I have never hunted deer with any bullet smaller than a 90 grain bullet out of a .243. But thru multiple channels I have come into possession of a relatively rare gun in a very rare caliber. The gun is a Remington 788 re-barreled in 222 rem mag. I understand the balistics are almost identical to a .223 so inside 100 yards shots on east Texas deer should be achievable. The problem is availability. There are only two to choose from.

1. Nosler 50 grain ballistic tip Varmit 3340fps-1238ft. lbs.

2. Remington 55gr PDT Soft PT.

I have my concernse with both of these. Again I have very little familiarity with bullets in this size range. My varmit gun is a 22 hornet and I am fully aware of its limitations. I own an AR but dont use it much and have never hunted with it.

If neither of these would be of proper design I would not try. I have friends who reload and I am interested in reloading as well. If thats what it takes then I will be more than happy to pull out the 6.5 swede and wait a year.

ANy feedback would be nice.

THanks in advance.

So, I will likely expose myself to criticism here, but each of my brothers and I have killed whitetail with a plain old .222 Remington. Some shot behind the shoulder and some neck shots, and all were pretty clean kills. This was with plain old Remington core lockt ammo, 55 grain.

Stay away from the varmint round. In a projectile that light and moving that fast, a varmint round is not one that I think should be your first choice.

The 55 gr soft point (I'm assuming it's like Core-Lokt round) will be suitable inside of about 150 yards with good shot placement (lungs/heart or head).

Some folks will advocate neck shots, I'm not one of them with a round that small. Personal preference more than anything - I am quite certain many Texas deer have been successfully taken with neck shots out of .22 caliber rifles.

The biggest key with smaller projectiles is shot placement - you don't have the power associated with larger rounds to transfer into the deer, so you need to rely on making sure that round hits something that will bleed out fast.

Put that 55 grn soft point into the lungs at anything under 100 yuards and I think you will be surprised how fast they hit the ground.

Thanks for both posts.

I am assuming they are like the Core Lokts too. They were discontinued in the late nineties but I have three full boxes of them. I was concerned about the varmit round as well. I am assuming the varmit round could have an expode on impact problem. Is that correct? Assuming it is I will probably keep some around for the off season and safe the quickly disappearing Remingtons for Deer.

The gun also has a giant Tasco scope on it. I think it is a 6x24x42.



[This message has been edited by agsalaska (edited 8/2/2013 4:12p).]

My son shot his first buck in S.Texas with a 204 Ruger and a 37 grain bullet. Neck shot, deer dropped and never moved again. Not something I'd personally ever shoot, but we practiced A LOT with this gun shooting at full size archery paper targets and he was money at 100 yards.

DVM

Yea DVM it can be done. The problem is the 204, .223, and 22-250 have so many options to choose from. I have two and I think only really one since the other is a varmit round. So I guess the question turns into where do you put it with a 55gr Remington Core Lokt soft point. And is that a good enough bullet to do it with at that weight and caliber. I am pretty good at getting lead in the lungs and this is supposed to be a very accurate rifle.

[This message has been edited by agsalaska (edited 8/2/2013 4:36p).]

Aim middle to low lungs and you probably will damage the top of the heart or atleast major vessels.

Remington loads that 55 gr sp in .223 and .22-250. It's a frangible bullet. If I were you, I'd have your buddy handload Barnes tsx, partitions, tbbc, or else something that will hold together.

Looks like the perfect time to start reloading. You could always look into getting custom ammo made.

If you reload or someone that does get a Nosler 60 grain partition in front of 25.5 grains of Varget powder. Good medicine on Panhandle Whitetails.

I have killed many deer with .223 and 22-250 with a variety of projectiles, but most with 55 gr sierras

Shot and killed plenty of deer w a 55gr bullet. Most dropped where they stood none ran more than 50yds.

Doubtful:

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Remington loads that 55 gr sp in .223 and .22-250. It's a frangible bullet. If I were you, I'd have your buddy handload Barnes tsx, partitions, tbbc, or else something that will hold together.

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Well that sux. I was kind of afraid of that. I have heard that some of the CoreLokts were frangible but only using them out of a 30-06 I had never really noticed. I certainly do not want one of these breaking up.

I will only shoot the thing enough times to site it in and hunt with it. It could be as few as seven shots a year. So having the ammo custom made for a couple bucks a shot, or a dollar more a shot, is not a bad idea. I can use the other during the offseason.



