5.56 hog hunters?

Posted: 3/10/2014 6:12:02 AM EDT

Anyone hunt hogs with 5.56?
Those who do/did: have you ever felt 5.56 is in any way deficient? (Ever see a hog not go down when you shoot him?)

Posted: 3/10/2014 5:23:55 AM EDT

[#1]

Pics of your pig Guns go

Posted: 3/10/2014 5:42:07 AM EDT

[#2]

I have seen hogs hit with a .308 and not go down immediately.

It's all about shot placement with these buggers.

pic of hog gun.

Posted: 3/10/2014 5:48:32 AM EDT

[#3]

I found teh bullet design matters most. Shot a couple with m193 and had the same problem the military has, through-and-through without expansion. Went to some actual hunting bullets and the problem has not been a problem anymore. Barnes triple-shock, partitions, even basic soft points in the heavier projos all have worked flawlessly for me.

Posted: 3/10/2014 6:00:44 AM EDT

[#4]

I have hunted hogs for years using anything from my 1903, M1a, M82, AR15 (.223 and 5.45) and in the end I agree with everyone else it depends on shot placement. I have shot a hog with a 308 168gr through the heart and it still ran 150 yards before collapsing. I have shot 150# hog with a 5.45x39 russian mil-surp through the neck and the thing just collapsed where it stood. Also shot one with a 50 BMG lead core FMJ center mass and it completely decimated the hog of course it did not stand a chance it broke its back in 2 places and broke the hogs from leg up over the top of its back on exit.. .223 I usually try for head shot or neck shot to be honest.

Posted: 3/10/2014 6:01:39 AM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:

I found teh bullet design matters most. Shot a couple with m193 and had the same problem the military has, through-and-through without expansion. Went to some actual hunting bullets and the problem has not been a problem anymore. Barnes triple-shock, partitions, even basic soft points in the heavier projos all have worked flawlessly for me.

View Quote

Ball ammo should be limited to 100 yards or less or head shots IMO.

Posted: 3/9/2014 4:04:20 PM EDT

[#6]

I have never used anything but 5.56mm for hogs, and have never failed to make one shot kills. I keep my shots under 100 yards, and always head shots.
They are not particularly difficult to kill, shot placement is the key.

Posted: 3/9/2014 4:13:41 PM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
I have never used anything but 5.56mm for hogs, and have never failed to make one shot kills. I keep my shots under 100 yards, and always head shots.
They are not particularly difficult to kill, shot placement is the key.

View Quote

Exactly. Although I've gone farther than 100 with good kills. 69 grain Sierra Matchking BTHP for maximum lethality.

My field carbine / hunting rig. Might get a KAC rail, but I really just like the plain HG's. Blue Force NSN sling on order.

Posted: 3/9/2014 4:16:04 PM EDT

[#8]

Totally agree that shot placement is the Key.

The only time I feel .223 is not enough is for 450lbs and up. There's not too many of them left in my woods.
I have used a .308 at times. Again shot placement yields the pork. I had 35 pigs rooting up a pasture, eating june bugs feasting on fresh oak leaves, and shot 8 using M-14 iron sights justing aiming center mass. I hit all 8 but only recovered one.

I shot 5 with .223 62gr Wolf using an aimpoint and recovered 4 after shooting them in the head or heart area.

It's all about where you hit them.

And never shoot just one !The fun begins when they start to scatter and you have to adapt.

Posted: 3/9/2014 5:44:18 PM EDT

[#9]

Quoted:

Anyone hunt hogs with 5.56?

Those who do/did: have you ever felt 5.56 is in any way deficient? (Ever see a hog not go down when you shoot him?)

View Quote

Yup I've had several keep on truckin despite solid shots to the vitals with heavy bullets. Either 75gr TAP or Mk262.

I've also hit pigs with .308's, .243's, and .270's in the vitals and they didn't go right down. All these shots were over 150yds.

That doesn't mean much to me though. I exploded a big buck's heart with a 180gr out of a 300WSM and he bolted for probably 100yds before I put another one in him that did the trick. The first shot had shredded his heart though. It's amazing what adrenaline can do.

Unless you get a shot into the central nervous system, the potential is always there for the animal to take off. That's why it pays to learn to track.

Posted: 3/9/2014 5:46:38 PM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:

Anyone hunt hogs with 5.56?

Those who do/did: have you ever felt 5.56 is in any way deficient? (Ever see a hog not go down when you shoot him?)

