22-250 for Whitetail Deer

[Doug Hamilton]

View attachment 169088 This past hunting season my 14 year old son wanted to use his 22-250 for deer. Not wanting to use cup and core I searched the net and found GS Custom.
After reading their website I sent them a email giving the make and model and asked for their opinion on which bullet they recommend.
They got back to me and said that the 224040HV was most compatible with the rifle twist and that was more than capable of taking whitetail deer.
A little hesitant of a 40gr bullet I then called GS Custom told them what I wanted and they recommend the 40gr and said I would not be disappointed. Following their reloading recommendations I seated the bullets just deep enough to function in the mag then worked up to recommend speed adjusted for barrel length which put speed around 4175fps. Then shot for group first group was about 12" higher than factory 50gr so had to adjust after that it was all sub moa so l didn't adjust seating die. The first deer he shot was 172 yards away on an angle at the shot it jumped and took off. We were in open field so I followed the deer in my scope to make sure it went down.
0Took it to the skinning shed whole did not field dress I wanted to have a look at the damage and hopefully find the bullet. To my surprise the bullet was a pass through found exit hole when we pulled hide off.
The bullet went in just behind front shoulder and came out in front of hind leg on opposite side.
Inside I found that the bullet had hit 1 lung passed into stomach and intestines making a almost 2" hole in the lung tapering to about 3/4" at rear and about 1/2" hole in the hide.
On the entry it broke 2 ribs one completely the other had a big chip out of it.
The photo shows path of the bullet if you look we have a metal rod run through the bullet path holding a tape measure along path it is almost 22" from entrance to exit without hide that was really impressive to me.
Sorry this was so long but I wanted to give as much information as possible.
If anyone has any experience with this cartridge/bullet let me hear their results. He did take a second deer broadside at about 220 yards shot was a little further back than I like but stayed in chest cavity passed through with a 1 1/2" hole. Went 20 yards and piled up. Two deer is not a complete test. But so far I'm liking the results.
Shawn

Personally, I would not use a .22-250 to hunt deer, but one friend of mine did. We hunted blacktail deer together for many years and I only saw him shoot twice. One buck was huge and looking at us at about 500 yards when he hit him on the bridge of the nose. Lights out. The other time a buck was trotting down a ridge at around 400 yards. Behind the shoulder and complete pass through. He used a Ruger #1 and 60 gr. Partitions. I carried a 7 RM, and wouldn't have taken either one of those shots, but he knew his rifle, load and exactly what he was doing. It's hard to argue with success.

 

[Longdrive]

It's simply a poor choice for deer sized game. Yes, you can kill a lot of deer sized game with a .22cal rifle. However, it should be used at very close range on animals that are not going to be moving when you shoot....such as at a feeder mentioned above. Even the best constructed .22cal bullet of any weight is going to be at a disadvantage to the same type of bullet in a larger caliber and at a heavier weight. If hunting ethics mean anything to you, and you have alternate choices, use something else.

 

[Doug Hamilton]

It's simply a poor choice for deer sized game. Yes, you can kill a lot of deer sized game with a .22cal rifle. However, it should be used at very close range on animals that are not going to be moving when you shoot....such as at a feeder mentioned above. Even the best constructed .22cal bullet of any weight is going to be at a disadvantage to the same type of bullet in a larger caliber and at a heavier weight. If hunting ethics mean anything to you, and you have alternate choices, use something else.

Yep.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Never thought of a 22-250 as a Deer Round, but a well placed round with velocity trumps size and weight

@Rob404
Years ago speer developed the dumpy little 70gn semi spitzer for use in the 22/250. This bullet was designed especially for the 250 twist rate and whitetail deer. I haven't used this bullet on deer but used it on pigs to great effect.
Bob

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

We can put it another way,

If you can´t shoot properly, use at least a .300WM for deer.

@Nyati
If you can't shoot properly don't hunt game until you can. Practice on inanimate targets from every position until you are confident then practice more. Then hunt game but still practice.
Bob

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I can shoot as well as anyone on this blog.....but ANYONE who hunts much,and claims EVERY shot they made in their life was perfect,is a damn liar

@dwboso
I can honestly say every shot I have made in my life has been PERFECT.
Problem is some have been perfectly horrible and I will admit that.
Bob

 

[F. Vaccaro]

@dwboso
I can honestly say every shot I have made in my life has been PERFECT.
Problem is some have been perfectly horrible and I will admit that.
Bob

Me too Bob. Now & again “Murphy“ strikes.

 

[Shawn.54]

I’m glad to see this post can still get people work up I have yet to recover a bullet from this combo and have yet to have a deer go unrecovered only problem is that GS Customs is no longer making bullets.

