what's your favorite varmint rifle?

How do you spell this..........

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rugged303

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I'm looking into varmint hunting in my area and am thinking about
a 243 Winchester. Last night, reading over a 1979 speer
reloading manual, they stated that the 243 isn't affected by wind
like the rest. And I'm not gonna shoot real long range to need
a 22-250 or 25-06. Any one shoot anything with 204 ruger?
It's brand new here in the states, this year in fact. Comparing
the 204 with 222 Remington Mag, the 204 is a little taller but the 222 is wider. Looks like the 243 out performs the 204 in energy,
according to hornadys ballistic tables. The 243, with a 58 grn. bullet, at 500 yards, the 243 has twice the amount of energy. The 204 has a 38 grain bullet. The energy at the muzzle is twice the amount than 204.
The velocity is the same, 243's 50fps more difference.

I guess my question is will these differences confuse the varmint? :lol:
 
.243 is the ultimate varmint gun. More versatile than the .22cals.
55g bullets are explosive and recoil is the same as a 22/250, which is non-existant. Load 75 and up for the tougher varmints.... yotes, armadillos, etc..... :wink:
 
Go with the .243. It'll give you, with suitable bullets, a good deer rifle too. And you can get ammo and brass anywhere.
The .204 is too new. No guarantee there'll be ammo or brass in 5 years.
"...222 Remington Mag..." Is nearly the same as the .223 Rem.
 
rugged303 said:
Guess a better question would be is at what range is the 243 ineffective?
Click to expand...

Lets just say if you can see it, and can hit it, the .243 will kill it. It's an effective 1000 yard match cartridge.
 
243, in my experiences, has an effective range of close to 500 yards. Past that, drop and drift become a MAJOR pain! :roll:
 
They're approaching the finish and it's tactical Ted by a nose!!!! :lol: :wink: At a thousand yards ya don't need much
energy to punture paper.
 
To really mess them up..............220 swift.


To make a good clean non-fur friendly kill..........22-250.



For good killing power and a nice hide left behind.............221 fireball.
 
243, in my experiences, has an effective range of close to 500 yards. Past that, drop and drift become a MAJOR pain!
Click to expand...
HUH? Kidding right?

The .243 kicks ALL .30 cals in the balls from muzzle to as far as you care to shoot. The .243 has more muzzle energy and a flatter trajectory. I have killed gophers at 630 yds and hit targets out to 1500 yds with a .243.

The .243 is probably the most versatile caliber. Where it falls down is volume shooting. If you want to shoot a lot, look to something with a smaller case like a .223, .222 or 6BR, 6PPC which won't heat the barrel as fast.
 
rugged303 said:
They're approaching the finish and it's tactical Ted by a nose!!!! :lol: :wink: At a thousand yards ya don't need much
energy to punture paper.
Click to expand...

Even at 1000yards a 6mm 105g bullet going 1000fps will easily kill small varmints.......
I didn't say it's practical or realistic, but if you can see a G-Hog at 1000y and can hit it, the .243 will kill it.......
 
.243 for varmints is an Excellent choice... lots of energy for all but the biggest coyotes and wolves... if you can get a coyote or wolf to stand still while you shoot him in the head, or right through the baseball sized vitals... the 22 centerfires work fine :roll: ... I prefer a .270 first and a .243 second...both buck the wind better than the .22's .... and you can shoot centre body mass at extreme range... and when they are running ... and you will usually find your coyote close to where you shot it :idea:
 
Actually a "varmit" or, as it sometimes referred to, "polecat" is the Eurasian
subspecies of the flying squirrel that was brought to the new world aboard a fur
trading ship in 1789.

A Hinterland whos who vignette was produced in 1975 regarding this adorable
creature. Please don't shoot them.
 
The correct spelling of VARMINT, has a N in it, according to
Websters dictionary. But because 99.9 percent of english speaking
people do not pronounce words properly, nautrally we tend to
mispell words. Like fordy 40 rather than forTy.
 
If you're going to use this mostly for coyotes and such, the 243 is a good ballistic choice (and I'm not really a fan of the caliber, even tho' I own a couple of them). Heavy enough bullets to buck the wind decently, enough velocity to be useful, not much recoil. I have tried the 222, 223, 22-250, 22-243, 243, 6mm Rem, 6mm-284, and 240 Gibbs on coyotes. The triple deuce is the easiest to shoot, the Gibbs was the easiest to hit with at long range. The 243, being in the middle of the pack, makes a very good compromise. I don't really consider any of the 6's or smaller as good big game cartridges (although I'm working on a 6mm Mach IV that may change my mind), but they've certainly been used as such and I wouldn't try and change someone else's mind about it. FWIW - Dan
 
The .243 shooting heavy VLD bullets produces ballistics that are just amazing.

Push a Sierra 107gr MK out the muzzle at 3000 fps, and the bullet is still going almost 1200 fps at 1600 yds.

Switch to the Berger 95 gr VLD which flys out the muzzle at just under 3300 fps and the bullet will be doing 1000 fps at 1900 yds.
 
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