Baikal single shot in 223 - bullet weights? Availability?

[TheCoachZed]

Hi Folks,

I've thought about buying a Baikal single in 223 for a while, but hesitated in the past because of their 1-12 twist; I'd much prefer a 1-9 to stabilize heavier bullets (Federal Fusion's 62-grain load).

Does anyone else have any insight or experience with this gun and those loads?

Who even sells these anymore? I haven't seen one for sale in the EE for a while and not many people seem to be selling them online either.

 

[JamesM]

Regarding the 62 grain fusions they work very well in my 1-9" twist .223. Like you suspect they may not stabilize in a 1-12 twist rifle, but at the same time this may not always be true and you would have to try it to truly know for yourself. I have a target rig .22-250 that is a 1-12 twist and should not stabilize the 69 gr or 77 grain SMK bullets it shoots best with but it does, so it wouldn't hurt to try a box. My .223 loves them but that fusion bullet is not available for reloading so I am switching to 64 gr Winchester power points that shoot almost as good and I can reload for a fraction of the cost.

I assume from your question you are looking for a year round carry rifle for our provinces crazy game laws and would like to run a load in it that would be capable of whitetails just in case the opportunity presents itself. If so I highly recommend reloading, a .223 Lee loader and you're off to the races for under $50 add a scale if you want to make truly precision ammo. You also loose the need to stick with whatever the LGS's choose to bring in for .223 which in NB can be very limited at times.

 

[TheCoachZed]

You suppose very correctly. I do almost all my deer hunting with a shotgun thanks to the pile of deer in city limits, but I would like a rifle that I can use to shoot a deer with, should I choose to. I plan on buying another .308 or .30-06 in the future again specifically for deer, and again, I usually use my 12 gauge and I bought a crossbow last year, so I am not really intending to use it for deer - but I want to keep that possibility there, should need arise, so hence the desire for centrefire .22-caliber.

More importantly, I want the Baikal (also considered a Rossi) because they take down with no tools. I ride my motorcycle off-road a lot, and carrying a scoped bolt gun just doesn't work well (esp if the nervous locals call the RCMP because you strapped it across your back). I want a gun that can be discreetly disassembled and hauled to the back ridges around Welsford and used in there. Hence the Baikal.