Building a Yote gun

[Dave M.]

I have several good coyote rifles. All Bolt action

17 TAC 30 gr Golds at 3950 fps
20 Vartarg 40 gr BIB 3400 fps
20 TAC 40 gr BIB 3835 fps
22-204 53.5 gr OMB match 3630 fps
22 Dasher 57 gr Hillbilly Boattail 3900 fps
6 BRA 68 gr Hillbilly Boattail 3759 fps

And the choice would be??

 

[HillbillyLongRifle]

And the choice would be??

20 TAC is my all time Favorite. 22-204 and 22 Dasher would be my next picks. But any of these are good coyote calibers. 20P is a 20 Practical or a 20-223. Just a simple neck down from 223 to 20 caliber. Does everything a 20 TAC or 204 does. Ive have 20 Practicals in the past. Another nice cartridge

 

[AWS]

I'm an avid coyote hunter and kill a bunch of coyotes in about 10 different states and an AR is my last pick for coyote calling rifle. Over the past 50 yrs I've gone through the 6.5 stage, 6.5 Grenddel/6.5x58R, 257 stage 250Sav/25-204, 6mm Stage 6x45/6mm-204/243, 224-228 stage, 22 WRM/22H/218 Bee/222 Rem/223 Rem/22-204/22-250/22 Sav HP and the 204 stage with 3-20P's. They all kill coyotes just fine. My favorites are the 20P, 222 Rem and 22-204. Match your cartridge to the terrain and you won't go wrong

 

[JB10]

Ya might if all 5 coyotes came in at once and ya killed em all in one setting, none got away... all done in a few seconds. Or can you put 20 shots in a 20 inch circle in 20 seconds at 1000 yards ?...done with an AR 15...and pretty impressive.
Hunt with what ever you're comfortable with, provided it's still legal. Today, here in my state No night hunting except coons & possim. No night vision, lasers, red dots, lighted reticle in scopes or devices that measure range allowed or attached to rifle or bow... only the trail cam is a legal electronic device.
No dogs or bait for bear or cougar...
Hunting is daytime only for coyotes , with non electronics in scope or non electronics in open sights with gun or bow....and mouth blown calls only. But you can have a trail cam with your original 1894 30-30 or slightly more modern gun and a orange vest....and don't lift the fish out of the water more than a foot before you release it ...that is a hefy fine. Getting worse every year...quit fishing, and hunting as the regulations are ridiculous, reporting in, doing autopsies, turning in animal parts...still buying a hunting & fishing license, just incase...I want to shoot a coyote with a legal hunting gun & sights with 5 rds or less in the center fire. Leave all electronics at home....except your phone, where you store your license. Times change, many don't want any animals killed for any reason, and they make the laws, I used to belong to tbe Varmint Hunters club, for 10 yrs, it all gone now.

Leave that state

 

[simo hayha]

What is a 20P?

Neck down 223 to 20cal

 

[22BRGUY]

At one time about 10 years ago, I got the itch to build a nice 20 PPC for calling
yotes and saving pelts, although the pelt saving was secondary.
I just thought the challenge of good mouth calling and squeaking was where it was at
along with precision shots out of a precision small caliber rifle would be fun and
rewarding but each to their own.
I still have the Redding bushing die set that I bought and never used in my cabinet.
Then life and life changes happened but I still daydream a little.
Good Thread!

 

[Jeff Porter]

I have been a fan of a .243 bolt gun with 58vmax about 3800fps. No exit wound and it jellies the innards. Bang flop. I used 223 AR for a bunch too but the 50Vmax gave me too many splash wounds, spinners and runners I would have to track down to finish. 6 ARC has my interest if I build another upper.
Never took 5 in a stand but have put a bunch of bullets in a 10” circle at 800 yards from an AR with iron sights. Not 20 at 1000 yet only 12/15 but working on it. Smallest ring is 10” second ring is 20”. 88ELD M in a 24” with a +2 gas system. 2800 fps MV.

 

[Matt_3479]

I own and have hunted with 204’s, 20 tacs, 223’s, 222’s, 22-250, 243, 6 creed, 6bra, 25creed and 260. I personally love the 20 tac! That would be my choice

 

[Dave M.]

