223 bullet selection

I'm putting together a 16" 1/8 twist bolt gun that will be suppressed the majority of time.

Lots of choices out there with some new ones in the mix. This will hopefully fill my spot as a dedicated predator gun. The bullet I choose would ideally not explode the thin skins animals.

Go with it

What's Hornady got in the ELD-X line?

If it’s a dedicated predator rifle that makes it easy.... 60 gr VMax. Most consistent predator bullet for 223 for both DRT and very fur friendly for coyotes if that matters to you. I have seen literally hundreds shot with that bullet....also works on hogs and deer in a pinch. Of course that’s if it shoots well in your rifle which it should and run just shy of 3000fps.
Now there is no 223 bullet that will be Consistently easy on Fox fur but the 60 gr will do well I n Bobcats and coyotes with minimal damage with solid hits.

60 grain V-max works good. I know many 223 shooters who deer hunt with this bullet. One of the guys I used to hunt with came for 1 hunt, and took a NICE 8 point with an AR shooting a 60 grain V-max and A-Cog. I was pissed (in a good way!) Buck was DRT.

If you want a tough 223 bullet, then the 64 grain Nosler bonded bullet will do well. It holds together well.

I run the 60gn Nos BT in my 20" 9tw 223ai. It is quite accurate with a stiff charge of H4895. Don't overlook the 69gn TMK either.

To the OP. I am a tad confused. You mention that you are going to be shooting suppressed most of the time. Will you be running 3000fps+ or will you be shooting a reduced load?

If I was going to shoot coyotes and pigs, that Nosler 64 gr BSB would be a good choice. If it was just coyotes, try the 40 gr Nosler BT. I haven't seen it exit a coyote yet and it kills them dramatically fast. I wasn't planning to use it on coyotes, but one showed up in the front yard/pasture and that little bullet put him down hard. Hmmm, so I tried it again and again and it works great. But not on hogs.

Good old 55 soft point Hornady is my do everything bullet for .223.

Sierra game king for fur friendly. I get an exit but it's small and nothing a good taxidermist couldn't hide. Vmax if you want them to drop where they stand but if they exit then you're left with a mess. If foxes are in the discussion I'd definitely go game king. I shoot the 55s in my rock river predator Pursuit. The bonus with the game kings is they're designed for deer and pigs also.

Nothing... they have the ELD-M. Really wanted a 75 X

Ironically, I just looked it up myself. There is no 70+ grain .224 in the ELD-X line.

Shame.

I would go light rapid expanding with the goal of no exit. 40 grain v max and H 4895 is where I would start as mentioned earlier. Stay off the head if you don't want to split em open.

I have experience with a 55 vmax from years back.

Two I have wonders about are

Hornady 73 gr eld

And

The tipped sgk

It makes no sense to me, to not take advantage of the 1:8 twist.

The 40 gr VMax can kill fine when they work(get penetration) but when they don’t you end up with a splash wound and a possible hunt to find the animal. I have multiple pictures to illustrate if I could figure out the new IOS picture format that would work on the forum now.

It’s similar to the risk you take using a 17 rimfire on Predators.... sometimes it works then it don’t.

I will add I do love the 55gr Hornady SP as an all round bullet but not if saving fur is one of the goals. They normally exit predators.

Im really liking the 62gr leheigh defense controlled chaos rounds in my 223 and 22 nosler, especially since they are solid copper and rated to expand down to 1400 fps.

Shot the 77 SGK out of my new 22-250 Tikka 1:8" twist yesterday out to 400 yards. Shot really good. Now just need a live target to test expansion. Not sure they'd load in an ARmag very well though?

I understand where you are coming from and I thought about the same. Two things came to my mind.

The first is it wouldn't surprise me if something heavier shoots better out of an 8 twist.

The second is something heavier is going to have enough energy to exit on varmints.

When I was in college in the late '70's & early '80's, I stayed broke all the time. I was able to earn a little pocket money predator hunting and selling the pelts. I used a .223 and had the best results preserving the hide with a light bullet that stayed in the animal. So that is why I recommended the light bullet, even though it is not maximizing what he can do with that 8 twist barrel.

69 or 77 grain TMK?

I like the 55 gr Hornady sp as well but you are gonna get exits. This is a triple my son shot with them. The second and third were running but you can see what he got.


This pic is the boy operating with a 40gr and no exit. Most times they are within 10 yards of where they are shot

For the most part bullets that are designed for longer range shooting are not good for shooting predators as they tend to exit. If they kill good they usually leave a big exit and if they leave a small exit they for the most part don’t kill as well and you get runners. The OP asked for a fur friendly bullet so that narrows .223 ammo and bullets down considerably and with the 1/8 twist that also makes a difference on how bullets perform on animals.

DStroud, I agree with all you said, and to that end, a 12 twist barrel on a .223 is a more suitable setup for a fur friendly little varmint gun, but I bet the OP's 8 twist will get it done.

If fur is a concern, I might try a SMK.

I don't concern myself with fur, just making coyotes dead. I've hit them with what ever is beside me at the time. 6.5 Creedmoor, 7mm-08, .308. All damn sure make them dead very quickly.

I like hornady and winchester 55gr soft points in my 223 and 22-250.

I should have added in my original post the fact that most all the coyotes etc we have shot with the 60gr V Max we’re using all 1/8 twist ARs
When you get to 22-250 speeds and slower twist we drop back to 52/53gr Berger or Sierra Match bullets but then some of the fur friendlyness goes away.
These days When I hunt for fur(mostly bobcats) I bring out the 221Fireball ......and when I am serious it’s the 22Creedmoor.

For fur saving friendly 22 Hornet

Very light recoil as well

I considered a 22 Hornet at one time but after having a couple of 17 MachIV’s I decided to try a 221 Fireball and it now has a permanent place in the gun safe. I am always amazed at the performance it gives from such a little case.

True the fireball is a great little round. Same case as the 300 Blackout, well at least extremely close. 300 Whisper is a 221 Fireball necked up to 308 where as a 300 Blackout is off a 223 case cut and necked down, but wait the 221 fireball is a 223 shortened and case necked down. Comes out close enough the dies for one are marked for the other also. Just a way of getting around a proprietary cartridge without paying.

For rocking a Coyote or bobcat without external damage mu favorite is still the 17 Remington. Hone that shoots the Remington factory ammo 25gr at 4250fps and worked up reloads to that speed. Every coyote I have shot with it has been a bang flop from 60 yard eyeball shot to 300 yard gut /spine shot.

I understand that you are wanting to go with a .223, but if you're not totally committed to that caliber, you may want to consider other options. For instance, if I want to collect fur, I turn to my 20 Tactical. It's a real burner, purees the insides of the varmint, and rarely, if ever exits the carcass. A buddy of mine runs a 20 Practical with the same results on pelt damage. Plus, we get to argue endlessly about which rifle is better! (Neither is better, and we both know it!)

Just to say it again, try the 40 grain Nosler or V-Max. I was shocked at how hard the Nosler put coyotes down, but stayed in the coyote. All I can figure is that the bullet dumps all its energy in the coyote and not in the tree or dirt on the other side of the coyote.

Just because you have an 8 twist (or a 9, like mine) you don't have to shoot heavy bullets. I get great accuracy with the 40 grainer. I load em up hot, over H335, and get velocities approaching what I get with the 55 grainer in my 220 Swift.

About 30 minutes ago I shot a fat coyote with my 260. Big exit. Real big exit.

He already has the rifle set up.

The 77 tipped SMK will work in an AR great. I get about 2,800 FPS with my most accurate charge of AR-Comp.