Coyote rifle

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I'm contemplating putting together a dedicated coyote/varmint rifle and am hung up on caliber selection. So I thought I would put it to those with more experience with these critters than I have. I am looking to get them at anywhere from 100-250 yards and I really don't want to tear them apart so I am stuck on .223, .22-250, .222 swift kind of all the .22 variants. I considered a .243 but don't really want a "deer gun". What do you all think
 
Either of the cartridges you mention will do the job just fine. (I expect you intended to differentiate between .222 and .220 Swift?) There are a few others too. The more powerful choices like .22-250, .220, .243 etc can be pretty destructive, depending on bullet choice and where it hits, but otherwise any of these are good options. If you don't reload, then you might want to consider things like ammo price, availability, and of course, your specific rifle choice too and whether its available in the chambering you want.
 
If the shots are going to be under 250 yards, it would be hard to go wrong with a .223. The more powerful rounds certainly aren't needed at that distance, and would tend to do more damage than the .222 / .223 class of cartridges. A .204 Ruger might be worth a look too.
 
Seeing as I have been awake since 9 am yesterday the .204 slipped my mind. I know whatever I get will be on a bolt action platform. Kind of leaning toward a Savage but not sure yet.
 
243 a deer gun ? I've seen deer taken with a 22-250 too. The 243 is a in between gun which can allow a shooter to go either way with what ever he wants to hunt in game. 24 cal bullet is not much bigger then a 22 cal . I shot a ton of yotes with it this past season and never seen destruction in hides that bad at all if you shoot the right ammo. Its not the calibre your shooting its the ammo that changes the way it hits.

Al though I'm not high on the light calibres they all will do a good job at the 100-200 range. Don't over look the 243 its one of the best depending on what you want out of your money...
 
Al though I'm not high on the light calibres they all will do a good job at the 100-200 range. Don't over look the 243 its one of the best depending on what you want out of your money...[/QUOTE]


I will go with Adrian on this one I use the .243 and 6MM Rem. pick good bullets lots of times just one small hole going in and you will also be happy if the wind picks up.

Cheers Bill
 
Have you looked at the new winchester rime-fire .17 winchester super magnum? Might be an interesting option in the new Savage B-Mag rifle built for it.

I just bought a CZ 527 LUX in .222 and it is a joy to shoot. Having confidence in your coyote rifle is a big plus and I have confidence I will be knocking off some coyotes and fox next Nov. with this rifle.
 
For dedicated varmint, and especially if I didn't reload, 22-250 all they way. Freakin laser! And my first scope views of pink mist! lol Never should have sold mine.

But I agree with the 243 comments, currently reloading 65 grain Hornady's. Great on paper but yet to drop a yote with one.
 
So now to clarify. I referred to the .243 as a deer gun because here in AB it is the smallest legal caliber for "big game" not that deer are overly large. The biggest part of tre reason that I neglected .243 out of hand is that it is locked in as the hunting rifle build for my girlfriend. I don't want to get my coyote rig all set up and then have her grab the wrong rifle come deer season so I will go with the smaller cal rifle.
 
For my first coyote rifle I bought a stevens 200 in 223 because I dont reload yet and they were the cheapest round to buy at 11.99 for 20. The furthest yote I got this year was out to 320yds and it did a back flip and died on the spot. Kind of funny to watch. But I found some yotes just like to hang out around the 500+ yd mark and dont want to come any closer, not that the 223 wont reach out that far Im looking at picking up a 243, 257 or something like the 25-06 for that extra omph.
 
I have two ... both Remington 700's. My "walking" gun is the "Mountain" version in .257 Roberts with a VX-II in 2x-7x.
My "Stand" gun is a heavy barreled VLS in .223 with a VX-II in 6x-18x. Both work just fine out to 300+ , and the .257
even with 100 gr. BT's does not tear-up a lot of hide.
 
I did discard the .243 out of hand, but after running the ballistics it is now the primary choice. As an added benefit if I happen to see a wolf it can be used on that as well. The coyotes hide retention is a non issue to me the coyotes are pests at calving season.
 
Scott_N said:
If the shots are going to be under 250 yards, it would be hard to go wrong with a .223. The more powerful rounds certainly aren't needed at that distance, and would tend to do more damage than the .222 / .223 class of cartridges. A .204 Ruger might be worth a look too.
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Ya, a .223 rem would be my choice too. Lots of bullet selections too.
 
brybenn said:
I use a 2506. It works well. 75gr vmax at 3550fps. 17 rem or even the 22 k hornet will work in close
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I looked at the ballistics and energy of the 2506 and kinda thought that those heavy bullets would turn the coyote inside out. No denying though they would definitely get the job done
 
"....222 Swift..." .220 Swift. Hard to find rifles and ammo for it these days. Well known as a barrel burner too.
"...experience with these critters..." It doesn't take a lot of cartridge to kill 'em with one shot. You planning on hide hunting? You reloading?
"...her grab the wrong rifle..." Run!!! I'm tellin' her you think she's dumb. snicker.
 
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