What are you guys shooting? I'm looking
for a bullet that will not ruin the hide.

I'm shooting a .243 and my son shoots a 22-250.
Polymer tip, full metal jacketed bullet??

Thanks!!

When I lived in eastern Washington, in addition to trapping and calling coyotes for myself, I also put up fur for several local callers. It gave me a unique opportunity to see what rifles and bullet combinations worked and what did not.

First off 243/6mm's are hard on fur most of the time. A lot of guys go for the really light bullets and they work. Sometimes. Just as often as not they are super destructive. I've seen and had better luck with heavier bullets like the 95 and 100 grain bullets on fur than I have with the lighter bullets.

In the 22-250 I've had great results with the old Speer 52 grain HP. It's kind of a dog ballistically compared to many of the sleeker .224 bullets but I've run them in 22-250's and Swifts with good results. Exits are rare. Oddly though, they seem to generate exit wounds, sometimes significant ones, with the 223/222. Another good one is the Sierra 1365 55 grain Game King. It's a tough bullet and often leaves only a 1-1.5" exit wound, easily sewn up when putting up the fur.

I was putting fur up for 8-10 different guys and can say that one of the absolute worst combinations was the 270 with 130 grain Corelockts. One of the guys used that because it was all he had. I sewed up some interesting messes for him. I was so happy when he finally bought a 22-250.

Sometimes the really light bullets work great in the 22-250/220 Swift but often they will splash on a shoulder and leave a gaping entrance wound. They're great on a chest cavity shot but harsh on a shoulder.

From the standpoint of handling fur, I'd rather sew up a small exit wound from a tougher/heavier bullet. They tend to not be as disruptive as some of the lighter bullets. Often the lighter bullets work wonderfully, blowing up inside the coyote and not exiting. Sometimes they do not.

There are other bullets that work well I'm sure and hopefully some others will weigh in with their experience.

I noticed I failed to answer a segment of your question on polymer tipped or FMJ bullets. One plastic tipped bullet I found to be pretty good in the Swift and same could be said for the 22-250 was the 55 grain Ballistic tip. Generally I saw 1-1.5" exit wounds with that bullet. sometimes more but it wasn't a bad bullet for those two rounds.

As for FMJ's I tried them one season with mixed feelings. While the fur damage was minimal I spent a lot of time chasing down runners. I shot a half dozen or so and everyone of them ran. Some only 100-150 yards, some upwards of a half mile. I recovered everyone I shot but it took quite a bit of time out my day. Back then when calling we tried to rack up as many stands as we could in a day so chasing down runners cut into our calling time.

22-250 - 60gr Hornady V-Max
220 Swift - 60gr V-Max
243 - 95gr Nosler Bal Tip - This 243 95gr is good for prairie dogs to whitetails.

55 gr 224 nosler bt
85 gr 6mm sierra bthp
32 gr 204 sierra
25 gr 17 hornady

My favorite coyote hide saving bullet for
Coyotes is the 52gr Berger Varmint match in the 22/250. I've never found a good one for the .243.

FMJs are for Coyotes you never want to see again.

quote:

Originally posted by Jason P:
What are you guys shooting? I'm looking
for a bullet that will not ruin the hide.

I'm shooting a .243 and my son shoots a 22-250.
Polymer tip, full metal jacketed bullet??

Thanks!!

Why not try just a light psp? It seems to me that might be the happy medium you're looking for. A generic SP bullet that small and light ARE made to open up on Varmints.. I still have several hundred 85 grainers that I use in my 257. They get the job done.

Don't shoot them except as targets of opportunity, which means .308" projos.

But the least penetrative .224 heads I ever tried were the 50 gr RP PLHPs. Don't think they're available except maybe on the secondary market. We never once had an exit on NYS woodchucks. The 55 gr version was pretty close. The Sierra/Speer/Hornady heads all plowed through at least some of the time.

We were using Swift and .22-250. Maybe the Sierra Blitz to near-bluestreak vel would stay inside?

Thanks for all the advice.

