Well, it has been a long 18 month build and load development, but finally got the new Vartarg build out for prairie dogs. I was thrilled to go 12 for 12 on my first shots from the Vartarg at prairie dogs from 200-350 yards.
Life started out for this gun as a CZ 527 MIP. The last new one in stock I could find at the LGS when they were discontinued in 2022. Pulled the 223 rem barrel off and sold the stock. Had is re-barreled with a 22" Pacnor Barrel 11 Twist to Match a CZ varmint contour. After 1+ year of searching, finally found a MTR stock. Put a Meotpa Optika5 5-20x50 on top (As a side note, the optics on this scope are amazing, every bit as clear and bright as a Nighforce and tracking is very good).
Using Nosler 17 fireball brass neck turned. Also tried several 222 rem brass formed and they worked fine, the nosler brass was easier to form and more consistent. Tried the Sierra 32gr Blizkings with AA2200, LT30, IMR 4198, X-terminator, and R7. They all shot .5 moa, none shot better than .35 moa. Moved to the Nosler 32 Varmageddon bullet which is able to seat deeper in to the brass and still be at the lands. Tried the same powders and this time consistent .35moa groups, with none better than about .3moa. Not bad, but not good enough.
Then my lucked turned 2 weeks ago and found H4198 on the shelf of my LGS. Had my seating depth dialed in and loaded up groups 17.6 to 18.4 in .2 increments. All shot better than .3moa with the 18.0gr coming in well under .2 moa. Loaded up some more to confirm and sure enough 18.0gr in new brass doing multiple .15" 3 shot groups at 3640fps average. Found my load and off the pdog grounds.
Hit the prairie at about 9:30 am to 35 degrees and calm winds. Tried a spot I have never been to and they started coming out as the temps started to warm. 1st shot at 204 yards hit true, and then the next, and the next, and so on. Hit 12 for 12 without a miss in dogs between 200 and 350. Well, 1 or 2 were in the 150-160 range. Pushed it out a bit to try a couple shots in the 450-600 range, but no verified hits, although one at 475 was a likely hit. At this point went to check the damage. First pic is 2 dogs right at 200 yards. The last one was a dog at 300 yards. Excellent performance from this little bullet. Wind picked up and moved to towns with average shot distances at 500 and used the 6br and 22br the rest of the day.
This is my most accurate, light build and should be solid to 400 with no or mild wind. Could see all hits in scope with minimal recoil. Solid to 350 with plenty of damage to detect hits. Hits beyond 450 or so may be tough to detect if bullet doesn't expand as well. Will be in the rotation for sure.
Life started out for this gun as a CZ 527 MIP. The last new one in stock I could find at the LGS when they were discontinued in 2022. Pulled the 223 rem barrel off and sold the stock. Had is re-barreled with a 22" Pacnor Barrel 11 Twist to Match a CZ varmint contour. After 1+ year of searching, finally found a MTR stock. Put a Meotpa Optika5 5-20x50 on top (As a side note, the optics on this scope are amazing, every bit as clear and bright as a Nighforce and tracking is very good).
Using Nosler 17 fireball brass neck turned. Also tried several 222 rem brass formed and they worked fine, the nosler brass was easier to form and more consistent. Tried the Sierra 32gr Blizkings with AA2200, LT30, IMR 4198, X-terminator, and R7. They all shot .5 moa, none shot better than .35 moa. Moved to the Nosler 32 Varmageddon bullet which is able to seat deeper in to the brass and still be at the lands. Tried the same powders and this time consistent .35moa groups, with none better than about .3moa. Not bad, but not good enough.
Then my lucked turned 2 weeks ago and found H4198 on the shelf of my LGS. Had my seating depth dialed in and loaded up groups 17.6 to 18.4 in .2 increments. All shot better than .3moa with the 18.0gr coming in well under .2 moa. Loaded up some more to confirm and sure enough 18.0gr in new brass doing multiple .15" 3 shot groups at 3640fps average. Found my load and off the pdog grounds.
Hit the prairie at about 9:30 am to 35 degrees and calm winds. Tried a spot I have never been to and they started coming out as the temps started to warm. 1st shot at 204 yards hit true, and then the next, and the next, and so on. Hit 12 for 12 without a miss in dogs between 200 and 350. Well, 1 or 2 were in the 150-160 range. Pushed it out a bit to try a couple shots in the 450-600 range, but no verified hits, although one at 475 was a likely hit. At this point went to check the damage. First pic is 2 dogs right at 200 yards. The last one was a dog at 300 yards. Excellent performance from this little bullet. Wind picked up and moved to towns with average shot distances at 500 and used the 6br and 22br the rest of the day.
This is my most accurate, light build and should be solid to 400 with no or mild wind. Could see all hits in scope with minimal recoil. Solid to 350 with plenty of damage to detect hits. Hits beyond 450 or so may be tough to detect if bullet doesn't expand as well. Will be in the rotation for sure.
