.223 Coyote Load?

[azsixshooter]

I had previously worked up a decent load with 55 grain Nosler Varmint Ballistic Tips and 25 gr of Varget for hunting coyotes out to 250 yds. I still have a lot of Varget but I either need to pickup more of the Noslers or try something else. I was going to tinker around with seating depths to see if I could get better accuracy from that load so I thought I would reach out and see if anyone has any favorite loads for .223 and Varget for use on coyotes. I have a 16" barrel with a 1:7" twist chambered for 5.56 NATO. I don't hunt coyotes too much, but I like to get after them sometimes in the winter.

Thanks for any recommendations and have a blessed day,

Steve

 

[xphunter]

All of my 223/5.56 loading is for 75 grains to 77 grains.
I have a Varget load for the 77 grain TMK, if you want it

 

[Vince]

I’ve always preferred the 45-70 for coyotes.

Vince

 

[azsixshooter]

All of my 223/5.56 loading is for 75 grains to 77 grains.
I have a Varget load for the 77 grain TMK, if you want it

Sure, I would appreciate it! I was thinking a heavier bullet, like the 60 grain Nosler BT Varmint would shoot really well from my 1:7" twist barrel. When I was testing various factory match ammo in this rifle it liked the Black Hills 77 grain Match Hollow Point ammo the best out of what I tried. So I would definitely be interested in your pet load so I have an idea of what to work up towards.

 

[xphunter]

Lapua brass, 7.5 Rem primer, 24.7 grains of Varget, 77 grain TMK , 2.354 OAL
15” barrel, 7T, 2675 FPS

 

[PJGunner]

I haven't shot coyotes in a long time but when I used the .223, it was bulk Winchester 55 gr.Power Points over 25.0 gr. W748 IIRC. Not a top speed load as I recall but very accurate in a Kimber I own. I once tried to old method of testing for accuracy which was fire a ten shot group. The first nine could be covered by a dime but shot number ten was a flier that opened the group to the size of a nickel. I've never figured out if it was the load, a change in the wind of the jerk behind the trigger but there it was. I always tried calling coyotes in as close as possible so most shots were two hundred yards or less and the load worked just fine.
Paul B.

 

[TexasLife]

62-75gr would work the average on distance as lighter might not be as good when windy or past 300 yards on a 16" barrel.

 

[azsixshooter]

View attachment 26883
Lapua brass, 7.5 Rem primer, 24.7 grains of Varget, 77 grain TMK , 2.354 OAL
15” barrel, 7T, 2675 FPS

Thanks Ernie! I even have the Remington 7.5 primers on-hand so all I need are the bullets. Should be quite close to the MK262 rounds (I think that's what they called them). That's a cool pistol, it reminds me of a certain golf course scene in Matt Bracken's book "Foreign Enemies and Traitors". Awesome book, my favorite by far in that series!

 

[DrMike]

View attachment 26883
Lapua brass, 7.5 Rem primer, 24.7 grains of Varget, 77 grain TMK , 2.354 OAL
15” barrel, 7T, 2675 FPS

That's an awesome round! It plumb tore the head off that poor yodel dog!

 

[xphunter]

Thanks Ernie! I even have the Remington 7.5 primers on-hand so all I need are the bullets. Should be quite close to the MK262 rounds (I think that's what they called them). That's a cool pistol, it reminds me of a certain golf course scene in Matt Bracken's book "Foreign Enemies and Traitors". Awesome book, my favorite by far in that series!

You are most welcome.
We have hit steel with this 15" pistol past 1200 yards (We had great conditions that day), but have shot steel to 1K multiple times.
I hit one prairie dog past 1K with it, but another dog drug it down the hole, so I didn't have tangible proof. Glenn watched it happen, as he was spotting for me that day.
FWIW there is a huge thread on the 77 grain TMK on Rockslide for use one big game.
I have not used it for big game yet.

 

[azsixshooter]

That's awesome to hear that it is effective on big game. My daughter is 14 now and that might be a good round to start her on for deer hunting, maybe she could shoot a doe during the youth hunt or something. I do have a 6.5x55SE and I was planning to work up a mild load with 100 or 125 gr Partitions or something similar, but I'm afraid the full-sized stock might be too much LOP for her, especially with heavy hunting clothes on. The AR15 however could be adjusted right down to fit her LOP much better and that 77 TMK load's recoil would be easy for her to learn to shoot without developing a flinch.

That pistol is very impressive! I'll have to look up that thread on Rokslide. Thanks for the tip and for setting me on the 77 TMK path brother! God bless you!

