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Joined: Apr 2004
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a couple of members were talking about these being the cat's meow for prairie dogs....

anyone used them on Sage Rats/ "Gophers" (in Montana Speak)?

my biggest concern is ricochets... as where we shoot, there is a lot of irrigation equipment around, and occasionally cattle...

don't need one hitting either of those...

thanks in advance...

BP-B2

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Killed thousands of prairie dogs with them. Sierra, Hornady, Nosler, never had an issue with a ricochet.

Most of those were killed on a cattle ranch.


You didn't use logic or reason to get into this opinion, I cannot use logic or reason to get you out of it.

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They may be fine for small varmints. I tried them on Texas coyotes using a .223 and found them to be less than dependable. Sometimes they would open, sometimes not. Switching to a 50-grain Blitz (softpoint) made a big difference.

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Yep that 50 gr. Blitz is a good bullet on yotes. Not suggested over 3600 but have pushed them to Swift speeds without them going poof right out the tube.



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I have used them some, no problems really, but with all the other fine bullets on the shelves, I just never went back to them when I used the few I had up.


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SF,

I will give you one work of caution.

Stick to the 52/53 grain versions.

I tried the 69gr variants as well, but they seemed to hold together better then I liked for Prairie dog shooting, nor do they give you the same visual spectral as the 52/53gr variants.

The way the 69's held together, they acted like they would work reasonable well as a coyote/white tail bullet.


You didn't use logic or reason to get into this opinion, I cannot use logic or reason to get you out of it.

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Thanks AntelopeSniper...

I sorta figured that out already tho...but a couple of you boys did catch my attention with the 52 & 53 grain Match bullets...

will start out with a box or two and see how they do...

I'm not short of varmint bullets whatsoever, but I always like to have another tool or two in the tool box, just in case I need to based on availability....

My two most common used ones so far now are the 53 V Max and the 40 grain Varmaggeddon Tipped...


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Those 40 grain Varmageddon tipped bullets are wicked. Have an AR-15 with a 6.5 twist Noveske that loves them. The carnage is unbelievable.

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Seafire,
They can be very accurate, but IME they are not as good for terminal performance as what you are using ; not nearly as explosive.
Just depends on what you're looking for, but for small varmints, I'd take the V-Max or other tipped bullets over them any time.
For small groups on paper for a few hundred yards, maybe a different story depending on what a gun likes.
Just my take on it.
Good luck,
-Ted smile

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Thanks Ted...

That was what I was thinking... but since they were talked up, thought I'd give them a try.. and asked about others experience...

the ricochets were the biggest concern...

had a 55 FMJ once do a ricochet... turned 90 degrees.. and punched a hole in an irrigation pipe..

went and told the land owner... he appreciated me telling him about it... and then asked how many sage rats I had taken out on my last 3 trips to his property...I told him about 1500...

he told me he'd have his Mexican ranch hand throw a patch on it, and told me that those 1500 sage rats would have cost him a lot more in crop damage, than that patch was going to...

So I was lucky and skated on that, but I haven't used any bullets that weren't explosive ever since...

I've been out on large fields, where others were banging away with a 10/22... its amazing how much a 22 LR can ricochet...

they were shooting down the line from me...in the same direction... but I kept on hearing ricochets wizzing over head or near by....

I pull out and leave when I hear those...I am sure a ricochet from half a mile away of a 22LR is still got enough ooomph to put someone in the ER or worse...

IC B3

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Hornady 53 gr Match HP and you won't get any ricochets ,


A Doe walks out of the woods today and says, that is the last time I'm going to do that for Two Bucks.

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