Groundhog/Prairie dog rifle advice

[Tommie]

If I were doing it all over again, this would be my prairie dog arsenal...

1) Suppressed 17 Hornet for the skittish animals inside of 300 yards.
2) A 20 Practical shooting 40 grainers for everything to about 1/4 mile.
3) A 6mm of medium capacity (6XC, .243, etc) for the long shots. Use sparingly.

That being said, I’ve nailed more PD’s with a 17 HMR than all my other guns combined.

 

[marchboom]

Please excuse my ignorance but what is the actual cause of barrels burning out quickly? Is it shooting too many rounds too fast w/o letting it cool down, shooting too hot of a load, the case design, a poor quality barrel? If shooting too many rounds too fast what would be the right number of rounds you would shoot before letting the barrel cool? Is there a "magic" FPS that you want to stay under if possible to avoid burning out a barrel? Do Ackley rounds do better as far as barrel life goes?

Thanks

 

[people]

Please excuse my ignorance but what is the actual cause of barrels burning out quickly? Is it shooting too many rounds too fast w/o letting it cool down, shooting too hot of a load, the case design, a poor quality barrel? If shooting too many rounds too fast what would be the right number of rounds you would shoot before letting the barrel cool? Is there a "magic" FPS that you want to stay under if possible to avoid burning out a barrel? Do Ackley rounds do better as far as barrel life goes?

Thanks

Yes is the answer. All of those will kill a tube. Start combining them and your tube will not last long.

 

[joed49]

My first rifle to hunt groundhogs in Ohio many years ago was a Remington VS in .25-06. It was a great rifle for my intended use. It would kill groundhogs at some very long ranges and wind didn't seem to bother it much. It also could be used for deer and larger game and again it did well.

I would never use this rifle for prairie dogs though, it's overkill and gets to hot after a couple shots. The .22-250 works well also but again I wouldn't use one for prairie dogs where you are taking a lot of shots during an active day.

If I were going hunting for prairie dogs I'd probably go with something smaller like a .223 that doesn't burn up a barrel in one season.

My thoughts on barrel life are everything wears out eventually. The .25-06 lasted almost 30 years before I needed to replace the barrel. For all the groundhog hunting I did it lasted a long time. I'm glad for the fact that it wore out as now I have a Krieger barrel and it made the rifle even more accurate then it ever was. Barrels can be replaced at a reasonable price.

 

[TheOtherZilla]

My first rifle to hunt groundhogs in Ohio many years ago was a Remington VS in .25-06. It was a great rifle for my intended use. It would kill groundhogs at some very long ranges and wind didn't seem to bother it much. It also could be used for deer and larger game and again it did well.

I would never use this rifle for prairie dogs though, it's overkill and gets to hot after a couple shots. The .22-250 works well also but again I wouldn't use one for prairie dogs where you are taking a lot of shots during an active day.

If I were going hunting for prairie dogs I'd probably go with something smaller like a .223 that doesn't burn up a barrel in one season.

My thoughts on barrel life are everything wears out eventually. The .25-06 lasted almost 30 years before I needed to replace the barrel. For all the groundhog hunting I did it lasted a long time. I'm glad for the fact that it wore out as now I have a Krieger barrel and it made the rifle even more accurate then it ever was. Barrels can be replaced at a reasonable price.

25-06 is the shizzle for pdawgs. There is no such thing as overkill. Dead is dead. I shoot em almost year round, and use several different calibers. I carry a 22-250, and a 204 so I can switch em out if they get hot. I also carry a 22 mag, and a 22 pistol. My latest favorite p-dawg gun is a CZ in 17 Hornet..

 

[VaRandy]

25-06 is the shizzle for pdawgs. There is no such thing as overkill. Dead is dead. I shoot em almost year round, and use several different calibers. I carry a 22-250, and a 204 so I can switch em out if they get hot. I also carry a 22 mag, and a 22 pistol. My latest favorite p-dawg gun is a CZ in 17 Hornet..

overkill for the barrel for sure unless you actively babysit the barrel temp. Get pissed at a couple a little further out and lose track.

