Favorite .223 Rem Prairie dog loads?
- Thread starter Greasegun
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Seekins precision IRMTv3 reciever set with seekins IRMTv3 15" handgaurd. Its a heavy walled upper reciever with an internal barrel nut design, which makes the handgaurd attach directly to the upper rather than the barrel nut.
White Oak Armament 24" .223 rem barrel. 1-8 twist, .223 varmint chamber (shorter throat than .223 wylde)
Bedded barrel to upper with loctite 620.
Polished locking lugs and feed ramps.
Radian Enhanced BCG
Larue Mbt2s 2 trigger.
FAB Defense RAPs stock.
Steiner Rings
Athlon Midas BTR GEN2 HD 4.5-27x50 optic. 2nd Focal. Nice thin reticle, illuminated.
Test fired it before bedding the barrel, it shot sub MOA groups @200yds with federal gmm 77gr with only 20 rds down the tube. Tomorrow going to test hand loads.
Before I moved back to Nebraska when I retired I lived in Rapid City which for me was heaven until the last year I lived there when the government paid to have all the PD's on government property poisoned.
Pretty much spent all my days off shooting PD's and loved it. Tried about everything except for an AR15 to shoot them with. Even a 7MM MAG for the real long range pups. Finally settled on the .223 as the most economical cartridge to use with the most bang for the buck. Range/Accuracy/Economical/Ease of reloading. Plus a few other reason. (I worked in a sporting goods store) LOL.
My best return was with H335 powder and the 50 Gr Nosler. I was loading between 1000 and 2000 rounds a week so it had to be a load that flowed fairly easily and accurately. Bullets had to be plentiful and no shortages. Now the big secret was that when you pick up a can of H335 and look at the front it gives a load for .223 Rem. With that bullet and load in LC 5.56 fire-formed brass it did not seem to matter what rifle we shot it in it would shoot less than 1/2" groups. This made life pretty easy for those of us that shoot more than one .223 when doggin. Didn't keep finicky guns around long as it was too much of a PITA to load separately for it. Best distance with that load was 636 backed up by 599. Does not spatter them at that distance but it takes em down. You can get some really great air time out to 400 but after that its just a knock over.
Past that we pretty much stuck to .308 Win. 175 Grain with Varget running close to 2800. I don't give that one out as it is pretty hot or the book says it is but no matter what we shot it in it shot well with no pressure signs. My last .308 has over 4000 round through it and still hold the same group it started with and shows no signs of wearing out soon using the bore scope. That load got us out of 900 give or take. Past that it became kind of Iffy as dogs are small and at that range you might have to take 2 or 3 shots if the dog will stay still that long. Those 175's throw a lot of dirt if you miss and they learn to move when they get missed.
Another gun we enjoyed was a .22 LR with a varmint barrel.
Haven't gone doggin for about 4 years now since I retired but I now have a grandson who loves to shoot as much as I do SO. Looks like I start doggin again.
Forgot to add, I just purchased 3 new guns for the trip. First is a Rem 700 Long Range in .25-06. I had the barrel pulled and bought a .243 AI Remage barrel so I had an action long enough to seat the bullets way out. The next is a Browning Hell's Canyon .243 Win. Its going to be the grandsons deer rifle but this will give him a chance to get used to it. And last, like any kid he is enamored with the AR15. So I bought a Palmetto State Armory varmint rifle in 5.56. Got to get that one out and see if it will shoot that same .223 load.
Pretty much spent all my days off shooting PD's and loved it. Tried about everything except for an AR15 to shoot them with. Even a 7MM MAG for the real long range pups. Finally settled on the .223 as the most economical cartridge to use with the most bang for the buck. Range/Accuracy/Economical/Ease of reloading. Plus a few other reason. (I worked in a sporting goods store) LOL.
My best return was with H335 powder and the 50 Gr Nosler. I was loading between 1000 and 2000 rounds a week so it had to be a load that flowed fairly easily and accurately. Bullets had to be plentiful and no shortages. Now the big secret was that when you pick up a can of H335 and look at the front it gives a load for .223 Rem. With that bullet and load in LC 5.56 fire-formed brass it did not seem to matter what rifle we shot it in it would shoot less than 1/2" groups. This made life pretty easy for those of us that shoot more than one .223 when doggin. Didn't keep finicky guns around long as it was too much of a PITA to load separately for it. Best distance with that load was 636 backed up by 599. Does not spatter them at that distance but it takes em down. You can get some really great air time out to 400 but after that its just a knock over.