Appreciate all of the feedback.

Most likely would require a 100 round minimum on custom ammo, at least we do.

There were three sights on the first page of google that had it for 20, 40, and 50. However I think two of them already have it made.

However, I would certainly have no problem buying 100 rounds. That would probably last me 8-15 years supplemented with the Remingtons. I will check you out before I make an order.


The other problem I have is the inevitable gun problem. Our last five deer have been taken with three different rifles. This is the fourth and the bigger deer in West Texas will meet a fifth in the form of a Remington 760 30-06 I found in 90+% condition at a DFW Pawn Shop. So 100 could last two lifetimes.

I've used the 55 gr Remingtons out of a .22-250 on hogs, deer and even a gemsbok (not my first choice, but what I had at the time). The 250 is my go to for cull work. I am almost purely a behind the shoulder shooter, and to date has worked extremely well. I will admit I was leary at first, but after a few, I've taken a liking to the round.

My rifle doesn't like the 60 gr NP to where I like shooting longer ranges with it, but under 150 yards that round is devastating on deer and hogs.

We could always make you up some for you to test out and there is no minimum there. minimum only apply if you send us your rifle and we do a full load work up.

Where are you located? finding someone local to help you load some one weekend might be the best option for you.

What is the twist rate? That is going to define the limitations of the projectiles you can use - even with handloads.

If it is in the 1:11 or 1:12 range, you are maxed out at 55 grain projectiles. Faster rates allow you to go up in weight (geometry dependent).

Where are you located at?

I would go with Schmellba's advice. My first thought is which of the two is going to stay in one piece upon penetration. That would be the 55 grain most likely, since it is moving a little slower. I hate bullets that fly apart too easily.

I inherited my dad's old Remington 788 in .222 several years ago. He used it often for head shots on does and could drive tacks with it. I've taken several myself, mostly for sentimental reasons because it was Dad's favorite, with the 55 grain soft points. I've never tried punching one through the lungs, but on head and neck shots, it's never let me down.

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CEPhD



So, I will likely expose myself to criticism here, but each of my brothers and I have killed whitetail with a plain old .222 Remington. Some shot behind the shoulder and some neck shots, and all were pretty clean kills. This was with plain old Remington core lockt ammo, 55 grain.

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I passed down my Remington Mohawk in 222 to my kids. This gun has taken down at least 15 deer that I know of and a whole lot more hogs because my dad and grandpa used it for years as a truck gun. We have always used the Remington Core Lock 55 grain bullet in this and have never had any issues.

I have neck shot about 30 deer with my 22-250 and 55 gr psp's. I would estimate that they have run a total of 7.5 feet. Lethal.

Schmelba,

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What is the twist rate? That is going to define the limitations of the projectiles you can use - even with handloads.

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I have no idea what the twist rate is. It is re-barreled and rechambered so any data on the 788 is useless.

I am in Fort Worth. Any idea how to get that checked out?

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[This message has been edited by agsalaska (edited 8/3/2013 7:45p).]

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To check the twist, put a tight fitting brush on your cleaning rod and start it in the chamber, mark the rod in order to see how far it travels through the barrel to make one revolution.

Remington 55 gr PSP. Schmellba was there for it.

Wasn't there a recall on the 788's a few years back?
Might want to check on it.

You are probably thinking about the 600.

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Remington 55 gr PSP. Schmellba was there for it.

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Yes I was. I had about a gallon of blood on me to prove it too.



[This message has been edited by schmellba99 (edited 8/5/2013 9:05a).]

The core lokt bullet is IMO the most effective inexpensive bullet on the market and has been for decades.

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The core lokt bullet is IMO the most effective inexpensive bullet on the market and has been for decades.

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Agree. I have always used them with the 30-06 and never had a deer step more than about ten feet.


THese bullets are not labeled CORE or POWER LOKT. They are just labeled 55gr soft points although I think we are all right making the assumption that is what they are. I think the ammo is probably from the early nineties.

I used to hunt with a 22 hornet growing up and I never had any deer run off, and I aimed behind the shoulder. The shots were about 100-125 yards. I probably killed 15 deer with that gun without any problems. It was a Savage 22 hornet and a great gun.

I am on a ranch where we do management hunts. We kill large numbers of deer in short amounts of time with an MLD permit. We mainly use 223's to keep cost down. 55 grn ballistic tips, neck shot. They drop where they stand. Every time with good high neck shot placement.