223 for coyotes?
 

Anyone here use a 223 for coyotes? If so, are you content, or wishing you had the extra reach of a 22-250? Obviously IMO one of the biggest advantages for the 223 would be cost of ammo and the number of guns out there chambered in 223 vs what's out there in 22-250. Anyway just trying to pick some of you yote masters brains, thanks.

used it for years, sometimes i still do. they can put some good holes in coyotes if you hit them wrong or the bullet can just disappear.

the only reason i switched is because i don't care about hides and i built a 220 ai swift. in this case i would prefer my 22-250 to my 223


a flatter shot can help a lot if the coyote comes in fast and you don't have time to range. so you might prefer the 22-250 but ammo will cost more

i'm sure ~90% of rifles that come in 223 also come in 22-250

I have shot coyotes with the .222 and .223 since 1968 and like both of them, no issues.
Cat

I've shot coyotes with a Ruger #1 in .223 for years. It is boringly deadly out to about 300 yds. Longest shot I made was 406 yds. He was graveyard dead. I've shot lots around the 300 yard mark as well. Having said that I don't think it is a long range caliber. I also find it fur friendly as long as you stay off the bone.

I have a 220 Swift when I want to dress up and reach out. I try not to shoot anything inside 200 yds as it is not as furgiving [see what I did there? lol] as the .223 Stay off the shoulder and hit them in the boiler and there's not much stitching.

It isn't bad and I find it better than the 22.250 for terminal performance even though the ballistics charts on the 220 and the 2.250 are very similar.

If I had to choose between the .223 and the 22.250 to put fur on the board , i'd choose the .223 all day long. But if I had to choose between the 220 and the .223 I'd choose the 220 cause I look so good, shooting it.:)

Have both
 

Given a standing broadside shot I dont see any difference up to 250 yards.
Since I dont always get standing broadside shots at 250 yards I would have to say I have tracked and finished off more 223 kills with a second shot than with the 22-250. My meatsickle is anchored at a measured 200 yards off back deck and my average shot is 250 and a bit. Those bits seem to add up to a second shot with the 223 and sometimes 100 to 200 yard tracking. I use SPSX 50 grain in the 223 and SPSX 55 grain in the 22-250. Rarely does a 22-250 shot coyote run 30 yards before piling up.

Are you wanting to put up the fur or just kill coyotes ???


The 223 is quite efficient at putting down coyotes within it's range, and you already know that the ammo is readily available and is cheaper than the ammo for the 22-250.
I use a 22-250 and if you want to put up the fur, I have found that the Varmint Bullets do what they were designed to do and that is to destroy anything at under 200 yards... IMO.
The 22-250 designates that it will take anywhere from 22 to 250 stitches to sew up the hole.
After years of sewing and throwing.....I have settled on the BARNES TSX 53gr FB Bullet for my application......I handload all of my own and they aint cheap but they are quite fur friendly with most holes being between dime and quarter size.
On a side note I shot 2 coyotes last year with my 243 and Barnes 80 gr TTSX bullets and the hole was about the size of a Toonie.

Personally I cannot see a 223 in my future anytime soon.....BUT, that's JMHO Good Luck in whichever caliber you choose....

I seldom have any sewing with 22-250
 

3200 feet a second and you get shrapnel explosive inside chest cavity. It is rare that I even get a piece of the base of a bullet making an exit hole on the other side that required any sewing at all.

I've used a .22 mag for twenty years but had to range within the 100m distance. Finally switched up to a .223 and am happy with the extra distance and velocity I can get. I'd recommend the .223 It has been fur friendly for me. The triple deuce has also served me well. Pretty rare to have any of them run on me and minimal sewing.

~Trap

My uncle used a triple deuce and a .223 for years, no issues. i have used 22-250 and .220 swift. i settled on the swift. I say flip a coin, they all work well.:sHa_shakeshout:

If you are not selling the fur, any deer rifle caliber would be easy to use as well.

I have a .223 and have shot many coyotes with it. My brother has a 22-250 and it's proven coyote killer. I would use either one that's handy. I give a slight edge to the 22-250 but not enough to go buy one.


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Just my 2 cents.

Most calibers will kill a coyote. For me 2 things are important:
1) Fur friendly.
2) Quick humane kill.

If you shoot lots of coyotes you eventually are going to have a big holes and Bad shots. So which calibre and bullet will give me the least amount of runners and minimal fur damage. Look at what the guys that do it for a living use. Not trappers because they are not calling them In so a .22lr will do the trick for them. The guys that call them in for a living. Randy Anderson and Les Johnson are 2 of my personal Favorites. I believe the both primarily use 22-250. In more recent episodes Les had switched to a .223. When he was using the 22-250 I very seldom saw spinners or runners but when he switched to the .223 most were spinners and runners. He seems to be back in the 22.250 again. When I say a lot of coyotes I'm talking Les once did a seminar in reddeer and the week after he shot over 50 in a week in Alberta.

