.22-250 for ~100 lb. Whitetail

M

Mosin-Marauder

New member
90-110 pounds is about the average size whitetail around here. I was wondering if Winchester PowerPoint .22-250 ammo would be enough to take one down? 64 grain soft point out of a 1-12 twist. I have a decent high magnification scope and I have practiced a lot so shot placement isn't a big deal. Thanks in advance!
 
Yep, my sil took a monster buck with my 22-250 using factory 55gr rem and it did the job at a little over 200yds.
 
yeah

Folks are taking deer (and hogs) with the .223, with the AR fad running full cry. So a .22-250 is just more of the same. I have a brother in law that shot quite a few deer with the .22-250 (cause it was all he had) and 62-64 gr SP, and he said it did fine, "shot right through'em". This was long before the AR/223 craze. He shot the same rifle for woodchucks, and was quite good with it. It was a heavy barrel varminter, weighed a ton with a steel tubed Weaver on it (I think), and he finally got tired of lugging it around....and got a conventional deer rifle.

The 22-250 should have an edge on its .22 caliber siblings due to its higher velocity. That may well work to your advantage with the 1-12 twist as well and the "heavier" 64 grain slug. The slower twist rate of your rifle may be borderline for accuracy.....maybe not. I'm sure you will bench it and find out.

There are better, more conventional choices for deer, but a heavy, premium .22 slug will work with good shooting and attention to your angles.
 
Heck yeah, if you can get it to shoot accurately. If you cannot get it to shoot accurately, then use a 50 grainer and limit yourself to neck shots or perfect broadside shots. It will work like the hammer of Thor.
 
My nephews who live near Fayetteville have told me all about hunting those German Shepherd sized deer in N. Carolina! We have bigger coyotes in Ohio. ;) Use the heaviest bullet that shoots well from your gun and you'll be fine.
 
They're not big, most of them, but they sure are pretty. :D

I almost wonder if a 55 Grain would work as well? Like a V-Max or a Pointed Soft Point? I've gotten 55 Grainers Sub-MOA, so if that would work, shot placement would be even less of a problem.
 
God made them to fit into a roaster pan. :D

Stick with bullets made to stay together on heavy impact, and avoid rapid expansion varmint types of which I think V-Max is one. A PSP would proabbly be fine. A lot of handloaders seem to favor Nosler Partitions for .223 and I think a few others made for larger than groundhog game. They can weigh in. Your 22-250 will be launching them faster than a .223 so a good bullet that stays in one piece is even more important and will allow the shots to the vitals you can take with larger rounds.
 
Several years ago I killed a little roaster pan size deer with my .22-250 with the only ammo I had at the time, some fairly hot loaded 55 grain Nosler Ballistic Tips. Accuracy in that rifle was superb, distance a little under 100 yards. Bullet hit center of the neck and literally vaporized about a fist sized portion of neck and spine, needless to say there was not tracking job. If I were doing it again I would opt for a bullet more designed for tht task, such as a TSX or GMX, however if the 64 grainer will shoot well in your rifle it will certainly do the job, don't try to drive the bullet through the shoulder with it though, the high speed bullet will however make jelly out of the lungs in an instant.
 
I once shot a large 8 point, field dressed at 180 lbs with a 55 gr psp out of a 22-250 at about 50 yds, deer ran about 50 yds and dropped, lungs were jello. I wouldnt hesitate to use one if I were on stand and had a good broadside shot.
 
I've used the 55 gr Nosler BT on a few deer and medium sized pigs. It works, but never exits. I'd prefer a blood trail. Of the bullets I've actually used myself on deer and pigs, the best was the 63 gr Sierra SMP, but that was before all the new bullets came available. My 220 Swift won't stabilize the 60 gr Nosler Partition or the 64 gr Nosler BSB, darn it.
 
Back in the 1980's a lot of the most prolific hunters I know all switched to 22-250 for deer hunting. I don't know exactly what load they were using, but to a man they all swore they killed deer faster than anything they had ever used. We're talking about a state with a 12 deer a season limit, so they shot a lot of deer. Loads are much better today and the 223 seem more popular partly because they generally handle heavier bullets better. But if your rifle will shoot anything over 60 gr accurately it will take deer. And a lot bigger than 100 lbs too.

