Any of you hunt with AR's

Been using a Remington R-15 VTR Predator in .223 since around 2013 for coyote, groundhogs, miscellaneous other varmints and target shooting. Great, accurate rifle for my use. Even better with the upgrades I added to it.

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In Wyo we can use a .22 rifle with a bullet of at least 60 grains for deer and antelope. Use whatever you like for prairie dogs, coyotes and other predators, and there is no limit on magazine capacity. I’ve used the AR’s because I can, not because I need to, and they take a suppressor so well. I’ve used 5.56 for coyotes, prairie dogs, jack rabbits, etc., and for deer, antelope and Texas hogs. I’ve used AR’s in 6.8SPC for deer, antelope, hogs and coyotes. I’ve also used M1A’s and FAL’s in 7.62 for deer and antelope just ‘cause I like using them. All worked just fine. My son in law was delighted when they made the .22’s legal for big game since he’d been shooting deer, antelope and, I think, a few elk for years with a 22/250.
 
Think the question is more, what is appropriate to hunt with .223, and this is making the assumption the OP is asking about an AR-15 platform in the same way the press just throws AR out there when reporting these days.

That being said, .223 is an effective round that can get the job done, but for many things that are larger than "person sized", I would want a little more power, where an AR-10, or the .300 Blackout and other options built on the AR platform, would be preferred.
 
I do not, but I’m all for the AR platform given that the cartridge selected is suitable for the intended quarry.

Soapbox time!

I do not believe 5.56 should be considered a deer chambering.
I know that with the correct bullet and careful shot placement it will work just fine but I don’t trust that that is always the case.
I know of a couple instances where local folks have perforated up a few deer with 5.56 FMJ only to have them run off.
Its sickening.
 
985Plowboy said:
I do not, but I’m all for the AR platform given that the cartridge selected is suitable for the intended quarry.

Soapbox time!

I do not believe 5.56 should be considered a deer chambering.
I know that with the correct bullet and careful shot placement it will work just fine but I don’t trust that that is always the case.
I know of a couple instances where local folks have perforated up a few deer with 5.56 FMJ only to have them run off.
Its sickening.
Click to expand...
We can not use FMJ bullets to hunt anything here, even hogs. and they can be hunted 24/7 all year.
 
Rpg said:
Here in Colorado, you need at least 243 for big game (no 223) and you can’t use a gun with a magazine capacity of more than 5.

I’ve never seen a big game hunting situation that can’t be easily dealt with using a bolt action rifle.

You must be hunting in a pretty unusual area to need an AR platform to deal with the game you list.
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Well, it's a good thing there are at least a dozen calibers besides 223 that can be shot from an AR platform rifle. No one "needs" an AR to hunt with. No one "needs" a handgun to hunt with, should we write them off too?

AR's are great hunting rifles that allow one lower to transform into many different calibers. They are accurate, easily adjustable, nearly unlimited in their customization, and have a simple and safe manual of arms. For the life of me I can't figure out what some of you have against them, or why you think them useless for anything other than murdering in mass.

350 Legend
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Varmint only at this time. Everything from rodents up to coyotes. A heavy 24” barrel does the trick there. We don’t have a hog problem here-yet. I prefer a bolt gun or lever gun for other types of hunting. Just what the wife and I prefer, but you do you boo!

Not really looking to add anything in an AR at this point, but the wife is sure liking her 350 Legend caliber. Maybe something inan AR latform in that caliber someday.

Regards,
Rick Gibbs
 
gdogs said:
Well, it's a good thing there are at least a dozen calibers besides 223 that can be shot from an AR platform rifle. No one "needs" an AR to hunt with. No one "needs" a handgun to hunt with, should we write them off too?

AR's are great hunting rifles that allow one lower to transform into many different calibers. They are accurate, easily adjustable, nearly unlimited in their customization, and have a simple and safe manual of arms. For the life of me I can't figure out what some of you have against them, or why you think them useless for anything other than murdering in mass.

350 Legend
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Click to expand...


They are kinda the Thompson Contender of today. 1 receiver many calibers. While I’m a traditionalist and like walnut and blued steel, I say shoot whatever you want as long as it’s legal and ethical…… One thing I don’t get is the thought that .223 is no good for deer. Are there better calibers ? Of course. When I get a pass through double lung shot with my 45lb recurve it’s a “great shot”. When someone gets a pass through double lung shot with a 64 gr BTHP it’s somehow not enough???????? A bad shot is a bad shot. Doesn’t matter if it’s a 7mm Mag or a .223. Those who think bigger bullets give more room for error are sadly mistaken.
 
Bald1 said:
One thing I don’t get is the thought that .223 is no good for deer.
Click to expand...

I believe most of the laws regarding .223 projectiles came about to stop people from hunting larger prey with 22LR, the 5.56mm was just an innocent bystander. Like most gun laws, the people that write them know very little about what they are regulating or the effects they will have. One of my good friends neck shot all of his deer to keep from harming any meat. He was quite efficient doing so with a 243, I have no doubt he would have done just as well with a 5.56mm AR.

Also, I love blued steel and fine wood too! But my custom Mausers and Lawson rifles are just worth too much to me to carry out in the field these days. If the AR gets nicked up while on a hunting trip then I put a little more Krylon to it when I get home - no harm done.
 
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I assembled this Aero Precision chambered in 7.62x39 with Boyd’s furniture to hunt whitetail feed with but have not had the opportunity to take a shot yet.
 

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I also have this DPMS Bull 24 chambered in .223 that I have taken several western Kansas/eastern Colorado prairie dogs with.

Not sure that is “hunting”…
 

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5.56x45 is not legal for deer here in WA. Everything I have seen tells me that with the right ammo and decent marksmanship, there is no reason for that rule. Using .223 FMJ for deer hunting is almost certainly shabby, but even that should work with decent marksmanship.

A quality AR lower can be fitted with a broad variety of uppers in other calibers and is thus very flexible. The majority of my rifle training since adulthood was with an AR, so if I were hunting, it would be my platform of choice. If hunting something like hogs at 100 yards or less, I would stick with an Aimpoint RDS. With a 4MOA dot, they are capable of enough precision, and if you end up charged, they do not have the flaws on higher power scopes.
 
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