Newb needs help! Varmint Rifle Options??

Mike7

Mike7

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Hey Guys,

I need some help getting pointed in the right direction. I recently got my hunting licence and need some help picking a varmint rifle. Other than the Remington 700 I'm lost when it comes to hunting rifles. I'm looking for a rifle mainly for coyotes and gophers, possibly rabbits or other small game. Other than the .223 Rem I'm lost on caliber options but due to laws in the area I have to stay under .270

I have a few prefrences,
Stainless Steel is a must
Short barrel, possibly around 20"
Synthetic stock
Easy to get replacement parts if broken or damaged

Budget is obviously a concern but I rather buy quality once than crap twice. Any advice or recommendations would be hugely helpful. And if I'm way out in left field with my prefrences please let me know.

Thanks in advance!
 
Varmint rifles tend to have longer heavy barrels (26") is quite normal...tactical rifles (law enforcement) tend to have short heavy barrels (20") but normally are not stainless.
Have a look at a Savage Model 12 VLP or BVSS...if you plan to perhaps use the rifle for deer hunting at some point as well as varmint hunting I would suggest .243 winchester or larger, if it's going to be just varmints and target then .223 is a great choice.
enjoy!
 
look for a 260 Rem or 7mm-08. I have a Sako A7 and love it! One of my son's has a Tikka T3, he loves it! Another son has an M77 S/S, he loves it! You're on the right track, buy quality, buy it once! Good luck.
 
hawk-i said:
Varmint rifles tend to have longer heavy barrels (26") is quite normal...tactical rifles (law enforcement) tend to have short heavy barrels (20") but normally are not stainless.
Have a look at a Savage Model 12 VLP or BVSS...if you plan to perhaps use the rifle for deer hunting at some point as well as varmint hunting I would suggest .243 winchester or larger, if it's going to be just varmints and target then .223 is a great choice.
enjoy!
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So .243 win works well on deer? That might be a good choice. I haven't really thought that far ahead but I do eventually want to get into deer, just baby stepping now. Getting an all around rifle might be the best option. I'll check out the savage website tonight!
 
I would go for a Tikka T3 Varmint stainless in anything from 223 up to 260 or 6.5x55 swede. Although, if you only be going after gophers/rabbits/coyotes and nothing bigger then I would stick with 223 or 22-250. They might even have a T3 Varmint in 204ruger, not sure.
 
two-dogs said:
look for a 260 Rem or 7mm-08. I have a Sako A7 and love it! One of my son's has a Tikka T3, he loves it! Another son has an M77 S/S, he loves it! You're on the right track, buy quality, buy it once! Good luck.
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I have heard great things about Tikka, I'll check them out.

Are these calibers fairly common and have good selection of ammunition?

Again, I really need to be schooled, I'm coming from a black rifle background and really only know about .223 and .308
 
If you know about .223 than stay there. It is a great round for varmints and predators and you can pruchase the ammunition anywhere. As far as parts, etc. it's hard to beat a M700 for availability. Savage makes a very accurate rifle as well that is not hard to find parts for. The .243 or anything bigger will also work, but you may have trouble finding the remains of your target unless you are good at finding pink mist!
 
Mike7 said:
So .243 win works well on deer? That might be a good choice. I haven't really thought that far ahead but I do eventually want to get into deer, just baby stepping now. Getting an all around rifle might be the best option. I'll check out the savage website tonight!
Click to expand...

Yes, the .243 (as well as the 6mm rem) are a great deer hunting rounds and also a great round for varmints and coyotes. Don't discount what others have said as the Tikka HB Varmint rifle would also be a excellent rifle and it is offered in lots of caliber choices.
enjoy!
 
Mike7 said:
I have heard great things about Tikka, I'll check them out.

Are these calibers fairly common and have good selection of ammunition?

Again, I really need to be schooled, I'm coming from a black rifle background and really only know about .223 and .308
Click to expand...

