Gopher gun advice

bluesclues

bluesclues

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I am requesting the advice of the CGN community....

I want to purchase a dedicated gopher rifle.

Here are some of my requirements:
-$1200 or less (I have a $1000 set aside for it now)
-preferably semi auto
-.223 rem

I am open to suggestions, the semi auto is not a must.
thanks for your input.
 
I think you would be better off with a heavy barrel bolt action for a dedicated gopher rifle. There are several on the market available for less than $1000. Good quality scopes are a must too in my opinion.
 
a bolt in 223 talk to some of the guy in percision forum. A long range accurate rifle with 1 shot 1 red mist capability outways a fast second shot. just my 2 cents. If you need an auto loader try the new Ruger target mini. Have heard some good remarks although I havent tried one. AJ
 
I have a Tikka T3 lite in .223 which is a bolt action. .. . very accurate, synthetic stock, detachable mag. Great for the job. I also have Ruger mini 14, also .223 but semi auto. It is not as accurate but handy if you miss the first shot. They both just happen to be for sale and both will go for under $650
 
Gopher gun

Being a gopher fanatic, I would recommend staying away from the semi and go with a bolt with a heavy barrel. If you like the feel of a savage, I would try one of theirs, which will give you some money to still put on a decent scope.
 
thanks for the input, right now I am still considering my options. But, a nice .223 bolt gun just may be the way to go.

any and all suggestions are welcome, I am off to check the precision forum.
 
Gophers being small targets, I have found it to be a benefit to have really good optics. I would suggest you budget more for the scope than the rifle,
You can't hit what you can't see.
Guy
 
I grew up 50 miles east of Calgary shooting gophers starting when I was 4 years old. The .22 LR was used for many, many years. Then I got the desire for longer range gophers and I made a 17-222 back in 1966. I had to make my bullets back then too.

When the 17 Remington came out I switched over to it and used Hornady 25 grain bullets with great success.

The finest gopher gun I ever had was built on a small Sako action. I used a heavy stainless Shilen barrel chambered for .17 Remington Ackey Improved with 10 power scope with a 1/4 inch dot. Accuracy was in the .300's and .400's consistently.

Nothing finer out to 250 yards. Low recoil, low noise extremely flat trajectory. Lots of red mist!

If you don't plan on shooting much past 250 yards I would highly recommend the .17 Remington... and a good bolt action. Accuracy is important and you won't get it from a semi.
 
Savage 12 VLP

I picked up a Savage 12 VLP in .223 - heavy stainless/laminate - and love it.

I like how i can put 5 rounds of 55gr American Eagle into the same ragged hole at 100yds. It might even like expensive ammo - I've never had the urge to graduate past UMC yet. :)
 
Gopher Gun

Hi we shoot a LOT of gophers every year and will be ramping up for a great 2008.
We use 22LR as the centerfires heat up way too quick.
Now before anyone jumps on my head I own a 22-250, 17 Rem, 2-22 Hornets,
22 Mag.
We can go through 500-1000 rounds in a day and no centerfire can do that without melting down in 90+ air temps.
I use a 10/22 with some mods and a few bolts actions. We have settled on American Eagle HP’s as this is the round our rifles group best with also very economical to shoot.
The centerfires all shoot a few but the serious work is 22LR and you would be simply amassed at just how far you can hit the critters with one.
Scopes are 6 x 18 or 24 and all the best you can afford Ziess is not out of the question. This is where the money should be spent.
 
.204 bolt gun. Remington XR-100, Remington VS models would probably be my recommendation. Sako, Kimber etc and the others mentioned also make good rifles. There are a lot of Savage fans as well. I prefer the fit/finish on the other ones compared to the Savage but that's just personal preference.

The XR-100 already has an adjustable trigger down to 1.5 pounds, strong single shot action, free floated bull barrel and laminate thumb hole stock. It's a good package if you aren't worried about it being a single shot.

The Remington VS models have the new trigger (or buy one second hand and get a trigger job) which might need a bit of lightening but is very usable right out of the box. Free floated bull barrel, synthetic (HS precision) stock, and aren't single shot.

Whatever you do, get good glass. At the very minimum Elite 4200. If you can go up to Leupold, or Zeiss then even better.
 
gopher gun

Have a very serious lookat the 204 Ruger, V-max bullets result in little or no richoche (sp), no recoil, easy to see hits, easy to reload for. Also, in a bolt gun. Mt 2cents
 
I was using my Rem 700P 223 for my dedicated gopher gun until I puchased a Marlin 917 in 17HMR...

I shot hundreds of gophers this year with the 17HMR and can't remember squeezing the trigger of the 223 on even one gopher.

I was making hits/kills on windy days out to 200 yards...

In my opinion the best gopher cartridge to come along is the 17HMR... :D

Before you jump into the gopher 223 hunting rifle crowd I would consider the 17HMR...
 
I am with Camp Cook on this one

I converted my Ruger 10/22 over to 17 Mach 2 with heavy barrel and it was great for gophers. The HMR would even be better. I need to find a semi in HMR but I think Ruger has stopped making them.
 
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