What Grain .223 Do You Use?

[OKCShooter]

My head hurts more now. Thanks.

You think varmint bullets (or birdshot) are going to penetrate adequately under the majority of situations? Especially when you have to go through an arm because they're pointing a gun at you?

Big time ammo companies with big time contracts that rely on - you guessed it - big time results seem to somehow separate these varmint bullets into their own category...and it's always marketed at the crowd afraid of overpenetration. If it worked better than other designs at reaching the vitals under any and all shot angles, then we'd never see a bonded soft point/TSX etc...

But let's take a look at how these bullets do on bare gel and gel after passing through a barrier such as a massive 3/4" of plywood, or the impenetrable 1/16" sheet metal:
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Hmmmm...looks a little short of FBI/IWBA minimal penetration requirements to me...under ANY and ALL circumstances.

We aren't snipers. We don't get to pick our ideal target angle when someone is taking a knife or gun to your loved one.

Not everyone is as ready to quit being 'bad' from a nasty wound as quickly a normal, sane person who isn't on drugs is.

So why limit yourself to a projectile(s) designed and marketed for killing something 1/50th the size of a man?

There's a reason why I don't go wading into big boars at night loaded down with V-MAX bullets.

I get it; you're super smart and can upload ballistic pics from the internet - although the TAP I was referring to would be the 62g so your lesson has sadly been wasted.

Anyway, I wouldn't use an AR for the situation that OP is asking; my bump in the night "nightstand"gun is pictured below - I simply replied with a few options that would likely be good in his situation.

Sorry for that headache you can't seem to shake.

 

[Jason Freeland]

I get it; you're super smart and can upload ballistic pics from the internet - although the TAP I was referring to would be the 62g so your lesson has sadly been wasted.

Anyway, I wouldn't use an AR for the situation that OP is asking; my bump in the night "nightstand"gun is pictured below - I simply replied with a few options that would likely be good in his situation.

Sorry for that headache you can't seem to shake.


View attachment 346488

For the record, my first goto is a 9mm pistol, followed by either the AR or my AK-V. Both will take about the same time to bring into battery.

 

[Oklahomabassin]

If you’ve ever been in amongst a heard of them running every which direction at dusk you might understand. I wasn’t under gunned as far as chambering but I wasn’t too happy with a bolt action and a minimum 6 power scope. I prefer not to knowingly close distance and engage dangerous game with a 22 caliber. Give me an AR10 or a 10mm PCC with a red dot.

Is this the video of the story you narrated in your post?

 

[Jcann]

Is this the video of the story you narrated in your post?

Yes, but the video doesn’t capture the complete story

 

[Kangaroo1]

55gr to 77 grain works on coyotes

Ive tried the heavier grains on coyotes and bobcats but always go back to the .45 gr. Winchester white box. Very rarely will you get an exit but you will get liquified insides and hits them like a lightning bolt.

 

[Istandalone]

62gr M885. bulk It works.

 

[ssgrock3]

123 grain in .223? I have gobs of that in 7.62x39, but .223?

yes sir, 7.62 x 39..it was a joke.

this thread is like comparing peters, everyone has an opinion and whatever works for them. Whats best threads suck. run what ya got the most of, if it works great. In the military plenty has been stopped by 55gr, and 62gr. Frangibles are fun and cool, 77gr also good as I like mass on a bullet. the bashing on each other is poor sportsman like conduct. and a waste of reading. Just like my opinion, you get what you paid for it.

 

[jackinok09]

I recently purchased from a member here (thanks again) a 223 cal rifle.its a cut down / re-welded FN mauser nicely done. I bought it to control those feral black paper circles that's invaded my place primarily but y'all have got me to thinking about trying it on hogs. I found some 62 gr federal fusion ammo and was wondering if anyone here has used that. I've used fusion ammo in other calibers with good success. Just for the record I'll be shooting from fixed stand at know range so it's not like I'm hunting per say just shooting and can wait for good shot.

 

[diggler1833]

I recently purchased from a member here (thanks again) a 223 cal rifle.its a cut down / re-welded FN mauser nicely done. I bought it to control those feral black paper circles that's invaded my place primarily but y'all have got me to thinking about trying it on hogs. I found some 62 gr federal fusion ammo and was wondering if anyone here has used that. I've used fusion ammo in other calibers with good success. Just for the record I'll be shooting from fixed stand at know range so it's not like I'm hunting per say just shooting and can wait for good shot.

I've used the 64gr Speer Gold Dot with good success. A bonded 62gr soft point will get deep enough to do the trick. Both Speer as well as Federal are owned by the same parent company, and in reality, there isn't a whole lot of difference between the Fusion and Gold Dot lines.

Really where the .223/5.56 lacks regarding hog killing is if you're trying to put a bunch of runners down as they scatter. However since that isn't what you're trying to do, you should have pretty decent success with a well-aimed shot. Your 62gr Fusion should even be able to make it through the shield, scapula, and into the spine if you wanted to take a high shoulder shot.

Surprisingly, I had marginal results with the 115gr Fusion in my 6.8 SPC, and poor results with the 120gr Gold Dot in my 6.5 Grendel on hogs. My only hypothesis at this point is that the bonded soft points need a lot of velocity to get the pigs to drop quickly.

^ I'm sure the pigs I shot died, but way more of them got up after getting rolled and ran off than I had with other bullets (SST, TSX, TTSX, NBT, Cavity Back etc...).

 

[jackinok09]

I've used the 64gr Speer Gold Dot with good success. A bonded 62gr soft point will get deep enough to do the trick. Both Speer as well as Federal are owned by the same parent company, and in reality, there isn't a whole lot of difference between the Fusion and Gold Dot lines.

Really where the .223/5.56 lacks regarding hog killing is if you're trying to put a bunch of runners down as they scatter. However since that isn't what you're trying to do, you should have pretty decent success with a well-aimed shot. Your 62gr Fusion should even be able to make it through the shield, scapula, and into the spine if you wanted to take a high shoulder shot.

Surprisingly, I had marginal results with the 115gr Fusion in my 6.8 SPC, and poor results with the 120gr Gold Dot in my 6.5 Grendel on hogs. My only hypothesis at this point is that the bonded soft points need a lot of velocity to get the pigs to drop quickly.

^ I'm sure the pigs I shot died, but way more of them got up after getting rolled and ran off than I had with other bullets (SST, TSX, TTSX, NBT, Cavity Back etc...).

thanks for the reply, my go to hog gun for some time was a 7mag loaded to near 7x57 speeds does excellent with 140 grain bullets of about any brand so this is something new for me. I know what you mean about strange bullet performance. same rifle night hunting I was heading in and walked up on one under a feeder about 75 yds away had the thermal and put a bullet in what I thought was his neck and he rolled about 3 times down the hill, struggled to his feet and ran off. I was so shocked I didn't even reload my rifle. found his remains a few days later maybe 200 yards away but couldn't really tell where bullet actually had hit. must have missed his spine and took out his throat and windpipe were all I could figure.