Several good options to choose from. I will try a few suggestions and surely give an update!

22-250 with a 55gr Sierra Game King BTHP, Federal sells this in a factory load, my hand loads are more accurate, but the bullets work really well on coyotes. You will still have exit wounds from time to time though.

For the 243, the 85 grain Sierra BTHP tends to punch through them. Another good choice is the 90 grain Nosler BT which is a big game bullet but will punch through a yote and leave little fur damage.

Both bullets are very accurate in my rifles. I like Varget or IMR 4064 with the 85 grainer and IMR 4350 with the 90 grainers.

Will the sierra #1365 blow up on impact or stay together

In the 243, I went about 33-34 coyotes straight without an exit or pelt damage using the 75gr Vmax, with ranges from 20-400+yards. I was impressed. No exits until the last one, and the pelt damage was 'harsh'.

Using the 55gr Btip in the 243 at 3,950+fps, I had more runners and floppers than with any other bullet I've tried.

In my 222RemMag, the 55gr Btip usually worked well as does the 55gr Sierra BTHP Gme King.

In my Hornet, I use the 45gr Barnes XLC.

In my son's 223wssm, he uses the 60gr Vmax at 3,750fps, but splash wounds can be quite large. I used his rifle one day and shot a coyote at about 180yds. Coyote dropped at the shot, and while still looking through the scope, I see a brown thing fall out of the sky. Puzzled, until I got to the coyote and saw it was a large piece of coyote. This combo is usually harsh on pelts.

The various Barnes TSX/TTSX/XLC give me the least pelt damage of all bullets I've tried. The biggest issue I have is richochets which is why I don't often use them other than in the Hornet.

quote:

Originally posted by Jason P:
What are you guys shooting? I'm looking
for a bullet that will not ruin the hide.

I'm shooting a .243 and my son shoots a 22-250.
Polymer tip, full metal jacketed bullet??

Thanks!!

I'd suggest a big game bullet rather than a varmint bullet. You'll end up with 2 small holes instead of one (or maybe 2) big one(s). In the .22-250 the 60 grain Partition or 50 or 55 grain TTSX would be the first ones I'd try.

In the .243, just about anything 90-100 grains should work.

Lots of guys on a predator hunting forum I frequent use the 55gr Ballistic Tip for their .243Win with mixed results. I think it really depends on the size of the coyote is what they claim. On the larger ones exits are rare but the smaller ones they are more frequent. For 22 caliber I have had the best luck with either the blitz kings or the Vmax.

52 gr SMK has been my go to bullet for years when fur is an issue. Keep it off the bones.

In my 243 I use Sierra 85gr, HPBT game kings. Have never had a exit wound inside 75 yards and only a couple inside 50 yards. I tend to run the bullets slower than most people want to. My reloads are around 25to 2600 FPS. Tears in inwards up into mush most times.

For my 220 swift I am using the 55gr. HPBT game kings running them at about 3808 FPS again no pass thru's from 75 yard out but have had a few inside that range. It also turns the internal organs to mush.


The 1365 Sierra should work ok, only a test will tell.


Al

I buy carcass coyotes as a side business and get to see the full spectrum. My experience very much matches Mart's. I definitely favor "deer" bullets for coyotes. All bullets have the potential to cause fur damage but when the high frag bullets are placed marginally it can be pretty dramatic.



Shot placement will cover a lot of sins. Put most reasonable rounds square in the chest and often the results will be favorable.

In my opinion the "holy grail" of a bullet that doesn't exit is an over rated and unnecessary goal. I couldnt care less about modest exit wounds. My all time favorite so far in the .243 is the 85 TSX at modest velocities. It always exits but rarely over the size of a silver dollar and most typically quarter size or so. The ricochet concern is valid and should be a consideration depending on your hunting area.

Here is one I skinned this afternoon that was shot with an 85 TSX. Point of shoulder impact that traveled about halfway down the chest and left a very manageable exit on the offside.





I will take that all day long.

