Are 52-53gr .224 Match bullets suitable for coyote hunting?

Hellgate

Hellgate

Active member
The reason I ask is I have found that the tightest groups I have gotten for my Mini-14 are using the Hornady 53 gr HP Match bullets (1.5"@ 100yds) in .223 Rem. All I want is a 200 yd coyote gun so please, no comments about "get an AR" or get a bolt gun. My question is: how they perform on the coyotes? Are they a "harder' bullet less likely to open up upon impact or do they knock them over like the 60gr SPs I've been using? I hate to use light loads (40-50gr bullets) for fear that they might be lightly constructed and blow up on the surface and not cause a clean kill. I've heard that the match bullets are heavier constructed for accuracy and might not open up on impact. True or not? What is your experience?
 
There are probably better bullets, but this coyote fell to a 53 gr BTHP, but I hit it a little far back, in the ribs, but in the lungs and high. She went about 100 yards out into a pivot before tipping over. No exit, but lots of bleeding at wound site, as seen in the picture.


 
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52 match kings shoot unbelievable in my '250 BUT...
I was getting a LOT of run offs, just wasn't killing them. Switched to a hunting Berger 52 gr, got the same grouping but NOW they just tip over...
 
I was killing them with match bullets but none of them fell over on the spot either.Had to look for all of them after shooting.
 
I've shot two coyotes with these bullets. The first one took four shots to put down and I never found the second one after following a decent blood trail.

I'm pretty sure that the box states "Not for Hunting"
 
Originally Posted By: Arizona BushmanI'm pretty sure that the box states "Not for Hunting"

It's still coyote control, a Shot "Yote " IS a dead "YOTE" !!
 
Black Hills 52 gr Match HP in .223 kills them on the spot every time with little exit, been shooting the same round for 5 years
 
I've never used them, but I've seen Les Johnson on Predator Quest drop them like a bad habit out of his 22 and 250 time and time again.
 
Originally Posted By: SESDBlack Hills 52 gr Match HP in .223 kills them on the spot every time with little exit, been shooting the same round for 5 years

Long time never see. Welcome to the fray!


Chupa
 
Originally Posted By: ChupathingyOriginally Posted By: SESDBlack Hills 52 gr Match HP in .223 kills them on the spot every time with little exit, been shooting the same round for 5 years

Long time never see. Welcome to the fray!


Chupa

No kidding! Registers in 2008 and makes his first post in 2013! Anybody who holds their tongue that long must have something important to say.
smile.gif
 
I have killed a bunch with the 52gr Berger both match and varmint version. Last year I picked up one box of the Sierra 53gr because they were on sale and loaded up about 20 of them. They shot exactly the same place as my Berger load so I took the ones I did not shoot at the range and shot a couple of coyotes and they seemed OK but that is not much of a sampling.
Here was the first one... sitting facing me at 100 yards or so.No exit.
 
I shoot a 45gr BT Noz bullet and it stops them in there track with my .223. it is a fast load. I have killed lots of deer with this and they just drop.
 
I shot 52 grain Sierra HPBT's for a lot of years out of my 22-250. Out of my Sako Forester they were very accurate and I never had a runoff. BIG exit wounds but I was tournament hunting so I was interested in a dead animal, not fur.

Same bullet out of my 222 had extremely poor results so I used a 50 grain Sierra Spitzer Blitz and it worked fine.

A few years ago I tried 52 grain Berger Match Varmints in the 22-250 and again got great groups and dead coyotes. I wouldn't use them in a lower velocity cartridge.
 
Sample of 1- 80 yds 52g Sierra MK, coyote shot in chest/neck junction facing head on out of a 22-250 resulted in a bam flop. I have started loading them for my 22-250 because they are very accurate and have read that they kill pretty well. However I see mixed reviews here.
 
I started off last year shooting the Sierra 52g MatchKings. First 5 coyotes ran off never to be recovered and the 6th got 30 yards. If he would have made it 32 yards, I never would have found him. I had multiple dimed sized groups with different powders and that bullet, but just couldn't handle the run offs, so switched to the GameKings. That fixed the problem for me.

Seems like some people have pretty good results for the match, but I wasn't one of them.



 
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