Hi I was wondering if anyone of you could tell me what you prefer to be the best gun for hunting coyote.Im going to buy one in a couple of weeks and I dont want one thats going to blow the fur all to heck.When I go out with my brother in law he uses a .243 but I just wanted to know what you guys thought.Thanks
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or .243
1" drop at 150 yards at 3000 feet per second. Drop him dead with minimal if any noticeable damage. Use the hornaday ceramic hollow points, not the CCI
If you are after something for just yotes 22/250. If you want something more versatile for yotes to deer, a .243 is a great rifle.
From Ground hog to Mule deer. 1) groups at 300Yds with Federal factory ammo. Just started to play with the loads but I will let you know how it does on deer this season. The Velocity is mind blowing!
You can't beat the 22/250 IMO.
Les
I am seriously shopping for a fur friendy firearm for coyotes too...something to kill them dead at 200 yds. I'm not into handloading either, so I gotta get the goods from the store shelf. I'd rather lose distance than sew big holes.
the 22-250 is a good gun, you will rarely have an exit wound and the entrance wound is small. on the other hand the 17 hmr will leave a hole small enough you will not need to sew it up on a coyote if you put your shot in some long hair on his ribs, but you will not have the range of the 22-250. I have not shot the ruger 204 but if it does not leave an exit wound it may be the overall best bet.
This caliber is awesome! I shot a coyote the other day with the hornady factory loads with a 32 grain V-Max bullet. I killed him just shy of 300 yards. Killed him stone dead on first shot. He didn't flinch after the bullet hit him. The bullet exploded inside just like it was designed to do. there was a entrance wound the size of the bullet and that was it. I shoot a Remington model 700 varmit it is the sweetest varmit rig I have ever owned. I cannot wait till next year to head to Wyoming to shoot prarie dogs.
i'm a 22/250 guy also.
any bullet is the right bullet for those bastards!
The 17HMR is way too light for coyotes.Out here everybody owns a 17HMR for ground sqirrels and they are great for that.I mounted a badger that a guy shot twice in the head with a 17.The first shot took it front on in the nose,penetrated 2" and stopped between the jaw bones.The second shot went through the side of the jaw and also blew up between the jaws(2" penetration).These bullets usually won't go through a cottontail and ours are smaller than the eastern variety.Not a yote gun!Read the articles where they have been tested on game.The 22/250 is one of the most popular coyote guns,.243 is also good.I am sure that the.204 would be great also.If a guy doesn't need to shoot past 300 yds.,the .223 is excellent.A lot of the real hardcore coyote guys these days are switching to match-grade AR15's and there clones( Bushmaster,DPMS and there are more expensive ones that go for$1500.00 to $2000.00)These guns have match barrels and triggers and are guaranteed to shoot 1/2" groups at 100 yds.The .223 is easier on hides than the .243 or 22/250,but won't reach quite as far.Another favrite of the serious coyote hunters is the .220 Swift,hotter even than the 22/250 and does a little more damage.The most common coyote gun that I see in the west is by far the 22/250.Have fun.
Fast, light, fairly cheep ammo and a real tack driver. Shooting really far? Use a heavier gun, a 264 magnum with 125 gr heads will do. It's a magnum, but the head has a skinny profile and is light. And can be used to kill just about anything else. Have to question Joe V's accertion that the 204 cal is good for muleys? Sounds irresponsible at least! I wonder if it's even legal for deer in your state because it's so weak and light? I know a kill may be possible. But is it sensible?
Remember the lighter the bullet the faster the speed and possibly more damage to the animal from this increased energy.
I hunt a lot of coyotes with this caliber.Use a nosler bullet and you wont blow them up.As much as I liked the 22-250,I like this cal. better.And boy does it reach out there! Have fun with the Otees.
The 17HMR is way too small! A 17 Rem Mag is a whole other story.
In my opinion, the AR15, 223 is the only way to go if you are serious about calling. Super fast follow up shots, and enough ammo for doubles or triples when the opportunity presents itself. You need one with a freefloated handguard, and a scope. Bushmaster, RRA, DPMS and others make varmint versions. Lots of big name callers like Byron South use an AR.
I agree with scanman that the 243 with 100gr. bullets is the best for long and short range. It will buck wind better for long open shots and the short shots don't damage the hide as much as faster more explosive rounds.
i can tell you from experince that the 17hmr does not cut it. 125yds perfect placement behind the shoulder and no kill. at least with-in 150yds. i am looking at the .243 since maufactures are building some pretty hot varmit loads in it. Same bullet path as the 22/250 with twice the ft/lb energy @ 500yds. Been thinking about this for some time. gonna have to go with a 243
Anyone who has had both the 243 and 22-250 will tell you there is no comparison between the two for shooting Yotes, the 22-250 was born to do it, the 243 was adapted to it. 243 twist rate is far too fast for the bullet weight needed for a good Yote bullet, (about 60 to 65gr unless you want a fist sized exit hole) which makes the lighter bullets less accurate. The 22-250 started life as a wildcat cartridge designed for just one thing, light, fast and flat, and it does a great job. Now, if you need to shoot both Elk and Coyotes, then the 243 is the way to go. Larry
Hey all of the guns listed above are great. Im like the rest of them you cant hardly beat the 22-250 its a great gun. Though i have just goten a ruger m77 mk2 .204 and it has to be the greatest gun ive ever had. When i bought it i was told you could really reach out there and have alot of power. Now i see what they mean. The guy that told me to buy it shot a coyote at 416 yards and it ran about 4 feet. the cal. is awsome with the hornet v-max 32gr. If anyone asked me i would tell them the .204 beats any other gun for a coyote gun. The best thing is its very versitile and you can use for alot a things like coyote,varmints,mule deer, and white tails but pretty much anything light skinned.
Matt: You may be right about the 204, I have looked at the specs and the ballistics and they do look good. The light bullets would have a better BC in 204 than in 224 so probably would be a little better at the longer ranges if you want to shoot the light fast ones. A 243 is just not really suited for the light weight bullets, I tried real hard, but the combination of a long throat to work with the long 100gr bullets and fast twist for them just hoses up any load with the 60gr coyote bullets. I have a low twist rate barrel in work for my 22-250 (a 1 in 18)which should do a 40gr vmax out to 350 yards and down to 2250fps before it goes unstable, guess it will be a great experment. Larry