I don't disagree that it can be done. My father took a number of deer in the northern Adirondacks in his youth with a .222 loaded with 50 grain soft points. The issue is whether the person behind the gun has the discipline to do it. I am not talking bullet placement here... one of the most annoying quotes on the internet "W.D.M. Bell killed over 1100 elephants with a .256 MS." Drives me nuts. What they don't quote is how many he lost.
I don't care how good of a shot someone thinks they are, if they hunt enough, They WILL screw up a shot eventually and it is really best if your rifle stacks the deck in your favor, rather than betting that a marginal round will do exactly what you hope it will. .223 is a surgeons rifle. I am not a rifle surgeon, so I stack the deck in my favor.
Just my two cents and none of it was intended to offend those who use a .223 for deer. If it works for you and you are successful with it, all the power to you. I personally just don't consider it a "deer rifle."
ChrisG,
I am +1 with you on this "vermin calibers" for deer hunting thing.
A few years ago, I was blessed to have done some culling for a safari company, Limpopo District, South Africa.
Drought conditions, many animal's health sadly deteriorating plus, we also were dispatching any that were found injured, in poacher's snares.
The owner was recovering from neck surgery, to repair multiple damaged discs and so, had to be very cautious of recoil until completely mended.
So he used a Sako .222 / 50 gr bullets.
This man is an exceptional rifle shot, by anyone's standards.
Most times, each animal he brained with the .222 dropped very dead to the shot.
However, one wildebeest was not struck between the eyes as intended (I suspect it moved its head at the moment of ignition).
The tiny soft point entered, just under the horn boss, a bit off center.
The animal bolted away, as if in The Kentucky Derby.
Through some brilliant work by the expert tracker, we located it in a thorn thicket and I dispatched it with a 220 grain round nose soft (Hornady), from the Brno 600 I was using.
I know a wildebeest is no doubt, very much tougher than our average N. American deer might be and that, a .222 / 50 grain is tad less than the .223 / 70 grain is but, both cartridges are poor choices for deer hunting IMO, especially considering the wide spread availability of many suitable calibers today.
Furthermore, I am with you on the 6.5x55 and could never figure out why the manufacturers pushed the .243 as their flagship youth rifle cartridge instead.
Certainly, a child would not be bruised by what little recoil the typical USA under-loaded 6.5x55 / 140 grain generates.
But what do I know (some folks say I don't know much at all).
Again we agree on the small bore fans forever saying Bell bagged over a thousand elephants with small bore rifles, such as the 7x57, the 6.5 MS and such likes (thereby implying that, large bore rifles for large animals are not necessary).
As you said, no mention of wounded elephants, in the books Bell wrote about himself.
Furthermore, when pub conversations warrant it, I take comfort in retorting that (according to Rigby's records), Bell had been delivered not one but TWO large bore Mausers, during his ivory-market hunting years, both in .416 Rigby caliber.......Hmmmm.
These totally appropriate for elephant, large bore rifles were delivered to Bell, with a thousand rounds each, of Rigby's 410 grain "solid" bullet live ammunition, sealed in "tropical tins" ........Hmmmm.
This is not to mention that Bell also brought on his ivory expeditions, a .450 NE, ejector double ......Hmmmm.
Bell barely even mentions the above equipment in his self promoting books .......Hmmmm.
Blah, blah, blah, out,
Velo Dog.
