Is the .223 a good caliber for deer?

Answer 1

Not according to the deer.

Answer 2

.223 is not rated as a medium game caliber, and would be one of the last calibers I would grab to take a deer. I would go with a .30 caliber of some sort. .308, 30-06. .223 was never intended for game the size of deer.

Answer 3

A .223 is really more of a varmint gun ( fox, coyote). It is a good caliber to start a youngster with who may not be ready for the bigger calibers, but it will need to be an excellent shot, and you'll need to have good tracking skills.
In my option and personal experience, the 30-06 caliber is a great deer hunting caliber

Answer 4

It is almost too small for S. Texas deer (they can weight up to 200 lbs.) I have taken two S. Texas deer (120 lbs.) with a Remington 788 in .223 with a bull-barrel & scope, but I will not hunt deer with this caliber again unless I have nothing bigger at hand. It kills too slow.

A friend of mine shot and wounded and lost a huge Whitetail (S. Texas deer) after a solid neck hit with a .223 AR-15. He also retired his .223 for hunting deer.

If this is the only weapon you have to hunt deer I recommend the following:

1. Always assure you will make a neck shot.

2. Always use hunting ammo, not ball ammo. (Hunting ammo will either be a hollow-point, or have exposed lead at the tip).

3. If you can find it, use the 'heavier' rounds. Sixty-two to 68 grain bullet with exposed lead.

4. Comply with all your State's hunting laws & regulations.

Your 'advantage' with a .223 (also known as the 5.56 mm Nato) is that it is extremely accurate and easy to shoot. No recoil! The last game I took with this caliber was a Texas Gobbler. Neck shot at 200 yards. Like I said, it is very accurate. I regret no longer owning this rifle. But I traded up and love my new .458 Winchester Magnum Safari-Grade Ruger #1 w/24" bull-barrel & Burris x3 Power scope.

Happy deer season!

H

Answer 5

Here in Kansas law provides at least a 25 cal bullet. So no use of 223 is allowed. I prefer a .270, 30-06 is usually a big cartridge for deer considering most shots are 100-150 yards away.

Answer 6

Unless you are always going to go for headshots and pass on any shot that you are not ABSOLUTELY SURE that you can make, It would be irresponsible to use a .223 for deer. As sportsman, we owe it to those beautiful animals to make clean kills and to not waste anything.
Let's talk about bullet construction. The majority of .223 bullets are designed for explosive expansion and fragmentation on impact, which is great for small game and varmint hunting. However, This fragmentation severely limits the penetration needed to make clean humane shots on deer. Deer are tough animals, and you really need a heavier caliber and a bullet that is designed to hold together on tough game. I prefer nothing smaller than a .270. and one of the various .30 caliber chamberings are never a bad choice.
No matter what you do, choose your shots carefully, and make no creature suffer needlessly.

Answer 7

Yes, you have to hunt with something bigger than 22 caliber. I hunt with a .243 and have shot deer at 100 yd and it went straight through shattering ribs, liver, and lungs. My father hunts with a .223 handgun(Thompson Contender 8 inch barrel) and it obliterates groundhogs at 100-200 yd. but it is all shot placement so i would not attempt a neck shot for any reason. instead aim for the vitals behind the front shoulder blade just about six inches above the white. a .223 will take down a deer af average size (100-180 lb) with correct shot placement.

Answer 8

It has good speed, but its pretty small. I like the 7 mag or the 30 cal...

Dual-purpose deer rifles

A standard length, bolt action .270 Win. wearing a 3-9x scope probably typifies the long range deer rifle. As we have seen above, a traditional lever action like a Winchester 94 or Marlin 336 in .30-30 with a 1-4x scope is the traditional woods rifle. But what if you live in a place, like Washington or Oregon, which offers both types of hunting (heavily forested country to the west of the Cascade mountains, and open country to the east)? All is not lost. That bolt action .270 will serve adequately in the woods if you set its scope to the minimum power. And that lever action .30-30 can reach out in excess of 225 yards if its scope is sighted to put the 150 grain bullet 2.9" high at 100 yards.

The .270 and .30-06 remain the most popular dual-purpose deer cartridges. Properly zeroed they offer a maximum point blank range close to or beyond 300 yards. These are fine cartridges for all-around rifles with standard length actions.

If you want something close to an ideal dual-purpose deer rifle, consider a short, handy, lever or bolt action rifle chambered for the .260 Rem., 7mm-08 Rem., or .308 Win. cartridges. A Remington Model Seven, or short action Browning Lightning BLR would be good examples. Equip one of these rifles with a high quality 2-7x variable power scope, zeroed to put a fast stepping bullet 2.5-3 inches high at 100 yards, and you should have a 285+ yard deer rifle that carries well and handles fast enough to serve very nicely in the woods. Essentially, your deer rifle has become an "all-around" rifle.

Answer 9

No they are not a good caliber for deer. The .223 is a good rifle for varmints but not deer.

Answer 10

Anything above a .22 is good for deer (or at least for the deer Hunter) - if you hit the right spot. And isn't that the challenge? I use a .44 magnum pistol and find the challenge quite enjoyable. I don't get as many deer as other folks, but then they can't say they've surmounted the challenge as I have.

Answer 11

If you are worried about recoil.I would go to a .243 win. It ia a lot better choice than a .223.I would stay away from a .223 for deer.