Coyote question

[Hank]

I am going to Kansas to hunt some coyotes.I have a choice between two guns,a .223, or a 25-06.Which one would you guys use and why?

[Super Star!]

.223

[repoman]

.223 agree

[Super Star!]

what would be ideal in my eyes would be a 223 wssm or a 243 wssm check out the bolistics on them.. very hard to find...

[Super Star!]

take some pics of your trip to.... how you ganna hunt them?? 

[Hank]

The wifes uncle has a pile of cattle so he just wants to get rid of them. Not sure how I'll hunt them yet.Is the .223 flatter shooting,or does it just put a smaller hole in them?

[Super Star!]

flatter. more acurate out at longer yards.. hands down i would say more yotes hearts stop from a .223 than any other cal.     

[Hank]

Thanks for the help SS.I'll go with the .223 then.

[Super Star!]

opitcs are important to.. if you were to buy the gun i would go with a nice long range scope.. if you dont like Zeiss or Sworovski... Nikon makes a scope for about 350 bones that is a long range scope ( cant remember the model) very nice scope for the money i would say it is comparable to the 1800 bone ones......    sorry so many post my brain is lost and im tryin to find it....

[HD]

I would have to agree with SS, I use a .223 as well and it performs well!

[tripnchip]

Either one of the guns will do the job for yu, the 223 will be cheaper to shoot, but take the one that you feel more comfortable with. Which gun will do the job means nothing if you are not comfortable with it and have the confedence in your ability with it to shoot well.

[JackpineRob]

When you say you have a choice Hank, are you saying you can't bring both?

A number of guys out west shoot the 25-06 at yotes, and I have been told several times that they feel it bucks the wind better.  Of course, you might be tearing a heck of a hole through the yote, so if you want to save the fur that 06 may not be the best bet.  It is a good long-range caliber that is going to be retaining energy downrange, and with a tough critter like a coyote most of us need all the help we can get at the longer ranges.

The .223 is without a doubt THE popular round with both varmint and predator shooters right now.  Readily available ammo at reasonable prices is a big plus.  You will want to put some rounds through the gun at longer ranges to figure out what your gun can do, and to find a round that will give you consistent performance.

I would avoid the plastic/polymer-tip bullets when you're choosing ammo for the .223.  They have a nasty tendency to "splash" on impact, disintegrating without penetrating into the kill zone.  I've seen it happen more than once.  The higher velocities of your .223 and 22-250 appear to be the culprit here. 

If I had my choice, I would tune up both rifles and bring them both along.  I generally have both my .17 (for calling) and my 22-250 (for spot n stalk).  Maybe you spot a coyote on top of a haypile, and realize that the closest you can get is about 400 yards.  My .17 can't reach out that far, and the .223 is being stretched pretty thin at that distance.  That's when the heavier gun is a nice option.

Good luck Hank!  Take some pics to show us.

[Super Star!]

jackpine  whats your veiw on the 223 WSSM or the 243 WSSM??

[Tbrothers]

I would go with the .223.Anothert thing to consider is bullets which gun is most popular in that area.I'm sure you will bring plently,but a 25.06 might not be a popular round in kansas and could be harder to find shells if you run low.

[JackpineRob]

jackpine  whats your veiw on the 223 WSSM or the 243 WSSM??

I haven't personally shot either round, but on paper they look pretty darn good.  The theory with the "short magnum" rounds has to do with case size and shape, and is well-proven by guys who know a lot more than I do.   

Met a guy out in South Dakota about 4 years ago who was shooting the .223 WSSM for antelope, and the dead goats from him and his daughter hanging next to their truck told me that the round had plenty of oomph to get the job done.   

The only hesitation I have with the WSSM's and SAUM's is availability of factory ammo.  A guy can go into any larger sporting goods store and find it now, but will it be available 5 or 10 years from now?  I don't do enough shooting to justify reloading....  Not knocking them - just a thought that goes through my mind....  Its the same reason I resisted the urge to buy a .204 last year, when I had an absolutely charming Remington 700 LVSF in my hands, at a pretty fair price.  I'll probably regret that decision at some point!

Have you played around with those rounds yet?  I'd be interested in getting some first-hand feedback.

[Super Star!]

A guys son who i deer hunt with has a .243 Wssm that he uses for deer hunting. I have only shot it a hand full of times at the range. very accurate out at 300 + yards with very little drop.. he has shot 3 deer with it and not a problem all droped in there tracks.  Im ganna lookin into them more i have been kickin the idea around about buying one. but the same thing comes to mind. Shells in 10 years???  im ganna do some more askin around ill post if i find any thing....