Compare that to a 105 Berger that impacted on a coyote at about 375 yards from my 6mm-06. Devastating but potentially very destructive due to the high frag nature of that bullet.



In the .223 I shoot a 52 grain Nosler match and in the .22-250 I shoot a 55 Sierra gameking hollow point (#1390 I believe). Just loaded some 45 TSX for the .22-250 but no coyotes with it yet.

Nothing prettier than piles of high quality coyotes!

The Sierra .224 55 gr SBT is my go to bullet in a 22/30-30 Ackley (ballistic twin of 22/250). Unless a major bone is hit or the range is over 300 yards the bullet will likely go through but both holes are small enough to be stitched closed. The .223 is a 1-7twist so I'm not sure the 55 gr will work that well, although the tech at Sierra said it would be no problem, but I haven't had it out to give it a try yet. I've used the 77 gr HPBT in it, but not used it on a coyote yet.

Great post Monttrap. I love being able to see photographs of the damage.

I just purchased a .223 and am trying to decide which bullets to get. My .204 with the Winchester 34gr JHP (moly) would do a tiny entrance hole and no exit. But I think Winchester stopped manufacturing this and so I will need to swap to a different bullet once I run out of my stock.

Ive tried them all and none are 100%..I suppose a tough deer bullet is the best option, but sometimes a coyote can go a good ways shot with them as they don't open up dramatically..A solid 22 bullet in a 223 blew a Bobcat near in half and ruine the hide and that was back with Bobcats were bringing $600..you can use a solid in a big bore but varmints are sometimes shot at extended range so that's not an option, any varmint bullet that's explosive and really tear up a pelt if you hit bone...Just not a perfect bullet out there so use a loaded down Moose bullet I suppose would work most of the time.

I don't hunt much for coyote's but do shoot one now and then. A 6.5x06 with a 140gr bullet did no damage at all on one. Then a few years ago, I shot one with the 75gr V Max from my 243 and again not much damage. No much to gain any real knowledge from. A number of years ago a couple guy's stopped at the restaurant here in town. They'd been shooting coyote's on a local ranch. they ere using 223's with old 55gr Hornady SX's. Said they got no damage, the bullet's were not exiting.

I have used the Sierra Blitz kings and varmint bullets to good effect out of a .223 but have had exits from time to time. Have used the 69gr SMK and have had mixed results on expansion and penciling through.

For my 243Win I have had the best luck so far with the 55gr Nosler ballistic tip. I wanted to try the Barnes Varmint Grenade but they wouldn't shoot worth a darn from my Remington 700. I haven't tried them out of the Ruger M77 that I picked up a little while back. If they work they wouldn't exit but would blow up inside. My friend used the 55gr version in the 223 with pretty good results on prairie dogs and coyote.

Invent a coyote that has no bones.

Monttrap04 has apparently figured out something that I couldn't in my 60 plus years of shooting coyotes...Im wondering why I didn't think of a monolithic bullet at low velocity, it was there right in front of my face for years. I just tried it and if you slow that bullet down, it kills quickly and hide damage sure is minimal..I also shot that bullet in my 6x45 at 2400 and 2600 FPS..It worked best at 2600 FPS but that's borderline.

Thank you sir!

Nobody has mentioned this. I've taken several thousand groundhogs with 40 gr. BTs in my .223 and .22-250 handguns. Never had an exit. Did autopsies on many. Only saw bullet fragments.

Hitman,
Correct the 40 gr. Balistic tips normally blow up in side and kill very well indeed, but when one makes an exit its a ruined coyote..A one or two inch exit hole is an easy patch job and done right the coyote holds its value..but today coyotes are not worth much so I don't care if I ruin one, I don't even bother to pick them up these days..

Over the weekend I shot 76 Rock Chucks with the 222 Rem loaded with the HOrnady #2229 BEE. a 224 bullet for the HOrnet...Not one Rock Chuck had and exit and they were mush inside..I know this would work on foxes and even a coyote if you kept shots off the shoulder and stuck them in the rib cage..I ran them at about 3200 FPS..deadly bullet.