View Quote

There is a guy on here who take hogs with his 12.5" AR all the time with just ball ammo out to 300 yards.

Shot placement is key.

Posted: 3/10/2014 6:14:18 AM EDT

[#11]

Who gives a shit? They'll die eventually.

I've shot hundreds of hogs with 5.56. Never in my life skinned one, don't plan on ever skinning one either. I kill 'em for the fun of killing and they tear shit up.

Posted: 3/10/2014 7:28:49 AM EDT

[#12]

A quick search will give you many many threads on this topic. Shoot them in the neck or head and they will be DRT. Shoot them in the chest and you probably won't find them. 5.56 is more than sufficent if you take well aimed shots. 5.56 is all I use.

Also, pigs aren't like deer anatomically. If you shoot one in the shoulder like you shoot a deer, you just gut shot it.

Posted: 3/10/2014 7:31:29 AM EDT

[#13]

Not a great brush round, but it kls pigs.

Posted: 3/10/2014 7:39:18 AM EDT

[#14]

I've had pigs take half a dozen 5.56 and not go down, I've also had pigs take half a dozen .308 or half a dozen 300Blk and not go down. Well, actually they went down, just not immediately. They certainly died, but they got really far before they did.

5.56 is good enough, but once they start running head shots are not so easy. Just try and hit them as far forward as you can, that's where all the important stuff is.

The extra damage you get from a .308 or whatever just isn't that big of a deal.

If they are running directly away try and shoot high and break their hips/spine. It's just about the only way to make them stop and they generally will turn at this point to bite at the perceived threat from behind.

Posted: 3/10/2014 9:10:01 AM EDT

[#15]

All of my hunting/trapping is pure population control.

If you are trophy hunting or think the opportunity will be limited, more gun is more likely to DRT a hog than .556.

I got 3 over the weekend. All good hits, but only 1 folded up like a lawn chair.

Premium hunting rounds are more effective than 855/193, etc., but I'm not investing much in ammo to off a hog.

I also opt for the AR to bust up groups. Follow ups are much faster for me than a .30 cal rifle.

Posted: 3/10/2014 12:04:19 PM EDT

[#16]

Just got back from TX trip. Me and a buddy killed 57 hogs in 3 days. I am saying this with experience to back it up: 5.56 is totally fine. Anything more is a waste of money. I killed a few with my 300 BLK and saw almost no difference in 1 shot stopping power.

As others have said, shot placement is key - headshot or vitals - and if you miss those it doesn't matter what caliber you are shooting.

Posted: 3/10/2014 11:10:31 PM EDT

[#17]

Quote History

Quoted:

Who gives a shit? They'll die eventually.

I've shot hundreds of hogs with 5.56. Never in my life skinned one, don't plan on ever skinning one either. I kill 'em for the fun of killing and they tear shit up.

View Quote

Couldn't have said it better myself.

Posted: 3/10/2014 11:36:42 PM EDT

[#18]

Quote History

Quoted:
There is a guy on here who take hogs with his 12.5" AR all the time with just ball ammo out to 300 yards.

Shot placement is key.

View Quote View All Quotes

View All Quotes

Quote History

Quoted:

Quoted:
Anyone hunt hogs with 5.56?
Those who do/did: have you ever felt 5.56 is in any way deficient? (Ever see a hog not go down when you shoot him?)

There is a guy on here who take hogs with his 12.5" AR all the time with just ball ammo out to 300 yards.

Shot placement is key.

He had a big thread here but messed with his photobucket account and it deleted the pics. A lot of people didn't even bother to read it anyway.

Posted: 3/11/2014 7:24:56 AM EDT

[#19]

I use a 10.5" AR pistol.
.55 gr. FMJ.
Aim for the neck.

Posted: 3/14/2014 5:32:38 AM EDT

[#20]

Quote History

Quoted:
I have seen hogs hit with a .308 and not go down immediately.

It's all about shot placement with these buggers.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7314/12982320313_b1c4e1424b_c.jpg
pic of hog gun.

View Quote

Is that your purse? It goes nicely with the rifle.

Posted: 3/14/2014 10:30:02 AM EDT

[#21]

No issues here, yes it was a lung shot, but at an angle, you can see the entrance in the second image.
~60yds at night :)
77gr sierra

Posted: 3/14/2014 4:31:18 PM EDT

[#22]

As already said, all about shot placement. When I'm dispatching hogs in a trap I always use a .22lr. When I'm out and about and just trying to kill the SOBs I'll gut shoot them so I don't have to deal with dragging them off to feed the buzzards.

