then 6 rds of 38 lrn to the chest should be just as immediately effective as a blast of 00 buck, 3 pellets of which miss the man (a common occurance) yet we know that the 38's, even when fired all in one second, have nowhere near the probability of a stop that the buck-blast has. So it's NOT just damage to the body and bleeding, folks. If you put ENOUGH shock and damage on him all at once, it DOES drastically increase your chances of a stopping hit. The question then, is where that line of "enough" is drawn. In my experience, it's drawn at 900 ft lbs , with a 60 gr softpoint in 223 at 2600 fps That's the same as a 110 gr hp in a .30C (up close) or a 18o gr jhp at 1500 fps from a 4" 44 mag, or a ky rifle ball All well proven to be adequate on men, deer hogs, as long as you get solid hits to the chest.
.223 will work. Proven to do so. I do however prefer .308Win for most such tasks. Depending on the exact target starting with a 130gn Hollow Point and working from there is a bit more is needed. I have seen deer make off after a solid hit with the 130s. Never had a pig do so. I prefer 150 or 165 on deer. Winchester for many years had a LE/Mil only loading that used the 130 Speer HP. It has been available commercially now for more than a few years. It’s as what most Police Tactical and the Mil CT teams were running from the 80s till around 2010 when more specialised rounds became the norm. We use to get it delivered for feral hog work.
Many States do not allow any projectile below 6mm for hunting Big Game (Deer)… get caught and $500US Fine in some places….
Virginia does not allow deer hunting with smaller than "23 caliber". Other states have KE requirements or other arbitrary case dimensions usually length that ban use of rounds such as 223, 30carbine, 45acp, ect. In other states arbitrary case and bore diameter measurements are used for bans on high power rifles out of fear the "bullets will fly too far" or something.
It is always the “or something” that gets them in trouble when Politicos get involved in Regulating things they have little knowledge about…..
Bigger is sometimes better. But where you are hit trumps caliber. Shoot until the threat is eliminated.
Dad was a butcher and we used an old 22 single shot with shorts to put animal down for bleeding out. It worked on 1200 pond beef just fine. But bullet placement was 100 % on and distance was usually about a foot. Placement, placement is what counts and usually ignored by all. Admit that target in box is not real life, but data holds. I use an 03 with 30 06 as a habit and because I have been using it for 70 years, it works on anything in New Hampshire and if didn't it would be my fault, not the rifle..
Good 55 grain hornady spire point does well from a .223 on big kansas whitetail under 100 yards. The bigger calibers are more common though.
As for the shock part of bullet wounds I have to agree. That was the reason Eugene Stoner designed the M16 with, IIRC, a 1 in 14 barrel twist. It was just enough to stabilize it in short distances but when entering a body it would tumble and cause massive wounds There are reports from Vietnam in the early 60's of the bullet entering a leg and traveling all the way up into the chest cavity destroying everything in its path. To get the M16 accepted by NATO countries it had to be reconfigured with a 1 in 12 twist because the wounds from the 1 in 14 were deemed "inhumane". It may have been 1 in 12 down to 1 in 9. I don't remember exactly. But one little known aspect of the barrel twist on AR type rifles is when they came out with the more accurate and flatter shooting rifles that were made with a 1 in 7 twist, when used with the correct ammo they were much more accurate. However there are two documented events where someone unaware of ballistics were using the wrong weight bullets. The 1 in 7 was designed to be used with a heavier 69 and 72 grain bullet. If you shot the common lighter grain ammunition, the faster twist of the barrel spun the bullet so fast that when hitting a hard surface they would disintegrate and not penatrate. One instance was a shootout in Florida between some cops and two guys wanted for bank robbery. The criminals were armed with ARs but were shooting the lighter bullets in the higher twist rifles. Their bullets weren't penetrating the cops car. One of them was ambushed by one of the bad guys and shot at short range. He put his arms up instictuvely and was shot in both arms but the bullets struck his arm bones and didn't penetrate, saving his life. The other documented event was in the Waco siege by ATF. Some agents had climbed into an upstairs room through a window. Two Davidians were in the room underneath and heard them, they began firing at them from below. Again using the light ammo in the high twist ARs. None of the rounds penetrated the floorboards and into the room above.
I have heard that the 1:14 barrels were intended for 40 or 45gr bullets. The army realized 40-45gr bullets sucked at longer ranges. So they switched to 55gr fmjbt and the 1:14 couldn't stabilize the m193 bullets transition through tranasonic and they would start keyholing targetes some where around 500 to 600 yards. 1:14 twist didn't last very long. PSA started making clone correct m16a1 barrels with 1:12 twist. Didn't take long for some to test them vs 1:9 barrels there doesn't appear to be any difference between 1:9 vs 1:12 on ballistics gel aside from the bullet is a little faster.
Current rifle load is a 69gr HPBT loaded with leverevolition to 2,950fps. Been running it with an H rifle buffer. About to try it with an H2.
I run the Hornady Black 5.56 SBR ammo, it's loaded with 75 grain Soft Points and is superior for range and accuracy out of an 11 1/2 inch 1/7 twist barreled AR! Stopping power is exceptional too! This little Carbine does pretty good with M-193, but must keep the ranges short to get the accuracy potential! Be VERY wary of running "Green Tip" M-855 through these short barrel/fast twist carbines, it doesn't perform all that well, lots of "Key Holling" on target, and through the ballistic jell, they don't penetrate very well at all, but BOY do they tumble! In fact, 62 grain seems to be that one perfect mix to really screw things up, lighter does fine, and heavier is what is supposed to work best with, but the 62 just seem, Wild!
If I go much heavier than 69gr it gives up too much velocity and anything more than 70gr is usually a "match bullet" with unpredictable expansion or if it is a "hunting bullet" the BC sucks because it's flat base.
Might try that Hornady Black SBR, seems to do really well, even at the lower velocities! I'm consistently shooting Sub MOA way out there, which really makes this ideal for most needs. 400 meters is about the limit, but DAMN, it's accurate all the way there! I also run the Black Hills 69 grain soft point load ( Red Box) and they do very well, but trade penetration and expansion for the increased range and velocity! 5.56 NATO 75 gr Interlock® HD SBR™ Hornady BLACK® - Hornady Manufacturing, Inc
Pfft, Yall keep all those yuppie rounds like 38,223, buckshot etc. I can shoot my pocket 9mm from a mile away, Land next too you, Knock's you over and kicks dirt in you're face all with-in a second!!! 9 mm is where its at baby!