Look up the WTBBC and check out past results. My friend Daniel and his team have killed 63 and 66 in single nights, with bolt guns. I don’t have anything against ARs, but indeed it CAN be done with bolt guns, even in a single night.

(For the record, all 4 team members take a polygraph and all four 4 must pass with 100% accuracy. There’s just a lot of coyotes in the private oil leases out here.)

I need someone in SE Michigan to show me the ropes and take me yote hunting.
Any volunteers?? I’d even be willing to drive up north or to the west side of the state.

 

[nmjwolf]

I’m going with a 6 saum this year
Yes the barrel life will suck but it’s going to be fun

 

[David Milisock]

Thinking of building a yote gun over the winter and considering what cartridge. I know bolt guns are king when it comes to accuracy and that’s still a possibility but I do have a fully built AR-15 lower in the shop that has been crying out to be topped off for quite some time now. Open for your suggestions.
Dave.

How far are you shooting?

 

[nakneker]

What coyote rifle/cartridge? I just read through the whole thread and there isn’t any cartridge mentioned that wouldn’t work and several I like. I own plenty of varmint rifles, fast twist rifles for the heavy bullets and long shots, slow twist with lighter fast bullets for closer shots. I usually have one of each with me when I go out and when I make a stand I pick accordingly. I have some ARs but haven’t really warmed up to them yet, shot bolt actions all my life and seem to prefer them but you should pick what appeals to you, that’s part of the fun of building a rifle, you can get exactly what you want.

I hunted coyotes hard in my late teens and twenties. On a good day you could get 20+ opportunities calling and we often came home with more than a dozen, it’s not like that around here now days. I had a custom rifle built on an old 700 flat safety. I had it chambered in 22-250, the rifle was very accurate. The barrel was 16.5” long, straight taper bull barrel. It was a poor choice on my behalf, years later when I chronographed my load I was shooting a 223 ballistically. The barrel was short, I handicapped myself. At the time I didn’t know any better. It was my only rifle varmint rifle. All that being said I killed 10x the coyotes with that rifle than I have with any other rifle. It wore a Leupold 6x M3 fixed power, I got to know that rifle very well, it was like an extension of me.

The point to the story is whatever you pick for your coyote rifle get to know it, shoot shoot shoot. The cartridge will matter less, whether it’s a bolt rifle or an AR won’t matter so much, just get know your rifle and you’ll be lethal.

 

[Dave M.]

Sounds like bolt action is the way to go. In which case, 6BR or 6 Dasher would be easy for me because we are so familiar with them and load for 5 of them now. If I go 6BR, what bullet weight and twist should I be favoring?
Dave

 

[Mark W]

I’m going with a 6 saum this year
Yes the barrel life will suck but it’s going to be fun

What bullets are you planning to shoot?

 

[AckleymanII]

22/204 ruger on an AR, my good friend says is awesome, 55g Sierra btsp fits the mag with reamer from JGS with .020 freebore. He took an X caliber 223 barrel and chambered it to the 22/204.

 

[nmjwolf]

What bullets are you planning to shoot?

Vtacs

 

[bcook07]

I ran a custom ar with a 204 barrel from wilson combat last year. Even at only 18" it peformed really well. Shooting 32gr Varmageddons I had very few runners and fur friendly. I am currently waiting on a 24" xcaliber barrel in 20 practical for a gun to shoot this year. I have no real reason to change other than I just cant leave well enough alone.

I also picked up a ruger american bolt gun in 243 to play with doing a custom build for a bolt action coyote gun.

A buddy of mine swears by 22 nosler for his ar platform coyote gun but my experience is it destroys brass.

 

[Gary in MD]

I don't think that the hides are bringing much now a days.
I'm thinking a 257 Weatherby shooting 75 grain hollow points @ 4000 fps should work well.

 

[justinp61]

I screwed together a Savage with a 1-12 twist Shilen SS Select match 24" barrel in 22-250 last year. It shoots 55gr Gamekings great and that bullet put the smack down on coyotes.

 

[G Love]

If you’re stuck on an AR, there’s been more coyotes shot with a .223 than anything. A 22 Nosler kills with a little more authority. That being said, one rifle for it, I’d go bolt action in a 6mm variant that leans on a 65-87 grain bullet.