Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Centerfire Rifles for small game

I was wondering how many of you use centerfire rifles to hunt small game. I read Mule Deer's article on downloading centerfire rounds and I tried some of Seafire's Blue Dot loads in my 223 Remington. Wow... that was fun. I am selling my 22 LR and I want to replace it. I could stay with a 223, but my current rifle is too heavy to be a great small game gun. After looking, the Howa Mini and the Kimber Montana seem to be the lightest 223 rifles, are there others to consider? How about other catridges? Anyone else download something else which they think would work better?

dunno about working better, but i download a few to chase squirrels and stuff.

i shoot a lot of single shots, mostly TC's, and have various carbine barrels i load on the mild side for hunting.

some of those i pack around a fair bit include an 18" .32mag, with cast bullets at around 800fps.
also shoot a 25/20win, with 86gr cast at about 1200fps.
and, a .30reece (.30x357 mag), that one gets .30cal 110gr FMJ's (.30carbine bullet) at about 1000fps.

a few years ago, i had a 5.7x28 carbine barrel built, with top end loads it some close to 22 hornet levels, but it mostly it gets loaded with milder stuff. my favorite is the 46gr speer FNSP 218bee bullet, loaded down to about 1600fps...its about as destructive as most .22mag loads, so when squirrel hunting i try for headshots. On bigger stuff, the flat nose seems to smack stuff pretty well...have whacked assorted stuff, lots of coons, possums, skunks, and armadillos with that one.

I forgot about the TC's. I used to have one with a custom shop barrel in 218 bee. It was very accurate and I should have kept it. I have a 32 Mag in a revolver, so I am set-up for it.

For your 25-20, do you find hard to find brass and suitable bullets for small game hunting?

I use the hell outta a 17 Hornet.....

221 Fireball for everything...



....with an interchangeable 410 barrel for those extremely dangerous charges by aluminum cans, dirt clods, discarded bottles, and occasional mud puddles!!! So fun!

DMc : )

I use a Savage 99 in 22HP with 60gr cast bullets and 7 gr of unique for rabbit hunting quite a bit.



Lee

I picked up a couple of Howa Minis in 223...10 round magazine..

that is what I am using right now, testing out the current Unique loads, to 22 Mag speeds...
with 50 and 55 grain bullets...

but I am also going to be testing with 75 grain BTHPs and A Maxes... using Unique and Blue Dot..

I've done it in the past, and surprisingly they turned in very tight group that looked like a 270 sized hole...
at 100 yds...

I tried a Ruger American Predator.. but didn't care for it...

gave it to a good friend on the campfire, who resides down in Louisiana.. and he seems to love it...

But I like the 2 Howa Mini's I replaced it with....and they have been very accurate with a lot of different loads..

Any smaller critter in the backyard that I don't like and am not going to eat gets deputy Hornetized....

I have often loaded down larger center fires but a couple years ago I acquired a Jeffery Rook rifle that was originally in 255 Jeffery as old rifles are where my interests lie. The exterior of the rifle is quite decent given it's age but the barrel had been re-chambered to 25-20 WCF and sadly, looked like a sewer pipe. I tried to make it shoot but it was simply too far gone. Re-lining and re-chambering back to the original 255 Jeffery was cost prohibitive. Having a custom liner made at .251, having a reamer ground and go/no go gauges made for the Jeffery cartridge plus the labor was more than I am able to pay. Wish I could have but such was not the case. So, a new .257 liner was installed and chambered to 25-20 WCF. I load it to 255 Jeffery levels and after a couple hundred rounds the liner settled down and began shooting. I'd have to check records but I believe the 75 gr. cast bullet is running around 1200 fps, + or -. To call the little Jeffery a delight is understatement.

not so much on the downloading,

but






have long been interested in the "sub-calibers" and other small stuff!

ya!

GWB

I haven’t done it in years.... but used to squirrel hunt with 155 grain cast Bullets in my .308 Win. I started out with 110 grain half-jacket, but wasn’t satisfied with accuracy. All shots with the cast were head-shots except a few that I “barked” as an experiment. The “barked” kills weren’t as efficient as I had hoped!

Have killed numerous grouse (while deer/elk hunting) with my .375. They must be head shots....if you want to eat grouse! memtb

I think this would be more fun than a fellow could have with his clothes on. Thanks for sharing all this stuff. A question for you: If you were going to get a T/C carbine barrel built today, would you go with the 327 Federal over the 32 H&R Mag?

What publication is Mule Deer's article in?

Got a link for seafire's blue dot loads? I've got some on hand.

The Kimber Montana .223 is a feather. Though an expensive one.

Thanks,

Jerry

I've had fun with the 25-20, and played with down loaded .223, but rimfires are a staple.

I can't get my head wrapped around 'selling my 22LR'

I have a Marlin .218 Bee that is a favorite, but brass can be problematic. I bought 500 rounds with the gun when they were introduced.

I have a TC Carbine in .223. I would have been just as happy with DMc's .221. My first Contender was in that caliber, but my first two barrels ( .221) were both bummers. One wouldn't close when loaded, and the second would not eject. Just some bad juju at the time. Loading down the .223 a bit might be just as fun. I can tell you that the TC carbine is a favorite driving the ranch two tracks in either a truck or a Mule. Mine is wood stocked, not quite so trim. I dallied too long when the 28 ga was an option, never much considered a .410, but I can't tell you any good reason why not.

I know of no good reason why the ever popular .357 would not be a good choice, if starting from scratch. Not as long range as the CF .22s, but very useful out to a hundred yards or so..

DMc,

The 221 Fireball is a great cartridge and I do have one in a CZ 527. It would be pretty cool in a Contender too. A 410 would be a nice addition as well, since I got rid of my last shotgun.

Polecat,

Do you the velocity for the load you are shooting?

To be perfectly honest, I put my 20ga away one bird shy of a limit on opening day and pulled out this baby 410. I had at least 18-20 shots and never downed a bird. But for squirrels and ground based critters "close up" the thing is murder!

DMc ; )

PS: With the exception of plastic bottles. Don't know what it is about plastic bottles...? Shot just goes through them. They don't get all knurled up like tin cans. They don't even fly into the air very well. I hate plastic bottles!

.

460 Weatherby mag