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Equipment & Gear => Guns and Ammo => Topic started by: BullMagnet76 on November 27, 2013, 11:51:59 AM


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Title: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: BullMagnet76 on November 27, 2013, 11:51:59 AM
SO I am looking to buy a new predator rifle, and I was wanting to pick every ones brain on which caliber to get?  I have a ton of 223 and 204 ammo so getting one of those calibers wouldn't really cost me a lot, BUT would a 22-250 be the better choice?  I am looking to hunt mostly coyotes but I want something that will not tear up a Bobcat if the opportunity arises.  Thanks for your input.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: MADMAX on November 27, 2013, 11:53:18 AM
.223
 :twocents:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: snowpack on November 27, 2013, 12:01:57 PM
The best I would say is the .50BMG, it will give it to them...
If you want something left of them, then I would suggest .22 mag close in, .223 med range and .22-250/.220 swift if LR is the choice.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: hillbilli on November 27, 2013, 03:25:02 PM
.223, definitely.. price ammo, or available brass.. then look at the charts to see how far out range wise you have to get to see a difference between it and the "fast" .22 centerfires like .22-250.. 
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: lhrbull on November 27, 2013, 04:26:37 PM
257 weatherby
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Buckmark on November 27, 2013, 04:32:12 PM
.17 Winchester super magnum.....and report back what you think so i can decide if i will get one or not...
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: jay.sharkbait on November 27, 2013, 04:37:05 PM
5.56

Way better tan .223 :chuckle:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Biggerhammer on November 27, 2013, 04:38:36 PM
5.56

Way better tan .223 :chuckle:

Perfect.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Curly on November 27, 2013, 04:56:40 PM
.204  :twocents:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: CAMPMEAT on November 27, 2013, 05:15:51 PM
.17 Winchester super magnum.....and report back what you think so i can decide if i will get one or not...




Buy one Frank. I have one, so that's all the feedback you need........
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: wadu1 on November 27, 2013, 05:19:00 PM
.17 Winchester super magnum.....and report back what you think so i can decide if i will get one or not...




Buy one Frank. I have one, so that's all the feedback you need........
Like Steve said get a .17 WSM, but for me I'll shoot anything from a .17 to a 20MM they all will take them down.  :chuckle: :chuckle:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: fastdam on November 27, 2013, 05:41:14 PM
The 22-250 will blow big holes bobcats and coyotes unless you handload solid bullets.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on November 27, 2013, 06:10:24 PM
.204  :twocents:

 :yeah:  Love those .20's!  :tup:  Small entry hole--no exit hole, but the critter's insides look like they were worked over with a chainsaw!  :tup:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Blacklab on November 28, 2013, 09:29:49 AM
5.56

Way better tan .223 :chuckle:

Perfect.

223 Wylde  :twocents:  :chuckle:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: bowhunterforever on November 28, 2013, 12:19:14 PM
.204  :twocents:
:yeah:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: yorketransport on November 28, 2013, 02:37:44 PM
.204  :twocents:

 :yeah:  Love those .20's!  :tup:  Small entry hole--no exit hole, but the critter's insides look like they were worked over with a chainsaw!  :tup:

I don' know, the last porcupine I shot with the 204 didn't look so good. :chuckle:
(https://hunting-washington.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi162.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Ft260%2Fcollegekidandy%2F100_0347.jpg&hash=f40564751be874ca67a3cc8181f5f3b0cd0ac99a) (http://s162.photobucket.com/user/collegekidandy/media/100_0347.jpg.html)

Andrew
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: actionshooter on November 28, 2013, 05:14:01 PM
How have the 204s been doing on putting coyotes down?  My buddy has one that is awesome on the chucks, but I was wondering if it was comparable to the 22-250 or .223.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: bowhunterforever on November 28, 2013, 09:30:34 PM
How have the 204s been doing on putting coyotes down?  My buddy has one that is awesome on the chucks, but I was wondering if it was comparable to the 22-250 or .223.
Most of the coyotes I shoot with mine are bang flop, that's if you hit them in the kill zone. very small entry hole and usually no exit. So I say it would hold it own comparing them all :twocents:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: jyerxa on November 29, 2013, 02:53:15 PM
I must applaud the knowledge here on Hunt-Wa once again. I'm just a regular Joe you might meet at the rifle range now and then with Boxed ammo and an over the counter rifle or pistol. I just like to shoot. Get me to the range and I'm a happy guy.

