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AR15.COM
10/19/2008 4:51:17 AM EDT
I live in GA (formerly from AZ), and my brother in Mesa asked me if .223/5.56 is legal for deer.  It is in GA.  From perusing the AZ hunting regs, it looks at first glance like any centerfire caliber is okay as long as the rifle is using a 5-round magazine.  However, the same also seems to be true of elk, which is a little less believable.  That makes me think I'm missing something. Is there someplace in the regs other than R12-4-304 that spells this out?

10/19/2008 5:34:20 AM EDT
[#1]
No specified minimum caliber.  Just states centerfire.

.22 hornet would be okay as well.

Do what you know is responsible.  YMMV.
Oh, BTW.  I've used .223 on deer plenty of times.
Though only head and neckshots on deer less than 50 yds. at the feeder.  
(Not in Az.)

10/19/2008 7:32:25 AM EDT
[#2]

Quoted:
No specified minimum caliber.  Just states centerfire.

.22 hornet would be okay as well.

Do what you know is responsible.  YMMV.



Thanks for the reply.  I haven't ever used .223 on deer myself, but have used a bow.  At least in the places I have hunted here in GA, shots are 25 yds or so.  I also use a .30-30 with open sights, but that's at short range, too, which is different from the deserts there.

Thanks!

10/20/2008 12:25:27 AM EDT
[#3]
No minimum caliber. (other than centerfire)
As stated above, use your judgment as to what is ethical.
I would have no problem using a .223 on one of those little Coues deer (the weigh less than a large dog).  For a muley I would want something a bit heavier.
10/20/2008 8:53:00 AM EDT
[#4]
IMHO a .223 on deer is OK if you have a clean shot at under 150 yards,and you must retreive the deer no matter how long it takes,no matter how far it runs. on Elk a .223 is too little for sane humane kills .
10/20/2008 3:16:03 PM EDT
[#5]

Quoted:
IMHO a .223 on deer is OK if you have a clean shot at under 150 yards,and you must retreive the deer no matter how long it takes,no matter how far it runs. on Elk a .223 is too little for sane humane kills .


I doubt he'll go after elk.  If he does I'll guide him to something a little more substantial.  I actually have my doubts about how often he'll put in for deer.

Thanks!
10/20/2008 4:37:27 PM EDT
[#6]
The muleys here get big - be ethical and use a bigger caliber. The .243 is a good start for a smaller caliber and great for deer, not to mention I killed my first elk with a .243.
10/20/2008 4:52:24 PM EDT
[#7]
while you can take Elk with a .243 (and I have ) shot placement is key and you need the right load that will penetrate with out comeing apart. I have found that a 33 cal is perfect for elk and  any 33 cal will do over 2200 fps ,338 win mag,340 weatherby being ideal . they drop where you shoot them and are dead when when you get to them and you won't destroy the meat ether .
10/20/2008 6:42:41 PM EDT
[#8]

Quoted:
IMHO a .223 on deer is OK if you have a clean shot at under 150 yards,and you must retreive the deer no matter how long it takes,no matter how far it runs. on Elk a .223 is too little for sane humane kills .

^This.
10/20/2008 9:28:49 PM EDT
[#9]
I'd say .220 Swift or .22-250 is about as small as I'd go for whitetail or coues, maybe even mule deer if you have a clean shot within 200 yards or so. I'm a big fan of one shot one immediate kill so I wouldn't even consider taking a shot unless I was certain I'd drop it right there. Typically, I hunt with a .30-06 for everything up to elk, and even then I make sure I'll drop them in one shot. I took a whitetail at 600 yards one year and it was probably the worst situation I've been in as far as taking a shot I probably shouldn't have. For close in stuff, I think a 30-30 lever action is probably the most fun hunting you'll ever have.