best coyote shell (22-250)

[tanman]

i am going to give yote hunting again this winter try my 22-250 what has everyone found the most succsess with bullet wise?

[Fish&Fowl]

55 grain Hornady V-max or Winchester Supreme ballistic tips out of my Tikka .22-250.

[carpshooterdeluxe]

im a fan of the winchester supremes in 55 grain as well; ruger m77 stainless.

[picksbigwagon]

I used to reload 40 gr vmax for a guy.....anything from Hornady is usually pretty accurate

[Fish&Fowl]

Just got my gun back about a week ago after I had a gunsmith take a little off the stock where it was making contact with the "floated" barrel. He did a great job and the gun shoots great. Shot both the Winchesters and Hornadys with great accuracy, but Hornadys were dime-sized groups at 100. It will vary with make and model of gun but I'm going to be buying strictly Hornady now. Price is good too.

[walleyes12]

I used to reload 40 gr vmax for a guy.....anything from Hornady is usually pretty accurate

My hunting partner use to to shoot them! Intill he had a few coyotes run after being hit, then the box of shells were thrown out the truck window. What he found out is that there too fast for that light of a bullet. They were pretty much splatting on impact without getting penetration.

[Jackpine Rob]

I agree. The plastic/polymer tipped bullets might shoot fantastic groups with impressive ballistics, but the performance on contact really stinks. My regular partner worked up a load for his .223 that was absolutely phenomenal on paper. He could dot i's and cross t's with that load out beyond 300 yards.

Unfortunately, that round had a BAD habit of "splashing" on impact, and disintegrating without reaching the vitals. After the second long tracking job in two days (yeah, we got 'em both, but it was not fun) and one that swam a river and we couldn't chase, I had enough. In a fit of frustration, I took his box of ammo and tossed it out the window of the truck as we sped back towards the hotel. I bought him a couple of boxes of Black Hills 60 gr. soft points (to prevent any further violence), loaned him my spare rifle for the following morning, and after we re-zeroed with the new ammo, he was back to dumping coyotes.

Moral of the story (and I've heard this others as well) is to avoid the plastic-tips for coyotes out of your higher-velocity guns.

[picksbigwagon]

I have yet to have a splasher with my vmax. I have heard that and read about it on other sites, but I have also heard the opposite too, that it doesn't splash like that unless you hit the shoulder. I will continue using my vmax until I get my first splash or two. What do you consider Higher-Velocity? My 223's are best at under 3100 fps.

[walleyes12]

Higher velocity in my books is anything shooting 3800 fps and up. Remember, with higher speeds you are more vulnerable to "splash" with a lighter a bullet. Another thing with speed is fur damage.

I just bought a new .243 this summer. I am shooting 58 grain V-max. I chornographed them this fall and they are shooting at 3600fps. I shot 2 of my 6 coyotes I shot so far I had to disregard due to extensive fur damage. The other 4 were not bad, but I had to spend some time with a needle and dental floss. I know someone that reloads and shoots 100 grains out of there .243, they slowed the bullet way down, and has minimum fur damage. There is still some damage, but very managable to repair.

Personally I am more accurate with the higher velocities, its more of a confidence thing. I need to go through some trial and error next year with some reloads.

[Ray1]

Winchester 45 grain jacketed hollow points for a factory load shoot excellent through my tikka 22-250. I have 3 shots touching each other at 100 yds off a bench with a rest.

[Jackpine Rob]

Picks -

The load he had worked up was chrono'd at a shade under 3900 fps. I watched him play with a variety of loads, and that particular load really stood up and did tricks on paper. I'm not kidding when I say he was popping 3 rounds in under an inch at 300 yards - it was just a screaming performer, out of a standard Rem 700 stainless/synthetic. At 200 yards he was cloverleafing them. Of course, the trigger had been reworked to a very crisp 3.5 lbs, and the Leopuld VXIII didn't hurt either.

It was pure poison on prairie dogs - but on the larger game we had some serious issues. One of those things you don't know until you try!

One coyote in particular really stood out for me. Broadside standing at about 60 yards. My buddy was about 100 yards downwind of me, and I could hear the "WHAP" as the bullet hit, the coyote screamed and rolled over twice, and then got up and ran like an auto executive after some bail-out money. Before the coyote vanished, my buddy pops off another round, I again hear a "WHAP" and the coyote disappears into a brush-choked coulee.

Darkness was setting in. I put on my headlight, pulled out my extra mini-mag lights, and went after the dog. An hour and a half later, I finally ran him down, and had him trapped against a cliff. One shot between the eyes with my trusty Colt Woodsman and the long chase was over. Well over a mile and half of tracking, walking, crawling and finally running, as the snow pelted down. Had we waited until the next morning, there would have been no chance of tracking.

After all of that, the coyote was a total loss from a fur perspective. The first round "splashed" on the shoulder, and took out roughly a 9 inch circle of fur. The second round - the one that allowed me track and finally get him, had shattered a rear knee.

Curious, I skinned the coyote out a couple of days later, and discovered the most astonishing bullet performance I have ever witnessed. I found tiny little pieces of copper, lead and plastic all around the rib cage, but not a single bit of that bullet entered the chest. There was a pretty good bruise where impact occurred, but I found most of the bullet on the OPPOSITE SIDE of the chest. Those little chunks of bullet literally followed the inside of the hide around to the other side. Totally wierd.

I was discussing this with my buddy the Fish Cop a year or so later, as I tried for the umpteenth time to get his "secret load" that he had worked up for his 22-250. This guy was trying to get the mythical 500 yard coyote load, and had by own account finally succeeded. As I detailed our experience, he looked at me, reached into a drawer and pulled out his notes for his Magic Coyote Load. "Here, you can have it!" he said, with a bit of disgust in his voice. "Same %$#@ thing happened to me last winter - 3 times in one day!"

If your plastic tips are working great for you - I say go for it! It may be a function of bullet speed - at the lower velocities I can see where they may have some real application. Unfortunately, some of us are real speed freaks, reasoning that the faster we go the flatter the trajectory and the less chance for elevation errors in the heat of battle.

[picksbigwagon]

what grain were his vmax? I have used the 55 and the 60 grainers with no splashes, unless I was shooting a steel plate....

I don't doubt that your friend had these experiences, but we are talking apples and oranges here. 22-250 at almost 4000 fps, and 223 loads at just under 3100 fps.

I wonder if my 243 loads will splash, those are close to 4000 fps.......

[CASTnBLAST]

I too have quit using the ballistic tips in favor of hollow points. Hit any bone on impact and you have one ugly mess and if you take a fox might as well pitch it in the rhubarb.

[jigginjim]

Has anyone every tried the high speed round for a 30-30 or 06. Looking to use rifles I already have. Don't really want do buy a rifle just for yote sooting I do have a 22 but to reach out 50-60 yars would hard an maybe not be enough to done the job.

[elkrivermn]

carefull carefull carefull!!!!!!!!!!!

lots of coyotes in wright and sherburne county , see them all the time when out on the tractors and combines. for obious reasons be carefull with a 30-30 or 30-06 when shooting in this area. if you miss the target mr bullet can travel a loooooooong ways.

[morefishplease]

If all I had to use was a 30-06 I don't think I would use the Sprg. Accelerator load. I have never shot it, but from my understanding the shot is not that accurate. A 55gr round has a muzzle velocity @ 4080 fps. IMO if the fox is not going to get you any money and you really don't care just use a deer load in the 30-06. You will blow the bits out of it, but if its all manged or something its worthless anyways.