Never thought I'd ask this ?

[Romulus]

I have always been an anti-varmint caliber kind of guy (hold the stones ;D) and have never wanted a rifle smaller than a 6mm, well, 6.5 if we're being completely honest. I also kind of roll my eyes at "Which caliber should I get?" posts, but I have not spent my years as a shooter pouring over varmint load data or component issues.

BUT I think I'm going to build one in the style of a Pdog plinker instead of a yote gun.

I like setups that are efficient. You don't catch me spitting out bullets over 3100 fps very often. Trajectory does not bother me. Wind bothers me.

I shoot a little bit (40-100 rounds a week on 1 to 2 rifles) and want a cartridge/bullet combo that gives me above average barrel life. Also, I'd rather shoot bughole groups than shoot 44,999 fps. :

In your experiences what is a cartridge that fits the bill for me? I'm open to most "wildcats".

If anyone has compared the heavy-for-caliber bullet experience to the flat-and-fast routine I'd like to hear what you learned. If I don't make myself go light I will gravitate towards some large .22 bullets and that in itself may spoil the fun of the whole project.

If there is such a cartridge that is "easy to load for" and "flexible" in the varmint realm I'd like that a lot. Thanks for the replies and patience with my ignorance of the varmint school of thought.

 

[alf]

I'd start looking at the 221 Fireball. Performance beyond it's stature.

Next worthy of a glance is the 222 Rem. It was a Benchrest icon in it's day, so great accuracy is achievable with respectable barrel life.

A plain 'ol 223 is never a bad choice for prairie dogs or paper. Going with an 8 twist opens up the bullet selection. 2900 is easily doable with the 75's.

Going to a 223 Ackley or 22-204 ups the ante a bit on velocity, around 150, give or take, which adds to the special effects, and isn't too costly in barrel life.

Then there's the 6 BR.........

Sometimes your better off picking the bullet(s) you wanna shoot, at the velocity you wanna shoot, and pick the case/cartridge that will do it w/o gut busting pressures. Speed and pressures are a trade off in respect to barrel life.

 

[40X Guy]

Alf nailed it with his post. A standard .223 or .223 AI set up with lapua brass and the bullet that you want to use will be tough to beat. That would be my first choice closely followed by the 6BR. I am from the school of hyper velocity and have been for years, but have discovered that 8 twist rifle calibers shooting heavy bullets at slower speeds will get the job done nicely.

Frank

 

[Cowboy Tom]

As a former Wyoming resident and pdog shooter I've thought about this one a bunch. I think the most practicle high volume shooter, based on how economic it is to shoot, is the 223. That said a 223 lack any form of inspiration and really doesn't provide very spectacular results on the receiving end. So, at this point I think the most intriguing cal for the higher volume shooting has got to be the 30BR!!!!! Great barrel life, trajectory similar to a 223 but much better bc bullets, sort of economical to shoot, dramatic effects down range (would even make more dust on misses) exceptionally accurate, easy to load for, and.........you'd be the only one shooting one! For the long range/low volume end of the spectrum something like a 6mm rem on up to the 6.5's and 7mm's would be optimal. Just my thoughts.

CT

 

[bheadboy]

i agree with the above, consider the 221fb, 222, 223, and if you want to step it up the 223AI

All are easy on the bbl, easy to load, light recoil, accurate to "bugholes" low cost components and easy to tune.
All will work well with a 14twist unless the 223AI is to use heavier bullets then a faster twist is needed.
Bob

 

[Charles]

if i had to pick two they would be the 221 fireball and the 6br. The 221 out to 300 yds and the 6br to a 1000.

 

[jerrschmitt]

I'm a dyed in the wool prairie dog shooter. My choice, and you need more than one gun, goes to the .223 and the 6BR. They will take 90% of the dog town. Of course then you need a .243 Ackley and a 17HMR along with a few pistols for the other 10%.

The 6BR in an 8 twist shooting 105 VMAX is hard to beat for the long shots and mine will handle 75 and 87 VMAX for the closer shots with more explosive results. I also have a 13 twist 6BR that will shoot the 75 and lighter VMAX bullets which are pretty good out to 600 yards.