Steve

 

[xphunter]

That's awesome to hear that it is effective on big game. My daughter is 14 now and that might be a good round to start her on for deer hunting, maybe she could shoot a doe during the youth hunt or something. I do have a 6.5x55SE and I was planning to work up a mild load with 100 or 125 gr Partitions or something similar, but I'm afraid the full-sized stock might be too much LOP for her, especially with heavy hunting clothes on. The AR15 however could be adjusted right down to fit her LOP much better and that 77 TMK load's recoil would be easy for her to learn to shoot without developing a flinch.

That pistol is very impressive! I'll have to look up that thread on Rokslide. Thanks for the tip and for setting me on the 77 TMK path brother! God bless you!

Steve

You are most welcome.

 

[xphunter]

This is a MASSIVE Thread.

.223 for bear, mountain goat, deer, elk, and moose.

DON'T HAVE TIME TO READ 176 PAGES? HERE'S THE CHEAT SHEET. “Bullets matter more than headstamps.” “Spent primers offer the supreme tutorial”. I’ve read it here and elsewhere online. It got my attention. I started digging and asking questions and listened. The 77gr TMK delivered by a .223...

rokslide.com

The CHEAT SHEET...

.223 for bear, mountain goat, deer, elk, and moose.

Simple minded fella, or something along those lines. Fantastic channel. That’s the guy. https://youtube.com/@simplemindedfella Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

rokslide.com

 

[xphunter]

@azsixshooter ,
Did you sleep any last night trying to read all of that???
I am not going to use a 22 cal 77 grain TMK for elk, even if it was legal here, but I do know that there are some heavy for caliber 22 caliber bullets that will work well for deer and antelope where it is legal to do so.
I know you had coyotes in mind in this thread.

 

[azsixshooter]

@azsixshooter ,
Did you sleep any last night trying to read all of that???
I am not going to use a 22 cal 77 grain TMK for elk, even if it was legal here, but I do know that there are some heavy for caliber 22 caliber bullets that will work well for deer and antelope where it is legal to do so.
I know you had coyotes in mind in this thread.

I read a few pages! I can see where a .223 would be enough to kill an elk with the right bullet at close range, but you better make the first shot count. Elk can run very far if they aren't perfectly hit on the first shot, even with larger more powerful cartridges that are normally considered "Elk rounds". I've hunted Elk with my 6.5x55SE CZ 550 and I worked up a load using N160 and 160 grain Woodleigh's Protected Point Weldcore bullets at 2400 fps. I was getting about 1.5 - 2.0 MOA with them, so I just decided I would limit my shots to 200 - 250 yards and if an elk I wanted to shoot was further than that I would actually have to employ hunting skills and get closer! I knew an old man from western Montana who always said "Don't brag to me about how far of a shot you made, brag to me about how close you were able to sneak up on a deer, elk, bear, etc."

When I was elk hunting in Arizona in 2009 a young guy in our camp was at the top of a ravine in the Coconino Nat'l Forest and an older guy was further down near the bottom. The young guy shot at a bull with a .270 Win and missed, the bull ran down and the older man center-punched him in the boiler room with his 7 Mag. Even still, that bull ran pretty far and got down into some rocks and it took a few guys and a quad with a winch the rest of the day to get the bull back to camp. I believe we should always "bring enough gun" but at the same time it's important not to over-gun yourself to the point where you can't shoot it because you're flinching or scared of the recoil. I would rather see someone use a .223 that they are surgical with using the correct bullet at a reasonable range on an animal than some buffoon with a 700 Loudenboomer who closes his eyes and jerks the trigger when he shoots it once a year at some poor animal!

Even with my 6.5 some of the guys in our camp were looking at the tiny hole in the muzzle of my rifle and shaking their heads, but I knew I had the right bullet, my gun was zeroed for a realistic maximum point blank range and, most important, I was resigned to be disciplined and pass on shots that were too far. I actually enjoy hunting and stalking so I had a great trip, even though I did not get an elk that year.

 

[filmjunkie4ever]

The 55 grain BT and Varget have proven to be a great combo in .223, .22-250 and .220 Swift rifles in my experience. With that fast twist, you should probably give something in the 68-75 grain range a try.

I used to shoot the Hornady 68 grain BTHP Match bullets in my AR-15 which was a .223 Wylde and that shot excellently. I think I used Varget powder in those too. A max or near max load.

 

[RL338]

Berger 70gr and Varget makes my 223 sing.

 

[superdrupal]

The new 62g ELD-VT looks interesting. If I were to work up a new hybrid varmit/target load that would be on my list.

 

[remingtonman_25_06]

60g vmax would be a good one to try.

 

[Vince]

Speaking for the 700 Loudenboomer crowd;

Some of us like to make noise. We can be a gaseous bunch but you’ll probably find our socks don’t match, our boots will make a hound pass out if they smell the inside of them, and grandparents that have been dead for thirty days smell better.

Vince