I like the 223 being launched out of the Ruger Mini platform. It's fun to plink with. That is the real reason I got a mini. Just for plinking. I know there are a lot of negative opinions about the mini. And I have a thing for wood stocks. I love wood work. So for that reason as well.

So I'm just a dime store shooter compared to some of you guys. But for all I know and have time for. The 223 is a blast and effective.  :tup:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Biggerhammer on November 29, 2013, 07:44:03 PM
I don't know??? :dunno: That quill pig looks good to me. :brew:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: AdnaHunter on November 29, 2013, 08:12:17 PM
17 REMINGTON!
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: jay.sharkbait on November 29, 2013, 08:17:33 PM
.218 Bee :chuckle:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on November 29, 2013, 08:24:12 PM
.218 Bee :chuckle:

Believe it or not, that round is making a comeback!  :tup:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: AWS on November 29, 2013, 08:30:11 PM
The 218 Bee is a great cartridge for called coyotes and bobcats, but ammo and brass can be hard to find and expensive.  I handload for mine so no problem.  It isn't a cartridge I'd suggest for someone looking for their first predator rifle,  the 204 or 223 sound like the best bets.  I bought my first 223 in 1966 and killed a ton of fox in the Midwest with it and coyotes out here.  Hard to go wrong with one..
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: jay.sharkbait on November 29, 2013, 08:37:55 PM
How about .225 Winchester?
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on November 29, 2013, 08:43:01 PM
The 218 Bee is a great cartridge for called coyotes and bobcats, but ammo and brass can be hard to find and expensive.  I handload for mine so no problem.  It isn't a cartridge I'd suggest for someone looking for their first predator rifle,  the 204 or 223 sound like the best bets.  I bought my first 223 in 1966 and killed a ton of fox in the Midwest with it and coyotes out here.  Hard to go wrong with one..

Yup, the .223 is great, but if you really have your heart set on a .204, get a 20 Tactical.  It's a .223 case necked down to .204, so brass is cheap and plentiful.  I shot one, and was very impressed!  And if you lose some brass in the sagebrush, no biggie....
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on November 29, 2013, 08:46:10 PM
How about .225 Winchester?

Also an obsolete and hard to find ammo for gun.  My buddy has dies, and reloads for one of his neighbors who has one...
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: AWS on November 29, 2013, 08:48:52 PM
225 Win, not enough different than the 224 Weatherby  or 22-250 to bother running an obsolete caliber.  Now if you can find a 224 Roy in a ultra lightweight varminter, that's a different story.

The rifle in my avatar is a 5.6x50R Mag.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: jay.sharkbait on November 29, 2013, 08:52:11 PM
How about .225 Winchester?

Also an obsolete and hard to find ammo for gun.  My buddy has dies, and reloads for one of his neighbors who has one...

I'm kidding and kinda having fun here.

I shot my first coyote with a Mod 70 in .225.  If your buddy needs any brass I still have a couple boxes of once fired.

I think you can make .225 brass from 30-30 BTW
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: AWS on November 29, 2013, 09:00:10 PM
So am I, I know doggy and I think he is too.

That really is a 5.6x50R Mag.  Great coyote round but if you think 225 Win are hard to come by this thing is near impossible but Huntingtons imports brass so can keep on killing coyotes with it.
(https://hunting-washington.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi6.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fy222%2FBrowndaug%2FAzandNM2013014_zpsf8eab297.jpg&hash=4d071436ffa05c5382f847f05e40796d329f5858) (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/Browndaug/media/AzandNM2013014_zpsf8eab297.jpg.html)
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on November 29, 2013, 09:02:28 PM
How about .225 Winchester?

Also an obsolete and hard to find ammo for gun.  My buddy has dies, and reloads for one of his neighbors who has one...

I'm kidding and kinda having fun here.

I shot my first coyote with a Mod 70 in .225.  If your buddy needs any brass I still have a couple boxes of once fired.

