# Varmit gun



## fjr0226 (Dec 18, 2003)

I have always used a 7-mm mag for shooting ground hogs and crows,,,,,the older i get the more my shoulder doesn't like it...lol...i am thinking of getting either a 220 swift or a 22-250....i know nothing much about either and thought i would get some input....i hear that you can't buy them in a 700 Rem with a bull barrel any more...whatever gun i choose will have to have a bull barrel on it....anybody reload either of these puppies?


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## Militant_Tiger (Feb 23, 2004)

for varminting the bull barrel is not very necissary. it only helps disperse heat, which is usually only a problem in match shooting. I am suggesting that you get either a ruger or marlin .17 hrm, possibly in mach 2. This is an extremly accurate gun well past 150 yards, and blows critters in half like a much larger round would due to its polymer tip. This of course has very very little recoil as it is a rimfire, and the rounds are much cheaper than centerfire, allowing the gun to pay for itself over a period of time. The mach 2 uses a shorter cartridge, and supposedly produces better accuracy than the regular 17 hmr but with less power for distance. I would advise getting the standard, but it is your choice.

Happy hunting, Tiger


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## Plainsman (Jul 30, 2003)

fjr0226

I have a Winchester featherweight 223 and a heavy stainless fluted in 22-250, but have never had a 220 Swift. You can purchase 50 rounds of 223 for about $10 which makes it very cheap to shoot. Reload and either round is inexpensive. I shoot 50 grain Ballistic Tips in my 22-250 at about 3750 fps. The 40 grain Ballistic Tips go out of that 26 inch barrel at 4200 fps but are a little less accurate. If you want to really reach out the 22-250 is much better than the 223. Ground hogs can get to a good size and shooting past 300 yards might nock the 223 out of the running. I see you can still get the 22-250 in Remington 700 heavy stainless, and in the Remington 700P (Police). I just purchased the 700P in 308 Winchester. It is flat black, barrel and stock. It is available in 223, 308, and 300 WSM. I have shot a 22-250 for about 25 years and still use it for prairie dogs, coyotes, and such. I sure wish it was legal to shoot crows with a rifle here in North Dakota.


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## Longshot (Feb 9, 2004)

fjr0226

I have not owned a 220 Swift but love the 223 and 22-250. I too own a Rem. 700P in 308 and have been amazed at its accuracy. Another model to check out for less money is the Winchester Coyote. I own one in 223 and I have been very happy with it. It did an excellent job on PD's last summer. Also, the Winchester Stealth II looks like a nice rig. If you don't reload the 223 is hard to beat for cheap ammo.


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## fjr0226 (Dec 18, 2003)

I was thinking more toward the 220 swift.....i just don't know the one i should choose....now my buddy has a 22-250 so i will play with it some and decide.....i want to be able to reach out their as far as i can....i love shooting at distance.....400 and 500 yards plus.....thats more of a challenge to me.....we will be reloading every bullet so i won't be worring about finding factory ammo....we plan to go shoot some prairie dogs one of these years, we don't have any here inn Maryland ...thats why i was leaning toward the bull barrel....Any of you guys know a good place to shoot prairie dogs that won't cost an arm and a leg ? Just for a weekend ?
Plainsman- were not aloud to shoot crows inn Maryland with anything bigger than a 22 rimfire.....LOL


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## Plainsman (Jul 30, 2003)

fjr0226

We sure have some of the same interests. I have hunted with archery for years and it kind of spoiled me as far as enjoying hunting with a rifle. I have regained the fun in shooting again by doing long range shooting. You may enjoy a site called longrangehunter.com . These guys use calibers like 338 Lapua to shoot to 2000 yards. Look at 10/22 ammo analysis on this form and you will see a picture of some of my heavy barrels. Leave a post (pm)on the site and I'll call you. We will talk prairie dogs and rifles.


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## tasplin (Jun 22, 2004)

I am by no means an "old hand" with varmint rifles but having recently entered the sport and done a fair amount of research I am amazed at what I was able to do (both money and prairie dog-kill wise) with a "cheap" Savage 110 Tactical in .223 and 45 grain hollow points from WalMart. I hit dogs with about 10-15% consistency at ranges from 250 to 500 yards. No problem with reach or anything else.