 

[mdsalern]

My grandmother’s cousin had a place near Sweetwater, Texas. He had two guns, a .22lr pistol and a .22-250 rifle for deer. He’d stick matches in top of the wooden fence posts and strike them by shooting his .22lr.

I don’t condone the use of .223/5.56 on white tails, but not one person ever questioned his choice of rifle.

 

[Rare Breed]

View attachment 169088 This past hunting season my 14 year old son wanted to use his 22-250 for deer. Not wanting to use cup and core I searched the net and found GS Custom.
After reading their website I sent them a email giving the make and model and asked for their opinion on which bullet they recommend.
They got back to me and said that the 224040HV was most compatible with the rifle twist and that was more than capable of taking whitetail deer.
A little hesitant of a 40gr bullet I then called GS Custom told them what I wanted and they recommend the 40gr and said I would not be disappointed. Following their reloading recommendations I seated the bullets just deep enough to function in the mag then worked up to recommend speed adjusted for barrel length which put speed around 4175fps. Then shot for group first group was about 12" higher than factory 50gr so had to adjust after that it was all sub moa so l didn't adjust seating die. The first deer he shot was 172 yards away on an angle at the shot it jumped and took off. We were in open field so I followed the deer in my scope to make sure it went down.
It went less than 50 yards stopped went all shaky legs fell over and did the dead cockroach legs in the air and it was over.
Took it to the skinning shed whole did not field dress I wanted to have a look at the damage and hopefully find the bullet. To my surprise the bullet was a pass through found exit hole when we pulled hide off.
The bullet went in just behind front shoulder and came out in front of hind leg on opposite side.
Inside I found that the bullet had hit 1 lung passed into stomach and intestines making a almost 2" hole in the lung tapering to about 3/4" at rear and about 1/2" hole in the hide.
On the entry it broke 2 ribs one completely the other had a big chip out of it.
The photo shows path of the bullet if you look we have a metal rod run through the bullet path holding a tape measure along path it is almost 22" from entrance to exit without hide that was really impressive to me.
Sorry this was so long but I wanted to give as much information as possible.
If anyone has any experience with this cartridge/bullet let me hear their results. He did take a second deer broadside at about 220 yards shot was a little further back than I like but stayed in chest cavity passed through with a 1 1/2" hole. Went 20 yards and piled up. Two deer is not a complete test. But so far I'm liking the results.
Shawn

Interesting. I took my first ever whitetail deer which was a large doe at 8 years of age at 75 yards from a tree stand with a 22-250 rifle that was borrowed. I am now 63. I can see it like yesterday. She was facing me and my shot took her center of her neck knocking her on her back and out. I can still remember how heavy the gun was

 

[Red Leg]

Pigs get pretty big around here. In my porker whacker the 64 gr 5.56 is decisive. Obviously placement is critical - just like with a deer and any other caliber. Is it my preferred whitetail caliber? No. But it absolutely will work.

 

[flatwater bill]

@Doug Hamilton I have never seen a Nosler Partition in .224 caliber. Sounds like it was pretty effective on deer. Years ago I wounded two mule deer : one with a 55 grn Rem PSP, the other a 63 grain Sierra semi-spitzer. The latter load had proved deadly on pronghorn over 20 years. I recovered only one of the mulies. The lost deer was shot directly in the shoulder blade at about 200 yards. I am ashamed of both of these shots. Deer deserve better. A .224 cal rifle will never accompany me on another deer hunt. I switched to the 280 Rem, and the difference was dramatic. But I'll keep an open mind. All deer aren't created equal....a 120 pound Blacktail and a 260 pound Mulie are quite different. Technology marches on, and some of you have found better bullets, and combos that allow for humane harvest. I can respect that. For me, as I age, a bigger rifle gives me a little more margin. The 22-250 may kill deer, but this old thread never dies...................FWB

 

[steve white]

View attachment 169088 This past hunting season my 14 year old son wanted to use his 22-250 for deer. Not wanting to use cup and core I searched the net and found GS Custom.
After reading their website I sent them a email giving the make and model and asked for their opinion on which bullet they recommend.
They got back to me and said that the 224040HV was most compatible with the rifle twist and that was more than capable of taking whitetail deer.
A little hesitant of a 40gr bullet I then called GS Custom told them what I wanted and they recommend the 40gr and said I would not be disappointed. Following their reloading recommendations I seated the bullets just deep enough to function in the mag then worked up to recommend speed adjusted for barrel length which put speed around 4175fps. Then shot for group first group was about 12" higher than factory 50gr so had to adjust after that it was all sub moa so l didn't adjust seating die. The first deer he shot was 172 yards away on an angle at the shot it jumped and took off. We were in open field so I followed the deer in my scope to make sure it went down.
It went less than 50 yards stopped went all shaky legs fell over and did the dead cockroach legs in the air and it was over.
Took it to the skinning shed whole did not field dress I wanted to have a look at the damage and hopefully find the bullet. To my surprise the bullet was a pass through found exit hole when we pulled hide off.
The bullet went in just behind front shoulder and came out in front of hind leg on opposite side.
Inside I found that the bullet had hit 1 lung passed into stomach and intestines making a almost 2" hole in the lung tapering to about 3/4" at rear and about 1/2" hole in the hide.
On the entry it broke 2 ribs one completely the other had a big chip out of it.
The photo shows path of the bullet if you look we have a metal rod run through the bullet path holding a tape measure along path it is almost 22" from entrance to exit without hide that was really impressive to me.
Sorry this was so long but I wanted to give as much information as possible.
If anyone has any experience with this cartridge/bullet let me hear their results. He did take a second deer broadside at about 220 yards shot was a little further back than I like but stayed in chest cavity passed through with a 1 1/2" hole. Went 20 yards and piled up. Two deer is not a complete test. But so far I'm liking the results.
Shawn