Your original post says, "mainly for coyotes and gophers, possibly rabbits or other small game". If that is the case, then the .223 in any of several bolt action rifles is the logical choice. If you intend to get other rifles in the future, you can get something more suitable for bigger game at that time, and then you will have two well suited rifles for your purposes. The general purpose rounds work fine if you want only general purpose guns. You asked about "Varmint Rifle Options". If you were serious, anything bigger than a .243 is general purpose, not "varmint purpose".

Are you going to own more than one, or not?
 
rral22 said:
Your original post says, "mainly for coyotes and gophers, possibly rabbits or other small game". If that is the case, then the .223 in any of several bolt action rifles is the logical choice. If you intend to get other rifles in the future, you can get something more suitable for bigger game at that time, and then you will have two well suited rifles for your purposes. The general purpose rounds work fine if you want only general purpose guns. You asked about "Varmint Rifle Options". If you were serious, anything bigger than a .243 is general purpose, not "varmint purpose".

Are you going to own more than one, or not?
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I'll definitely have more than one, the collection is getting big as it is but I was thinking if there is such a thing as an all around rifle I might as well try it as I'm not really in a position to buy two at the moment. But on the same token, main intrest is in varmints, great options here and I'll probably stick with a .223 and expand to bigger calibers for bigger game. Thanks for the advice.

I've seen some nice purpose built varmint rifles with the 26" heavy barrel's, big stocks etc. while researching but is there such a thing as a small light weight dedicated varmint rifle? Chances are I'll be huffing this thing for a few kilometers and don't really want it to weigh 12 pounds.
 
I'm in the same boat, I think i'm going to go with a .223 bolt action rifle for the varmints. My goal is to have two rifles like someone previous posted, one for smaller game and one for the rest.

I have a Lee Enfield rifle in .303 British which I plan to use for bigger game (deer, elk and maybe eventually moose) and I was curious if this is a big enough round for that (would have to be factory as I don't reload...yet). I know it will be good for deer, but I really don't want to buy another rifle if I want to do something bigger like moose or maybe bear.

Not my intention to hijack the thread, just a question I hoped could be answered without having to start my own thread. I'll buy you a beer if it bugs you Mike :)
 
I was kind of in the same position you are awhile back. I decided not to do the one rifle for everything, so I got a 17hmr, 223 and a 270. For what i need these cover it all.
 
There is a large distinction between a coyote rifle and a gopher rifle. If you're going to be shooting gophers you want something that's got a much heavier and longer barrel so you can shoot longer before heating up. You would also probably want to go with something like a .204 as it shoots insanely flat, is super cheap to reload (less powder), and you'll probably get longer barrel life out of it for that reason. Generally you don't shoot gophers in the rain or the snow so stainless is not that crucial (although I totally see where you're coming from). In this case, I'm sure you'd really enjoy a cz 527 varmint as they have the set trigger which makes taking those long shots a real dream. If you're going to be primarily hunting coyotes you might want to go with something a little lighter (and definitely stainless as you'll end up hunting in all conditions). Here I believe a Savage 16 weather warrior FCSS is about as good as it gets in terms of "bang for your buck". It is less than 7lbs, completely stainless, 22" barrel, accutrigger, and accustock. And comes in just over $700. A nice feature of the .204 is that it will burn up its powder in a 22" barrel with ease, so velocity loss over a 24" to 26" will be pretty negligible.

I could talk about this for hours so I'm just going to stop now. All this is assuming that by "hunting coyotes" you mean walking/snowshoeing many km in a day like I do, opposed to stopping your truck when you see one and taking a shot. I guess I didn't really give you an answer of a good middle ground gun, but hopefully you've got some things to think about you hadn't before.

Message me if you want to hear me ramble some more.