The bull barrel is nice because it keeps the rifle from jumping around as much after the shot so you can see the prairie dog gymnastics in your scope.


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## Whelen35 (Mar 9, 2004)

For shooting 300yds of less I would say to go with a 223. Cheap to shoot, lots of guns to choose from. As far as the 22-250 and the 220 swift, I have both and there is not a lot of performance difference between the two. You can indeed make the swift go a bit faster, and not soo many people have one so it is kind of fu to have. The 22-250 is a great choice also, with more guns to choose from, and reloaded ammo is getting cheaper all the time. If you reload, then either one is good. I have and shoot 5 223's and somehow, even though one of the most accurate guns I own is a 223, I like something oddball better. I like the 35 Whelen improved, the 250-3000 and several others that are just not something you see every day. Weigh your wants and needs and then go out and find what you want.


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## phil999 (Mar 9, 2004)

figure i might as well throw in my 2 cents worth. used a 250-3000 for about 10 years when younger. very good cartridge but i was loading a decent sized head and it would start dropping off after 200 yards. you could probably tinker with a smaller projectile though. from memory, amongst the smaller centerfires, the 200 swift has the best ballistics out to about 300 yards. have always wanted one ....
phil.


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## sdeprie (May 1, 2004)

Just thought I would throw in my 2 cents, too. One of the critisims of any of the 22's is wind drift. Some of the 6mm's might get that reach (I know, with a little more loop in the trajectory) without as much drift. Just something to consider.


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## weedlayer (Mar 2, 2005)

Longshot said:


> fjr0226
> 
> I have not owned a 220 Swift but love the 223 and 22-250. I too own a Rem. 700P in 308 and have been amazed at its accuracy. Another model to check out for less money is the Winchester Coyote. I own one in 223 and I have been very happy with it. It did an excellent job on PD's last summer. Also, the Winchester Stealth II looks like a nice rig. If you don't reload the 223 is hard to beat for cheap ammo.


 I am new to this forum and in reading some of your responses I would like your opinions. I am looking at purchasing a new varmint rifle (mostly for coyote) I am struggling with the neverending issue of caliber selection. The three I am looking at .223 / .243 / 22-250 . 
Obviously there are advantages and disadvantages for each. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, 
Weedlayer


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## Goose Bandit (Mar 17, 2004)

22-250 is a great cal. from gophers to deer. it has good speed great accuracy. it is a long lasting caliber. the 220 swift is a good caliber also but the barrles do not last as long from the great speed they have. 22-250 shells are cheaper than the 220 swift if you were to buy them by the box, there is not much difference if you reload. like said above they are about equal in accuracy but there is a little more speed with the 220 swift.

.223 is another good caliber, but is slower than the two above by quite a bit 4000fps to 6000fps slower, but the shells are cheap and generally shoot really good groups.

.243 is a great caliber. it is accurate enough to shoot gophers and is powerful enough to take large deer with no concern. the shells are decently priced. and is another long lasting gun.

hope this helps

Matt


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## Longshot (Feb 9, 2004)

weedlayer,

I've always liked the 223 for accuracy and inexpensive factory ammo. Since I started reloading I like the 22-250 better for a coyote round. That extra umph with the 22-250 is nice. My 223 bolt guns are set up mostly for PDs while my AR-15 and bolt 22-250 have become my primary coyote rigs. My first coyote was with a Ruger M77V 22-250 I got from my dad and was the only one I used until I bought my first 223. Now I'm finding myself reverting back to the 22-250 again. That rig will always be on the rack. As per model, the best thing to do is find the one you are most comfortable with.

Welcome to the site.

:sniper:


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## sdeprie (May 1, 2004)

weedlayer,

I have to agree, all 3 calibers seem to be a good choice. The 223 is very accurate, has cartridges everywhere, and are cheap (and can be loaded for deer, in a pinch). The 22-250 is plenty of gun and can be loaded for deer, contrary to some people's opinions. (Check to see locally if 22 cal is legal for deer.) The difference between 22-250 and 220 swift aren't as great as they have traditionally been (barrel burnout, etc). The 243 is also a fine shooter and is somewhat more versatile in handling larger bullets (both for larger game and for wind resistance). You will have to examine your priorities and choose the one that best suits your needs, or get all 3. 8)


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

Goose Bandit said:


> .223 is another good caliber, but is slower than the two above by quite a bit 4000fps to 6000fps slower, but the shells are cheap and generally shoot really good groups.