That's as much a testimony to GS bullets as to the caliber, especially with you running velocities way above normal (which is normal for GS bullets, with no pressure overloads, either)

 

[steve white]

Do not apologize for having a different opinion that is what the forum is for but just because you don’t agree does not make me a liar, it does not mean I have an ego problem, and does not mean my son is a wimp now if you have a problem tell me where it is.

The bullets I use pass through deer at all angles giving me exit wound for tracking.

The bullets I use leave a permanent wound channel many times larger than the diameter of the bullet.

Now if you can give me an argument as to where the bullets are failing I want to hear it.
Please keep the discussion to 22-250 useing GS Customs 40gr HV bullet. Or any other mono metal bullet. You can not compare these to standard cup and core bullets.
Shawn

And, as we all know by now, velocity is a necessary component of the mono-metal equation. And velocity is with GS customs reloads in spades! Did anyone compare the velocities Shawn quoted with factory specs? At the ranges mentioned, starting at 4000fps, the impact velocity guarantees proper bullet performance with no pin hole pass throughs--just what was described post mortem. We are in a new world with such velocity/bullet construction...the rules have been upgraded. Please recalibrate beyond cup and core reasoning.

 

[Doug Hamilton]

@Doug Hamilton I have never seen a Nosler Partition in .224 caliber. Sounds like it was pretty effective on deer. Years ago I wounded two mule deer : one with a 55 grn Rem PSP, the other a 63 grain Sierra semi-spitzer. The latter load had proved deadly on pronghorn over 20 years. I recovered only one of the mulies. The lost deer was shot directly in the shoulder blade at about 200 yards. I am ashamed of both of these shots. Deer deserve better. A .224 cal rifle will never accompany me on another deer hunt. I switched to the 280 Rem, and the difference was dramatic. But I'll keep an open mind. All deer aren't created equal....a 120 pound Blacktail and a 260 pound Mulie are quite different. Technology marches on, and some of you have found better bullets, and combos that allow for humane harvest. I can respect that. For me, as I age, a bigger rifle gives me a little more margin. The 22-250 may kill deer, but this old thread never dies...................FWB

I like hunting blacktails. Considering the thick stuff they live in, just getting a shot can be hard, and I have too much respect for them to try using any .22 caliber too hunt them (or anything else bigger than a coyote).

 

[steve white]

There is a company making bullets with drive bands like the GS custom, but I can't remember what it is...if someone could remind me...

 

[gillettehunter]

Is it Badlands bullets or Hammer bullets? Both seem to use the same principal as the ones talked about by the OP. Solid copper with petals designed to shear off on impact.
Bruce

 

[Shawn.54]

And, as we all know by now, velocity is a necessary component of the mono-metal equation. And velocity is with GS customs reloads in spades! Did anyone compare the velocities Shawn quoted with factory specs? At the ranges mentioned, starting at 4000fps, the impact velocity guarantees proper bullet performance with no pin hole pass throughs--just what was described post mortem. We are in a new world with such velocity/bullet construction...the rules have been upgraded. Please recalibrate beyond cup and core reasoning.

As things change around us we tend to stick with what we know it becomes our comfort zone.
shawn

 

[Doug Hamilton]

As things change around us we tend to stick with what we know it becomes our comfort zone.
shawn

It might be better to continue with what you know than to leave your mind so open that your brain falls out.
This doesn't apply just to bullets. ;-D.

As things change around us we tend to stick with what we know it becomes our comfort zone.
shawn

 

[gbflyer]

Can’t link to other sites here. I’d suggest a google search of the 77gr Sierra TMK in .223 for deer, elk, and bear. It’s a big thread. The ultra-skeptic will no doubt still be unswayed, others may become more accepting. After a couple thousand posts it’s much harder to find an available 8 twist Tikka .223 than it should be.