.223 for bear, deer, elk and moose.

[crich]

Where are people getting loaded ammo from? Anything in AK? I’ll be headed to L48 in a couple weeks so I can ship to where I’m going and fly home with it too if anywhere has it ready to ship.

I haven't seen the 73 ELDM load. I am in a similar situation. I'd love to send some to family in the lower 48 and pick it up later.

I havent personally used them for ammo yet but from what I understand Carlisle MyConnect is the answer. Very easy to set up an account and use. Supposedly theyll ship haz up no problem.

 

[D R T]

100 pages down and only 240 to go.
My RS special shoots lights out with BH 77 TMK’s! Love it.
Next up is shortening and threading. I know. I know. It’s a shooter, don’t mess with it. I don’t like the noise pollution.
Love this thread.

 

[mt terry d]

I am curious to know how many people use a .223 as their first choice for mule deer & elk rifle when a step up to a 6.5 w/140+ grain bullets would basically double their effective range.

BP

I have a 7mm WBY and a 300 win mag and have shot elk with both.

I prefer the 223.

I'm not a skilled enough shooter or wind caller to shoot past the effective terminal range of the 223/TMK combo.

If/when I am I would consider moving up.

That said, I hope I don't ever lose the desire to plan and execute a stalk to get closer ( if at all possible) even though I might be within my "effective range". I like hunting more than shooting.

 

[Odd1out]

I average 2,740 fps out of my 22” tikka with 24.0 gr of Tac. My 73 eldm load trajectories are very close to the 77 gr tmk.

Edit: for comparison the 77 tmk drop at 500 yards is 10.7 moa and the 73 eldm is 10.6 moa; pretty dang close

I'm getting 2650 with 23.5 varget, might speed up a bit. New barrel

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[D R T]

The whittle Tikka is now in Portland, TX at Red Beards getting a 2.4” haircut and thread.
And they just so happened to have an AB Raptor 6 556 that called my name. So I got that going too. I keep seeing these new super short wait time reports. Won’t happen that way for me but we’re giving it a go.

 

[atmat]

I’ve heard of guys running 77gr TMK’s and doing well dropping deer!

… and elk and moose and bear and pigs and…

 

[Tahr]

A dialled in Tikka .223 and a decent bullet is a formidable thing. Steel at 519 yards.

 

[sneaky]

Did any of you shoot a bull elk in the ass with a 77 TMK a few months ago and fail to recover it? Someone on tw*tter found a crippled elk with a little green plastic tip in what used to be its hip. Rokslide actually mentioned in the comments as being at fault.

22cal isn't the only green tipped offering from Sierra... could just as easily been a bad shot from a number of calibers.

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[sneaky]

I absolutely love shooting an accurate and low recoiling .223 but I can’t ever see myself carrying one on a mule deer or elk hunt.
My kids and I have certainly killed several whitetail deer with a suppressed .223 off my back porch but our field of fire was limited to 220 yards.
No doubt a .223 with correct ammo is as lethal as anything when hitting the heart & lungs, but I would hate to be limited to 450 yard shots and these little bullets get blown around bad as distance increases on a windy day.
I am curious to know how many people use a .223 as their first choice for mule deer & elk rifle when a step up to a 6.5 w/140+ grain bullets would basically double their effective range.

BP

If 450 yards is the max for 77tmks because of wind... then stepping up to 140s isn't going to make a difference at 800. If someone can't shoot 450 in the wind, they sure don't need to be trying 800 in the wind just because they are using a bigger caliber. Wind calls don't get easier with a bigger caliber.

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[Odd1out]

22cal isn't the only green tipped offering from Sierra... could just as easily been a bad shot from a number of calibers.

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Could have been a nosler ballistic tip

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[bpctcb]

If 450 yards is the max for 77tmks because of wind... then stepping up to 140s isn't going to make a difference at 800. If someone can't shoot 450 in the wind, they sure don't need to be trying 800 in the wind just because they are using a bigger caliber. Wind calls don't get easier with a bigger caliber.

