204 ruger

MightyPotty

Regular
EE Expired
Rating - 100%
9   0   0
HI buddies!
I wish to have a rifle in 204 ruger for a while now. After reading several post I was wondering if it possible to make a custom rifle around 1k better then a tikka t3 ss varmint or a savage bvss ?


For reloaders, does it cost appx the same to reload 204 then 223 ?
Thank you!
 
I would be more worried about the cost of a barrel compared to the ammo. 204 is a barrel burner isn't it, how many rounds will a barrel take. Part of the reason I bought the .223.
 
Not a barrel burner..costs about the same as a 223 to reload, the 223 has more options for bullet weights.
 
I had a 204 that is currently being turned into a 223. I liked the 204 as a gopher gun and it worked ok as a close to medium range Coyote gun but they are defiantly not a target caliber. Like noneck says the world is your oyster with a tight twist 223. The 204 is more limited.

As far as cost for a semi custom towards a Tikka it depends how you do it. You could look for a good deal on a Savage and get a prefit barrel and use the factory stock for around a thousand bucks. Not really any major smith work involved in a Savage barrel swap. Any other rifle will cost you substantially more than a Tikka to get swapped over. Unless you already have a small bolt face rifle to use as a donor action.
 
I would have to disagree that the 204 could not be a target cal. as they are plenty scary accurate in a hunting rifle. But I do agree that they are designed for 30-40gr bullets and run out of poop after say 350-400 yards. I load for 4 of them and if you are looking for long range then something like the fast twist 223 would do it.

Or something like this....
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=591535&highlight=tikka
 
I would have to disagree that the 204 could not be a target cal. as they are plenty scary accurate in a hunting rifle. But I do agree that they are designed for 30-40gr bullets and run out of poop after say 350-400 yards. I load for 4 of them and if you are looking for long range then something like the fast twist 223 would do it.

Or something like this....
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=591535&highlight=tikka


You may not get the same result but my Tiika T3 in .222 was a 1/4 moa rifle if you fed it what it likes. Unfortunatly it wouldn't shoot bullets over 45 gr, but it loved sierra 40 gr hp and 35 gr V-Max. I think you'll find many on the forum will suggest a Savage or Remington in .223 with a 1 in 9" twist barrel and shoot it till you've squirrled away enough cash for a match tube. If you get a Savage a prefit barrel will save you some cash as it's simpler to fit.
 
I had a 204 that is currently being turned into a 223. I liked the 204 as a gopher gun and it worked ok as a close to medium range Coyote gun but they are defiantly not a target caliber. Like noneck says the world is your oyster with a tight twist 223. The 204 is more limited.

Not a target caliber? I suppose it depends on the definition. The .204 is definitely a reloader's cartridge, given the limited choices of factory ammunition available, and the typical 1 in 12 twist is not optimal imho. That said, a faster twist .20 cal (I shoot a 1 in 10 in .204) is a joy to shoot to short to medium range, and can be fantastically accurate.
 
Not a target caliber? I suppose it depends on the definition. The .204 is definitely a reloader's cartridge, given the limited choices of factory ammunition available, and the typical 1 in 12 twist is not optimal imho. That said, a faster twist .20 cal (I shoot a 1 in 10 in .204) is a joy to shoot to short to medium range, and can be fantastically accurate.

I don't disagree about their accuracy. My 204 shot fairly well actually. But accuracy is only half the battle. You need a bullet that is up to the task of making a long range flight. I found my options to be too limited in the 204 caliber. I was not a big fan of it out past the 300 yard mark and decided to build a 1-7 223 so I can push the high BC VLD's way further.
 
Does the 204 even stay sonic at 1k?

A .20 cal 40 gr Hornady Vmax gives up very little in speed to a .224 75 gr Hornady BTHP at 1,000 yd. Less than 25 fps in the difference. Both are just becoming transonic at around that distance.

I still advocate the bigger cartridges for target shooting at those kinds of ranges, obviously, but the .20 cal is plenty fun for shorter distances and folks using them seem to have little problems whacking p-dogs and chucks at 400-500 yd and sometimes beyond.
 
Back
Top Bottom