204- not just a gopher gun

[mr6pt5]

I made a post the other day which may have misrepresented the performance of the 243, and in response a few classified the 204 as a gopher round. Well, I had a conversation with a friend of mine who told me of his last coyote/bobcat hunt in North Central Oregon. During this hunt they came upon a small group of hogs and one of the guys shot and killed a 175 lb. hog at 150 yds. with his 204. I,m not advocating this round for that particular purpose, but I am saying it is very versatile.

 

[280AIman]

You are right the 204 is a very versitile round, a similar case is the one of my friend who was doing some crop damage controll and killed a big 155lb doe with his 204Ruger. at 133yrds she dropped like hit with a bigger magnum.

 

[Flybuster]

Hello, I am from Oregon, too. I didn't realize that we had wild hogs East of the Cascades in the Northern part. Were these hogs once domestic or ferral hogs? I have always wanted to hunt wild pork.

What specific bullet was your friend using to kill these hogs ? Your right I would have doubted its performance too, based on what I have seen in person.

 

[mr6pt5]

They were shot on a ranch near Shaniko, as for their lineage, the pictures I saw they looked like the wild version. They had long snouts and dark hair. I assume the bullet he used was the 40 gr., I didn't inquire that. I dropped another dog this weekend with my 204, 30 yrds, not much of a test.

 

[204 ruger]

I have a 700 VLS in .204 and it is a blast for anyone to shoot. It has been to OK and shot hogs, turtles at 250 yds( nasty)and other vermin. Back in MS I have shot crows at 250+ yds with it, turtles at 100+yds, and a buddy borrowed it and hammered a doe @90# at 415 yds( I would not recommend this ). This gun is our camp "nuisance" weapon and all the members love to take it just to brag about their shots. Every shot I can remember have been one shot kills. Even the kids 12 and under love to ring the disk blades out to 500 yds with it. I only load 39 gr Sierra Blitzkings out of it and it eats them faster than I can load them.

 

[VarmintGuy]

Mr6pt5: I have friends here in Montana that routinely use the 204 Ruger to harvest Whitetail Deer and Antelope with.
And if you castigated the 204 Ruger as just a Gopher cartridge then you have learned a valuable lesson (one I learned LONG ago!), don't knock something til YOU have tried it!
I personally have used the 204 Ruger cartridge since it was brand new and now have 4 (four) Rifles in this amazing and versatile round!
This cartridge has performed spectacularly for me on all manner of Varmints from Coyotes on down to Ermine!
Also included in my 204's list of cleanly harvested Varmints are Badger, Porcupine, Fox, Rock Chucks, Ground Squirrels, Raccoons, Jack Rabbits, Skunks, flying Varmints and feral cats!
The 204 Ruger cartridge was designed to be a Varmint cartridge and it performs wonderfully there - but it also can be used for other things as well.
Speed kills!
Long live the 204 Ruger.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy
P.S.: I have not had a chance to harvest any Turtles as yet with my 204's - I have Hunted them in the past for a couple of ranchers that needed their fish ponds "protected". The 204 should indeed perform well for this task - like 204 Ruger mentions, keeping in mind there should be a high bank or cliff for a back stop!

 

[txnub]

I'm new here, just going through the forum. I just picked up a Remington 700 in 204, so its good to see some good things being said about it.

 

[wildcat]

MRT65,

I was at the range on Sunday shooting squirrels with my friend. There was a gentlemen shooting next to me, and he was shooting a custom 204 Ruger, with a 28" barrel and a Nightforce NXS 3.5x15x56mm scope. He was making hits on squirrels at 500 yards and it was killing them dead in their track at that range. Kills from 50 to 300 yards provided some pretty spectacular red mist shows.

It was awesome to watch this guy shoot that little bullet. He was using the 32grn V-Max with 30grns of VV-N133. He was pushing the 32grn V-Max at 4350fps, it was awesome.

I am impressed everytime I see the 204 in action.

W.

 

[Patriot44]

I would agree, the 204 is an awesome cartridge.

P44

 

[mikenc]

Certainly the 204 is a fantastic round and will bring death to most any animal when the point of aim is correct and the rifle is shot correctly.

Shot Placement is the key to all rifles.





Mike Alford

 

[VarmintGuy]

Wildcat: That is an impressive FPS number attained by the range shooter!
I am recording that info and will set about to find some printed data on that loading or a place for me to start testing at.
I love VV N-133 powder but it is so hard to come by here in the wiles of SW Montana! I have not tried it as yet in any of my 204's.
I use 32 and 35 grain bullets in all my 204's.
I have shot the 40 gr. factory bullets and some 39 gr. handloads - they all shot well but the 32 grainers shoot flatter out to about 400 yards or so.
Flatter means more hits out in the Varmint fields.
I have scopes on my Rifles that range in power from a low of 6.5x20 power to a high of 8.5x25 power.
The 204 Ruger cartridge in a quality heavy barrel Rifle can put to GOOD use, LOTS, of scope power!
One of my shooting cronnies has an 8x32 power scope on one of his 204's.
I am in the middle of my winters loading of ammo for the upcoming Colony Varmint season here on the high plains and the Rocky Mountains!
Lots of 204 ammo on hand and in the planning stages!
I'll bet that fellow at the range with the 28" barrel on his custom Rifle could also see the "mist" in his scope, at the instant of his shots! The lack of recoil is one of the great attributes of the 204 Ruger cartridge.
Try one - you'll like it!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy