If this has been done over and over I apologize.
Yotes killed one of our calves this week and I've been on the warpath. I've killed 5 in our calving pastures since Monday, including one off his fresh calf kill. The calf's throat was torn out and the spray of blood on the grass made it obvious it was a kill, not a situation where they found a carcass. Also the calf was lying where there were no calves within a quarter mile the day before. It's naval was pretty dry and I'd guess it at a week old. I think the cow was just over the hill grazing and the calf tried to hide rather than running until it was to late. At least I killed one of the pair of yotes that did it.
Anyway, I'm always evaluating bullet performance when I shoot a yote and thought I'd share my favorites and see what others like best. I shoot alot of my coyotes while working and have to take whatever angle I'm offered and my bullet choices reflect that. A more fragile bullet makes more sense when calling and getting mostly head on or broadside shots, but I shoot lots of mine running away and need enough penetration to break them down from tough angles.
20 cal - I've had the best results from the 45gr Hornady. I've shot 13 yotes now with this bullet and every one has exited, but only 1 has left a large exit wound. Other bullets I've tried have seemed to fragile for my type of shooting. Their performance has mirrored that of the accubonds in larger calibers, quick opening but controlled expansion. This may not be the ideal bullet in thick cover either unless shoulder shots are taken. About half the yotes I've shot with this bullet have run 20-100yds after the shot before collapsing, similar to what big game does with accubonds.
22 cal - I've really never had a great favorite 22 cal. I had a 220 swift for a while, have had several 22-250's and still have one 223. They all worked great on broadside yotes and were easy to shoot well, just didn't work that great on tough angles. I always liked the 6mm's enough I didn't experiment as much as I should have with 22 cal's though. My favorite is probably the 55gr Sierra gameking, but they haven't always broke down a running dog on the first shot. I've never had a gun that would shoot the 60gr or heavier bullets well which is probably why I never fell in love with 22 centerfires for my type of coyote shooting.
243 cal - These are easily my favorite for coyotes. I've shot hundreds of coyotes with my 243's and 6mm's over the years. They have enough speed for flat shooting, enough BC for most wind, and enough bullet weight to break down a yote. The bullet I used for a long time, and the one that has given me the best all around performance on yotes is the 75gr V-max. These stomp yotes from any angle and seldom exit, plus are capable of good velocity. The bullet I currently use in my pet 6mm Rem coyote rifle is the 70gr BT. This bullet I rate slightly behind the 75gr V-max in terminal performance on tough angles, but it still works very well. I switched when Hodgdon came out with Superformance and their recommended load gained me 300fps over my 75gr V-max load with almost as good of accuracy. The extra velocity extends my MPBR enough to justify the switch for me. Not having to estimate range out to 350yds, just hold center and shoot, is priceless.
My favorite all-around bullet for the 6mm is the 100gr Sierra Gameking. They perform similar to accubonds, open fast but don't fragment so the exit wounds are manageable. They are cheap, accurate, and the BC of .430 is also pretty darn good. They stomp yotes from any angle and work well on deer with any shot angle I'd take with a 6mm. I have a box of 6mm AB's on backorder, they may become my favorite if they perform the same with a higher velocity.
Anything bigger than 6mm - My favorite bullet is the AccuBond for the reasons mentioned above. Open fast for shock, penetrate deep, reasonable exit wounds. I use them for all my big game hunts and for yotes on real windy days. The larger cal ballistic tips perform pretty much the same as accubonds on yotes unless I hit a big bone, then the exits get real messy.
What are your favorites, and what is your typical shot like?
Yotes killed one of our calves this week and I've been on the warpath. I've killed 5 in our calving pastures since Monday, including one off his fresh calf kill. The calf's throat was torn out and the spray of blood on the grass made it obvious it was a kill, not a situation where they found a carcass. Also the calf was lying where there were no calves within a quarter mile the day before. It's naval was pretty dry and I'd guess it at a week old. I think the cow was just over the hill grazing and the calf tried to hide rather than running until it was to late. At least I killed one of the pair of yotes that did it.
Anyway, I'm always evaluating bullet performance when I shoot a yote and thought I'd share my favorites and see what others like best. I shoot alot of my coyotes while working and have to take whatever angle I'm offered and my bullet choices reflect that. A more fragile bullet makes more sense when calling and getting mostly head on or broadside shots, but I shoot lots of mine running away and need enough penetration to break them down from tough angles.
20 cal - I've had the best results from the 45gr Hornady. I've shot 13 yotes now with this bullet and every one has exited, but only 1 has left a large exit wound. Other bullets I've tried have seemed to fragile for my type of shooting. Their performance has mirrored that of the accubonds in larger calibers, quick opening but controlled expansion. This may not be the ideal bullet in thick cover either unless shoulder shots are taken. About half the yotes I've shot with this bullet have run 20-100yds after the shot before collapsing, similar to what big game does with accubonds.
22 cal - I've really never had a great favorite 22 cal. I had a 220 swift for a while, have had several 22-250's and still have one 223. They all worked great on broadside yotes and were easy to shoot well, just didn't work that great on tough angles. I always liked the 6mm's enough I didn't experiment as much as I should have with 22 cal's though. My favorite is probably the 55gr Sierra gameking, but they haven't always broke down a running dog on the first shot. I've never had a gun that would shoot the 60gr or heavier bullets well which is probably why I never fell in love with 22 centerfires for my type of coyote shooting.
243 cal - These are easily my favorite for coyotes. I've shot hundreds of coyotes with my 243's and 6mm's over the years. They have enough speed for flat shooting, enough BC for most wind, and enough bullet weight to break down a yote. The bullet I used for a long time, and the one that has given me the best all around performance on yotes is the 75gr V-max. These stomp yotes from any angle and seldom exit, plus are capable of good velocity. The bullet I currently use in my pet 6mm Rem coyote rifle is the 70gr BT. This bullet I rate slightly behind the 75gr V-max in terminal performance on tough angles, but it still works very well. I switched when Hodgdon came out with Superformance and their recommended load gained me 300fps over my 75gr V-max load with almost as good of accuracy. The extra velocity extends my MPBR enough to justify the switch for me. Not having to estimate range out to 350yds, just hold center and shoot, is priceless.
My favorite all-around bullet for the 6mm is the 100gr Sierra Gameking. They perform similar to accubonds, open fast but don't fragment so the exit wounds are manageable. They are cheap, accurate, and the BC of .430 is also pretty darn good. They stomp yotes from any angle and work well on deer with any shot angle I'd take with a 6mm. I have a box of 6mm AB's on backorder, they may become my favorite if they perform the same with a higher velocity.
Anything bigger than 6mm - My favorite bullet is the AccuBond for the reasons mentioned above. Open fast for shock, penetrate deep, reasonable exit wounds. I use them for all my big game hunts and for yotes on real windy days. The larger cal ballistic tips perform pretty much the same as accubonds on yotes unless I hit a big bone, then the exits get real messy.
What are your favorites, and what is your typical shot like?
The new owners won't even let me come hunt coyotes any longer.