I think you can make .225 brass from 30-30 BTW

I'll keep that in mind....He also has a book on how to make obsolete brass out of easily available brass.  Or even specs on how to turn brass on a lathe if it's not available at all!  :tup:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on November 29, 2013, 09:12:50 PM
So am I, I know doggy and I think he is too.

That really is a 5.6x50R Mag.  Great coyote round but if you think 225 Win are hard to come by this thing is near impossible but Huntingtons imports brass so can keep on killing coyotes with it.
(https://hunting-washington.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi6.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fy222%2FBrowndaug%2FAzandNM2013014_zpsf8eab297.jpg&hash=4d071436ffa05c5382f847f05e40796d329f5858) (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/Browndaug/media/AzandNM2013014_zpsf8eab297.jpg.html)

Yep--This is the most fun topic in a long time!  :chuckle: It's true that there's nothing new under the sun.  When I was at the range working up a load for my 20 LBC, (A 6.5 Grendel case necked down to .204) an old benchrest shooter asked why I didn't just get a 20 PPC.  I replied:  "because this is more fun!".  He laughed and said:  "I can relate to that!".  :chuckle:  I have 5 AR's and only one of them is a .223!
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: demontang on November 30, 2013, 07:32:28 PM
The odd ball rounds are fun and id love the 223wssm just for kicks. I love the 22-250 and 223 :tup:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: 204chucknorris on December 01, 2013, 02:45:12 PM
I would take a 204 over a 223 any day. My 204 typically drops them were they stand- no runners- or flopping! My 223 has let many get up and run. Otherwise a 22-250! My buddy has one and it does great (yes it does make a mess from time to time) but no runners! Nothing more frustrating than to have a runner after dropping him!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk (http://tapatalk.com/m?id=1)
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: demontang on December 01, 2013, 06:28:30 PM
Man I had the opposite luck with the 204. Had spinners and runners a lot and my 223 would just drop them. I did have a bad batch of 40gr vmax in my 223 that let a few run off  :bash:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Biggerhammer on December 01, 2013, 07:24:13 PM
Man I had the opposite luck with the 204. Had spinners and runners a lot and my 223 would just drop them. I did have a bad batch of 40gr vmax in my 223 that let a few run off  :bash:

Same here, out past 250 yards with a .204 you have to make a good hit to the boiler room or it's spinner city. Not the easiest thing to do when shooting at a running dog. Even a bad hit at that distance with a .223 will slow them down enough to put another hit on them.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: demontang on December 01, 2013, 08:35:58 PM
I really want to try a 25cal 87gr on coyotes.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: mountainman on December 01, 2013, 08:51:57 PM
Shot some with the 257 and the 25/06 with 87 grainers, both Ackley's. instant lights out! Bloody work tho! In my book, the 22-250 is hard to beat!
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on December 01, 2013, 08:52:56 PM
Man I had the opposite luck with the 204. Had spinners and runners a lot and my 223 would just drop them. I did have a bad batch of 40gr vmax in my 223 that let a few run off  :bash:

Same here, out past 250 yards with a .204 you have to make a good hit to the boiler room or it's spinner city. Not the easiest thing to do when shooting at a running dog. Even a bad hit at that distance with a .223 will slow them down enough to put another hit on them.

They look like a big animal, but the vital area on them is about the size of a 1-liter pop bottle.  That makes them hard to kill.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: JohnVH on December 01, 2013, 09:16:04 PM
6.5grendel FTW  none walk away from that thing. If the animal gets away, your not hitting it right.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on December 02, 2013, 07:41:51 PM
6.5grendel FTW  none walk away from that thing. If the animal gets away, your not hitting it right.

Coyotes are tough.  About the time you think they're dead, they jump up and run off!

What the heck is FTW, anyway??
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: TheHunt on December 02, 2013, 08:45:43 PM
Hmmm, if you careless about the hide...

338  250 or 300 grain sierra matchkings

7 MM Mag   168 grain VLD.

Those are all fun rounds to shoot at predators.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: snowpack on December 02, 2013, 08:55:16 PM
East side yotes get pretty big and tough.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Biggerhammer on December 02, 2013, 09:06:51 PM
Hmmm, if you careless about the hide...