Personally until now I have use a .204ruger with .32 gr. Vmax and find it to be both fur friendly (100+ yards) and quick and humane, most flop over in their tracks. My last 8 have not had exit wounds. I am going to try the 40gr nosler ballistic tip This year because they group great in my Tikka T3 SS Heavy Barrel Vamint. I will be taking the .204 and 12 gauge M3500 Stoeger semi auto with Hornady Coyote nickel plated BB for the 50 yard and closer coyotes.

Personally if I wasn't such a .204 freak I would have a 22-250.

Enjoy which ever you choose 😁

I have had both and other than steel cased ammo or cheaper fmj ammo the cost difference in quality hunting ammo is identical. The 22-250 is definitely a large gain over the 223 in my opinion if your intention is longer range shots. My personal limitations due to my abilities take long range shots out of the equation as I do not practice anywhere near enough to make good consistent hits. I am comfortable to 200 yards so I use a .223 with Hornady Steel Match 55 gr jhp ammunition. Its around $30 for a 50 round box and shoots well within my capabilities. Hope that sheds a bit of light?

.204 is a great option. This is 500 yards and factory ammo. Just switched ammo from 32 gr vmax so I hope these noslers knockem down as good as the 32 gr vmax did.:sHa_shakeshout:

If you can find them the 35 grain bergers are an awesome fur head.

Round wise anything between 17 hornet to 243 is a right answer if you understand the basic traded offs.

Not sure why you use a 22-250 for 3200 fps. When a 223 will do that all day long with less powder. To me it defeats the purpose of the cartridge. You drive a hot rod to go fast.

That is where I found my best accuracy going slow and going fast was not an option with these bullets as so sensitive they vaporize around 3600

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Cheaper ammo is only good if it's accurate. I do use 223 myself

FWIW I just shot a skunk in my yard at 28 yards with the .243 100grain Sierra Gameking. Not much fur damage at all. Just a hole in the front and a hole in the back. Actually thought I missed it. It just stopped moving. And sprayed.

Shooting coyotes even for fur with the right bullet selection i have found the 22-250 to be just as fur friendly as 223. You must pick a highly frangible bullet though such as the tnt or varmint grenade. I recently switched to the nobler varmageddon and am expecting similar results. for factory economical ammo options the winchester white box hollow points have been very accurate and fur friendly for me. One thing I've noticed with .223 and even light (36gr) 22-250 bullets is Yes they will kill coyotes no problem but there are definitely more coyotes that require some tracking and far less bang flops than with a 55gr 22-250 bullet.

I always hear about bullets vaporizing but even with hornady 32gr at over 4000 fps I have never experienced it yet. They always go in 2-3 inches and explode. I recently switched to 40 gr noslers because of accuracy and I hope they kill like the 32 vmax do.

Many years ago I was experimenting with 3600 ft per second with spsx bullets despite the warning on the box. Dead to rights coyote on fence line at 100 yards ran away after shot which sounded funny like a screamer rocket. Thought I had hit fence wire. Happened again a week later
Target set up and not hit. They were coming apart fròm friction in the air as they are basically a copper jacket with a lead base

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A friend of mine swears by the cheap Winchester white box ammo in his 223 as well as the 22-250. Haven't tried the 223 but I tested it in the 22-250. 2 out of 10 of them 'vaporized' - shrapnel hit the paper and not a bullet. I was running it over a chrony as well and there was a fps spread from 3800 to 4150. He hits a lot of coyotes with it but misses a lot too. But the ones he hits the bullet stays inside and seldom any fur damage - at least according to him. Not so the 204 32 gr Hornady you mention - at least not for me.

That's my fav round for accuracy for sure. And Ive shot many yotes with that exact round and, sadly, Ive found most of them go right on through and blow a big hole on the other side. I hates that. Sure, puts em down fast but ruins the fur and that's the main reason I shoot them. Least likely to do that is at 250 yards and up.

I wish there was a non-varmint bullet available in 204 but haven't found one yet. A hunting type round that expands but doesn't grenade like the varmints do. One that goes right through and leaves no more than a toonie size hole on the other side instead of baseball or football size.

in the rifle that the bullets are coming apart, does it have a faster than usual twist rate? The increased centrifugal forces from a fast twist rate could pull a lightly constructed bullet apart.

I could just picture the stunned look on your face after the whistle rocket blew there. lol.

.223 all day

Like most people say cheap plentiful ammo

I haven't fired at anything but targets and I bought an MVP Varmint .223/5.56mm rifle, mostly based on ammo cost. Coyotes was the goal.

I would like to go for yotes, one of my co-workers bought a calling box, but then was transferred for work-related reasons....

Seems to be alot of advocates for the 223, with that said, what kind of rig are you guys using?

CZ M1 223 with a Swarovski Z3 4-16 on it. Shooting 55 gr nosler ballistic tips at 3140 fps. Great on hides.

Older Tikka t3 in 223 and 3 to 9 Bushnell 3200
55 gr nosler handloads. Been great out to 300 yards and fur friendly on coyotes.