Rebarrel ideas

Blacktail said:

I am by no means an accomplished coyote hunter want to be. Especially when i can finally move out of commi CA! With that said I have two 223's in the safe both tack drivers. One is a tikka superlite the other is a Remington LSS. I am contemplating rebarreling the Remington into another caliber for dogs and long range plinking and practice to keep round count down on my 280ai and sons 6.5 saum. I know many are raving about the 22 creed but more I look at it why not use a 243 with a twist rate for 75-80 grain bullets made? or am i missing something? thanks

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I prefer the .204 with 40 grain hollowpoints for dogs ~! They stop in their tracks and the bullet travels around 4000 fps !

Three44s said:

I suggest that cartridge as well. The catch besides bolt face used is that the BR is short enough that it can pose feeding issues from the magazine. Also the barrel twist is critical and needs to thoroughly thought out with regards to what bullet weight range you intend to shoot.

If you are already leaning 243 then you have to work around the bolt face issue. Accuracy is outstanding and barrel life is very good.

Best regards

Three44s

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I can't rememb who makes the kit but someone make a follow kit for the mags. I've never had a problem with my 6br feeding but I've seen a dasher not feed for crap. I can see where the cartridge length can be a problem. There is a guy over on accurate shooter that makes 6br ar15 uppers and they deep well single stack mag.

If you are planning on skinning, fleshing, stretching, and selling , I would do a 17-204 or a 17-223. If your just out to kill coyotes the fast twist 22s and 6mm will work just fine. Unless you totally suck at calling, or you are barging into your sets, your shots should be in the 300 or less range 90% of the time. I have used a 22x47 for a derby gun the last 5 years. It does well at distance, but it also leaves large holes, and ruined hides at times. I think you will be happier with a point and shoot system out to 300 with minimal damage, than you would be with a heavier, larger bullet from the .22 and 6mm flavors.

My buddy's badger from last week from 120 yards. 223 rem 50gr ZMAX going 3200 fps. Entered in the chest with no exit. It was facing him with body quartered. One shot DRT. Some say the 53 gr VMAX is too light a bullet for yotes. Hopefully we'll find out this year. YMMV.

My slow twist 223 bolt 26 bbl will push 40 v/max 3800+, my slow twist 243 bolt will push 55/58 bullet almost 4000. That's not Chicken feed , just food for thought ,yes fast twists are more popular , but that don't stop my slow twists from performing ! ,a 243 is never a bad choice !,good luck ,Congrats for getting out of Comi fornia , nice Badger pics !!! I can't hunt them in my state ! 50/53 v/max great to 400 ,past that I'd go heavier 65/87/100 bts in 243 . Thks

Why not save money and keep it a 223. Nothing wrong with a 223 and will kill Pdogs all day as far as you can hit them. Shot some in SD a few years back and actually lifted them a foot in the air, when hit from the front. Shot 600 or so. And a , I'm using 52gr soft points, hits a coyote in the rib cage, they're down and out. spend the money on bullets and power, etc. and shoot what you have a lot more and get proficient with it. Friend in Pueblo has shot Pdogs out to 400 yds with his.

Can t say enough good things about a 223 with the 40and 50 grain v-max. Very capable for varmits to 500 and beyond. I just shoot the 50 grain now because its better past 300 and I like the extra mass for deer and pigs. Never had an exit on a yote. Drops them faster than a 165 partition from 30/06. Damage to jackrabbits is the same as a 7mag!

Keep the Tikka as is. Find the lands, modify the magazine if necessary (info is available online) to accommodate longer OAL, and drive on. The rifle you have is designed for your task. In what logical way is that 150 fps worth the extra money to ream out the chamber? If you're gonna step up, go to a 22 Creed, 22-243 AI, etc. If you do that, trade one of your actions for a .473 bf action and build from there.

Blacktail said:

U guys mentioning the 223Ai got me thinking my tikka superlite 223 is a 1:8. Prob should leave the rem alone and punch that one to an AI

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Blacktail,
Not really sure if the cost of converting a .223 Rem to .223 AI is worth the gain, I think if I was going to go to an "AI" it would be a .222 Rem Mag AI,..., there I think one gets some real gain, doesn't mean the .223 AI is not a nice cartridge, just saying the .223 Rem can do more than you might think, at 1k with the right load and bullet. I use a Rem M700 (semi-custom) with 1-8 twist PacNor poly match SS barrel for long range work using the .223 Rem. It's amazingly accurate. 80gr Berger (24.5grs) N150 Primer WSR WW case; 2900 fps from M700 .223 Custom 100 yards 5 shot group 100 yards.

I'd probably try a 75 ELD in the Tikka as it is. If they want to shoot, I'd be more inclined to ai it. I don't push mine hard, but get 3,030 fps or so out of a 22" barrel with the 75 amax. Its very potent on coyotes.

243 is old reliable. Brass and supplies are cheap. Great target and hunting caliber.

remingtonman said:

Have it rebarreled to 6x45 with a 9twist. The bullets you mentioned would be perfect for it.

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Nosler 55s... SDs are terrible, but at 3,460 FPS they are nasty little RPG on stuff under 200 yards.

Cash Is King said:

Nosler 55s... SDs are terrible, but at 3,460 FPS they are nasty little RPG on stuff under 200 yards.

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We have a .23 caliber and larger law here in VA (for deer, bear) that is why I went 6x45. For coyotes etc. .223 or .223AI would be a better choice (i.e. without adding the cost of a new bolt).