Change the 24 caliber min in washington(added poll please vote)

[bobcat]

All I know is I have a 223 WSSM and I do not own a 243. I'd like to let my kids use the 223 for deer, because there's virtually no recoil, and a 65 grain bullet at 3,400 feet per second will probably kill just as well as a 243 Winchester. In Wyoming it's legal, and other states as well.

Just did a search and came up with this list, it's not up to date so some states might not be correct. I updated Wyoming and Kansas.


Alabama- centerfire rifle or pistol using mushrooming ammo
Alaska- http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=hunting.firearms
Alberta- .23 and up centerfire
Arizona- centerfire
Arkansas- http://www.agfc.com/hunting/pages/huntingregulationsdeer.aspx#Legal Hunting Equipment
California- centerfire rifles, centerfire handguns with min. 4" barrel
Colorado- .24 and up, 70grn or larger bullet/ minimum of 1000ft/lbs at 100 yards
Connecticut- .243 and up if legal in your area
Delaware- shotgun/muzzle loader
Florida- centerfire
Georgia- .22 and up centerfire
Hawaii- Any rifle with at least 1200 ft/lbs of ME. This would start at around .223 I think
Idaho- Centerfire (cannot weigh more than 16 lbs?)
Illinois- Shotgun/ML/Pistol only
Indiana- http://www.eregulations.com/indiana/hunting/deer-regulations/
Iowa- .24 or larger centerfire only for antlerless season in part of the state.
Kansas- http://www.kdwpt.state.ks.us/news/Hunting/Hunting-Regulations/Deer/Legal-Equipment
Louisiana- .22 and up centerfire
Maine- .22 magnum rimfire and up!
Manitoba- Centerfire, but it says .23 and below not recommended. Does not say illegal though.
Maryland- ME of at least 1200 ft/lbs
Mass- Shotgun/ML
Michigan- centerfire in certain areas
Minnesota- .220 and up centerfire
Mississippi- No restrictions that I could find
Missouri- centerfire
Montana- No restrictions
Nebraska- Rifles with 900 ft/lbs or more at 100 yards
Nevada- .22 centerfire and up
New Hampshire- centerfire
New Jersey- shotgun or muzzleloader
New Mexico- centerfire
New York- centerfire
North Carolina- No restrictions
North Dakota- .22-.49 centerfire
Nova Scotia- .23 and up
Ohio- Shotgun/ML
Oklahoma- centerfire with 55 grn or heavier bullet
Ontario- centerfire
Oregon- .22 centerfire and up
Pennsylvania- centerfire
Quebec- 6mm/.243 and up
Rhode Island- shotgun/ML
Saskatchewan- .24 and up
South Carolina- centerfire
South Dakota- rifles with 1,000 ft/lbs or more ME
Tennessee- centerfire
Texas- centerfire
Utah- centerfire
vermont- No restriction
Virginia- .23 centerfire and up
Washington- .24 centerfire and up
West Virginia- .25 rimfire and up and all centerfire
Wisconsin- .22 centerfire and up
Wyoming- Any center-fire firearm of at least .22 caliber (excluding .22 Hornet) and having a bullet weight of at least sixty (60) grains and firing a cartridge of at least two (2) inches in overall length

[JimmyHoffa]

I'm down, shot placement trumps headstamps everytime....

the bullet style/weight might factor in a some point.  Shot placement can only get so precise in hunting conditions/set ups.  I doubt everyone will be taking head/neck shots with the .224 bullets.  But body shots with a 45 grain 22-250 hollowpoint probably won't get much penetration, and a 55 gr .223 Rem FMJ might not shed enough energy.

[PolarBear]

I can kill a deer with a pellet gun also but it doesn't make it a good choice.

[bobcat]

25 caliber handgun with a 4 inch barrel is legal but a 22-250 with a 60 grain bullet at 3,600 feet per second is not. Think about that for a minute.

[dan11011]

I think the current .24 caliber restriction is good and I see no need for change.

A few hunters wanting to change a law that likely will result in more animals being wounded just so they can use their AR that they love to shoot just doesn't seem logical. You need to think about the most inexperienced shooter hunting for the first time and using a .223 caliber rifle on a deer. Or someone taking a shot at a deer 300 yards away while its not completely still. .223 just aren't an effective deer killer at range but people would still try.

