.223 and Gophers

KDX

KDX

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I have a Savage on the way with a 1-9 twist barrel and was wondering what a good bullet for gophers would be. I was thinking of trying some 40gr VMax bullets if I could find them. I presently only have the 52gr HPBT Match at home. I'm looking for something that will give me a good show on contact, but it needs to be accurate also.
 
V-Max

I love the effect that V-Max bullets have in my .204 and accurate to boot. Sierra Blitz kings are some other highly frangible bullets that work great on gophers. i have had better luck with the nylon tipped bullets over hollow point bullets on gophers

Depending on the range you plan to shoot at the lighter faster bullets will have a slightly more "explosive" result. But if you go out to longer ranges the higher BC of heavier bullets is an accuracy advantage.

Check video in my signature to see a V-Max at work.:D
 
surfclod said:
I love the effect that V-Max bullets have in my .204 and accurate to boot. Sierra Blitz kings are some other highly frangible bullets that work great on gophers. i have had better luck with the nylon tipped bullets over hollow point bullets on gophers

Depending on the range you plan to shoot at the lighter faster bullets will have a slightly more "explosive" result. But if you go out to longer ranges the higher BC of heavier bullets is an accuracy advantage.

Check video in my signature to see a V-Max at work.:D
Click to expand...

Always a pleasure to see #### hawks fly.....
 
surfclod said:
I love the effect that V-Max bullets have in my .204 and accurate to boot. Sierra Blitz kings are some other highly frangible bullets that work great on gophers. i have had better luck with the nylon tipped bullets over hollow point bullets on gophers

Depending on the range you plan to shoot at the lighter faster bullets will have a slightly more "explosive" result. But if you go out to longer ranges the higher BC of heavier bullets is an accuracy advantage.

Check video in my signature to see a V-Max at work.:D
Click to expand...

That's hilarious. I've shown it to a few guys at work and they loved it. Would the 55gr VMax make more of a mess than the 40gr? I don't think I will shoot beyond 200-300 yards.
 
The bullet I have found to be very accurate and not a match bullet is nosler 55gr Balistic tip. my pet varmint load is lots of Varget and the 55gr nosler at just over 3400fps
With no wind just over the inch at 300 yards and is thunder on groundhogs
 
You are shooting a 1 in 9" twist barrel....and you guys get great results from bullets that light (50gr)? I shoot 40gr Vmaxs out of my 1 in 12" and get fantastic results. I saw a guy using 40gr out of a 1 in 9" Remington and was keyholing the target at 50 yrds. When he moved up to 75gr bullets it was a frikkin tack driver.
 
KDX said:
That's hilarious. I've shown it to a few guys at work and they loved it. Would the 55gr VMax make more of a mess than the 40gr? I don't think I will shoot beyond 200-300 yards.
Click to expand...

With the 55 grain vmax bullets form my 223 loaded over H335 I can hit golf ball sized pieces of broken clays at 300 metres all day.
 
FYI my 1:9 savage's seem to like 60-68 grain bullets best.

Lighter ones : less than 55 grains really seem to spread out beyond 100 yards.

I have a LRPV that does best with a 60g V-Max and a 10FLP that shows promise with 68g hp. Both rifles are .223 with 1:9 twist barrels.
 
Thanks for all the replys. I've got a few boxes of the 52gr HPBT loaded with 25.5gr of BenchMark that I'll use up and see if that is any good. It was a load I used in my Tikka and was almost identical to a load I used in a 10FP a few years ago. I'll probably buy a box of 40gr V-Max and a box of 55gr V-Max and try some load development with the BenchMark I have sitting here. It seems to be a pretty good powder for the .223 cal. What is H335 powder like? Does it burn pretty clean?
 
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X3 on the Hornady 50 or 55 gr SPSX. These are less money than most bullets but are definitely one of the most destructive on gopher sized critters. My smallest ever 5 shot group came with them as well.
 
No I have to disagree with all of you, sorry.
The very BEST gopher bullet to use since we're in the reloading section are the Barnes varmint grenades. Google that one and see the results. They are called grenades for reasons.
My buddy had some out at the end of last season in his .223 and I have never seen anything like it. They absolutely exploded when hit at any distance-- it was fantastic.
 
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