Anybody tried this? If not you ought to.

Cheap ammo for offhand, offsticks trigger time with a rifle that feels like (except no shoulder bruising) an all-purpose African hunting rifle:

Ruger Hawkeye African .223 Remington is patterned after the .375 Ruger:



Here is the first time out for sight-in with some old factory ammo box remnants I had lying around:



The Lake City stuff with generic 55-grain JSP bullet was 2973 fps and good accuracy.
Headstamp of that is "LC 94" and I suppose it is 5.56mm NATO for AR-15.
The Federal Premium Nosler Ballistic Tip 55-grainer was 3079 fps for 5 shots. Accuracy pretty good out to 300 yards.
I just took 3 shots at 300 yards with the Federal ammo.
My friend Chief Thunderstick was shooting his .308 with mildot 4.5X-14X Leupold scope at 300 yards.
He let me use that target.
POA at 300 yards is the tip of a chevron made on a 3"x5" notecard, stapled or taped to a 2'x2' piece of cardboard, that is then stapled to the target board that is about 4'x5'.
I could barely make out black-marker chevron in the 3x-9X Leupold Compact scope at 9X at 300 yards.
Elevations found make sense.
Winddrift makes sense.
I am going to load up a bunch of 52 to 55-grain soft points of two sorts, a soft one for varmints and a tough one for deer.
This is a new rifle for DG snapshot practice with open express sights,
as well as shoot-quick practice shooting with scope or iron sights for 0 to 300 yards.
A backup scope in Ruger rings is easily workable. Low power DG, high power PG, or proper variable to do it all.
Barrel twist is 1:9".
Factory trigger is about 4.5-pound pull but very clean and crisp, no creep.
Bare/dry .223 Rem. rifle weight is 8-lbs.3-oz., a bit heavier than a 7-lbs.-12-oz. .375 Ruger.
Same express sights and barrel band sling on both.
Same barrel contour and 23" length, and muzzle diameter about 0.665".
Same trim classic walnut stock, even has a crossbolt on the .223.
Standard action on the .375 Ruger.
Short action on the .223 Remington.
Fun.

now that they are available at a few places i might just have to get one

dirtyjim,
You won't be sorry.
I used that 55-grain Nosler Ballistic Tip about 10 years ago, in a 20"-barreled single-shot bolt action .223 Rem.

Bobcat at less than 50 yards, he came into a varmint call meant for coyote, there was not much left of him,
but I do have his skull, European mounted for comparative anatomy purposes.

Coyote at 200 yards, DRT. Shoulder mount and skull, dog skull beside cat skull.

Whitetail doe at about 200 yards, in a cow pasture, DRT with chest shot. Meat!!!

Whitetail buck at 330 yards: His head was down and he was facing me across a grassy bowl in some old, reclaimed, coal-stripmining land.
The first shot chipped one of his 9 points.
He ran around the bowl a bit and stopped at about same range, broadside chest, he went 50 yards after that.
He is shoulder mounted and was eaten too.

I don't know why I didn't just use a .375 RUM or such for those critters ...
Oh, wait ... maybe it is that road with houses on it just 3/4 mile from the edge of the cow pasture ... yes, that is it!
A high velocity frangible 55-grain bullet is mentally more comfortable than a high velocity 300-grainer, in semi-civilized locales.

That is a fantastic (small cal. copy) rifle.

I just wish that Ruger would MAKE something as good on the other end. THE BIG BORE END.

Make the action 1.65" wide with .800" bolt and 1.2" diameter thread, kept the Ruger traditional look and chamber it for something like .460Wea, .505 Gibbs, .577 T-Rex, .585HE, .600 OK.

That would be something that one could ACTUALLY LOAD and not to feel scared to shit, from the fear that something is going to disintegrate every time you pull the trigger.


Pyzda

RIP

Love the idea, I just picked up a Kimber Montana in .223 for the same reason.

Have not had a chance to work it up much since I got back from Africa, but have high hopes-it sure feels good.

We use our 375s for that purpose ...

5.56 is cheaper--lol

quote:

Originally posted by Cross L:
5.56 is cheaper--lol

... yet so much more satisfying than 22LR.
I'll try to keep to deer under 200 yards.

It is a 6-shooter with 5 down in the mag.
True CRF, and no problems in feeding or "retaining,"
but I have not been in harms way against any charging water jugs, yet.
Where is that 1000-round case of Lake City 5.56 JSP ammo ...

Purchased a Ruger African .223 a couple of years ago to practice more off sticks and off hand shooting, etc...certainly worthwhile purchase.

I set mine up similar to my big bore rifle with a low power variable in QD rings...

