Mike Matteson
Well-Known Member
thanks for the info. I am using a 220 swift, and 17WSM also. Someday I will get my 6mm/280AI into play.
I would search ammo first, then buy rifles in the caliber you can find.
I've been told 75-600 is possible. Its a group of dads that deer / turkey / waterfowl and fish together with the kids. Will be first time for all of us out west. Doing some research on guides, lodges, etc.Do you know what type of distance you will be shooting? I'd spend money on the best glass you can afford and more ammo. Really make sure you site it in the way you plan to shoot in field. .223 recoil is great you can spot your own miss (which is going to be a lot) with good glass then make quick adjustments.
If PDogs are not pressured you can easily get 3-5 shots before they decide somethings up.
Great info. Thank you.. So sounds like get my 17 WSM and keep the 223's I have or buy a .223 bolt action heavy barrel with a faster twist then what I have currently if I still want to buy a 2nd new firearm? My most accurate 223 is probably the Rugger 77 VT, but its a 1/12 twist as that was only made available back in 2000 when we purchased it new@mtudn24 , I shoot about 5,000-10,000 pdogs per year... and I can tell you unequivocally that anything you bring, can kill a pdog. However, there are some things you should know, in no particular order.
Big loud rifle scare them. Use suppressors if you can.
Vehicles, tables, and other large objects on the edge of their town, scares them. If you want more shot opportunities, pack in and lay down.
Hitting pdogs with light weight lightly constructed bullets, makes for comical impacts... however, hitting those little guys in actual Dakota field conditions is not conducive to those lightweight high velocity bullets. Instead, bullets with high BC's are what makes the hits happen. The wind blows here, nearly every day... and it blows hard. As I type this, its a sustained 35mph out there. If you want to make a bunch of noise and hit a few, the lightweight bullet thing is fine. If you want to really do some damage to a pdog town... high BC bullets in a very accurate/precise rifle will win the day. Fast twist 22cal or 6mm. Either will do. If I could only have one colony varmint rifle... it would be a 6mm BRA or 22 BRA.
Everyone should show up with a 17WSM. ... and I mean everyone. A .17WSM, at least 1000rnds of ammo for each (probably 2000) and a tripod for each. When you first roll into the town, you can just walk around taking kneeling/standing shots on dumb pups with 17WSM's out to 250yds... and you will kill HUNDREDS of them and have an unbelievable time doing it. Everyone will have fun doing that. If the wind is above 10-12mph... leave the 17WSM's in the truck.
Don't bring a wide range of cartridges. You'll spend the entire time trying to get the various rifles dialed in. Instead, just bring two cartridges if you can. .17WSM, and then all .223's or all .204's or all 6mm's. All running the same bullet at roughly the same velocity. That way, the whole party can be dialing in the wind call in mils or moa for every shot fired. All run the same optic configuration. If its mils, then everyone should be on mils. By the time a couple hours passes... you'll all be locked on and crushing shots all over the town. Fast twist barrels with high BC bullets wins the day.
I go out with guys that run light bullets, and it's pretty comical when the wind gets up over 5mph. Consider the following.
500yd with a .223rem in 10mph breeze @ 9:00
Bullet - Elev - Wind
55gr - 2.8mil - 1.9mil
80gr - 2.7mil - 1.1mil
That's a huge difference, and only gets worse, the more the wind blows. So if you like hitting your intended target, focus on precision and accuracy.
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7 twist would be best if you are set on a .223. The days of firing 1000 rounds in a day of prairie dog hunting are over. (or at least suspended) They are a skittish bunch. Once you get to banging away, you'll find that the majority of your shot opportunities will be beyond 300yds... and that is precisely the distance that a .223 with lightweight bullets becomes fairly useless if it's anything but a picturesque day. (which we almost never get in the western dakotas) Basically, if you want to really hammer on a dog town, you better be able to hit a soda can at 600yds with 90% of the shots fired. A 26" .223 with heavies is just barely up to that task. A 204 with 55's qualifies also.Great info. Thank you.. So sounds like get my 17 WSM and keep the 223's I have or buy a .223 bolt action heavy barrel with a faster twist then what I have currently if I still want to buy a 2nd new firearm? My most accurate 223 is probably the Rugger 77 VT, but its a 1/12 twist as that was only made available back in 2000 when we purchased it new
Thanks
Todd
For your consideration sir: 105 hybrid @ 2925fps from my 6mm Dasher at 225yds.
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