Your favorite go too weapon for coyote hunting

[Curly]

For coyote specifically, what are the advantages of .22-250 over .223/5.56mm? The cost of the ammo seems to be averaging about twice the cost of the .223 or more. 

I've been thinking about a varmint gun. Can the .22-250 be done on an AR15 platform? Has anyone used the .223 WSSM round? Thanks.

I'd suggest not going the 223 wssm route.  Ammo availability is a real problem as is simply finding brass if you want to reload it.   

[Ridgeratt]

https://www.bing.com/search?q=22-250+vs+223&form=EDGTCT&qs=AS&cvid=787bb174d2064720a918147712b58903&refig=2a31cf16ebe44b42d09921e6091c2e2c&cc=US&setlang=en-US

Lots of info.

Huntin pardner uses a 22-250 and I use a 223.

[UBA]

.223. Find the right bullet for saving fur or get one that destroys things. 

[AWS]

Saving fur, the 22-250 will be harder on fur but will give you some added yardage I find the 52gr Speer Flat Base Hollow Point to work pretty good for fur in my 22-250 as long as you stay away from the edges. 

I have two favorite fur guns, the little 222 Rem with the same 52gr Speer and a wild cat 22-204 with 40gr Nosler Ballistic tips at close to 4000 fps pretty easy to duplicate with the 22-250.   All of my coyotes are called and all under 200 yards with most under 100.  I find light weight Nosler Ballistic Tips to be a stouter bullet than the V-Max for predator hunting.

I hunt them with combo guns in 5.6x50R Mag/12ga,  22 Savage Highpower/12ga, lever action in 218 Bee, bolt actions in 22 Hornet, 222 Rem, 223 Rem, 22-204 and 22-250.  All are great predator hunting rounds if you have the right bullet and understand their limitations.

[Doublelunger]

I prefer AR-15 over a bolt gun. I hunt alone quite a bit and like having higher round capacity, better for getting follow up shots when you call in multiple dogs or have a runner.  They're better for wasting more ammo too I guess, I'm pretty sure I've sprayed 20 rounds at a runner more than once 

[Eric M]

To try to answer your 22-250 vs 223 I think the 22-250 shoots a little flatter. It depends on your distance. If you are shooting 55grain bullet from 223 the drop at 300 yards is about a foot or 13 inches. The 22-250 drops about 7 inches at 300 yards. There are some nice AR platform guns out now though but I've never seen one in 22 250. Maybe some of the real experts could add to this but the bullet from a 22 250 at 55 grain with a standard twist barrel is leaving the muzzle about 800 feet a second faster.my last thought for you is it just depends what you want. I think both rounds will effectively kill coyote all day. At 150 yards or less I like the 17 HMR  for that too. Bolt guns will give u better accuracy. Semis will offer a faster 2nd shot. If you're trying to save the fur you want a small hole to sew up. 17 fireball is a wicked round. My HMR is too though not at distance. 204 is a deadly round too and does come in an AR platform. If I was to start all over as a young guy I'd use a 204. No recoil. Small hole and flat shooting round.

[KFhunter]

For Cougar you have to use at least a .22 caliber centerfire or larger, so from there you need to pick one that is enough for cougar but not too much for bobcat fur. 

.22 hornet is about as low as you can go in .22 centerfire, but I'm not sure I'd want to use that on a lion that isn't in a tree with dogs below it    I never shot a .22 hornet, but it sounds interesting for bobcat and should be as fur friendly as it gets in centerfire.  Savage makes a walking varmeter chambered for .22 hornet and CZ makes a sweet little .22 hornet rifle     I'd get the CZ for sure.


.223 is plenty for cougar and coyote but can be hard on fur with bobcat and even coyotes, you can help that with proper bullet selection and placement though.  AR15 is pretty much the standard unless you want a bolt action, but nothing beats the AR for follow up shots on multiple coyotes.  I've gotten doubles with bolt action though too.