 

[joed49]

I loved that .25-06 for groundhogs, if I could see a groundhog it was in mortal danger. But it was a good day if I shot 25. With that type of shooting it never got hot. What I liked was you couldn't see the hits but you could hear them, sounded like someone slapping a board on water.

Still have that rifle but where I live now I use a .22-250 as most shots are no further then 400 yards.

 

[roadkill61]

Having traveled to shoot P-d's for the last 35 yrs I find that I want aerobatics. yes if I lived right there I probably would be shooting a 22lr. But because I have one or two trips a year I really could care less about barrel wear. Yes you can "kill" a dog with your 223's but bang flop just isin't my cup of tea. I want to see red mist everywhere. And to that end give me my 22-250 shooting that big open ended speer 52 gr hp. It's a hobbie not a job so it's the fun and last time I looked they still made new barrels. X-caliber $225 is not a big deal. My 22-250's would last anywhere from 3000 to 6000.Yes 6000. Try a 12 twist 5R barrel from Broughton.

 

[Ironworker]

I take 6 rifles on PD hunts,one is a 22/250. Fire a few and allow it to cool while your shooting another rifle.

 

[markT]

+++22-250.... my factory Savage lasted 6 years.. ~3000 rds. Never ran it too hot. Now has a Shilen 12 Twist.. 50 gr Vmax.. Love to hear the deep report!! Leaving for SD, May 25.. can't wait..

 

[urbanrifleman]

My 26" 223 Ackley Krieger 1-14" I can get 3600 with a 52 Barts or 4000 FPS with a 40 grain Nosler Varmageddon. Mine will shoot zeros. If you score some Lake City brass or WCC you can load it super cheap. I am loving CCI450s and LT32. I would say that is pretty much an ideal setup for high volume, cheap to shoot, effective PDog hunting. If I had to pick one.

I sued to shoot 22-250 and loved it, but the 243 is more flexible if you want to send a 55 grainer over 4000 or 80 grainer to 3400 which. But a 243 is just for low volume.

A 6Br would excellent also. I would think a 70 grain TNT should be humming about 3600-3700 and would shoot bugholes. I have a 13.5 twist barrel I am getting ready to do just that.

 

[Ironworker]

This year in late May I'll be bring 17HMR ,204 Ruger,AR-15 223 ,22/250,6mm Creedmoor and yes my 7mm WSM shooting 120 gr Varmint bullets .

 

[JRS]

20 Practical.

 

[Hoodoo]

20 Practical.

+1

 

[msinc]

Woodchucks are one thing...prairie dogs are another. The 22-250 is probably the undisputed "King" of the woodchuck guns and rightfully so, but............................it either wont last long or you wont have much fun at a dog town with one.
There is a reason the Army chose the 223 and that's because it is not a barrel burner. You can cook the throat in just about anything if you really work at it.
There is a lot of golden advice in this thread, but a lot of it "hops" around the facts. The 22-250 is a barrel burner, just as most any small caliber round clocking in at much over 3000 fps can be.
A few years back several local guys asked me to swap barrels on their AR's to 204 Ruger. I warned 'em, but they went to Wyoming anyway. One by one they all had those rifles swapped back to 223. The throats were cooked. The 204 is a barrel burner.
Bottom line is if you are going to shoot at a dog town tone it down a little and have some fun. Also, not my idea but it has proven true...if you really like launching them in the air and seeing an explosion, aim for the "water line", that is to say shoot for where the dog meets the ground and it will look just like he stepped on a mine.

