.223?

pressfit

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2009
Messages
4,490
Location
Giles Co. Tn
They will kill a deer no question.. it's about shot placement.. my kids have lost more deer than they have killed.. we switched to 7mm-08 with reduced recoil loads.. Personally I would not advise it.. many many better choices out there
 

Jcalder

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 18, 2012
Messages
9,360
Location
Cookeville
I won't let my kids shoot one. It's not whether or not they will kill. It's been proven they will. The issue I have is deer tend to move a little. The kids will get excited. And odds are they won't get the perfect shot. Even if the deer cooperates the kid may yank the trigger. I have no desire to track a wounded deer with the potential of little to no blood trail. The margin of error just isn't there


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Duck dogn

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2016
Messages
1,017
Location
Maury county
My daughter has a Savage Axis 223 I bought it because my little cousin has killed the crap out of deer with his but my daughter decided she's not interested! Sooooo she hasn't shot a deer with hers. I'm gonna​ try it next year not doubting the 223 at all.
 

mike243

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2006
Messages
18,780
Location
east tn
I have seen deer lost with a lot of different calibers,more with bows,I will take a full house load of a smaller caliber vs a reduced from a bigger 1,I have killed a boat load with my 243 with none lost,lost 1 with a 3030 in the 80's at 50y.any time a shot is taken by Any body the chance is there for the deer to move so it aint just kids that don't hit where they intended lol
 

Hunter 257W

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 4, 2012
Messages
10,548
Location
Franklin County
Sure they will kill deer as it's done every season but it's more of an experts gun than a kids gun in my opinion. It get's misused the same way the 410 does for kids though. Why give a gun with the least killing power to a beginning hunter who is most likely to make a bad shot? Also bullet choice is critical because if you don't retain nearly 100% bullet weight after impact, you won't get much penetration. A .224 bullet is so light weight that it can't afford to shed weight when it hits an animal. I solved the "kid gun" problem with a CZ Carbine in 7.62x39. My daughter barely weighed 100 lbs - if that - when she started shooting it and she loved it from the 1st shot. It's minimal but at least you have 125 grains of bullet weight and all the bullets available are suitable for deer. With 223 ammo, that is certainly not true.
 

Union Co. Boy

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 23, 2008
Messages
1,592
Location
TN
My daughter started hunting with a .25-06 when she was seven. She never complained about the recoil and took 17 deer with it before she was 16. Just a suggestion.
 

mike243

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2006
Messages
18,780
Location
east tn
If you worry about every thing that could possibly happen no shots would ever be fired.a 30 cal hole should have made up the movement of the deer but it didnt so a lost deer.lost 1 with my savage smokeless a few years back lung tissue being blown out and tracked off the property at 1/2 mile.45 cal around 2400fps didnt help there either.
 

rtaylor

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2011
Messages
966
Location
tennessee
I guess I'll be one of the few to give a real answer based on experience. I've been deer hunting with my AR for 5 years now. I've shot frontal shots at 50 yards to double lung shots at 279 yards. I've used 62 grain to 75 grain and everything in between. At least 15 deer so far without losing one. My kids will be using it this year over the .243 for one reason. They don't flinch when they pull the trigger. A well placed shot with a small caliber is better than a bad placed shot with a big caliber. The .223 leaves a good wound channel and I wouldn't hesitate to use it.
 

lung-buster

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 16, 2008
Messages
4,079
Location
Southern Middle Tn
My boy has been killing em with a 223 since he was 7. He will be 11 this year and will still be using my little Ruger ranch 223. The barns tsx, the non tipped hollow points, are a nasty little round that does a ton of damage on the internals.
The Caldwell field pod is the best thing I've bought that has helped my son keep steady when shooting.
Not to mention the $5 cheap steel case ammo for practice.
 

Deer Assassin

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 1, 2003
Messages
106,641
Location
Kingston Springs
right bullet 223 is an effective deer round you can punch shoulders all day long with a 53 grain barnes tsx

buddies son blew the shoulder out on 100 lb field dressed doe at 75 yds droped right there with a 53 grain barnes tsx at a mild 3100 fps muzzle vel

i shot this one jan 1 with a 64 grain bsb from nosler


my new load nosler's new bonded solid base bullet 64 gn over re 15 pushing 3150

she ran 40 yds if that great blood trail



deer 28 1-1-14
doe davidson county
rem 700 ADL .223
burris fulfield2 3-9x40
64 gn nosler bonded solid base
max re 15 3150 fps










blood trail 53 grain barnes at 3200 fps she only ran 30 yds



enhance


enhance


enhance


this doe dress 105 lbs went maybe 30-40 yds 53 grain barnes
223 entrance


exit





 
Top