60 grain Partition in the .223 WSSM

Murphdog · Sep 8, 2010

Has anyone out there used 60 grain partitions in the .223 WSSM. I have a Winchester Coyote that shoots 55 grain Ballistic Tips or Blitz Kings (Sports and Western didn't have any Ballistic tips that day)extremly well. The problem is that if the bullet hits a bone on a coyote it looks like they were hit with a hand grenade. We are talking Softball sized holes. Not good if you want to save the pelt.

Has anyone used the .223 WSSM on deer. Not my first choice but we normally make a pilgriamage to North Central Montana to hunt deer on my cousins ranch. The coyote population is thick and taking a few out will make lots of friends. Bottom line if I happen to be holding the .223 WSSM at the moment a big muley shows up I would like to know the limitations.

Powerstroke · Sep 8, 2010

This one will probably come down to what twist rate your barrel has ?

I use a lot of 55gr BlitzKings out of my 22-250 for the exact reason you mentioned, however I have no concern of saving pelts.

I would think the 60gr Partition should stabalize in anyting 1 in 12 or faster - most factory 1 in 14's won't handle them.

Powerstroke · Sep 8, 2010

This one will probably come down to what twist rate your barrel has ?

I use a lot of 55gr BlitzKings out of my 22-250 for the exact reason you mentioned, however I have no concern of saving pelts.

I would think the 60gr Partition should stabalize in anyting 1 in 12 or faster - most factory 1 in 14's won't handle them.

Powerstroke · Sep 8, 2010

This one will probably come down to what twist rate your barrel has ?

I use a lot of 55gr BlitzKings out of my 22-250 for the exact reason you mentioned, however I have no concern of saving pelts.

I would think the 60gr Partition should stabalize in anyting 1 in 12 or faster - most factory 1 in 14's won't handle them.

Murphdog · Sep 9, 2010

The twist rate on the 223 WSSM in the coyote is 1-10 it should stabilize the 60 grain Partition but might not stabilize any of the heavier bullets.

The wolves have displaced a lot of the coyotes-so in areas that there are not a lot of wolves there are tons of coyotes. The pelt price on a good coyote makes it worth the effort to skin them. You willn't make much money but you will help with the cost.

SJB358 · Sep 9, 2010

I have had decent luck with the 60gr PT's in my 22-250. It does have the 1-14" twist, but it shoots the PT's pretty good. I haven't really messed with alot of powders, but so far, Varget has been pretty good. I might try some H380 in the future. I would stick one into a deer with a good broadside shot. I don't think it would act like a 300 mag, but I think it would do the job if placed properly. Scotty

1Shot · Sep 9, 2010

If you stay away from the shoulder bone of a deer and keep it in the lungs just behind the back edge of the front shoulder it should drop a deer with no problem.

nitis · Sep 9, 2010

why not just pop em with your deer rifle I doubt the ranchers care bout the pelts

Murphdog · Sep 10, 2010

I need to explain myself a little better. My .223 WSSM is setup to kill coyotes that are way out there. It is a Winchester Coyote, topped with a 4 -16 Millett TRS-1 Tactical Scope, and Harris Bipod. You don't want to have to pack it very far but once you are in positition the rifles abilities are well beyond mine.

As for most of the coyotes in Western ranch county, they are shot at every time someone gets the chance. By mid Nov. the dumb coyotes are long gone.

My cousin is a very accomplished coyote caller. Ideally we would setup at the edge of a hay field. The key is that you can't miss because a missed coyote is an educated coyote and you may never get another chance at that particular animal. To really be sucessful you will need to be able to take out a coyote that is 300 yards plus, peaking out from behide a clump of grass. While I have killed lots of coyotes with my big game rifles they really are not configured for this scenaro.

The 30-06 with 180 grain partitions is very easy of pelts, generally so are the 100 grain partitions in the 243 unless you hit the spine then well forget it.

I have seen both deer and antelope taken with a 22-250 and in every case they dropped as if hit by lightning. Granted most were head shot, but a 55 grain varmit bullet turns the lungs and heart to jelly when tucked in behide the shoulder.

I suspect that if you did hit the shoulder it is all over for the critter, but that shoulder will be destroyed.

I am curious about how the little Partition acts once inside a critter. How much penatration, tissue damage, etc.. The 100 grain Partition out of a 243 is a delight it kills quickly with minimal meat loss. It will consitantly break both shoulders and exit a mature mule deer. The deer is dead before it hits the ground.

SJB358 · Sep 10, 2010

Murph, JD has whacked some coyotes with a 22-250 and 60gr PT. I think he has a picture somewhere on here of a coyote shot end to end with the bullet coming out the rear. That is pretty good penetration. I am with you, with a PT stuck into a deers front half, I am pretty sure you would claim him. We used 52gr Speer HP's for deer cull hunts when I lived in NY. It never let a deer step out of its prints. These were all sorts of sized deer also. It was late winter, so there were bucks (without horns) and does. All just simply died on the spot. Granted, I was shooting off a stack of apple crates, prone, so it was a chip shot, but all the way out to 250-300 yards that bullet worked well. I can only think the 60gr PT would work better! Scotty