 

[22DASHER]

Woodchucks are one thing...prairie dogs are another. The 22-250 is probably the undisputed "King" of the woodchuck guns and rightfully so, but............................it either wont last long or you wont have much fun at a dog town with one.
There is a reason the Army chose the 223 and that's because it is not a barrel burner. You can cook the throat in just about anything if you really work at it.
There is a lot of golden advice in this thread, but a lot of it "hops" around the facts. The 22-250 is a barrel burner, just as most any small caliber round clocking in at much over 3000 fps can be.
A few years back several local guys asked me to swap barrels on their AR's to 204 Ruger. I warned 'em, but they went to Wyoming anyway. One by one they all had those rifles swapped back to 223. The throats were cooked. The 204 is a barrel burner.
Bottom line is if you are going to shoot at a dog town tone it down a little and have some fun. Also, not my idea but it has proven true...if you really like launching them in the air and seeing an explosion, aim for the "water line", that is to say shoot for where the dog meets the ground and it will look just like he stepped on a mine.

It has much more about how you run them then the caliber. I burned up a 223 barrel in under 500 rounds shooting dogs. Man it was fun and worth it. But it is a lot more fun shooting them at 4100 with a 22-250 AI and 55 grain ballistic tips. That 22-250 AI has been on every PD trip and still shoots great because I take care of it.

 

[msinc]

It has much more about how you run them then the caliber. I burned up a 223 barrel in under 500 rounds shooting dogs. Man it was fun and worth it. But it is a lot more fun shooting them at 4100 with a 22-250 AI and 55 grain ballistic tips. That 22-250 AI has been on every PD trip and still shoots great because I take care of it.

That is why I put the disclaimer in there..." You can cook the throat in just about anything if you really work at it.", even a 223.
The 243 is generally not associated with burning barrels, but I cooked one in 300 rounds one day. All that said, the 223 will last a hell of a lot longer than a 22-250 and many others. A 222 will just about outlast them all.

 

[DogBuster]

22-250 would be my last choice in the p/dog fields......as mentioned..

noise & recoil along with heat will wear you down....your buddy sitting next to you ?

He'll get tired of it real fast too.......my p/dog rigs are Savage s/shots with Pac Nor tubes...

20VT..20PT...20-222....223AI..6BR......window gun ? 17M2 works great !

In a factory set up....Tikka or Savage or CZ would be my choices......in 223

 

[msinc]

Please excuse my ignorance but what is the actual cause of barrels burning out quickly? Is it shooting too many rounds too fast w/o letting it cool down, shooting too hot of a load, the case design, a poor quality barrel? If shooting too many rounds too fast what would be the right number of rounds you would shoot before letting the barrel cool? Is there a "magic" FPS that you want to stay under if possible to avoid burning out a barrel? Do Ackley rounds do better as far as barrel life goes?

Thanks

These are some good questions. As posted previously, yes to your first 4. The magic fps to me seems to be under 3000. You can still burn one up though. Go to a range on a hot day and shoot one right after the other, even with a bolt gun and keep on, you will cook it. Poor steel was a small issue years ago, but no barrel makers are using inferior or poor grade steel these days. Ackley's don't necessarily matter or are any better. They can be worse if you take full advantage of the extra case capacity, but again, the round to begin with matters. I doubt anyone has ever cooked a 30-30Ack or a 30-06Ack for that matter. 223Ack...now you're getting into barrel burning territory if loaded hot.
As far as "letting it cool down", there is one thing I think some shooters don't take into account. The old rule of thumb that if the barrel is too hot to keep your hand on it you are shooting too fast and it needs to be cooled down. Probably good advice and it has worked for me, but a standard weight barrel surface will heat up faster than a heavy varmint or target pipe and we are concerned with the throat area. A heavy barreled rifle that you can still keep your hand on may very well be way too hot initially to keep going, so that old rule might not be the best one to go by.

 

[urbanrifleman]

I burned up a 223 barrel in under 500 rounds shooting dogs.

How? And please describe "burned up". I know guys who have been shooting service rifle barrels for years shooting hot loads and shooting rapids in practice you can go through a couple hundred rounds in a few hours several times a week.