Cheers
 
JRodko said:
There is a large distinction between a coyote rifle and a gopher rifle. If you're going to be shooting gophers you want something that's got a much heavier and longer barrel so you can shoot longer before heating up. You would also probably want to go with something like a .204 as it shoots insanely flat, is super cheap to reload (less powder), and you'll probably get longer barrel life out of it for that reason. Generally you don't shoot gophers in the rain or the snow so stainless is not that crucial (although I totally see where you're coming from). In this case, I'm sure you'd really enjoy a cz 527 varmint as they have the set trigger which makes taking those long shots a real dream. If you're going to be primarily hunting coyotes you might want to go with something a little lighter (and definitely stainless as you'll end up hunting in all conditions). Here I believe a Savage 16 weather warrior FCSS is about as good as it gets in terms of "bang for your buck". It is less than 7lbs, completely stainless, 22" barrel, accutrigger, and accustock. And comes in just over $700. A nice feature of the .204 is that it will burn up its powder in a 22" barrel with ease, so velocity loss over a 24" to 26" will be pretty negligible.

I could talk about this for hours so I'm just going to stop now. All this is assuming that by "hunting coyotes" you mean walking/snowshoeing many km in a day like I do, opposed to stopping your truck when you see one and taking a shot. I guess I didn't really give you an answer of a good middle ground gun, but hopefully you've got some things to think about you hadn't before.

Message me if you want to hear me ramble some more.

Cheers
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No thats great, thanks. I haven't even considered the CZ's yet but I was checking out that exact savage yesterday online, seems like it might have everything I need. You're right, it's mainly for coyotes with the possibility of doubling for gophers but not a necessity. Lightweight and durable are key as I'll no doubt be walking forever and exposed to all weather.

Cheers
 
gerard488 said:
Sorry, Should have said Savage Model 10 precision carbine, 20 inch heavy barrel in .223
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Somebody say Precision 10 Carbine? :)

PC10onabaleofhay.jpg


I was in exactly the same position as you were a couple of years ago Mike7 (minus the stainless consideration...don't need it). Wanted it for varmints, good selection of ammo available for it, not overly long, decent quality, reputation for accuracy, etc. etc. etc. I ended-up with a new Savage Precision 10 Carbine in 223 and LOVE it. It wears a Vortex Viper HS 4-16x44 with a BDC reticle, love that too. It isn't a light rifle (the Savage Accustock contributes to that) but I'm a big guy~no big issue there. It is exceedingly accurate when I do my part, and it has inspired me to start re-loading..which has proven to be a great deal of fun too. It is an MOA rifle out of the box (mine is) using Hornady 55gr. V-Max, and they absolutely destroy groundhogs if your bullet finds bone. The lack of high-grade Turkish walnut doesn't bother me when I'm crossing electric cattle fences, belly crawling through cow patties to get into shooting position on a big groundhog...that sort of thing. :)

If this rifle was around at the same time, there is a good chance I'd have opted to save a couple hundred dollars and get it instead; http://www.savagearms.com/firearms/model/11HOGHUNTER Pretty sure the "hog" in "Hog Hunter" isn't a groundhog. :) ON that note, you mentioned gophers. Unless you're planning on taking your rifle west, it's probably groundhogs you're referring to. They're great quarry for a .223. A big gopher is about the size of a squirrel in Ontario and as a result...is vaporized by most centerfire options. Rabbits here wouldn't fare much better here getting spanked by a .223. You'd be better off with a .22WMR (rimfire) if you needed a rifle to do both. Granted, that gun would limit your reach on groundhogs. I hunted an entire season with .22WMR and as long as you were within 100 yards, it was a bang/flop/dead scenario. 223 is WAY more fun on those. :)
 
I'm not sure if this thread is helping or hurting the OP... Too many options create confusion. If you (OP) are certain that your quarry is only coyote and down sized game, then a 1:9 or lower teist .223 is a great way to go... Good ballistics and inexpensive to shoot. If you "might" move up to deer sized game and still want only one rifle, then consider, .243, .260, 6.5x55, or similar... Any of these and others in their class will work fine... Guns I would recommend are the Rem 700, Savage 10/11/12, Tikka T3, or Weatherby Vanguard... They will all work fine. Just buy one and get shooting! Have fun.
 
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