Agreed. I ran a 600 yard shoot out here, and a fellow GN'r was running a .204 Barrel on a TC Encore just for $hits and giggles. Aim at the moon...not so much, as 4200 fps at the gate is a real advantage, but I wasn't wasn't a laser either. Past 200-250 yards, he was subject to velocity shed and gravity like everybody else. His biggest battle was winddrift.
.223 v 22-250 v .204ruger
- Thread starter notyalc
- Start date
Sounds like the perfect gopher gun!
Reloader or just buying the stuff?
I usually recommend the .223, both for ready availability of loaded ammo, and for ease of reloading and choice of components.
The 22-250 has always seemed to me to be a bit of overkill, as far as the amount of powder burned to accomplish the same end game. I'd rather have one of the 6mm rounds, for longer ranges, and a .17 for fast if fast is all you want.
But you can make .204 or 17 Rem out of .223 brass, too, if you want to.
I don't really have a desire to own a .204. If it works for you, though...
Cheers
Trev
I usually recommend the .223, both for ready availability of loaded ammo, and for ease of reloading and choice of components.
The 22-250 has always seemed to me to be a bit of overkill, as far as the amount of powder burned to accomplish the same end game. I'd rather have one of the 6mm rounds, for longer ranges, and a .17 for fast if fast is all you want.
But you can make .204 or 17 Rem out of .223 brass, too, if you want to.
I don't really have a desire to own a .204. If it works for you, though...
Cheers
Trev
Uh, no.... you can't make .204 out of .223 brass.
The .204 is based on the 222rem mag.... not the 223.
There are other considerations against the 22-250 that have not been mentioned yet. The biggest issue with 22-250 in a high volume gopher field is heat. The barrel will heat up within 10-15 rounds.
Smaller cases like the .223 Rem can go many more rounds before the barrel overheats.
Something small like the 221 Fireball is even better cause it can be shot a lot before the barrel gets hot.
Spend any time in a gopher field in Southern Alberta and this will become painfully apparent. I started out with a 22-250 12 years ago. Then I went to a 243 to gain distance and reduce wind drift. Then, tired of constantly overheating barrels I went smaller, to a 6BR, then a .223 Rem and now a 221 Fireball.
With lightweight bullets, the 223 and 221 are not long range rifles but they blow the living crap out of gophers, are ridiculously fun to shoot and can be shot most of the day without burning the barrel. The 6BR with medium weight varmint bullets is my chouce for longer range shots.
Smaller cases like the .223 Rem can go many more rounds before the barrel overheats.
Something small like the 221 Fireball is even better cause it can be shot a lot before the barrel gets hot.
Spend any time in a gopher field in Southern Alberta and this will become painfully apparent. I started out with a 22-250 12 years ago. Then I went to a 243 to gain distance and reduce wind drift. Then, tired of constantly overheating barrels I went smaller, to a 6BR, then a .223 Rem and now a 221 Fireball.
With lightweight bullets, the 223 and 221 are not long range rifles but they blow the living crap out of gophers, are ridiculously fun to shoot and can be shot most of the day without burning the barrel. The 6BR with medium weight varmint bullets is my chouce for longer range shots.
I would throw the 20 VarTarg and 17 Rem Fireball (Mach IV) into the mix as well. They are also cheap to reload which is a plus. Hornady now has a new 53gr V-Max for the .223 with a BC of .290 which should prove to be interesting. Link
Hmmmm... my mistake then. Can't make .17 Remmy out of it either...Asleep at the keyboard again...
Merry Christmas!
Cheers
Trev
I just shot two coyotes with my XCR-L in 223 loaded with 40gr V-Max @3250 fps distances were only 135 yards and 40 yards but both were DRT...
I also shot a coyote @ 400+ yards today with my T/C Contender in 204 Ruger it ran a long way before it dropped going to reserve those long shots for my 22-250 or 6mm-284 from now on.
I also shot a coyote @ 400+ yards today with my T/C Contender in 204 Ruger it ran a long way before it dropped going to reserve those long shots for my 22-250 or 6mm-284 from now on.
C Broad Arrow
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Coyotes I prefer to use my 22-250 because of the size of the animal. Nosler 55 gn ballistic tip works well on coyotes but generally would be overkill on ground hogs. If I was using my 22-250 on ground hogs, I would want to use a lighter bullet or you just end up vaporizing them.
If it were just ground hogs, 223 would be my choice. Simply more economical and you dont end up vaporizing them.
For other smaller stuff, a 22LR and a box of ammo from Walmart seems to do the trick, especially if you have the kids along.
If it were just ground hogs, 223 would be my choice. Simply more economical and you dont end up vaporizing them.
For other smaller stuff, a 22LR and a box of ammo from Walmart seems to do the trick, especially if you have the kids along.
Is that info taken from IPodsnipe?
If you are going to reload your ammo I would go with the 221 Fireball.
I've shot the others, its my go to rifle for gophers and shoots paper great as well
This little round is extremely accurate and the gophers blow up just as well as the other larger calibers.
Other benefits:
200 yards or less is a given, will shoot out to 300 - 350 but if there is wind kill rate goes down big time. I suck shooting in wind
Less powder equals longer shooting sessions vs barrel cool down time.
You can see your hits all the time not just some of the time - less recoil.
As long as there are gophers I will be keeping my Fireball
I've shot the others, its my go to rifle for gophers and shoots paper great as well
This little round is extremely accurate and the gophers blow up just as well as the other larger calibers.
Other benefits:
200 yards or less is a given, will shoot out to 300 - 350 but if there is wind kill rate goes down big time. I suck shooting in wind
Less powder equals longer shooting sessions vs barrel cool down time.
You can see your hits all the time not just some of the time - less recoil.
As long as there are gophers I will be keeping my Fireball
Nope, Hornady data and online ballistic calculations from Handloads.com
(I don't usually use them but it was handy at the time.)
One other thing I've noticed in these threads:
People like to say .223 is cheaper than .204
I'll say for sure that .223 factory ammo CAN be more inexpensive than .204.
But when you compare GOOD factory 223 with equal quality 204, the difference is gone. (Unless you shop where they are gouging). Ditto with reloads. One could argue .204 reloads are marginally cheaper.
So really, the argument for the cheapness of .223 relates only to sub-par ammunition. Was Hornady 204 more in the 'early days'? Sure, but if your local store is still charging more you need to straighten them out.
Hornady lists 'standard varmint rounds' of .204 at ten cents a box cheaper than a comparable 223.
Rant off.
