Hype rounds after rifle-carts as it rounds after rifles: good word will spread over a greater distance than a range table. To hunters and the practical rifleman the trouble begins when the name of a cartridge is confounded with ability particularly when the game on the other side of the trail is heavy and tough and seldom appears on the open ground in much less than right front.
The construction of bullets is now better, and the principles have remained the same. When things become a mess, impact energy, penetration and sectional density continue to determine whether a shot remains within the clean and recoverable window or not.
Approximately 1,000 foot-pounds of energy on impact is needed by a deer-sized animal, and twice that by elk, as Colonel Townsend Whelen put it. The said rule of thumb is not in lieu of shot placement but it does contribute to the feeling that some popular rounds are executing perfectly on the bench only to fail when bone, distance and bad angles comes into play.
1. .223 Remington
The .223 Remington had its fan base based on low recoil, easy to hit, and long history of varmints and paper. Its normal load of 55 grains at 3,200 +fps yields about 1,280 ft-lbs at the muzzle, respectable in its own field, and far otherwise.
As the target is changed to heavy bone and thick muscle, the limitations is reflected as low penetration and low error margin. Premium bonded or monolithic bullets will assist in holding together but they will not produce mass. Blast comparisons also point to the fact that the.223 quickly loses authority at range; the.308 Winchester could deliver more than twice as much energy at longer range, which is precisely the type of buffer hunters call upon when the conditions of the field cease to play their part.
2. 5.56×45 NATO
The 5.56 NATO is commonly regarded as interchangeable because it has the same bullet diameter as the .223. In practice, the addition of some velocity by higher-pressure 5.56 loads may be made, but the hunting issue remains fundamentally the same: light projectiles with small sectional density and a low downrange impulse. Heavier bullets like 77-grain bullets will enhance the performance and consistency in the wind, but it will not reduce the cartridge to a reliable weapon of large-bodied game. The controllability and volume of fire that it possesses are still under control and, though they are important attributes in some jobs, they cannot and cannot replace the depth of penetration when the animal is constructed like a tank.
3. .22-250 Remington
The Remington.22-250 is a speed-king, and has been known to shoot light bullets at 3,800 fps and higher. That speed purchases a level path and explosive terminal impact on tiny objects which is precisely the reason it radiates on coyotes and prairie dogs. The speed fixes everything story collapses on large animals. Kinetic energy varies with velocity and mass and the .22-250 usually presents itself with abundance of the former and little of the latter. Hasty dismay may appear dramatic and yet never get to the vitals on improper angles, and shallow wound cuts bring about the type of recovery woes that hunters strive to prevent.
4. .243 Winchester
The .243 Winchester occupies an appealing halfway covenant: it has recoil that is easy enough to handle, good ballistics, and is good enough to shoot deer with 90- to 100-grain bullet weights. Within reasonable ranges, it may be an effective, sharp decision on game small enough to be shot by the deer. It is overhyped when the mere mention of it drafts it into elk-or-moose service. Big animals require piercing of heavier bones and longer tracks to the vitals. The .243 will become effective when everything and anything is ideal, but field shooting does not always provide the ideal. Bullet weight and sectional density offers a broader band of acceptable results when the need arises due to the less than ideal shot angle, range, or animal movement.
5. 7.62×39mm
The 7.62×39mm gained a reputation of reliability, slight recoil and practical power in close range. An average load shoots a 123-grain bullet in the range of 2,350 fps with approximately 1,500 ft-lbs at the muzzle, which is sufficient to hit deer within a rather limited radius. That envelope is the catch. Power and speed are rapidly decreasing, and the performance of the cartridge begins to become skinny at about 150 yards. Reduced impact speed and moderate sectional density may be a limiting factor on bigger animals, as the bullet has to penetrate the bone, or even cut diagonally through the chest. It is an effective short-range ammunition and not a license to range distances simply because the rifle is in hand.
6. .30 Carbine
The.30 Carbine is marked by a very strong historical identity and that identity tends to exaggerate. Realistically, it accelerates a 110-grain bullet to a level of approximately 1,990 fps, and it hits much nearer to a hot-handgun performance than what most hunters consider rifle power to be. It can work at short distance on small game. The trouble starts when it is requested to perform large-game work which involves penetration on a deep, steady basis. Even a shot taken in the best position has a smaller margin to play with, and the margin to play with is what causes small mistakes angle, bone, distance, etc. to become big ones.
7. .17 HMR
The .17 HMR is a precision favorite due to the fact that it shoots straight, recoil is nonexistent and even small targets seem easy. Its normal 17 grains bullet at a 2,550 fps has only slightly more than 250 ft-lbs at the muzzle. The whole story is told in that number. On big animals over two inches, ten pounds, the bullet merely lacks the weight to penetrate sufficiently to reach vital organs. Wind is also to play with small projectiles and this further complicates the situation when the conditions are not calm.
All these cartridges perform their own tasks they were designed to do, varmints, practice, short-range utility, or mild-recoil hunting to the bounds. The resultant hyperbolism comes in the form of that role being extrapolated into a general solution. It is an engineer issue to put a match between cartridge and animal size, distance and shot angles. Any kind of restraint usually serves better in the field than all the myths in one caliber, the so-called do-it-all.
