jds holler
Gold $$ Contributor
Well, I finally popped 2016's cherry on the ground squirrels yesterday, and as in many years past, did it with probably the sweetest little rifle in my cabinet. This rifle and I began our love affair forty odd years ago when a fella I worked for sold it to me cheap. He sold it to me, because in his words, "My boys will never appreciate it the way you will, and if I charge you for it, they can't say a damned thing."
It didn't take long for me to realize what a favor he'd done for me, and I'll never forget him for it.
On a forum filled with rifle shooters who would thumb their nose at anything bigger than .5 MOA groups, this rifle doesn't really rate. It generally shoots between .75" and 1.5" at a hundred yards. It will never win any benchrest competitions, but it is perfect for it's job on squirrels out to around 200 yards.
For guys who have never used one of the sub - sub center fire 22's, you oughta give this power range cartridge (or one similar to it) a try. It is mild even compared to the .222 Rem.
It's an easy and durable little case to reload, and with my loads using IMR 4227, metered charges can't be improved by weighing. Stubby bullets work best for this action, and the 35 gr, V-Max is perfect. I use quick, no-frills loading techniques for this rifle, and don't worry about the time consuming minutiae that we generally use for best quality bench rest ammo. I've been working with the same couple of thousand brass for many years now, and actually shoot them till they fail. (yeah, flame me if ya want)
Yesterday, out of a hundred shells, I had 15 (+/- 3) misses. The slaughter was horrific within a hundred yards, still devastating out to 150, and a few kills out at 200. My 200 yard success would be better with a higher power scope, but I hate to mess with this package as it now sits. It wears an old Leupold 3x9, and I've upgraded to nicer Burris mounts than what is shown in this pic. Velocity on my reloads is right in the 3000 fps range with 35 gr. bullets, and squirrel splash is pretty profound within a hundred yards.
I've got more appropriate rifles for longer range, but this little rifle is simply so pleasant and sweet shooting, that I can't leave it home. jd
It didn't take long for me to realize what a favor he'd done for me, and I'll never forget him for it.
On a forum filled with rifle shooters who would thumb their nose at anything bigger than .5 MOA groups, this rifle doesn't really rate. It generally shoots between .75" and 1.5" at a hundred yards. It will never win any benchrest competitions, but it is perfect for it's job on squirrels out to around 200 yards.
For guys who have never used one of the sub - sub center fire 22's, you oughta give this power range cartridge (or one similar to it) a try. It is mild even compared to the .222 Rem.
It's an easy and durable little case to reload, and with my loads using IMR 4227, metered charges can't be improved by weighing. Stubby bullets work best for this action, and the 35 gr, V-Max is perfect. I use quick, no-frills loading techniques for this rifle, and don't worry about the time consuming minutiae that we generally use for best quality bench rest ammo. I've been working with the same couple of thousand brass for many years now, and actually shoot them till they fail. (yeah, flame me if ya want)
Yesterday, out of a hundred shells, I had 15 (+/- 3) misses. The slaughter was horrific within a hundred yards, still devastating out to 150, and a few kills out at 200. My 200 yard success would be better with a higher power scope, but I hate to mess with this package as it now sits. It wears an old Leupold 3x9, and I've upgraded to nicer Burris mounts than what is shown in this pic. Velocity on my reloads is right in the 3000 fps range with 35 gr. bullets, and squirrel splash is pretty profound within a hundred yards.
I've got more appropriate rifles for longer range, but this little rifle is simply so pleasant and sweet shooting, that I can't leave it home. jd
jd
