coyotes and cast bullets

L

loophole

New member
I've been shooting cast bullets for years and decided a few months ago to try calling coyotes in western NC--mountains, few shots over 75 yards likely. I've been thinking about using a 30-30 mod 94, or maybe a 336cb in 38-55 with cast bullets. I have no use for the hides, so the only criterion is sure kills. I usually shoot plain base bullets about 1300 fps in these rifles, and gas checked no more than 1900. Most of my gas check bullets are cast with #2 alloy, and the plain base about 20 or 25 to one, or sometimes 4ww/1pb. I've also considered a 218 Bee using 50 gr bullets cast from #2 alloy at about 2000fps.
Any thoughts or suggestions?

If at first you don't secede, try, try again.
 
Hey loopy, I used to shoot a ton of Jack wabbits every year with a Super Blackhawk 44mag. I only used 250 grain cast lead bullets and kept the load mild at best. I shot nice round holes in all of them that I could hit and never really did any damage to the hide. So my guess is, that the 30-30 will likely do much the same to a coyote. Cast bullets don't seem to expand much unless you hit hard bone, then they usually just nudge off one side of the nose a little. I would bet you may have more run offs than you may expect since the cast lead bullets will just pass thru.
 
I've used 246gr flat point plain base cast bullets in my 375Win. and they strike with authority, used them on feral dogs. I used to load 30 cal. Lee 170gr flat point gas checked bullets out of a 300Sav and 06 and killed a few fox with them, no runners and little fur damage. I wouldn't feel under gunned using the either of them on deer. I've also killed a number of deer with a 54cal. round ball. My old partner used a 9.3x72R with factory lead bullets on feral dogs and deer.

Alot of game was killed with a lead bullet in the 38-55, and the 32-40 and the 32-20 was considered a top varmint round in it's day. I'd use a bullet with as large a size flat point you can find and run the 30-30 as fast as you can with out serious leading. These aren't long range rigs either.

AWS
 
I've done it once with a 112 grain large melplat pistol bullet sized to .309 with a gas check crimped into a 30/06 case with a MV of a little over 2000 fps. The coyote was called to 40 yards and the first shot hit her head on. She went down right now and tried to get up but the second shot went through broadside and sealed the deal.
These loads gave me a 3" grouping at 100 yards. Not pinpoint accuracy.
I believe that a hard lead bullet needs to have a very large melplat to cause the bang flop factor or else it can pierce right through like a FMJ and allow run offs. If you can get at least 2000 FPS MV you better off in MHO. I've shot many deer with a 50 caliber slug with a 1300 fps mv and never have any fallen in their tracks unless spined. Be ready to track them but they will expire.
 
Cast have always worked well in my 44s on yotes Black bear dear and one elk( my rifle had a bad fireing pin and I was inside 20 yards on the Elk) I generally cast #2 or use a hard gas check at 12-1300fps
 


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