Building a coyote & hog black rifle...

[356]

With the acquisition of a thermal scope, I decided to build a coyote/hog gun in .223. The goal is a rifle that shoots cost-effective rounds (Hornedy varmint .223's are about .45/round), reaches out 150-200 yards, and is light weight. Using a polymer lower by ATI & 16" barrel keeps the rifle just under 6#. With the Athlon thermal weighting 13.5 ounces, and the Simple Man .30 cal suppressor & adapter running 13.5 ounces, the total field weight is still under 8#.

I have to get my fingerprints done next time I am in town to get the suppressor shipped. I hope to have the gun ready for late Coyote season (March) and our Oklahoma hog hunt in Mid-April.

 

[Telemark]

Hornedy varmint .223's are about .45/round),

That's what I use. It doesn't anchor big coyotes as well as soft-points, but I've never lost an animal with them, so I keep using them. For me the most important thing is avoiding over-penetration, and they are great form that.

 

[bigboreblr]

You keeping pelts?

I'd give that 223 a bit more push with a 20 barrel.

 

[Mtyhunter]

I've walked miles hunting hogs, and a lighter weapon has its place for sure. A 223 will do the trick on a hog, but the big ones....it usually takes a few well placed shots for them to go down. I usually aim for the ear, but if its a quartering shot at the head, it'll ricochet off and only stun and knock em down. Put more rounds in it while it's down before you have to start taking the running shots.

 

[356]

You keeping belts?

I'd give that 223 a bit more push with a 20 barrel.

No, just predator management for now. However, I’d love a few pelts for decorating at the cabin.

 

[omicron1792]

I've walked miles hunting hogs, and a lighter weapon has its place for sure. A 223 will do the trick on a hog, but the big ones....it usually takes a few well placed shots for them to go down. I usually aim for the ear, but if its a quartering shot at the head, it'll ricochet off and only stun and knock em down. Put more rounds in it while it's down before you have to start taking the running shots.

Say what?

 

[Mtyhunter]

Unfortunately I've had the pleasure of shooting around 100 hogs in the last 10 years. I've used a 223, 20 and 12 gauge slugs, 270 and 308.
I've found that shooting them in the head, or earholing them, is the most lethal. But, if it's not a straight on shot, it will ricochet. I've seen it numerous times. Usually tho, it's on the big boars when this happens. They are tougher than hell.
Here's another one for ya...I've hunted hogs with dogs and bowie knives, at night, too. 6 cur dogs with gps, 2 pit bulls in cages in the sxs.
Had a big boar we were after, hunted him on a Friday night till 2 in the morning, didn't run into him. The guys I go with wanted him bad, we had the bait already out, and they wanted to try again Saturday night. I was just to worn out, couldn't do it 2 nights in a row, so I gave them permission to go to my lease without me. Got a call from my guy Sunday morning at 8, and he was upset. Turns out the dogs found him, and by the time they got there, the boar had 3 of his curs seriously injured. He turned the pits loose, and the fight was on. Only took about a minute and the boar had already injured both pits, but they were still hanging on.
Usually, there's 3-4 of us, all packing sidearms, but, you never pull them out. Joe, the owner of all the dogs, decides he has to do something due to his dogs taking a bad beating, so he pulls his Remington 10mm out, and puts one round in the boars head from point blank range. The bullet ricocheted off the boars head, and hit his pit bull named Pinky right in the chest, killing her instantly. The boar got away, and we never saw him again. They are tough to bring down.

 

[Mtyhunter]

Here's a couple of boars i shot last year. Heart shot the young one from 20 yds on the ground, he was about 250lbs. The big one I centerpunched right between the eyes at 30 yds as he was coming at me on the ground. He was so heavy he was pulling my 4 wheeler front tires off the ground dragging him out. Dropped him, but he kicked around for a few minutes and moved another 15 yds. Both shot with my 270.
I don't shoot them with my bow anymore, never get a good arrow or bolt back, and at $40 a whack, no thanks.

 

[swat1018]

Yea, Mtyhunter is right, if hogs were my number 1 target, I wouldn't bother with a .223. We had a hog shake one off a couple weeks ago. Friend had never shot one, he shoots it in the head and it goes down instantly. He tries to get on one of the others in the bunch, but they were gone. I should have had him put another round or two in it, but didn't. By the time he got back on the hog that went down and was kicking, it got up and run off. We blood trailed it about 200 yards off the property and on to the neighbors.

 

[Mtyhunter]

223 is a great weapon for coyotes, 100% lethal on the size we have around here. Big hogs on the other hand...it'll work for sure, especially if the shot is brain or heart. anything else just stuns them, they hit the ground and flop, and when you turn around, they're gone, and you won't find them. But, it's not a big deal if you don't care about collecting the carcasses. I just want them to go away.
I got rid of my 223 awhile back, and reading about 356's build makes me want another one like that. I like the shorter barrel decision, because I've spent alot of time indian slinking thru the swamps and slews, sneaking in on the pigs, and a shorter lighter weapon is an obvious choice. At one point even thought about buying a lever action 3030, until I saw the prices!

 

[omicron1792]

Long post on this.

I kill a lot of coyotes and hogs. It’s my favorite form of hunting.

In short, 223 WITH the right bullet, is a great choice for both.

If you plan on using monometal like Barnes TSX, 223 will not be your huckleberry. It has a narrow wound channel, and will not give you results you want.

Definitively the 77TMK by sierra, loaded by several companies, is THE bullet for 223 for this type of hunting. It is explosive and will cause massive damage from a 223. There are pages and pages of info proving this, as well as my personal experience.

Coyotes are thin skinned and any hit in the front half will put them straight down with this combo. Back half will kill then but they will run.

To put a hog (or any animal) down immediately requires a disruption to the central nervous system. A more explosive bullet has more chance to do that.

That said, a lung shot on a pig with almost any caliber will result in a running pig. They will die but not at the spot of impact. If you want a pig to drop, I have found the neck shot to be the best for that. Many many pictures online of where exactly to aim.

So in summary I think the 223 is the perfect predator and varmint round under about 400 yards. If you wanted to take longer pokes then moving to a faster, but not necessarily bigger, caliber is your move. The two there are 22 creedmoor and 6 creedmoor.

 

[Mtyhunter]

I'll admit I don't have deep knowledge on 223 ammo. I honestly couldn't tell you what ammo I was even using at that time. That's great info though, and could explain why I was having problems getting a lethal shot with a 223.
That's honestly why I got rid of the 223 and went to the 308. Would have saved a lot of money just buying the right ammo!

 

[omicron1792]

For just hogs 308 is awesome! Just again use a soft ammo. Corlokt is fine!

Hard ammo is ok in 308 if you shoot into bone of shoulder or spine. Requires a more precise shot.