The .243 Ackley with an 8 twist barrel shooting 105 VMAX at around 3000 fps works very well out to 1000 yards or more.

 

[PREMOD70]

I use the .220 Swift(up to 300 yards) or the .243 Win.(past 300 yards) for groundhogs and the last time I had an opportunity to shoot P-dogs the .223 worked out real well.

 

[woolenmammoth]

romulus-

Pdogs. 20 cal. 32 grain bullets at 4000 fps in several cases, very low recoil, can see your hits at 24x in a 10 lbs rifle.

20-222 gets my vote for effeciency and speed and especially if you want to feed from a magazine. neck 222 down to 20 and done. 20 tac lapua brass is available formed, similar performance, little more powder capacity, probably the better option if you want to a)shoot 40 grain bullets b)buy 500 rounds preloaded for a pd trip (hunting shack). Either round is suitable for coyote.

 

[5spd]

I shoot over 8-9k rounds into p-dogs yearly with just a little .223 and I do shoot to 700+ yards when I have shot everything within 400 yards with it. All I use is a 50g pill. If its windy it will drift a tad....but nothing a mildot target scope can make up for!
I would take a hard look at the 6x45 also. Its another gun I have built specifically for Coyote & Antelope and is a back up for my .223s. You can spit a 65-70 gr pill at 3000 fps and still knock em flat to 600 yards very easily with out the wind effect a lighter bullet has.

 

[MrMajestic]

Sometimes your better off picking the bullet(s) you wanna shoot, at the velocity you wanna shoot, and pick the case/cartridge that will do it w/o gut busting pressures. Speed and pressures are a trade off in respect to barrel life.

What he said and you can narrow the list to available Lapua cases!

 

[dennisinaz]

I hunt Pds with 4 rifles; 22 LR ( mostly using Aguila super maximum), 17 HMR, 222 and 22-250. I like to shoot everything under 100 yds with the 22LR as it is fun to shoot but doesn't make spectacular kills. I use the 17 on everything out to 200 yds depending on whether I'm shooting or my son.

I use the 22 centerfires for everything else. I use the 222 for shots out to about 350 and the 22-250 (has a much better scope etc) out to about 450. I don't shoot PDs beyond this range. Might try that this year with my 6.5-284.

I like to see the hits and if you have a heavy recoiling rifle, you can't. There are a million different rifles to shoot PDs with but the 22 centerfires are like the bread and butter of PD shooting.

 

[357Mag]

varmint rifle

Rommie -

Howdy !

Well, your post pretty much hit me where most of my accuracy rifle experience lies.... precision varmint
rifles/chamberings.

I'm a fan of wildcats, and have especially enjoyed designing, forming, loading; and shooting wildcats of my own design.

For varmints such as " soybeanus digestus ", I recommend my own wildcat: .35 Rem necked-down to
.224" calibre. Worked superbly for my needs ( varmint and occasional paper shoots ) for nigh onto 30yr

In a 24" SS 1-14, I got into the 500yd club shooting prototype Hornady 55"V"-Max over 41.6gr VV160 and Fed LR Magnum Match. I'm like you, in that I don't HAVE-TO-HAVE the most vel possible from the rifle/load. This load was only going 3,690fps, but was hyper accurate & deadly.
I like & believe-in high load density when you can get it. While others shoot stuff like Varget in cases like .22-250 and .220 Swift, I went for WW760, VV160; and IMR 4350 ( dependent on bullet used ) in the .22-35.

When the 1-14 barrel started to keyhole the occasional shot, I re-barrelled in .22-35 again, this time.... a
28" SS 1-8. My intent: come up with the ideal combo for both live varmint and paper shoots.
In-addition, I wanted to have a one-bullet solution. Best load was 75"A"-Max over 40.5gr AA3100 and
Fed LR Match for 3,420 fps. I could get 3,500fps by simply switching the primer choice to Fed LR Magnum Match, but groups opened up a bit.

The 1-8 28" w/ the 75 "A"-Max load was good for 450ft lbs @ 966yd..... which would qual the combo as a valid choice for use as a 1,000yd varmint rifle ( on things like " soybeanus digestus " ).

Be honest w/ yourself about how far your varmint shots are likely to be.
If a 1,000yd kill(s) is in the cards for you, you'll want the capability in-hand; when the opportunity presents itself.

