Never had a chance to kill a hog, been a deer hunter off and on. I’d like to get some marsh hogs from my boat and I’m wondering if my 10.3 is a good ethical weapon for them? If I enjoy it enough, I plan on building a 12.5 6.5 grendel for it.

Just skip to the Grendel. Some people would argue 16” 5.56 isn’t ethical.

Your proposal definitely isn’t ethical to your ears, that’s for sure.

Smoke em if you got em!!!

10.5" .223/5.56 puts down Feral Hogs just fine shot placement is key. Headshot is the best place 1/4 below the ear it blows their light out like a candle you don't need a large caliber to kill Hogs I killed the majority of mine with a .22LR OVER bait 21' off the ground in a ladder stand at 60 yards from the bait with a Ruger 10/22  I put my lighted reticle on the head 1/4 " below the ear the Kill lights come on and highlight the hogs and  I go to work. For the most part, I set live trap foot snares dispatch with .22LR, neck strangulation kill snares,  Boar Buster Live traps dispatch with .22 you don't need large calibers many of the Contracts I go on are in close proximity to livestock, People & Dwellings so large calibers could dangerous especially at night with night vision.
This is the biggest Hog I have ever Killed and it was a live trap foot snare and one shot from a .22LR took him out .
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Two nights ago i had the opportunity to go hunting for the first time in a long time.

Left all my good factory ammo and sbr reloads at the house.

So I dropped one at 75 yards one shot with cheap fioochi 55 fmj out of an 11.5” ar.

Some of us are sportsmen that concern ourselves with treating all animals humanely, regardless of what some PHD biologist put in a report to get more grant money.

After killing hogs with 16" 5.56 guns and a variety of other calibers, I'd say 5.56 is marginal for humane hunting of anything larger than a coyote. The terminal damage difference in 5.56 and mainstream hunting calibers (like the "lowly" 30-30) is great.

Never had an issue stopping them with 5.56, even rather large ones with small shooters
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Obviously has never repaired pig rooting damage and never watched the ground nesting birds being decimated. All this compassion but no empathy for the land or the native critters.

Hogs aren't ethical when they destroy property and wildlife, I shoot pigs in the face unless they are running away. Then it's a Texas heart shot.

Edited because feelings are not facts~ussrangersm

Took out 9 in this sounder with an 11.85” barrel

PWS 11.85” Pistol

Sweet! Bonus for the squealer and the flip!

What he said. My father-in-law would probably prefer the hogs be  shot and that they run off and have a painful, slow death. It’s more of pest control/extermination than hunting when it comes to keeping them out of crops

I'm guessing it would be fine with proper ammo selection and shot placement. Took a 120lb doe with a federal fusion 62gr soft point out of an 11.5in barrel a few years ago(60yard shot). Got the heart and both lungs, she didn't even take a step and was dead before she hit the ground. Ive seen plenty of guys with bigger caliber guns not kill deer because of poor shot placement and poor shoot/no shoot decisions and taking shots at shit that was at ranges beyond what they were capable of shooting accurately. Staying within your capabilities as a shooter and knowing the limits of your ammo is just as important as proper shot placement and making a smart decision about shoot/no shoot. The same year i got the doe i let a buck go. It was about 200-225 yards out. Could I have hit it with the 11.5 yes I can hit at 600 yards with it (God I miss my old gun club). But I also didn't trust that at 200+ yards the round would carry enough energy from that barrel length to kill that animal quickly so i didn't take the shot. Instead I let a buddy know over the radio that it was moving in his direction and about 20mins later he shot it. We were supposed to be meeting up for a drive at abound 10am that morning so I took the 11.5 ar instead of the 16in ar. If i'd have had the 16in I'd probably have shot that buck as well only because I had used the 16in gun and the same ammo to take a doe two years before that at about 180 yards so I felt confident in that set up at that distance.

Stay within your abilities as a shooter, select the proper ammo and put it in a proper spot to make a clean kill and your all good.

I just dropped a 250lb boar at 50 yards last night with green tip in my 10.3".    One shot drop...its all about where you hit them.


Going out again tonight

Pvs 14 , IR laser and WML and thermal scanning is cheating

Only if your equipment was free.

Worked for me several times.
First time was with 50gr JHP from about 25 yards while coon hunting.  One shot below the ear and it was all over.
Second one was from about 35 yards with Speed 62gr Gold Dot while coyote hunting.  Again, one shot below the ear and it dropped.
I have taken few more with 62gr Gold Dot as it seems to have better penetration.  
 


This was the first one I took with my 10.5"

IMO Yes. Killed many, many hogs with short barreled 5.56 rifles.

5.56 is fine. 6.5 grendel is much better. 12” grendel is with a 308 suppressor is the perfect hog gun to me.

5.56 is fine for the first hog with proper shot placement, but when the herd of 40 hogs scatter and you start blasting away the 5.56 does not put them down right there. You’ll here the thump of the round hitting so you know they’ll die but you don’t get to admire your work.

The grendel of course isn’t 100% on the follow up shots either but a higher number drop or don’t make it far before dropping.