Not available in left hand, unfortunately.

One of the things that has helped me the most is the realization that no matter whether you squeeze the trigger or jerk the hell out of it, the recoil remains the same. Most big bore shooters either deal with it or after a shooting session with a hard kicking, heavy recoiling rifle, they finish their shooting session with a small bore. 22 cal is one of the favs I hear. from shoulder bruising to nice and easy. Just my .02

On second thought, that Lake City stuff was just some "remanufactured" ammo using Lake City brass, "de-mil-ed" 5.56 brass reloaded for .223 plinker with "No-Name" JSP bullet by "No-Name" company.
It was cheap, but luckily good, and all gone now.
But it will be easy to come up with a satisfactory load.
Gotta go add some QD levers to my Ruger rings.
I finally have something to put those "Falcon Industries" levers on.
I could trust them with the fierce recoil of the .223 African.
Always good to QD the scope when getting ready for a close range charge by a water jug in the long grass.

In my 31 years of shooting (hunting) I fired less than 300 .22 Rimfire, and about 3 years ago I fired 3 shots from .223 Rem.

The estimated 20-25 000 rounds I fired is between .375H&H, .458W and .460Wea. in more than 20 different rifles.

Thought the .458W is accountable for only about 2000 rounds.

The rest between the .375H&H and .460wea is about 50/50

Pyzda

I bought one to celebrate my divorce earlier this year. It was a hoot. Last round outta da mag hung up a few times if I worked the action like I really meant it with Fed bulk pack. It didn't like the russian steel cased stuff much. Didn't shoot groups, just plinking. Love the sights.

Hizzie
Next time you are at the range, and if you would be willing to share, can I see/shoot your 223?

I picked one up last year, I love it.

I shoot prairie dogs out here in Colorado almost every week during the warmer month. Have a Rem 700 and a Rem 40XB. It sure does help me out a lot. Been using Hornady or Nosler 40gr bullets.
Just bought a lefhand CZ mini-mauser barreled action and a nice unfinished stock. This will be my "practice for hunting" rifle.

I'm going to load up some 90g Sierra HPBTs for our 270s and my 270 Weatherby for practice over the winter. I'm thinking a leisurely 3700 fps with the 270 Weatherby?

quote:

Originally posted by jeffeosso:
Hizzie
Next time you are at the range, and if you would be willing to share, can I see/shoot your 223?

Hell yeah you can! I still need to sight in the Leupold 2.5x20 Ultralight I slapped on the 458. Lemme look at my clinical schedule and see when I can get to the range again.

Ron,

Try some 60-grain Partitions for the deer. They will work well in that twist rate.

Barnes made a boat tailed and pointy ended solid that I like for its lack of damage to pelts. I need to check if they still sell those...

Bro'dart,
That was my first thought, 60-grain Nosler Partition.
But hey, this is a shooter of convenience, so I went to the local emporium looking for those Noslers and found the Barnes Tipped TSX BT 55-grainer.
It will do.
Best of all, I have finally found a reason to use a ball powder and thrown charges.
Set that powder charge for 25.3 grains of H335 and start pumping out the charged cases, no fuss.
It is accurate enough for plinking work,
or point and shoot at deer out to 250 yards or thereabouts, I reckon.

I aimed at the top edge center of this paper target stapled to the board at 300 yards.
Wind was gusty and quartering into my face from the left.
Velocity was average for 5 shots chronographed.
Sub-MOA at 100 yards and 200 yards, and 300 yards, nearly dead-on at 200 yards:

Still need to source some more .223 ammo. Haven't forgotten about you Jeff. Here are a few pics.

Learning to handle recoil is not a one shot deal! You learn to handle it and from time to time you have revisit the subject.

I learned to handle recoil by shooting big guns off hand, then on the bench with lots of concentration, I talked myself into the fact that nobody has been killed by recoil..

I more or less accidently learned that after a number of sessions with a 338 Win. that I could shoot a 300 with ease and a 30-06 felt like a 22 L.R. I capitalized on that option..I started shooting a 458 Lott and a 505 Gibbs, mostly off hand and suddenly the 375 and 416 became a cakewalk..Recoil is mostly a mind game, at least when your young and healthy.

I never could learn to handle recoil by using reduced loads as some recommend, otherwise shooting a 30-06 would have enabled me to shoot a .375 H&H as reduced loads are nothing more than making the big bore a lesser calibers..That never worked for me.

