifle's capabilities.

Step 1> Get a .270 with a decent 3-9x40 scope
Step 2> Practice a lot from field positions, not the bench
Step 3> Go kill a deer.
 
Outcast said:
Thanks for the in put guys, I forgot to mention I'm trying to keep the rifle manageable as by son who's 11 wants to hunt as well, so I'm trying to keep the recoil down a bit. He's a big kid, lots of shooting experience. I guess I'll have to up the caliber. I may have a nice 223 up in the EE soon.
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Do you handload? The .243 Win, .250 Savage, .257 Roberts and others have very, very mild recoil. The difference in recoil is minimal compared to the .223, but the effectiveness on deer sized game has been proven for a long time.
 
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