i want to buy a varmint gun and was wondering what is a good cal. 223?, 22-250?, 243?, ect.?

Answer 1

Don't forget the .17 hmr, great for up to coyote size animals, low cost of ammo compared to a centerfire and incredible accuracy. My new Savage (had to get a brag in about it!) is shooting dime size groups at 50 yards out of the box. No trigger work or anything else, just boresighted and shot. Not too shabby!! It's accurate out to 200 yards and at 200 yards it still has the same velocity of a 22 lr at the barrel. However if that isn't enough for you I would go with the .223, that's generally considered the premier varmint round. A couple of good articles by Chuck Hawks with more info are below. Good luck with whatever you decide on.

Answer 2

This depends on what you want to do and how fast you want to do it. I own a 223 220 Swift and a 308. All of which get used for varmint hunting. While My 223 will kill a ground hog at 300 yards easy my 308 will get them way out there.

If you are wanting to do some high volume shooting like P Dogs. then I would go with the 223 or a 222 (If you reload).

If you want a fast very explosive reaction go with the 22-250 or 220 Swift.

The 243 is a great varmint round with the new 55gr 6mm bullets. You can shoot yotes with it as well.

If you are going to cheap ammo prices then by all means go for that 223. You will not get any cheaper than the 223 for factory ammo.

Ground hog shooting is a slow action sport. one shot then wait for a long time then shoot again. The same goes for coyote hunting.

PDogs are there as fast as you can shoot them. I know guys that take 7guns and 21000 rounds of ammo for a 5 day pdoggin trip.

Jacks, digger squirrels, sage rats can be high volume if you get a good place.

There are many different rounds out there for varmint hunting. It all depends on what you want to do and how much you want to spend. I have a Remington 700VLS in 223 that wears a Leupold VX-II 6-18x40mm scope has a Timney Trigger set to .5# pull weight a harris bipod super sling and a aftermarket light firing pin to reduce lock times. That is a low budget gun for many of the guys I know. Some spend well over $3000 for a varmint rifle and at least that much on a scope.

Answer 3

I do a lot of prairie dog varmint shooting. I use my Ruger 10/22 for shots out to about 100 yards. I use my AR-15 flat top out to about 250 yards. Finally, I use the 22-250 Savage I bought recently for anything beyond 250 yards that I want to try. I've never considered the 243 for varmint shooting. My former wife used hers for deer. Her old Remington Mohawk was a real venison getter.

If I was to limit myself to one varmint caliber, I suppose I'd stick with the .223 although I would get something besides the AR-15. The AR is an accurate enough gun but it's not really a varmint rifle. Most .223 rifles are reasonably priced, ammunition is plentiful and inexpensive.

My 22-250 is capable of better long range performance than the .223 but, even though my scope zooms to 16 power, my old eyes can't take full advantage of the capability. I expect to miss about half the shots I take beyond 300 yards.

Answer 4

it really depends on the intended purpose ,if your going to be shooting parie dogs all day then the 223 is the way to go out to say 300 yrds and as you get experiencs 400 to 450.if your shooting coyotes then the 250 or 243 is a better choice because of extra knock down .but the 223 is fine for this too but at shorter ranges .if your wanting to sale the hides of the coyotes then i'd go with the 250 or 223 less pelt damage.but then again the 243 is a fine deer round ,and not just for kids or woman so ut could be a dual purpose gun.I own all three and 90% of the time when i go varment hunting i take my 223 .its a very accurate round ammo is chaper than the other three and the low recoil makes it a absolute pleasure to shoot .if I could have only one it would probly be the 223 ,simply because of the above reasons

Answer 5

All three are excellent varmint calibers with the .22-250 & .243 giving you the most range. Only the .243 can reliably double as a deer gun as this is the smallest legal caliber in some States and of the three the only one that can consistently and humanely take deer. It shoots a .24 caliber bullet rather than a .22 and is therefore less likely to be deflected by heavy bone, muscle & tissue and less likely to result in a 'surface blowout.' If you hunt deer with a .243 use the heaviest bullet you can find, preferably a 100 grainer.

Best.

H

Answer 6

Are you considering a purpose-built, heavy-barrel varmint rig, or a sporter in a varmint calibre? For the former I would definitely go .22-250 to maximise the potential of both gun and cartridge, whereas in the latter I would opt for .223 so as to double as a plinker and small-game hunter.
No-one has mentioned the .25-06? Loud, yes, but the 87 / 90 grain loads will get them WAY out there, and the typical sporter in this calibre is extremely accurate.

Answer 7

It depends on what you're planning to do with it. It's a shame people think of 243 as a deer rifle, especially for kids, which is not its forte. If you're taking long shots in windy conditions, it'll buck wind better than any 22.
22-250 is a bit hotter than 223, but this last, when the military isn't shooting them all up, has military surplus available, assuming the rifle's action is a strong one and the leade is long enough to allow it to shoot them safely, but that's a lot of "if's" and may not be at all important to you. Heck, there's nothing wrong with the old triple-deuce if you run across one.

Answer 8

The .17 is an excellent round for close range varmit popping. I'm not a great shot, but can regulalrly hit goose sized targets at 170-200 yards with my Marlin Bolt Action Bull Barrel .in .17 HMR. The only caveat to this is wind, that light bullet will get knocked of course with a light to medium breeze.

My new favorite is the Ruger .204. Here is some of the Balistic info on it:

"Hornady factory ballistics for the 32 grain bullet in the .204 Ruger claim a MV of 4225 fps and muzzle energy (ME) of 1308 ft. lbs. from a 24" test barrel. The velocity and energy figures down range are 3583 fps and 941 ft. lbs. at 100 yards, 3025 fps and 671 ft. lbs. at 200 yards, and 2531 fps and 469 ft. lbs. at 300 yards."

This is the fastest factory loaded cartridge ever introduced according to the info that I've read. The .204 powder also burns faster than other varmint rounds, so the barrel can be a bit shorter. I have a NEA Handi-Rifle with a Game-Seeker scope on it. The shortness of this rifle makes it easier to slip in and out of my truck window for sniping. I am consistently accurate with this weapon at 300-350 yards on Cormorants (yes I have a permit).

I also have talked to some prarie dog shooters that use tricked out .223's. My understanding is that they are great long range guns, but you'll have to spend $$$$ to get one set up for accurate long range shooting.

The nice thing about a .223 and the .17 hmr is that comparatively speakng the ammo is a great deal more affordable than some of the other calibers you mentioned.

Answer 9

.223 is OK, .243 is a but much. The .243 is a youth/womans deer rifle. If your hunting squirrls and such a .22 is fine but if your going after coons or possums then a Ruger semi-automatic Ranch Rifle Mini 14/5 in .223 is perfect.

Answer 10

.22-.250 is the way to go. Ballistics wise, if I remember correctly, it is superior in almost every way. It is an extremely accurate cartridge. The only thing in its class that's faster is the .220 Swift.