Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Educate me on the .20 VarTarg!

A guy wants to sell a Weatherby Mark V, .20 VarTarg with a Shilen barrel, HS Precision stock, dies and 100 rounds of ammo for $700.

I'm thinking this is a screaming deal, but I know NOTHING about the chambering. Is it good for anything but groundhogs? How does it stack up against the .204 Ruger, the .223, etc?

It is based on the .221 Fireball case, so it is a mini .204. With lighter bullets it is closer to the .204 than would be expected. It is a very efficient cartridge.

I am in the process of load dev for mine - a re-barreled 700 that was originally in .222. Love it. So far it seems to favor the 32 grain VMax and Lil Gun or 1680. I built it for crows, foxes, and groundhogs but think it would certainly drop coyotes also. Seeing 3600+ fps and am not pushing it all. My only wish is that someone would make brass for it.

Wow. The only .221 brass I can find is Nosler @ $86 per 100!

My Cooper likes the 32 VMax and 32 Sierra with three different powders RL7,H4198 And TAC. 3700 is doable with out straining things. Same 2 brands of bullets at 39 and 40 grs. are very accurate with the same powders but some 200 to 300 fps slower. Didn't have much luck with the Nosler 32 gr. lead free, nor the light weight 26 gr. Barnes and 24 gr. Hornady, Blazing speed with the light weights but accuracy suffered.
Pretty sure I saw Lapua and Norma. 221 brass at Midway cheaper than the Nosler . Was tempted to order some but have a ton of Remington and so far it has been just fine.

Here you go - http://www.6mmbr.com/20Caliber.html#20VARTARG

I rechambered a new Rem 204 barrel for the 20VT a few years back and it has been the very best small game rifle I could ask for. Accuracy in the sub 2's during testing with 4198 being the powder of choice and 19.2gn under the 35gn Berger gave me 3700fps and was an emphatic killer of the rabbit I built it for but even gaost were no match for this bullet. I have changed my shooting style over the last few years and rarely shoot the 350-400yds I was doing so the nosler "SHOTS" bullet over 9.2gn Blue Dot for 2700fps is a great under 200 yds rabbit killer.The best thing for me is that with the nosler zeroed at 150yds the same sight setting has the Berger bullet zeroed at 250yds so I can shoots hundreds of the lower velocity (barrel preserving) but entirely adequate,loads and carry the faster berger load so I am handily prepared for any eventuality on an outing

Edit to add.
I used Fireball brass for the fast loads but 222 and 223 brass is very cheap and available and so I made 400 20VT cases from them with completely satisfactory ammo