Given a notional 16lb scoped rifle and shot from a "rested postition", I don't see where there'd have to be any difference in the rifle set-up, when contemplating a notional 600yd gun vs one useable @ 1,000.
In other words, give yourself that 1,000yd capability; it just makes sense ( IMHO ).

If your eyes allow you to see .224" cal holes on-paper @ usefull distances, one does not of necessity have to go w/ a larger cal ( 6mm, for example ).

In retrospect, I could have gone w/ a 29" finish length barrel , as my Plano "Airglide" rifle case would accept that barrel length w/ an adult length-of-pull configured stock. Such barrel lengths make use of the slower powders more appealing.

If you believe you'd seldom shoot much past 500, a long 1-12 .224" cal barrel shooting Sierra 65 SPBTs would be hard to beat.

For those shots much under 500, Hornady .224" cal 55SXSP's are " canned death "; and a 1-14 would be ok, but getting "marginal" the close to 500yd you get.

Please fell free to PM me, and we'll talk more !

With regards,
357Mag

 

[Webster]

I agree with the other guys post. I would be interested in a 6BR or a 30R. From what I have read I think the 30BR has about the best barrel life of any 50 calibers you could name. Exceptional accuracy. Easy to find good loads.

 

[North Fork]

Just build a 6br and a 20 vartag

 

[K22]

My vote is for the 223 with 50 grain bullets and a high quality scope in the 16 - 20X range with target turrets.

The Remington 700 Varmint 26" barrel with the aluminum bedding block stock would be my choice although there are plenty of fine alternatives. My scope would be the 20 X Leupold VX3. This is a pricey setup but you should be able to shoot to close 1/4" groups with properly tuned handloads with this set up.

I have two of these rifles that group around a 1/4" moa. Having a high quality stock is paramount. One of my Remington's came with the cheap plastic stock. It shot between .6 and .7 moa. I replaced the stock with a Bell and Carlson Medalist stock and the groups tightened to .23 to .27.

My reasons for the 223 are: very accurate, very long barrel life, easy to reload with readily available components, high quality factory ammo readily available if you don't reload, economical to reload.

Your choice of a scope will be just as important as the caliber/ rifle you choose.

 

[Gman]

I'm a dyed in the wool prairie dog shooter. My choice, and you need more than one gun, goes to the .223 and the 6BR. They will take 90% of the dog town. Of course then you need a .243 Ackley and a 17HMR along with a few pistols for the other 10%.

The 6BR in an 8 twist shooting 105 VMAX is hard to beat for the long shots and mine will handle 75 and 87 VMAX for the closer shots with more explosive results. I also have a 13 twist 6BR that will shoot the 75 and lighter VMAX bullets which are pretty good out to 600 yards.

The .243 Ackley with an 8 twist barrel shooting 105 VMAX at around 3000 fps works very well out to 1000 yards or more.

There is no Hornady 6mm 105 grain V-MAX. I believe that you meant A-MAX.

 

[squirrelduster]

I have a 6br after trying a 22-250 and a 222.
I am a little weird, I shoot a 75gr. VMAX out of an 8 twist Hart barrel. The effects are spectacular. I shoot ground squirrels that are less than half the size of P Dogs. If they are under 400 yards they are in serious trouble.
It is cheap to shoot and very accurate. It loads real easy and I can use a dillon progressive for high volume loading without much of an accuracy loss. Doesn't kick and everyone wants to try it out.
I built it for 105gr bullets but they were unavailable at the time so grabbed a box of the 75's and have never looked back. I have never shot the 105's. If you go with the 6br you can make it a little hot rod like mine or shoot the bigger bullets for better wind stability.

 

[mattri]

20 Practical all the way. Shoots flatter and faster than a .223, accuracy is amazing and they even buck the wind better than the 22s. All the components are based off of the 223 so its cheap and easy to load for.

 

[jraney]

tell us more about this .20 caliber monster. honestly i am a big fan of the .22-250 and the .223. but you got my attention. in my oppinion which really is not worth much i would go with the .223 simply becuase
i really just started reloading and have already gotten some decent results, chances are it was just luck. just my thoughts.