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The 77 TMK is showing a bc of .420.
There are several 6.5 caliber bullets with a bc over .600.
There will simply be less wind drift with the larger caliber, higher bc bullets.
If I’m shooting 300+ yards on a windy day then no way in hell do I want a .223 rifle in my hands. My wind calls aren’t perfect and I’ll take all the help I can get from a higher bc bullet.

BP

 

[AlpineCarpetbagger]

22cal isn't the only green tipped offering from Sierra... could just as easily been a bad shot from a number of calibers.

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I was tempted to focus complaint on the cartridge assumption, but in the context of that shot placement it would have felt like correcting the grammar of someone in the middle of having a stroke.

 

[Luke S]

Don't know if I missed it any reason to use a Tikka over an AR for normal mortals (i.e. people who have no business shooting at 700 yards)?

 

[Marbles]

Don't know if I missed it any reason to use a Tikka over an AR for normal mortals (i.e. people who have no business shooting at 700 yards)?

Short answer: No

Long answer: Preference, same manual of arms as the larger caliber rifles I use in the field, depending on state/country legality issues. Don't have to listen to random people tell you the 223 is too small for ___________. Some of us are not modern enough for an MSR.

 

[SquatchHunter]

Don't know if I missed it any reason to use a Tikka over an AR for normal mortals (i.e. people who have no business shooting at 700 yards)?

I use the AR because I already have a bunch. One already set up for “precision” so that was the go to. A sbr for the walking days.

 

[Luke S]

Well I was hoping to work out a bolt gun. But failing that I think I can bring back an AR upper from the lower 48. Not sure of its accuracy but it was built by a knowledgeable relative with a free floated barrel. I just had the idea to stick 45 degrees BUIS on it. Not pretty but practical if your caribou hunt turns into a bear fight.

 

[MTN BUM]

Well I was hoping to work out a bolt gun. But failing that I think I can bring back an AR upper from the lower 48. Not sure of its accuracy but it was built by a knowledgeable relative with a free floated barrel. I just had the idea to stick 45 degrees BUIS on it. Not pretty but practical if your caribou hunt turns into a bear fight.

Been rolling this over in my mind too. If you hunt in grizz territory, wonder how this 77tmk holds up. Im all in at reasonable distances on deer/elk/antelope/bears. The scenario in my mind is what about the unwanted grizz surprise at closer range? If youre charged (assuming you have time to fire anything) do you want 77gr between you and a rough day? Kinda brings back the 9mm vs 10mm handgun for bears debate, but I can also see the idea that if you are gonna stop a bear in a charge you better hit CNS. Opinions on how a TMK might do with a bear skull? Again, I know Im assuming a lot and that planets would have to align in order for me to appropriately deploy the system and hit a charging bear head/spine, but if I am gonna do it I want it to work.

 

[BLJ]

IMO an AR/223 with an LPVO wouldn’t be the worst way to go.
I would think that an AR/223would provide multiple chances at a CNS instead of one or maybe two from something larger.
And not that you would get them all off, but having 10/20/30 in the mag instead of 3/4 would be nice as well if you were going to get into a bear fight in the thick stuff.

Disclaimer to all this is that I’ve never been in a bear fight.

 

[fwafwow]

Been rolling this over in my mind too. If you hunt in grizz territory, wonder how this 77tmk holds up. Im all in at reasonable distances on deer/elk/antelope/bears. The scenario in my mind is what about the unwanted grizz surprise at closer range? If youre charged (assuming you have time to fire anything) do you want 77gr between you and a rough day? Kinda brings back the 9mm vs 10mm handgun for bears debate, but I can also see the idea that if you are gonna stop a bear in a charge you better hit CNS. Opinions on how a TMK might do with a bear skull? Again, I know Im assuming a lot and that planets would have to align in order for me to appropriately deploy the system and hit a charging bear head/spine, but if I am gonna do it I want it to work.

There are other posts on this topic. I don’t mean to say “use the search function” - I’m just too lazy at the moment to find and link them myself. Maybe search for Form posts with bear in them.

 

[Luke S]

If I can get a bear skull I'll try it.