Daughter of Texas Governor gets her first deer...with an AR15

[FarmerRick]

http://www.biggame.org/publications/GameTrails_SydneysFirstDeer.pdf

Oh, and she's 10 years old.   

[lefty]

Nice post, Farmer.  Enjoyed the read.  One proud Dad too, I might add.

[Wildgoose]

Great story, thanks for the post. Interstingly enough my grandaughter has taken quite a shine to my AR. She presently hunts deer with my old Ruger M77V in 6mm Rem. Both guns are pretty much recoil free. I would let her give the AR a go but I am not a fan of the .223 for deer. I have thought of picking up another upper in something like the 6.8 SPC for the job but I am not sure if the extra recoil would put her off using it. I might go for it anyway, what the heck, its an excuse to get another calibler upper for my 15. 

[SBarry]

My 6.8 with an H2 buffer has no more noticeable recoil than my 5.56 with a regular buffer. 5.56 or 223 with soft points did the job on a 4x4 mule deer this weekend. Went clean through with good expansion, took out both lungs. Did not get a chance to see what 6.8 wound channel would have been. 

[Wildgoose]

My 6.8 with an H2 buffer has no more noticeable recoil than my 5.56 with a regular buffer. 5.56 or 223 with soft points did the job on a 4x4 mule deer this weekend. Went clean through with good expansion, took out both lungs. Did not get a chance to see what 6.8 wound channel would have been. 

Thanks for the input! Information from someone who owns and shoots the 6.8 is a great help in deciding on how to go.

[Dan W]

I have recently fired an Armalite AR10, and would have to agree that the bigger calibers in the AR platform don't really have much more recoil than 5.56

[SBarry]

I recently sold my ar10. It needed a rubber butt pad on it to keep from making red marks on my shoulder, but with a normal hunting coat, it was fine from recoil, but definately more than an ar15 in 5.56.

An Ar10 is considerably heavier than an AR15, and carrying one all day gets old, especially with a heavy scope.

[Dan W]

Hmmm. I only fired 5 rounds, so my impressions may be off. I have no clue what kind of ammo I was firing either. May have been some light handloads. They were very accurate though

[FarmerRick]

Dan, with as many trap-shooting (and other rounds) that you've fired off over the years , I'm surprised you can even feel the recoil anymore.  

[JimP]

NGPC regs only state a minimum ft/lb for legal weapons for rifles.....

"rifles that deliver at least 900 ft. lbs of energy at 100 yards;
handguns that deliver at least 400 ft. lbs of energy at 50 yards;
muzzleloading rifles .44 cal. or larger;
muzzleloadering muskets .62 caliber or larger, firing a single slug;
shotguns of 20 gauge or larger that fire a single slug;
crossbows that have a draw weight of 125 pounds or more.
Semi-automatic firearms capable or holding more than six cartridges are NOT allowed."

I am pretty sure .223 WIN will do that...... lemmee see 3,000 x 3,000 x 55 = (9,000,000 x 55) = 495,000,000  / 450436 = 1,098.9followedbyabunchainsignifigantdigits ft/lbs.  So a 55grain bullet pushed to 3,000 f/sec is LEGAL.  Ethical?  Not in my book, unless it is designed to hold together so it will penetrate.

As I have said elsewhere, "Deer are not armored vehichles.  Poke them in both lungs and they will invariably die in short order." 

Do I think .223 for deer is a good idea? (dons flame suit) No. Not a lot of margin for error there. Do I think it should be illegal? NO.  No law will make a determined man not do dumb stuff.  That and there are too many laws already.

[FarmerRick]

Many people have done it, including my Grandfather for many years.  A .223 caliber bullet will take down a deer reliably, if it is of the right construction and weight, and with proper shot-placement.  Do I suggest using some Wolf 55 grain FMJ .223 ammo?  No.  I would suggest either the good old 64 grain soft-point or some of the newer and heavier bullets that have become available in the last few years(along with the needed fast-twist barrel).  Do I use a .223?  Nope, I use the .243, but that is just a preference of mine.

My Grandfather used both a Savage bolt gun in .222 and a Winchester model 70 in .220 Swift for all of his rifle hunting needs for well over 50 years on all types of game, deer-sized and smaller.  It helped that he was a damn good shot as well.

[SBarry]

Shot placement is the key, a hunting buddy hit a nice mulie with a 300 rem ultra mag and it only poked a hole through the non vital area, every deer I have shot with a 223 has died, either instantly or quickly with a lung shot. A 338 through the guts is a much slower, painful death for the deer than a 223 through the lungs.

The soft point 55 grain bullet mushroomed out and did its job, left a large hole on the exit side without hitting a rib on the entrance side.