Coyote Rifles
- Thread starter gregs5190
- Start date
what mod ruger. what do u consider long, & how will can u shoot it at 100? 223 will kill coyotes out to 400yd well. Shot placement is very important. Can u hit a dinner plate at your chosen range,as that is about what u have to shoot at. good luck AJ
A dinner plate accuracy is not good enough for coyotes, your vitals on a yote are closer to a dsssert palte and when the time comes to shoot your accuracy will not be at it's peak. I like to be able to shoot a skeet target at my chosen range before trying a Coyote.
My rifle of choice (and even if it was twice the price) is a Tikka T3 lite in 22-250. We have a caliber restriction here so it has to be sub .22, if there were no restrictions, I would consider a 24 or 25 cal.
- Location
- Saskatchewan
As mentioned in the above posts... there is a lot to consider... a little more info is required please....
but, if you're looking for something new.. try the 243. It destroys coyotes, its accurate at long ranges, and its available nearly everywhere ammo is sold.
but, if you're looking for something new.. try the 243. It destroys coyotes, its accurate at long ranges, and its available nearly everywhere ammo is sold.
Depending on the ammo used or home grown. It doesn't much matter where you hit the yote with a 22-250 or 6mm. An entance hole and no exit equals total destruction inside the rib cage.
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Almost all of these were running flat out but when the bullet is doing about 4000fps, it really doesn't matter. This was an exceptionally good day. THese were all shot while sitting in one spot over about a half hour period. I would give anything to have a video of that day.
Almost all of these were running flat out but when the bullet is doing about 4000fps, it really doesn't matter. This was an exceptionally good day. THese were all shot while sitting in one spot over about a half hour period. I would give anything to have a video of that day.
What's your style of hunting? A lightweight packable rifle might be more useful to you than a traditional long, heavy-barrelled varmint gun.
For fur, pick something between a 17 Fireball and a 22-250 in power. For simple population control, go with something a little messier - why not get some practice with your deer gun?
For fur, pick something between a 17 Fireball and a 22-250 in power. For simple population control, go with something a little messier - why not get some practice with your deer gun?
Here too... shoot a million if you like (although I don't get very many)
It's a mini 14 semi auto, and sometimes 350 is about as close as you can talk these fellas into coming, I'm currently using a mouth operated call (rabbit) but am considering an electronic, Really the whole thing is an excuse to prolong hunting season!!!
I have a buddy that pulls the hides so I have been using jacketed bullets and trying to get them as close as possible however they are getting wise and I will have to go away from this and go to something with expansion, maybe sacrificing some fur. Although like everyone else I want my cake and eat it too!!!
I try to call them and actually just use a 303 british for deer .The real problem I'm up against is the Regina gun show is coming up this weekend and Yorkton is on my days off in Feb. Just trying to justify a new toy!!!
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X 2 on the earlier suggestion of the Tikka T3 Lite in 22-250. Very good shooter, with a nice trigger. The mini 14 at 350 yds is kinda a guessing game. Try mixing up your calls and using better camo to get them in closer. Also, lack of movement on your part is VERY important in order to get them in close. Have fun with it, Eric.
Judging from the date the picture was taken, it wasn't that great a Valentines Day for yotes but I was about a 100yds out on the end of a bush being able to basicly cover a large area on both sides of the bush while my hunting partner came through, up wind, with the 10/22 scarying the hell out of everything in the bush. I was waiting, down wind, hunkered down in the snow with a box of bullets sitting beside me and a 10rnd mag hanging out of my Rem788 bolt gun. They started coming and I started shooting and when my buddy got to the end of the bush, they were scattered everywhere. I missed 2 though and shot one as it came out of the bush and stopped to get a look at what I was. The rest didn't want to stick around long enough to find out and were running flat out. This was actually a kull hunt following a number of new born calf kills. I was contracted to make that area yote free.
- Location
- New Brunswick
Sounds dangerous....especially for your buddy. I'm partial to the 17Rem for coyotes, fox, and bobcat. Calling in wooded terrain here in the east usually means close shots....which is what coyote calling is all about. Predators that suddenly appear at under 50yds is what I call "in the fun zone".
I really only have experience with .224 calibers and .172s. I am presently shooting a .17 wildcat that has better ballistics than a .22/.250. The .17 Rem shooting Hornady 25gr bullets is hard to beat for a fur harvesting round.
For a couple of seasons I shot a .22/.243 Middlestead with the Sierra 55gr bullet #1365 and the bullet will leave a small entry and exit but I could shoot said bullet at 4100 fps. I switched to a .220 Swift using 40gr Sierra hollow point bullets and was running them at insane speeds using VV-540 powder. There was little fur damage on well placed shots but I was finding that the coyotes were not dropping dead in their tracks. It was frustrating to shoot and watch a coyote run 50-75 yards and then expire but I was not getting any exits with the bullet. I retired the Swift barrel as it developed a loose spot halfway down the barrel for about 8 inches.