338  250 or 300 grain sierra matchkings

7 MM Mag   168 grain VLD.

Those are all fun rounds to shoot at predators.

I agree, when a coyote shows up. You run what you brung. :tup:

This one took a 260gr Accubond from a .375 Ultra Magnum (3050 fps) at a hair over 300 yards. His heart left through that "Little" hole. :yike:

(https://hunting-washington.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi90.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fk269%2Flandonmoses%2FDSC01072.jpg&hash=b42d7149ae8c16fe283c0bd28f91f6ca03bc41ac)

(https://hunting-washington.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi90.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fk269%2Flandonmoses%2FDSC01068.jpg&hash=91cc0725555599e9a4770beb388ec46f60726621)

Texas heart shot with the trusty 7x57 and a 139gr Hornady, no exit. I was calling bear up Mission, he showed up. I had to stand to shoot, only had a north end shot of a south bound dog.

(https://hunting-washington.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi90.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fk269%2Flandonmoses%2FDSC02479.jpg&hash=80afdf6729503d851996082684a22206dd5f4ae7)
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: JJB11B on December 02, 2013, 09:14:35 PM
The 22-250 will blow big holes bobcats and coyotes unless you handload solid bullets.
Noslers Hold together well and make a nice exit.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Biggerhammer on December 02, 2013, 09:24:55 PM
The 22-250 will blow big holes bobcats and coyotes unless you handload solid bullets.
Noslers Hold together well and make a nice exit.

I've shot several Bobcats with a .243 Winchester and a 100gr Partition and the exit holes were max size of a quarter. Died where they laid, both were shot trying to lay flat in cut wheat field.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: JJB11B on December 02, 2013, 09:29:47 PM
The 22-250 will blow big holes bobcats and coyotes unless you handload solid bullets.
Noslers Hold together well and make a nice exit.

I've shot several Bobcats with a .243 Winchester and a 100gr Partition and the exit holes were max size of a quarter. Died where they laid, both were shot trying to lay flat in cut wheat field.
I should have been more specific. Partitions....Ill see if I can look up the load I run in my Rem 700 22-250 Ive killed out to 450-500 yards with that load and it just smacks the P!SS outta the dogs
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: mountainman on December 02, 2013, 09:38:26 PM
A couple critters out of many taken with the 22-250. Max charges and ballistic tips or the old supply of blitzkings. One hole in, no hole out! Hawiian punch'ed the internals, perfect pelts!
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Biggerhammer on December 02, 2013, 09:56:14 PM
I would opt for a 58gr V-Max at 4k from a .243 Win before I would give up bullet diameter.
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on December 02, 2013, 10:05:40 PM
I would opt for a 58gr V-Max at 4k from a .243 Win before I would give up bullet diameter.

So far, that's the bullet I've shot out of my 6mm(.243)X6.8 SPC.  Flat shooting and accurate.  I'd hate to see what it would do to a critter!
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: Jim the Plumber on December 02, 2013, 10:27:47 PM
First picture, 338 Lapua with a 300 grain MK. Shot this one on the run at 315yards. Hit her going away.
Second one was a 150gr BT out of my DPMS 308, also running but towards the caller.
Best all around in my opinion, 5.56. Followed by the one you happen to be carrying when the opportunity arises.
 
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: mountainman on December 03, 2013, 12:05:52 AM
A little hole in that first one buddy! :chuckle:
Title: Re: Best Caliber for predators?????
Post by: mountainman on December 03, 2013, 12:15:33 AM
First picture, 338 Lapua with a 300 grain MK. Shot this one on the run at 315yards. Hit her going away.
Second one was a 150gr BT out of my DPMS 308, also running but towards the caller.
Best all around in my opinion, 5.56. Followed by the one you happen to be carrying when the opportunity arises.
 
agree with your last statement. Have had critters fall from calibers from the 17 hmr up to my trusty 338 edge. They dont get away as long as the shot is a good one, and you dont step beyond the limits of the round. Bigger calibers work every bit as good as the smaller, fast rounds. And since pelts are not worth anything near what they were back in the 70's and 80's, its all predator control and plain old good practice!
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