FWIW, I never made the switch and still hunt with larger calibers. But I'd not hesitate to take a shot at any deer inside of 200 yards with a 223 or 22-250 with the right bullets. Black bear season and deer season here overlap most of the hunting season, and many places where I hunt have more bear than deer. None of the 22 center fires are a bear gun.
 
deer don't read

The deer don't read the magazines so they don't know it takes magnum high speed low drag controlled expansion heat seeking double tnt bullet,,,,, so yea you will do just fine
bb
 
Do your research on the twist rate and bullet grain size.
The 22-250 is a smoking fast bullet (4000 FPS) that will put down a LOT of game, but shot placement is paramount!!!!

Most of the post I have read about the 22-250 says that once you find the right factory ammo it will put a smile on your face when you shoot a sub 1/2" group at 100 yards.
I love my savage.....................
 
The .22-250 with conventional bullet construction is an excellent deer round if the shoulder blade is avoided. If you plan on shooting through the shoulder blade, a Barnes X or similar bullet would be best.
 
From the Winchester Ammo web page

http://www.winchester.com/Products/...X-rifle/Pages/default.aspx?c=22-250+Remington

Shows the cartridge you mentioned, and shows it is usable for deer hunting. No statement about twist requirement. Should work. 12 twist Should stabilize that bullet. JBM stability calculator shows it will stabilize a Nosler bullet that is similar at 62 gr. They don't have the bullet length data for your Winchester Power Point 64 gr. so I substituted the Nosler bullet length in the calculator and it looks fine according to JBM.
 
90-110 pounds is about the average size whitetail around here.
Click to expand...

3500 f/sec is blazin' fast for that tiny bullet.....

If you are going to shoot something that small, a conventional cup and core bullet at shorter ranges- going that fast is going to mess up a lot of meat (percentage-wise- there's not "a lot" there to start with!), even with perfect shot placement: a hit right behind the shoulder will result in some serious "blood-shot" meat throughout the ribs and shoulder ..... and fragments of lead and bullet jacket will be no fun to pick out..... If you hit the upper leg bone or base of the shoulder blade, there will be bone fragments, as well .....

Will it work? Yep ..... but I wouldn't choose it if I had other options.....
 
You'll get better blood trails with larger, heavier bullets.

The 22 cals "can" kill deer, but I don't think they are a good choice.

Even with perfect placement, if you don't hit the brain or spine, a deer can run 100+ yds in the few seconds it takes them to die, and without a bloodtrail you may never find them.

I generally use a 6mm as a minimum, and prefer a 7mm
 
People illegally hunt deer with .22LR here, every story I've heard just about was a head or neck shot and killed the deer. .22-250 will work but it wouldn't be my first choice.

Someone mentioned the deer can run still, I've seen deer shot in the head with a .30-06 run so anything is possible in my book. Same deer was shot twice all together and it still went a few yards before it died. A .243 will make their heart and lungs jello but they'll still run sometimes. Not every deer leaves a blood trail either. I've seen a .30-06 go through their chest and leave absolutely no blood trail. The deer didn't even look shot when it ran. But it crossed a big creek and went around 100 yards all together. The deer around here don't usually just drop, sometimes but usually not. So use your rifle and hopefully your miniature deer are easy to find. People here consider a 100 pound deer small. Almost no one would even shoot one.
 
I've "seen" deer killed (some illegally)with 22LR, 22WRM, 22Hornet, 223, 22/250, and any number of other small rounds. Sure, many of the deer died quickly. I can't say how many were hit but didn't die right away. With correct shot placement, the small calibers usually work fine. My blind Son's primary rifle was a .223 and he killed 20 or so deer with it. We used it due to the lack of recoil/muzzle blast. Shots were under very controlled conditions. My Grandsons killed their first bucks with .223 rifles last year-again under very controlled conditions.
None of these calibers is what I consider "general use" capable. Yes, they work but they don't work under EVERY scenario. The smallest chambering I carry for deer hunting is a 257 Roberts(and then only for "meat deer") and it's not because I can't hit the right spot.
I quit the 243 about 25 years ago because of unexplained failures. Stuff happens and I don't intend to have it happen simply because I can't or won't carry an appropriately powerful rifle.
 
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