Talk me into a caliber! (.204 vs .22-250 vs .243)

[Vern Humphrey]

I don't know about the .243 but my father has a very old ruger M77 (from back when ruger outsourced barrels) in 6mm remington

The 6mm Remington started out as the .244 Remington, designed to go head-to-head against the .243 Winchester. It has a bit more zip than the .243 -- but not enough for a deer or prairie dog to notice.

Remington, however, specified a slow twist for this cartridge, so it would not handle the heavier bullets. The .243 Winchester therefore was the more versatile round, being able to handle longer, heavier bullets for deer, as well as being a great varmit cartridge.

Remington changed the twist and renamed the cartridge -- to avoid the stingma attached to the .244.

If you like the 6mm Remington, you'll like the .243 Winchester.

 

[Ivy Mike]

Down at the bottom, you made a peep about 6.5x55.

Get a CZ rifle chambered in 6.5x55 and a gel pad for the female shooter.
Recoil is already soft and it is a fine deer cartridge.

Those CZ's are rully nice too.

 

[studebaker]

I"d get an AR-15 in 223, so you can WIN matches

(like IPSC combat and NRA Highpower matches) do all the other things you asked about, have a .22lr conversion unit for practice, and not have to waste your time reloading and retreiving spent brass. Why not spend that time hunting and shooting instead? Quality 223 ammo is very low cost, and plinker grade 223 ammo is dirt cheap. The barrels last for many thousands of rounds, and the gun is built for rapidfire. That means that you can smoke thru 300 rds in an afternoon at a prairie dog town, and the heat mirage from the barrel won't make you miss.

 

[Sleeping Dog]

I voted for the .243, but Clean96GTI noticed your mention of 6.5x55. I'm changing my vote.

And I'll disagree with studebaker, reloading is not a waste of time. Not if you enjoy it. And if you like experimenting with loads.

Anyway, I normally get 2" or 2.5" groups at 100 yds with 6.5x55 out of my old (1904) swede mauser. I bet the groups would be even smaller if I put a good scope on it and quit using the old notched blade iron sight. The 140 or 160 grain bullet should be fine for deer, 120 or 140 for smaller critters.

Regards.

 

[Smoke]

I voted .243 even though .22-250 is quite possibly my favorite rifle round even for Whitetails.

Have you looked into .25-06?

Smoke

 

[KriegHund]

I said other.

.223, 30-06, .308, 7.62x54 or 7.62x39 are all common and cheaper (Surplus) cartridges that will do the job just fine.

 

[Waffen]

.223, 30-06, .308, 7.62x54 or 7.62x39 are all common and cheaper (Surplus) cartridges that will do the job just fine.

I reload so cartriges this is not an issue. I already have a 30-06, a .223, a 7.62x39. No intrest in any of the other above listed rounds. Plus, surplus ammo is not appealing to me

 

[Waffen]

After doing some more thinking I have decied to scrap the .243 as a choice. My G/F will just use the 06. She is more than capible of shooting it for 1 or 2 rounds.

I have decided to go the .22-250 route and get one of thoes slick CZ 550 Varmint's in .22-250. I think thoes look sexy!

Any advice for this rifle, or for reloading for .22-250?

 

[Ivy Mike]

Blasphemy!

An American wildcat round in a European rifle.

Kidding. Good choice on the rifle!

 

[Waffen]

An American wildcat round in a European rifle.

The best of both worlds!

 

[Ivy Mike]

I guess so considering the Europeans do most everything better than we do anyhow.

 

[CB900F]

Waffen;

If you want a hot-rod .22 centerfire, why take the also-ran? Get a .220 Swift!

900F

 

[Art Eatman]

Aw, c'mon, CB. There's not enough difference between the Swift and the .22-250 to worry about. I've used both on a fair number of critters, and have kept my old Swift, but Jerry Gebby's "Varminter" in its Remington incarnation works quite well.

Back 50 years ago, my father and my uncle used to compare the Swift and the Varminter. My father used a 1952-vintage Model 70 Super Grade, and my uncle's rifle was a Gebby-barrelled Mauser 98 he'd built up. Jackrabbits couldn't tell the difference, and both grouped tightly at 100 yards. I can still get 3-shot groups inside an inch with 30-year-old ammo in that old 70...

Waffen, if you're going with the .22-250, make sure the rifle's twist rate is fast enough to handle the heavier bullets needed for deer. And I'd generally recommend neck shots...

, Art

 

[Waffen]

Well, I just picked up that CZ 500 Varmint in 22-250. Can't wait to reload some rounds and shoot it on saturday. Can anyone post their expirences with this rifle? So far I like the single set trigger!

 

[Vern Humphrey]

Congratulations -- good choice. I've used set triggers since the '60s, originally on muzzle loaders, and I love them. With a good set trigger, you wait for the sights to come on, and THINK about shooting, and BANG!

 

[texagun]

For your stated needs, I would agree with the majority and go with the .243. Barrel life is excellent with factory loads...accuracy is outstanding....and the recoil is very tolerable for women and mature children, and others sensitive to recoil. I just bought a new Remington 700 BDL in .243. Took it to the range yesterday and it put one group of 3 into 5/8" at 100 yds. with Remington Express 100 gr. Corelokts. It should do just as well with the 80 gr. loads for varmints. Good Luck with your choice...you've had some good advice from these guys.

 

[GunGoBoom]

Oh, well if we can vote "other" and not worry about deer, then I'm changing my vote to "get a CZ 527 in .204 ruger and turn down the barrel and rechamber to .19 calhoun hornet" - now that'll get ya some barrel life and really nice no-recoil performance.

git-r-dun velocities

 

[Sunray]

"...when you find it..." If you can find it and if you'll be able to find it in 5 years. Manufacturers have a tendency to discontinue products that don't meet the marketing type's sales projections with no provision for the people who bought what they discontinued. Know anybody with a .41AE they can't get ammo or brass for?
However, you need to decide what you want to do with a new rifle. Just varmints? Or deer and varmints? Then go buy a .243. If you're in Upper Rubber Boot, MI. and left your ammo on the kitchen table, you can get ammo for it for either deer or varmints.
The .22-250 is not suitable for deer with factory ammo. The bullets are nearly always varmint bullets with diddly penetration.