Rethinking the .223 Winchester

It'll probably work with dedicated SP hunting rounds. But if a hunter can shoot a .223, he or she can almost certainly also shoot the .243 well, too, and the extra 30 grains you'll get from a 100 grain .243 round might be good for a thick shoulder bone or a larger deer. I'd prefer that the round punch straight through the animal and not change trajectory inside the animal, and a slightly heavier round might help punch straight through.

Then again, if it works, it works. If a 60 (or whatever) grain .223 can punch through reliability and consistently, I suppose it works. You'll notice my opinion is cautious, because 10 years ago I didn't think the .243 was enough for deer ;) . Now I know better....
 
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I know the .223 can take a deer humanely at 100 yds or there abouts. My first center fire deer rifle was a .243 win. I used it for both varmints and deer hunting. I later got a .270 win and have not looked back since then in terms of caliber. I want some flexibility when I choose a cartridge for deer and potentially black bear or elk. I don't really want 5 different rifles as the .270 is shot just a few times a year and I seldom shoot centerfire rifle cartridges for target shooting unless I am sighting or checking a scope. Just the way it is for me and I don't think this dog will change. I'm generally far more interested in handgun hunting these days.

But if I were starting a young shooter out, I would pretty much go with a .243 as their first "deer rifle". After that, they can buy their own.
 
I'm gonna leave my Oracle for Coyote and vermin. I got a 6.5 Grendel a couple of years ago. A 123SST at 2500 is a solid 300 yard cartridge. The DoubleNaughtSpy videos moved me there. Clean shooting with CFE223, too.
 
I saw a deer dropped with .22 hornet. Not saying it's right, not saying I would do it. It was no bang flop either but the deer did not run out of sight.

A well placed , premium .223 ....why not?!
 
I have used good old Remington corlokt in mine. I will never believe the bad rap on the .223 is the bullets fault. I use a public range to sight in. You should see some of those guys. If you think staying in a paper plate @ 100 yards is ok for deer hunting, the .223 is not for you (Or just about any rifle).
 
Winchester has offered the 64gr Power point for I know 25+ years and it is heavier jacketed than the typical varmint bullet. They also being a flat base stabilize in my old Savage 110, not a fast twist barrel. I would still rate a 243 or 6mm miles ahead of a 223 if medium game was the target.
 
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