feedback on 17 caliber bullets for coyote please

[Hugh204]

Looking at the new Hornady 17 Hornet centerfire. I will be hand loading and I'm interested in people's experience with 17 cal bullets. I see there isn't a real big selection. Are there any name brand bullets that are of heavily enough construction they could pass through a coyote shoulder? I know it will kill well enough if it gets into the boiler room, just wondering whether there is a bullet that won't splash if it hits a shoulder. Range would be inside 100 yards.

 

[johnmyers]

Check with The Woodchuck Den. Any of Todd's Gold bullets should work on coyotes. I use 30 Golds in my 17 MachIV and they work real well.
John

 

[MrMajestic]

That would depend on what twist your running. Remember the .17HH ain't gonna push them like a Fireball or Mach IV and certainly the .17 Remington and larger. At HH speeds I think you will be okay with the 25 grain V-Max but there have been rumors a 1 in 10" twist is borderline with these. Some stabilize and some don't. Both my .17 Ackley Hornet and Fireball with a 10 twist shoot them great. I run the 20 grain V-Max in the AH(20" barrel@3575 fps) and 25's in the Fireball(26" barrel@3950 fps).
Why don't you just shoot behind the shoulder? ;D

 

[johnmyers]

That would depend on what twist your running. Remember the .17HH ain't gonna push them like a Fireball or Mach IV and certainly the .17 Remington and larger. At HH speeds I think you will be okay with the 25 grain V-Max but there have been rumors a 1 in 10" twist is borderline with these. Some stabilize and some don't. Both my .17 Ackley Hornet and Fireball with a 10 twist shoot them great. I run the 20 grain V-Max in the AH(20" barrel@3575 fps) and 25's in the Fireball(26" barrel@3950 fps).
Why don't you just shoot behind the shoulder? ;D

Woodchuck Den has 25 Golds that should work, don't know what twist they would require.

 

[Hugh204]

Mr. M - I'm too lazy to skin 'em. I just want to kill them quickly. With that boiler room tucked in behind the shoulder its just seems like a higher odd shot. Absolutely no proof. Just makes me more comfortable knowing a shoulder hit won't cause an ugly death. I understand what you mean about shooting behind the shoulder and thats seems to be what most guys aim for. I have heard some say to shoot above the shoulder and others swear you have to wait for a frontal shot or a quartering away to sneak it in.

I think I will just have to try all of the above and find out for sure!

I'm not sure we can get Woodchuck Den bullets up here in Canada. Do you guys know how the Bergers stack up against the VMAX for penetration? For both the 20 and the 25's.

 

[hogpatrol]

A lot of .17 cal. varmint/coyote info on Saubier.com. Here's a thread that may be of interest.

http://www.saubier.com/forum/showthread.php?t=16858

Hog

 

[Catfish]

I never shot a coyote with a 17 cal., but have taken many other varmints with 17`s. I believe that the best preforming bullet for coyote would be the heavest Calhoon bullet your rifle will shoot accurately. The big problem with Calhoon bullets is that alot of rifles just won`t shoot them. The Berger match bullets also do well, again use the heavest your gun will shoot well. DO NOT use the Breger MEF bullets. There are other bullets that should do well also, but of the ones I have experance with these are what I would recomand.