rifles for pd shooting

[totall]

I know alot of guys have multipal rifles of the same caliber but there are to many guns I would like for me to do that but thats just me. However sometimes its better to not have what you want then to have what you dont want. I threw the 223/ 22-250 around for a long time and it seems for whatever reason Im stuck on the 250. Being as how the Tikka I would like to have is about impossible to find guess it will be a savage with a 12 twist. Until I can find the Tikka then I guess I will own that to. Dont tell my wife I said that.

[varmintH8R]

I think you will really like your 22-250. It puts a beatin on critters and is a flat shooter. It sounds like you are setting up to reload for it - no reason you can't power it down to 223 velocities if you want. There was a pretty good article on this in American Hunter a year or so ago. I've got a cooper with a 1:12 barrel and it seems to like 50gr blitzkings in front of Varget or IMR 4895. Good shootin and enjoy your new rig, and then your second new rig when you find a Tikka!

[8 SNAKE]

While there's nothing wrong with a .22-250, I would encourage you to look at something like a 6BR for a few reasons.

1. 6BR should do better in the wind
2. inherently accurate cartridge
3. easy to load for (you're new to the game)
4. better barrel life
5. less recoil, so you can watch your shots through the scope

I do the majority of my prairie dog shooting with .204's, but have also spent time with the .22-250 and 6BR for longer distance shots. In my experience, the 6BR proved to be superior for the job. Hope that helps.

[8 SNAKE]

Originally Posted by totall

I know alot of guys have multipal rifles of the same caliber but there are to many guns I would like for me to do that but thats just me.

I normally feel the same way, but an experience a few years ago in the prairie dog fields changed my mind in that particular application. I had a .204 and a .223 that I had planned to use for the bulk of my shooting, but a malfunction in the rifle chambered for .223 early in the trip rendered half of my ammo supply useless. Fortunately, I brought enough .204 to keep me busy because I would have been in bad shape otherwise. Shortly after that trip, I converted the .223 to a .204 (an AR rifle) so that I would avoid problems in the future.

[MachV]

Good points made! The 6br and 8twist 22-250 are very close but unless you have a very heavy gun and low magnification in the scope its harder to see impacts than the 204.
Another advantage of the getting a Savage 223 is that you could add a 204 barrel, just in case.....Sure you could do it with a 22-250 too but the bolthead would have to be changed.
I have 204,223 and 223ai barrels for this unit and it only takes a minute to swap them out......Kinda nice to be able to use the ammo all up and keep the barrel from over heating. The ai barrel is camoed and uses red ammo boxes, the 204 is SS flutted and uses green boxes and the 223 barrel is blued and uses blue see through boxes for ammo...Shot rounds are put back into the ammo boxes neck up for a hit and neck down for a miss,kinda helps keep track of things.

[8 SNAKE]

MachV: I assume you have your scope turrets marked for each barrel, so that you're not trying to sight in after barrel changes? Looks like a slick setup that serves you well in prairie dog fields.

[MachV]

Yep the different barrel settings are marked on the inside of the cap of the scope. I actually very seldom change barrels anymore, it is more important for weekend roadtrips..
Another neat feture of this unit is that its left handed, I'm right handed(for the most part). That way my eye stays in the scope, my right hand on grip and my left hand does the reloading.