[SCRUBS]

I'm down, shot placement trumps headstamps everytime....

 

[Skyvalhunter]

Keep it we  have too many knuckle heads out there that cant shoot period and if we change it to where shot placement is more critical then we will have even more wounded animals

[birdshooter1189]

I voted to keep it the same. 

For those who want a 6mm-223 caliber so that they can shoot hunting legal (.243) bullets with .223 recoil here is your solution:

Buy a 6mm barrel blank from green mountain barrels for about $110-150.

Buy a 6x45 chamber reamer from midway for $130.
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/563253/ptg-solid-pilot-chamber-finish-reamer-6x45mm-6mm-223-remington

Buy a set of 6x45 reloading dies from midway for about $50
http://www.midwayusa.com/6x45mm-6mm-223-remington/br?cid=8302

Find a local gunsmith with a lathe to re-barrel your .223 rem into 6x45.

Form 6x45 casings from once fired .223 rem casings.

You can now shoot deer with Hornady 58 Gr V-max bullets(I don't recommend this) from what is virtually a .223 rem cartridge and it will feel like shooting a .223 rem.

I haven't done this yet myself but would like to someday as a coyote/prairie dog caliber.

[Lefthook]

Keep it the way it is. I've ran into guys searching for wounded deer that were hit with big magnum cartridges. AR guys have plenty of legal cartridges to run, there really is no reason to go to something smaller and less potent then what is legal now. If the OP or anybody else is into AR's I would think they would enjoy buying an AR that fires a WA state legal cartridge.

[Bango skank]

If a .243 is too much power and hurts your widdle shoulder then open up your purse, take your lipstick money and buy a bow so you can hunt deer without the awful punishing recoil of a .24 caliber rifle.  Really there will be a lot more animals die badly if people are out with .223

[BNAElkhntr]

Keep it we  have too many knuckle heads out there that cant shoot period and if we change it to where shot placement is more critical then we will have even more wounded animals

AMEN!

[lamrith]

I agree with most though I do not feel it should be added for deer. Back east it makes more sense as mentioned with the smaller deer and often more limited distances. Our regs are complex enough, last thing we need is ".223 usable on deer under x# or for shots under xxyrds" or that it is usable for west side only and not east, etc...

There are loads of available cartridges that are big game legal and fit AR platform.  Two extremely popular and soft shooting ones would be 300blk and 6.5Grendel, both are perfect for kids and extremely effective on deer sized game.  300Blk is only a barrel change.  Grendel takes barrel, bolt and mag change, does not get much simpler.

[Lefthook]

If a .243 is too much power and hurts your widdle shoulder then open up your purse, take your lipstick money and buy a bow so you can hunt deer without the awful punishing recoil of a .24 caliber rifle.  Really there will be a lot more animals die badly if people are out with .223

Funny. He probably couldn't draw a bow of legal draw weight.

[Karl Blanchard]

I could care less either way but lots of arguments against have more to do with ethics than anything else.  Fact of the matter is the .223 has killed a lot of game, so the argument that it's not effective is mute.  The same folks who would take bad shots with a .223 are the same ones who would push past their skill set with any chambering most likely. 

You cannot legislate ethics, principles, or morality.   Never have and never will.  I wouldn't hesitate for a single second to put my daughter behind a .223 pushing a 60gr nosler partition, because she would be shooting from a stable rest, and only taking shots within her effective range, at angles that would ensure a lethal kill.   

[Lefthook]

I could care less either way but lots of arguments against have more to do with ethics than anything else.  Fact of the matter is the .223 has killed a lot of game, so the argument that it's not effective is mute.  The same folks who would take bad shots with a .223 are the same ones who would push past their skill set with any chambering most likely. 

You cannot legislate ethics, principles, or morality.   Never have and never will.  I wouldn't hesitate for a single second to put my daughter behind a .223 pushing a 60gr nosler partition, because she would be shooting from a stable rest, and only taking shots within her effective range, at angles that would ensure a lethal kill.   

That same crappy shot with a .300 Win Mag will most likely lead up to a following shot to dispatch the animal. Bad shots will happen regardless of caliber, a bigger caliber will give you a better chance to finish the job which I think is more ethical and appropriate.