Big game will make a small equipment advantage a liability. The same cartridge that feels good at the bench may seem quite different when a steep quartering angle, a heavy shoulder bone or a shot presentation that is longer than intended appears in the timber.
The issue is that these cartridges are not usually inaccurate. Their usual bullet weights, sectional density, and on-impact action provide little leeway when the creature is made like a tank, they do.
1. .223 Remington
The low recoil and easy to shoot nature of the .223 makes it popular among fans but big game needs more than clean groups. And with typical 55-grain loads in the 3 200 fps range and approximated 1280 ft lb. at the muzzle, it begins to lag behind on both characteristics that keep trouble at bay when dealing with large game: penetration and structural integrity of the bullet after impact.
The small diameter of the cartridge combined with the normal weight of bullets prevents the large amount of momentum that can be produced, even with the harder bullets, by passing through thick muscle and bone. The practical result is that the shot has to be narrow, broadside and be well placed, as the cartridge cannot be depended upon to cut through tough angles like the large big-game standards.
2. .22-250 Remington
On paper, the .22-250 may appear to be a response answer of sorts since it is fast, frequently reaching about 3,800 fps with light bullets, so its trajectory will remain flat and wind calls are less daunting. However, masslessness can result in sudden shallow shock when bigger creatures and heavier bones are added to the equation.
.22-caliber bullets may swell too fast and lose the little weight they began with to provide much penetration, where the shot is not perfect. It is a cartidge which glitters on varmints and most predators, and then ceases to work when the anatomic structure of the target becomes compact and thick.
3. .243 Winchester
The .243 is placed over a fault line where there is plenty and where there is not enough. It may be a steady, moderate-recoil deer cartridge with 90- to 100-grain bullets at reasonable ranges, but the leeway becomes very slim when elk or moose-type muscle and bone is the barrier.
Here the difference between short and long, hefty and light bullets of a defined diameter comes into plain English: the longer such and such is, the heavier, the more he is likely to keep driving. That is more difficult with the typical bullet weights and diameter of the .243, and thus the angles of shot that compel the bullet to travel further through the tissue are more dangerous than many hunters presume.
4. .30 Carbine
The job description around which 30 Carbine was constructed is very different and this is evident. Normal loads accelerate a 110-grain bullet at an approximate speed of 1,990 fps, certainly in hot handgun territory but nowhere near contemporary big-game rifle action.
In large-bodied animals that means low penetration and a low effective envelope, particularly when the bullet hits heavy bone prematurely. It is able to hunt within its small lane on smaller game at a close range, but it is not within its class when the animal is capable of weighting several hundred pounds and the shot is not necessarily a broadside.
5. 7.62x39mm
The 7.62×39 is respected due to its reliability and relatively easy recoil and at popular loads of 123-grains, the 7.62×39 is capable of being used at shorter ranges to shoot deer. The warning sign is manifested in the expansion of the range and the decrease in the impact velocity.
The energy and penetration decrease rapidly and the standard bullets in the cartridge lack the same downrange ability as big-game cartridge bullets. In heavier animals, small sectional density and slowed impact speed may restrict the range of the bullet through solid tissue, particularly in quartering shots.
6. 5.56 NATO
5.56 NATO and .223 have the same bullet size, and the restrictions of the big-game remain well known. A little pressure can give a little velocity to it, but it will not change the fundamental fact, that small diameter, light bullets, and a rigid demand of perfect angles.
The bigger point is difficult to see: the numbers of impact energy do not necessarily forecast clean kills. The terminal performance is pegged on what the bullet actually does in tissue. The cartridge provides no significant buffer in regard to real-field variations when the weight of bullets and the way of the bullet are already working against deep penetration.
7. .17 HMR
17 HMR is not a big-game rifle but a small-game one, with laser accuracy. A 17-grain bullet at approximately 2,550 fps gives a slightly more than 250 ft.-lb at the muzzle yet the order of magnitude of that, compared with that which is commonly thrown at deer sized creatures, did not happen to belong to the same number as those that appeared before its eyes.
More to the point, the bullet is too light and has a small frontal area to be able to penetrate into the vitals reliably through thick hide, muscle, and bone. It is a cartridge that has its purpose and that purpose happens before big game.
Enough gun in the field does not often have to do with bravado. It is of constructing a system that will continue to operate even when there is a slight angle of the shots, or when there is a heavier animal than anticipated, or when the bullet encounters bone earlier than anticipated. Only one component of that system is cartridge choice but it establishes a limit. Construction of the bullet and holding on of the weight can be used to enhance results, but still cannot completely overcome the constraints inherent in light-for-purpose and small diameter bullets.
