.223 Recommendations Update- Savage Axis II XP- First Result From the Field

[35 Whelen]

Left the house on foot to break ice for the cows when I spotted a hog working around the edge of the tank. I had the Savage Axis .223 loaded with handloads consisting of a Sierra 65 gr. SBT. He was 175-180 yds. out and the grass and weeds were too tall for a prone or sitting shot, but I was able to use a T-post for a makeshift rest. At the shot he ran probably 50 yds. and went into the throes of death for a few seconds before expiring from the lung shot.



This shot shows just how incredibly destructive these animals are. I had to wait for a shot because he was nearly to the top of his shoulder in the hole with only his rear end showing.



Definitely not my first choice in cartridges for hogs, but it'll work for "around the house".

35W

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

Nice shooting. Congrats on bagging a hog too.

 

[stillquietvoice]

Nice shooting @35 Whelen. Those axis II's are great shooters. Shot some of my best groups ith mine.

 

[ECVMatt]

I have killed lots and lots of hogs around the Telephone area with the mighty .223. I think you made a great choice with your rifle and it will serve you well. .223 will definitely work and makes a great ranch round. Speer makes a 70 grain soft point that works great on hogs. I ended up settling on that bullet and Varget for my all around ranch load. Glad to see you survived the ice storm and hopefully your power is back on. I just checked in on my buddy back there and their power was restored yesterday around noon. Good luck on the hogs.

 

[Turkeytider]

Rounding out my .223hunting loads with Barnes 55grain TSX copper. More " hog appropriate " than my coyote loads due to better penetration after expansion and almost no weight loss due to fragmentation.

 

[Charlie98]

You sure your Heeler didn't do that?

 

[35 Whelen]

You sure your Heeler didn't do that?

Yup...she only does that in the yard!
35W

 

[lightman]

Good job on the hog. We're over run with them. They are breeding faster than we're shooting them.

 

[35 Whelen]

Good job on the hog. We're over run with them. They are breeding faster than we're shooting them.

Thanks. We're overrun with them too. It's rare to see them in broad daylight, but we had a pretty significant cold snap with some ice and snow, so they were out some.

35W

 

[Newtosavage]

Left the house on foot to break ice for the cows when I spotted a hog working around the edge of the tank. I had the Savage Axis .223 loaded with handloads consisting of a Sierra 65 gr. SBT. He was 175-180 yds. out and the grass and weeds were too tall for a prone or sitting shot, but I was able to use a T-post for a makeshift rest. At the shot he ran probably 50 yds. and went into the throes of death for a few seconds before expiring from the lung shot.

View attachment 1057477 View attachment 1057478

This shot shows just how incredibly destructive these animals are. I had to wait for a shot because he was nearly to the top of his shoulder in the hole with only his rear end showing.

View attachment 1057479

Definitely not my first choice in cartridges for hogs, but it'll work for "around the house".

35W

I've killed a few hundred like that - half buried in their holes. Easy to sneak up on that way. Good work. .223 is not my 1st choice for pigs either, but as you say, it will do around the house.

 

[Newtosavage]

Good job on the hog. We're over run with them. They are breeding faster than we're shooting them.

You got that right. Anyone who thinks hunting them in a conventional manner is going to dent their population is kidding themselves. Even trapping isn't that effective. Poisoning and aerial gunning is what it will take.