As I have aged, the big bores have taken their toll on my body in the form of Bursitas and artheritas etc, and yours will too. However, if need be you can accomplish the same thing with lesser calibers, so I have gone to the 404 and a 416 as my DGRs, and lately have been spending most of my time shooting the 375 and 9.3x62 as my DGR cartridtges as well as my elk cartridtes and the .338 Win works well for me. These lesser big bores kill about as well, and suit me just fine, I know they work on buffalo and Lion, and I know many PHs that still use them for all DG.. They do good work on an elephant as well, I'm not convienced a bigger hole in the brain is of any importance. I have never made up my mind just exactly what a "stopping caliber" other than a reasonable caliber bullet in the right spot.

Another inexpensive remedy is dryfiring and working on that sight picture.

For realism and keeping one's concentration correct it helps to load spent cases or 'snap-caps', if available. This might be especially important where ammo is not readily available, like in much of Africa. Just keep concentrating on holding that sight picture correctly.

Story:

I learned the above by accident many a year ago when letting a guest shoot an antelope. One day a guy who claimed he knew what he was doing started shooting at the feet of an antelope. It was an obvious case of flinch. After a couple of such shots, we had to stop and have him dry fire until he got it right.

A little later we had another guest who had never hunted but wanted to learn. We had him dry fire a 270 until he was confident that the crosshair was not moving when he was properly holding and firing. He also saw us sight in the rifle, so he knew that it would not hurt him. Without too much surprise we were able to stalk a little oribi and he drilled it through the heart at 125 yards.

I like the idea of the small caliber Ruger Hawkeye, but wish they would have chosen something other than 223. Nothing against the caliber (I own one matter of fact), but every time a weapons ban looms in the distance, 223 gets bought up like crazy and prices per box get ridiculous.

Nice of Ruger to bring out a rifle like this.I might buy one in the future-I really like Ruger rifles.

quote:

Originally posted by 416Tanzan:
Another inexpensive remedy is dryfiring and working on that sight picture.

For realism and keeping one's concentration correct it helps to load spent cases or 'snap-caps', if available. This might be especially important where ammo is not readily available, like in much of Africa. Just keep concentrating on holding that sight picture correctly.

Story:

I learned the above by accident many a year ago when letting a guest shoot an antelope. One day a guy who claimed he knew what he was doing started shooting at the feet of an antelope. It was an obvious case of flinch. After a couple of such shots, we had to stop and have him dry fire until he got it right.

A little later we had another guest who had never hunted but wanted to learn. We had him dry fire a 270 until he was confident that the crosshair was not moving when he was properly holding and firing. He also saw us sight in the rifle, so he knew that it would not hurt him. Without too much surprise we were able to stalk a little oribi and he drilled it through the heart at 125 yards.

Great advice! Dry fire, doing the usual mantra going from your normal carrying position to offhand position, sight picture, trigger control, calling your shot. Practice at the range with a lighter rifle, then the big bore with full power loads. Do NOT shoot them from the bench without either a led sled a PAST recoil pad or something. Shooting off the bench really is only useful in my mind for load development and sight in. After that you should be shooting at the range like you would hunt.

The SAAM Safari course spends considerable time with bolt 223's, you spend a lot of time working sticks and footwork without becoming a recoil sponge. If you can work up a 223/556 that is a copy of your bigger bolt gun, it is a very cheap and effective training aid.

I know more than one tac shooter, that has an identical rifle made in 22LR, a couple hours a week burning 22 ammo pays real dividends, as just dry firing on a snap cap..

It is fun. I see it as both a plinker and a training tool. I too wish for another caliber choice. I woulda preferred 7.62x39.

quote:

Originally posted by MikeE:
The SAAM Safari course spends considerable time with bolt 223's, you spend a lot of time working sticks and footwork without becoming a recoil sponge. If you can work up a 223/556 that is a copy of your bigger bolt gun, it is a very cheap and effective training aid.

I know more than one tac shooter, that has an identical rifle made in 22LR, a couple hours a week burning 22 ammo pays real dividends, as just dry firing on a snap cap..

I can't really afford another rifle (just bought a Springfield Professional) but you do have me thinking I should be shooting some reduced loads and shooting my 500 Jeffery more ... I hate the cast bullet lead fouling, but there's no reason I can't load plated bullets down using the same loads I have for cast bullets of the same weight.

Chuck:

This is load data that I got from Accurate. Here ya go:

Caliber:      .500 Jeffery - Rimless.
Barrel length:      24”
Reduced loads:
Powder:           Accurate – 5744.
Bullet weight:  575-600 grains.
Start load: 42.0 grains (1300 - 1400 ft/p/sec)
Maximum load: 68.0 grains (1900 – 2000 Ft/p/sec).

Only problem with 5744 is that it shoots real dirty. No filler required.
 

Thanks Dave! Appreciate it. Hope you and your family are well.