Calibre for roe and fox

[mattydski 560]

I fox with a .243, moderated of course, very civilised, no excesive noise. I also use the same rifle to shoot roe.

Never considered the alternatives, because, as yet, i have not come accross a situation that i am not happy with.

I only use one bullet type for all, 100 grain soft point, because i also shoot in England. But In my area, ammo is the same price for all bullet weights.

If you only intend to shoot in Scotland, i would drop bullet weight a little, slightly flatter shooting etc. But caution on bullet type selection, horses for courses etc..

Matt

[woz 260]

when i was getting back into my rifle's i used to go out with a chap and all he used was 243 for fox and it did a great job....thinking on now i dont know why i havnt had 243 myself instead of 22-250.........im using 50g v max and 36.6g of varget powder and getting almost match grade accuracy at 300 yards.....what load does the 243 use..ie how much powder?????etc etc

[Deker 3,478]

I shoot a lot of .223 at foxes, and targets out to 600 yards. There is a guy called Mark Bradley who can make the thing sing and dance at 1000 (Just look at his scores at Bisley).

So I have a huge respect for the round and its capabilities but it would not be my first choce for deer.

Here are two stories about the .223 and deer

 

I once took a 40 yard shot at a Muntjac buck head on towards me, the shot was slightly off to one side. The lightwieght bullet dintegrated into pieces that slid down the right hand side of the rib cage without penetrating the chest cavity, almost removing the leg. I was unable to find the deer and eventually gave up feeling really guilty.

The story gets worse because the deer lost its leg but survived and was seen around the shoot for another two years, providing me with a constant reminder of my supidity and incompetence.

 

The second shot was perfectly placed on a Roebuck at yards with a 62gr Privi Partisan softpoint. The bullet went throught the shoulder,passed through both lungs, ripped apart the main arteries at the top of the heart and lodged in the far shoulder. The deer ran 50 yards into deep cover and fell over stone dead. The guy who shot the deer could only tell us where the deer had entered the cover.

The challenge was that there was no blood trail to follow at all. There was no exit wound and the movement of the muscles over the shoulder had completely sealed the entry wound.

I went back to check where the deer had been shot and found the marks in the soil where he had leapt forward but there were no pins and not a single drop of blood between there and the carcasse.

 

I suppose this is a really long winded way of saying go for the .243, the 55gr Ballistic Tip will descend like the hammer of Thor on foxes out to 300 yards, properly placed 87gr bullets will despatch anything in this country and the 107gr target bullets remain supersonic to 1000 yards what more could you ask?

 

If you decide to go for the .223 make sure you get yourself a really good dog!!!!

 

 

I don't think that is fair at all....

I favour a .223 for this job..I am not suggesting I am right and everyone else wrong saying a .243, but stories like the above are of no consequence, the same could easily of happened with a .243 and I have been involved in deer stalks when the dogs have been required and .308 was the minimum calibre allowed!!

 

I totally agree you have more tolerence in the shot with a larger calibre but that being the case why stop at .243....as I say...shot placement over a cannon!!

 

And ammo wise, a 50g .223 Ballistic tip at around 3600ft sec is almost lazer like (40g @ 4000ft sec) and will destroy any fox or deer!!

 

And the original question also said ignore bigger deer!!!

 

Each to their own, if it works for you as they say.

[longrange 0]

THE RULES ah the rules, animals, dont care about ballistics, trajectories, etc. just like deker say"s

you"v got to put the shot in the right place !

once, shot one of the BIG NASTIES, 5 times in the chest with a caibre that would stop a transit van?

didn"t stop him, later on examination, couldnt find a piece of his heart!

someone had forgotten to tell him , that he was dead!

 

just like CAPSTICK say's the only way to stop an animal is to TAKE AWAY HIS CREDIT CARD

[SNAP SHOT 194]

when i was getting back into my rifle's i used to go out with a chap and all he used was 243 for fox and it did a great job....thinking on now i dont know why i havnt had 243 myself instead of 22-250.........im using 50g v max and 36.6g of varget powder and getting almost match grade accuracy at 300 yards.....what load does the 243 use..ie how much powder?????etc etc

 

Woz 58 g v-max i use 42.9 grains of varget and velocity is just shy of 3700fps.......

 

 

 

 

Now i say the .223 and .243 are where its at here....... As said shot placement and all is well, Now however if your going foxing and can achieve good shots at distance then the .243 will give you better range and chance of a kill on long range foxy, if your skilled at long range shots already then .243 will give you the edge to broaden your limits,

if your shooting within the 300 yards and happy at that then the .223 is under consideration........

Rifle calibre and model, maker, selection is a personal choice and down to one person YOU.........good luck with your decision....

[dogs-n-natives 1,182]

Thankyou everyone, I was planning on a .243, but then I got "bitten" by the fox bug and though about downsizing

 

Will the .243 not be a bit "loud" for foxing?

 

And what about the bullet switch, 87g for everything? Is that pricey?

I use 55grain .243 (I think! 50-odd anyway) for everything, they seam much better through my rifle than the heavier ones, and with a flatter and (i think) faster flight.

 

Sound wise, if you hit the target, it dont matter if its loud or not!! From the shooters perspective, they are all loud, unless a sound moderator is used.

 

Ive never bothered about a sound moderator, but I am considering adding it onto my licence, as I shoot near villages ect.. and there has been a few instances when out lamping foxes, where there have been a few foxes in a field, and after shooting one,the others have scarpered! But then, there is still a good crack, even with a sound mod, so they may have ran off anyway.