Wow............... I need me one of them 7000-9000fps rifles....... just kidding,
I know it was a typo, or to much coffee.....


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## Whelen35 (Mar 9, 2004)

I am not a fan of useing the 224ciamater guns for deer. I also think that the 243/6mm's are great varmit guns and great for long range varmit shooting, but not the best for deer. I would rather shoot a 250 improved, 257 roberts, or 25-06 for my dual duty gun. If I was to gey a gun for long range shooting only at varmits. I would get a fast twist barrel on a 22-250 and shoot 75gr A-Max bullets at things 400dys and farther, or go with a wildcat like the 22 midelstad (22-243, or 22/6mm) or simular and get truly an advantage over the standard chamberings. Again, for 300yd and less shooting, go with the 223. For deer, I personally like a minumum of 25cal or usually much larger.


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## getz (Dec 26, 2004)

I personaly like the 223 if you plan on doing alot of shooting in rat towns if nothing but for the barrels not burning out as fast. I also like the lower recoil with a heavier gun you can much more easly watch impacts in your scope. I would seriously recomend cheeking out the savage low profile its a good looking rifle for a good price and the chances of it out shooting that rem your looking at is very good. You can pick them up for around 580 at the right place.

I do have a rem 700 VSSF-P in 22-250 that will pretty consistently shoot in the .4-.5s but feel i got lucky with the poor quality controle they have. My savage will shoot .5s and I paid 200 less for it.


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## fireball10x (Feb 25, 2005)

I have a 220 swift in the ruger 77 varmint target and it shoots 1/4 inch groups and smaller with rel 15 powder and 55 grn bal tips this is the second one I had and the first one shot just as good.I also have a 243 wssm mod 70 win stealth 2 I just started working loads for it and it's shooting under 3/8 right now with rel 19 and 70 grn bal tips it's better on windy days.And when I'm shooting 200yds or less I use a 221 fireball in the rem 700 light varmint stainless fluted barrel with a 4x16x50 bushnell elite 4200 on it,This is one of my favorites it shoots 1/4 inch or less on nice days and it's not too hard on the ears,and with the new powders out there it gets around 3500fps with lilgun powder 16grns and 40grn v-max bullets it also likes the 50 grn v-max with 15grns of lilgun.Reloader 7 works well also in it. hope this helps


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

If groundhog size varmints and smaller is the intended use I would take a serious look at the new Ruger.204 round. This is turning out to be a pretty potent round out at a long distance. I don't see a lot of difference in the .223 and 22-250 except the 22-250 is a little flatter and has the distance edge but if you don't reload the .223 would be a better choice. Since you mentioned a bull barrel then I assume you already know the advantage of the bull barrel for accuracy. Forget about the rimfires unless you simply want a fun gun to shoot with low noise. If you like the explosive scene or toss them up in the air look the rimfire such as the .17HMR won't do that for you out past 75-100 yards though it will drop prairie dog size game pretty well out to 150 yards, provided you get a good hit in the boiler room..


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## deathwind (Apr 17, 2005)

I own a .220 Swift and it's a great rifle ( i reload). If you reload buy a Swift if not get a .223 or .22-250 because Swift factory ammo ain't cheap.


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## OneShotOneKill (Feb 13, 2004)

*The 22-250 Remington is the absolute best varmint cartridge. The 22-250 Remington used to be known as the 22 Varminter! I have used 50, 52 & 55-grain bullets with H-380 with great success. It is easy to reload and cases last along time. You don't need a bull barrel. The 22-250 Remington vs. the 220 Swift is no comparison; the slight difference between them is nothing to look at.

If you were mostly after coyote I would choose the 243 Winchester, because it is also a superb antelope/deer cartridge using 95-grain premium bullets as the minimum starting weight!*


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