Posted: 3/14/2014 4:33:59 PM EDT

[#23]

Quote History

Quoted:
I use a 10.5" AR pistol.
.55 gr. FMJ.
Aim for the neck.

View Quote

I'll add I will never ever use a hollow point on a hog I'm trying to harvest. Couple years ago I shot a hog in the neck with my .22-250 with a hollowpoint. I saw the impact to the hogs neck, and observed it immediately go down as it kicked itself into three full circles before the hog got up and ran in a full sprint in the opposite direction of me never to be seen again. Walked to POI and while you could see where it had kicked into circles but never found any blood....

Posted: 3/14/2014 4:52:22 PM EDT

[#24]

Shot placement is key with 5.56 but it works just fine, even with FMJ. Due to budget constraints, we've downgraded to 5.56 FMJ from 6.8 TTSX, and although we see the difference in the two, we found 5.56 to be suffice and our eradication efforts haven't suffered. Again, shot placement is key for DRT kills but as evidence in this video where good shot placement is challenging, 5.56 FMJ will do the job.

5.56 in action

ETA: We often return to areas where we had a high number of kills to take a closer look at our work. Although we're shooting several rounds at each hog the majority of the time, upon examination of the dead hogs, they're often times hit with a single round and not in an ideal spot. I honestly don't take great pleasure in this line of work and you will notice that I will take a few follow up shots even after they go down as I believe any animal with four legs should be killed as quickly as possible, even when it comes to depredating feral hogs. There are nights where I can't sleep and wonder if what I'm doing is right. I've seen what they've done to our State and the native plants and animals and the hurting they've inflicted on farmers and ranchers, and believe this to be the most effective means of control.

Posted: 3/14/2014 5:01:35 PM EDT

[#25]

Quote History

Quoted:
I have seen hogs hit with a .308 and not go down immediately.

It's all about shot placement with these buggers.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7314/12982320313_b1c4e1424b_c.jpg
pic of hog gun.

View Quote

Oh, and BCV, that's a beautiful table

Posted: 3/14/2014 5:34:33 PM EDT

[#26]

Quote History

Quoted:
I have seen hogs hit with a .308 and not go down immediately.

It's all about shot placement with these buggers.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7314/12982320313_b1c4e1424b_c.jpg
pic of hog gun.

View Quote

Love your accessories in the BG. Is that a Coach Bag??

Posted: 3/15/2014 8:38:39 AM EDT

[#27]

If you feel the pig you are hunting is too big for 556, shoot them twice.

Seriously though, a 556 will kill the hell out of any pig on Earth with proper placement.

Posted: 3/15/2014 8:41:26 AM EDT

[#28]

Quote History

Quoted:
No issues here, yes it was a lung shot, but at an angle, you can see the entrance in the second image.
~60yds at night :)
77gr sierra

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b57/pbjunkiee/WP_20140119_006_zps110ffdbb.jpg

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b57/pbjunkiee/WP_20140119_005_zpsef75366a.jpg

View Quote

I dont think a 10 lb hog is much proof of bullet terminal performance

Posted: 3/15/2014 9:32:15 AM EDT

[#29]

Quote History

Quoted:

I dont think a 10 lb hog is much proof of bullet terminal performance

View Quote View All Quotes

View All Quotes

Quote History

Quoted:

Quoted:
No issues here, yes it was a lung shot, but at an angle, you can see the entrance in the second image.
~60yds at night :)
77gr sierra

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b57/pbjunkiee/WP_20140119_006_zps110ffdbb.jpg

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b57/pbjunkiee/WP_20140119_005_zpsef75366a.jpg

I dont think a 10 lb hog is much proof of bullet terminal performance

He was about 60, thanks.

How about a 250lb sow that was dead before she rolled over.
75gr PPU, ~50yds, half moon

They do do some work on hogs. Hydro-static shock baby

Posted: 3/20/2014 9:17:42 AM EDT

[#30]

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Bz1vbHmm-w[/youtube]

5.56 mm in video

I am a big fan.

5.56mm on Dogs.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sv0shr0BTGU[/youtube]

Even at distance, the 5.56mm will perform well.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - 5.56 hog hunters?

Outdoors » Hog Hunting

Warning

Confirm Action

About AR15.COM

Stay Connected

Newsletter

Contact Us