I think I tried nearly every bullet for .224s and either they expanded too fast and blew up on the surface or entered and exited with a big tear in the fur. The above two .224 bullets were the best I found.
I have been shooting a .17 wildcat for two seasons now and will not use anything else until my bullet source is depleted. This wildcat can run a 30gr Berger HPBT at 4200 fps, I found the best balance between fur friendly and trajectory at 4100 fps. Coyotes usually fall over dead and you really have to look hard to find the entry and there is no exit. I have also found these bullets to be really forgiving on less than ideal shots where a coyote is quartering away or running directly away.
I never bought into the .20 caliber craze but I would be cautious of the polymer tipped bullets unless they do not behave like their .224 brethren.
If you want a dedicated fur harvesting set-up I would look for a .17 Rem or something like a .220 Swift or .22/.250. I do know people who use a .223 and are happy shooting that but I prefer to have a little more reach for the times when everything does not go as planned.
Take the advice offered here. Make sure you are well camoed. Do not move while a coyote is looking at you. Make sure the coyote does not get down wind of you and try yo set-up so that you have good visibility all around especially down wind. Make sure your vehicle is not going to be seen by a coyote coming to your call.
I would stick to a mouth blown call, just get a few different ones.
Good luck.
For a couple of seasons I shot a .22/.243 Middlestead with the Sierra 55gr bullet #1365 and the bullet will leave a small entry and exit but I could shoot said bullet at 4100 fps. I switched to a .220 Swift using 40gr Sierra hollow point bullets and was running them at insane speeds using VV-540 powder. There was little fur damage on well placed shots but I was finding that the coyotes were not dropping dead in their tracks. It was frustrating to shoot and watch a coyote run 50-75 yards and then expire but I was not getting any exits with the bullet. I retired the Swift barrel as it developed a loose spot halfway down the barrel for about 8 inches.
I think I tried nearly every bullet for .224s and either they expanded too fast and blew up on the surface or entered and exited with a big tear in the fur. The above two .224 bullets were the best I found.
I have been shooting a .17 wildcat for two seasons now and will not use anything else until my bullet source is depleted. This wildcat can run a 30gr Berger HPBT at 4200 fps, I found the best balance between fur friendly and trajectory at 4100 fps. Coyotes usually fall over dead and you really have to look hard to find the entry and there is no exit. I have also found these bullets to be really forgiving on less than ideal shots where a coyote is quartering away or running directly away.
I never bought into the .20 caliber craze but I would be cautious of the polymer tipped bullets unless they do not behave like their .224 brethren.
If you want a dedicated fur harvesting set-up I would look for a .17 Rem or something like a .220 Swift or .22/.250. I do know people who use a .223 and are happy shooting that but I prefer to have a little more reach for the times when everything does not go as planned.
Take the advice offered here. Make sure you are well camoed. Do not move while a coyote is looking at you. Make sure the coyote does not get down wind of you and try yo set-up so that you have good visibility all around especially down wind. Make sure your vehicle is not going to be seen by a coyote coming to your call.
I would stick to a mouth blown call, just get a few different ones.
Good luck.
204 Ruger! 32 gr factory ammo is over 4200 fps. Excellent accuracy in most factory guns and deadly to 400 yards no problem. Using V-Max bullets, very small entry, no exit. No recoil, so you can watch the dog drop like a sack o' turd.
My new found love will be drilling them at a 1000yds plus with my 338LM AI.
The problem I've always had with light light bullets is wind drift and that bullet weighs 55gr. I can't imagine what a 32gr bullet would do when winds are full value.
A little trick I'd like to pass on to the reloaders out there: take a plastic tip bullet and heat the copper jacket up with a butain torch. The plastic tip will come crawling out of the top of the bullet and then you just grab it with a pair of needle nose pliers and pull the rest out. From a 55gr bullet, you'll drop 1gr but have a 3mm hole in the end. In the end, it won't matter if they're doing 4100fps; any yote over 150yds away will blow up on the inside and look ok on the outside. Remember, don't try this with a loaded bullet. I'd imagine things might get interesting.
The problem I've always had with light light bullets is wind drift and that bullet weighs 55gr. I can't imagine what a 32gr bullet would do when winds are full value.
A little trick I'd like to pass on to the reloaders out there: take a plastic tip bullet and heat the copper jacket up with a butain torch. The plastic tip will come crawling out of the top of the bullet and then you just grab it with a pair of needle nose pliers and pull the rest out. From a 55gr bullet, you'll drop 1gr but have a 3mm hole in the end. In the end, it won't matter if they're doing 4100fps; any yote over 150yds away will blow up on the inside and look ok on the outside. Remember, don't try this with a loaded bullet. I'd imagine things might get interesting.
