Which .204 ruger? UPDATE PAGE 1

sharp shooter

sharp shooter

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I want a .204 to play with. let me know what I should get and why? I don't want a savage. I want wood and nice bluing. I would consider a laminate thumbhole target type configuration too. Can't afford a cooper or the like. My taste of rifles consists of older sakos ( L461, A1, AIII, etc.), new FN Winchesters and older FN Brownings. I really wish Winchester would make a small action supergrade in .204 Ruger....



UPDATE

So, as stated in page 4, I ended up with a CZ 527 Varmint. The rifle is nice, the finish isn't amazing but its decent. It requires ringmounts which I don't care for, but oh well. it also has a detachable magazine that sticks out like a sore thumb but I got over it. The forearm is way too thin and rounded and should have come wide and flat for bench shooting but i may get a boyds to fix that. But to be honest, Its my new favorite rifle. It shoots like a dream, I already have a few loads that shoot better than 1.5" 5 shot groups at 300 yards. And those are HOT loads! The gun like 35gr bullets and heavier at over 3850 fps. The trigger was rough at first but I took it out and adjusted it to be very sweet. when set it probably breaks at somewhere around 8 ounces with no creep or travel, it breaks like glass. The set trigger is an awesome feature. The action is now smooth as butter after breaking it in and feels great when loading and extracting, like any mauser style of action. I'll get some pictures up this week of the gun and targets. I would highly recommend this gun to a friend, its a well balanced tack driver.
 
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Ruger M77 Hawkeye Predator... it is a nice balance of hunting style with bench accuracy... splits the difference between too light a rifle on the bench and too heavy a rifle in the field.

It is stainless though, in a nice handling, and aesthetically pleasing laminate stock.
 
we have a CZ 527 HB and a T/C Venture Predator and a Rem XP100 in 204 Ruger. The boys shoot them, but I haven't yet. I suspect I will favor the CZ, as I really love my CZ 22 HB.
 
I hand load so I will be looking for a very accurate gun - but at an affordable price. thanks for the replies so far. How are the new browning rifles in regards to fit and finish and accuracy? I'd really love a rebelled L461 action....
 
You likely be happy with what ever you get. Handle a few and find out what fits you well. I bought a cheap savage and changed out the trigger (trigger pull is horrible on them). I can make a touching group at a 100 yards with it & my reloads. I just don't set the bullets back as far as they are in factory loads. Its a real flat shooting round. I would suggest a long barrel length. On my axis and using light bullets you see a hell of a muzzle flash through the scope. That is why I use the 40 grain bullets in the reloads.
 
I have a Tikka Varmint in 204. So far I have found a load that will shoot 5 shot groups just under .5"
But the gun shows promise to be able to shrink that a little, so I'm happy with that.
But since you mentioned wood stock, the Howa Varmint Supreme can be ordered with a laminate thumbhole stock. Price is just below 1400, but they are very nice.
 
I have a few .204's Great cartridge. In terms of Fit and Finish:

Ruger #1 SS Varmint
Ruger #1 HB
Tikka T3 Varmint
CZ 527 Varmint
Savage 12 LRPV DBM

Accuracy:
Savage 12/Tikka T3 Tie
CZ527 / Ruger SS HV Tie
Ruger #1 Blued

All of these listed are great guns. No disappointments. The Rugers did require a little tweaking of the hammer strut (under the forearm) to perform well. Both rifles cost under 1.00 in parts to get shooting.

Savage required accurate torque to stock to become a tack driver.

Tikka required accurate torque to stock to become a tack driver.

CZ required a little inlet work of stock and re-torque the action as well.


I take them all gopher shooting. There is not a bad shooter amongst them. The only one not shooting the same COAL and load is the SS#1 (tighter chamber and short leade)

There is something about the Ruger #1's shooting gophers. Strictly speaking the Salvage and Tikka have them covered in the accuracy department, but the simplicity, and feel of a #1 cannot be matched.

IMHO best accuracy for the $$$ would be the Tikka T3, followed by the CZ527.

Then again, a Ruger #1 is..... sublime.//// Decisions Decisions.
 
I'd suggest the CZ. I have a Savage and it's great, but I also respect that you aren't interested in one. I'm not a Remlin anything fan.
 
What bullet weight are you looking to shoot?

I've had lots of problems with 39-40 grain bullets not stabilizing through the shorter barrelled rifles. I wish factory twists were slightly faster. My .204s now are all 26" barrels. With the higher velocities obtainable out of the longer barrels I haven't had any problems. I roll my own and shoot the 39 grain blitzkings. I love the .204 for gophers and coyotes.
 
Chargerguy said:
What bullet weight are you looking to shoot?

I've had lots of problems with 39-40 grain bullets not stabilizing through the shorter barrelled rifles. I wish factory twists were slightly faster. My .204s now are all 26" barrels. With the higher velocities obtainable out of the longer barrels I haven't had any problems. I roll my own and shoot the 39 grain blitzkings. I love the .204 for gophers and coyotes.
Click to expand...


The 39gr Blitzkings shoot very well at 3700fps to 3900fps in my Cooper 20 tactical with a 1 in 12" twist, which is the normal velocity range for the 204R.
 
I'm partial to Savage rifles myself, but that mainly cause I like to tinker with them.

For a decently accurate rifle right out of the box at a decent price point look at the Howa family of rifles
 
I have 204s in Browning, Sako and Cooper right now and have had a few Tikkas in the past. If you don't want to drop $2000+ on a Sako or Cooper there was absolutely nothing wrong with the Brownings that I owned. I still have a Stainless stalker that I use for rough work such as snowmobiling on the trap line and problem beavers. I owned a Varmint stalker that was minute of gopher out to 250+ yds with 40gr Bergers and BLC-2 powder.
 
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