Past that we pretty much stuck to .308 Win. 175 Grain with Varget running close to 2800. I don't give that one out as it is pretty hot or the book says it is but no matter what we shot it in it shot well with no pressure signs. My last .308 has over 4000 round through it and still hold the same group it started with and shows no signs of wearing out soon using the bore scope. That load got us out of 900 give or take. Past that it became kind of Iffy as dogs are small and at that range you might have to take 2 or 3 shots if the dog will stay still that long. Those 175's throw a lot of dirt if you miss and they learn to move when they get missed.
Another gun we enjoyed was a .22 LR with a varmint barrel.
Haven't gone doggin for about 4 years now since I retired but I now have a grandson who loves to shoot as much as I do SO. Looks like I start doggin again.
Forgot to add, I just purchased 3 new guns for the trip. First is a Rem 700 Long Range in .25-06. I had the barrel pulled and bought a .243 AI Remage barrel so I had an action long enough to seat the bullets way out. The next is a Browning Hell's Canyon .243 Win. Its going to be the grandsons deer rifle but this will give him a chance to get used to it. And last, like any kid he is enamored with the AR15. So I bought a Palmetto State Armory varmint rifle in 5.56. Got to get that one out and see if it will shoot that same .223 load.
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cfe 223 and 50 gr. blitzking
sw282
Well-Known Member
Those little Prairie Dog sentries simply ''GO TO PIECES''when served a 40gr Blitzking WHOPPER@ 3800FPS.. Upgrading to an Ackley @ 4000 produces the ultimate WHOPPER
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SW282, until you heard someone talk about Whopper or Air Time or Go To Pieces your not talking to a dogger. My wife says I am a sick man. LOL I did something one time and I thought it was awesome. At about 150 yards I hit a prairie dog in the throat that was standing on his hind legs trying to see what I was doing. When I hit him his head went straight in the air about 30 feet and his body just stood there. It must of stood there for 20 seconds before it fell over.
Something I use to do when I was able to buy the Remington 700 SPS Varmint model was I had 3 H.S.Precision stocks. Two had adjustable butt and combs and one just a varmint model. I would a buy that model in .223 or .308 with their cheap stocks and take them off and put on the H.S. Precision stocks. Shoot them for the year then change the stocks back and trade them off and get all new ones and change the stocks again.
Also I stayed with the .223 because I had access to a ton of 5.56 brass. I would clean and resize it then swedge the primer pockets and then reload it. Worked great and with my load not being a hot one shot great but the best shooting was when I neck sized it the next time after it had be fire formed and reloaded. That stuff shot awesome.
Grease Gun. I didn't have to load that many rounds all year round, just during spring doggin when the new pups are out and the shooting is fast and furious.
Something I use to do when I was able to buy the Remington 700 SPS Varmint model was I had 3 H.S.Precision stocks. Two had adjustable butt and combs and one just a varmint model. I would a buy that model in .223 or .308 with their cheap stocks and take them off and put on the H.S. Precision stocks. Shoot them for the year then change the stocks back and trade them off and get all new ones and change the stocks again.
Also I stayed with the .223 because I had access to a ton of 5.56 brass. I would clean and resize it then swedge the primer pockets and then reload it. Worked great and with my load not being a hot one shot great but the best shooting was when I neck sized it the next time after it had be fire formed and reloaded. That stuff shot awesome.
Grease Gun. I didn't have to load that many rounds all year round, just during spring doggin when the new pups are out and the shooting is fast and furious.