[Blacktail Sniper]

I think I agree with the 243. Also the biggest caliber allowed when hunting yotes, during elk etc. season without needing that tag.

Not correct, .243 is the minimum legal for big game (except cougar which is .22 centerfire), so to avoid the tag issue during deer or elk season, would need to stay at .22 caliber or smaller.

From WDFW F.A.Q.:

"Big game, except cougar, must be hunted with a minimum of .24 caliber (6mm) centerfire rifle. Cougar may be hunted with a .22 caliber centerfire rifle. Rimfire rifles are not legal for big game.

In Washington, with the exception of cougar, a .24 caliber rifle is legal for all big game, including deer, goat, sheep, elk, and moose. Although it is okay to do so, few hunters actually use a .24 caliber rifle to hunt game larger than deer, due to the lack of knockdown power. The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission did not want to establish a sliding scale of legal rifle calibers by species, so it opted for the .24 caliber rule."

[KFhunter]

The only restriction I know of regarding coyotes and elk season is hunting at night with the aid of artifical light or night vision

from WDFW FAQ

In order to hunt coyotes in Washington State, a valid small game or big game hunting license is required (RCW 77.32.010). Coyotes are unclassified wildife and are not regulated by WDFW. Since they are unclassified, any weapon may be used to hunt them. There is no bag limit and coyotes can be hunted year round.

Hunting or pursuing coyotes with dogs is prohibited.

Coyotes may be hunted at night EXCEPT during the months of September, October, or November in any area open to a centerfire rifle deer or elk season.

So you can hunt them at night in September, October or November in areas closed to rifle deer or elk.....So in firearm restricted areas or shotgun only zones you could hunt them at night with something other than a rifle.   

[Blacktail Sniper]

The cartridge isn't really that critical, anything will work. I agree with either the 223 or 243. I'd probably go with the 243 if I was purchasing a new predator rifle. But most important in my mind is I'd want a relatively light rifle with a short barrel (probably 20 - 22 inch.) As others have said the 243 is a good choice just due to the versatility and the fact that you can hunt deer with it too. But, if you're saving the fur, the 223 might be the best option for that reason.

 

Bullet choice will have a greater impact on fur damage or lack of in the calibers discussed.  And choice of rifle as mentioned, light and easy to carry if on the move will go along way towards making it a more enjoyable outing.

[Eric M]

Or if you are wanting a gun for lions also check out the 220 swift.

[Blacktail Sniper]

For coyote specifically, what are the advantages of .22-250 over .223/5.56mm? The cost of the ammo seems to be averaging about twice the cost of the .223 or more. 

I've been thinking about a varmint gun. Can the .22-250 be done on an AR15 platform? Has anyone used the .223 WSSM round? Thanks.

It was for awhile.  Since the company folded, not sure if anyone else is currently doing though...

[ruttnbuck]

The cartridge isn't really that critical, anything will work. I agree with either the 223 or 243. I'd probably go with the 243 if I was purchasing a new predator rifle. But most important in my mind is I'd want a relatively light rifle with a short barrel (probably 20 - 22 inch.) As others have said the 243 is a good choice just due to the versatility and the fact that you can hunt deer with it too. But, if you're saving the fur, the 223 might be the best option for that reason.

 

Bullet choice will have a greater impact on fur damage or lack of in the calibers discussed.  And choice of rifle as mentioned, light and easy to carry if on the move will go along way towards making it a more enjoyable outing.

  Thanks everyone for the insight,  I'm not really familiar with all the different ballistics to increase damage or decrease,  but the more I think about it maybe I should get a .243 just do to the fact that my daughter may want to deer hunt in next couple years. 

[KFhunter]

welp there ya go 

I did the same thing, I still pack the .243 if I'm snowshoeing in a ways as it's more back friendly than an AR 

[Eric M]

Lots of people like the 243 for coyotes. Have fun.