sw282
Well-Known Member
Hi Bill. l have been eating Whoppers from Burger King since around 1962-63 when they were 15 cents. My first experienced mirrored yours shortly after my hasty visit to Texas and Fort Hood courtesy Uncle Sam.. We were about to get the chance to give AIR TIME to some really Big lraqi ''varmints'' in Operation Desert Storm. They go to PIECES too when hit by round from a 30mm chain gun 
My first little Texas prairie dog went to PIECES near Plainview Texas after taking a 222Rem 50gr JSP courtesy Fiocche Ammo near Springfild Mo. They make really great varmint ammo right here in the USA for about HALF the price of Win, Fed, or Remington... When l hand load l prefer 40gr Blitzking or VMAX. l use 2230 or 2015 most of the time... I have lately been burning some of MR Hodgdon's H4895... l like speed but ACCURACY rules. lts always first... l full length size my 223 brass with small base dies because l shoot more than one 223
My first little Texas prairie dog went to PIECES near Plainview Texas after taking a 222Rem 50gr JSP courtesy Fiocche Ammo near Springfild Mo. They make really great varmint ammo right here in the USA for about HALF the price of Win, Fed, or Remington... When l hand load l prefer 40gr Blitzking or VMAX. l use 2230 or 2015 most of the time... I have lately been burning some of MR Hodgdon's H4895... l like speed but ACCURACY rules. lts always first... l full length size my 223 brass with small base dies because l shoot more than one 223
I wish i had some pictures of my setup when I was doing some serious doggin with my stepson who was just as serious about it as I was. Maybe even a bit more so at times. I didn't like rain and he didn't seem to mind it.
We used a 4 dr short box 4X4 with a topper. Had two PD swivel benches in the back with an easy up. Cooler with sandwiches and beverages and lots of bottled water. Another cooler with ammo. Gets pretty hot out there at times and even temp sensitive ammo can go a bit weird if sitting in the sun too long while waiting for a dog to pop up. The easy up solved that problem and two benches fit nicely under one. Other things needed were spotting scopes, range finders, metal can for empties. (Always pick up your brass, really ****es me off when I find a pile of brass lying in a dog town. Show some respect to the land)
Bino's are also needed. Maybe even more so than a spotting scope. I always wore long pants and long sleeve UV blocking light weight shirts. And this is going to sound dumb but a large brim straw hat. Keeps the head cool and the sun off. Ya SD gets hot and seems to get even hotter in a dog town. And if there is no breeze its even worse.
The great thing about having two people is one can spot and the other shoot till the barrels get hot and then you can switch. Or if it is the time of year when the pups are first out and really stupid and range isn't a problem you can both shoot and switch guns. I also kept a stand up gun rack in the back and we could keep our extra guns on it cooling off in the shade. Man I need to get back into serious doggin again. Starting to miss it just posting about it.
We used a 4 dr short box 4X4 with a topper. Had two PD swivel benches in the back with an easy up. Cooler with sandwiches and beverages and lots of bottled water. Another cooler with ammo. Gets pretty hot out there at times and even temp sensitive ammo can go a bit weird if sitting in the sun too long while waiting for a dog to pop up. The easy up solved that problem and two benches fit nicely under one. Other things needed were spotting scopes, range finders, metal can for empties. (Always pick up your brass, really ****es me off when I find a pile of brass lying in a dog town. Show some respect to the land)
Bino's are also needed. Maybe even more so than a spotting scope. I always wore long pants and long sleeve UV blocking light weight shirts. And this is going to sound dumb but a large brim straw hat. Keeps the head cool and the sun off. Ya SD gets hot and seems to get even hotter in a dog town. And if there is no breeze its even worse.
The great thing about having two people is one can spot and the other shoot till the barrels get hot and then you can switch. Or if it is the time of year when the pups are first out and really stupid and range isn't a problem you can both shoot and switch guns. I also kept a stand up gun rack in the back and we could keep our extra guns on it cooling off in the shade. Man I need to get back into serious doggin again. Starting to miss it just posting about it.
All those bullets will work . Make sure you bring a target stand so you can re adjust your scope for different bullets .Also does your rifle maintain 1 MOA ? I don't care what anybody says 400yds is a long shot in field conditions . Is that an Athlon Cronus ?
Where are you going ? Your gonna bring other rifles right ?
That rifle was putting down 5/8", 5 shot groups at 100 yards with some of my first handloads. I think with some experimentation it could shoot 1/2 or better.
Athlon Cronus? In my dreams. Athlon Midas BTR gen2. Its a nice optic though, I really like it.
No idea where Im going, still have to figure that part out. Might bring the 6.5 along as well for some longer shots.
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Shawn Carverelli
Well-Known Member
there's no use just shooting "at" them
Shawn Carverelli
Well-Known Member
h335 is our goto powder. meters consistent in out dillon 650
