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Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 21,157
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 21,157 |
Ping pong balls for the win.
Once you've wrestled everything else in life is easy. Dan Gable
I keep my circle small, I’d rather have 4 quarters than 100 pennies.
Ain’t easy havin pals.
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Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 78,300
Campfire Oracle
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Campfire Oracle
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 78,300 |
I would not overlook the mild manners and pinpoint accuracy of the 222 Rem on varmints. Easy on bores, hard on groundhogs. Agree ...I love the deuce for just about anything, but at the OPs expected ranges out to 350 yards...the .204 is easy peasy....
"...the left considers you vermin, and they'll kill you given the chance..." Bristoe
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Joined: May 2003
Posts: 16,969
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 16,969 |
204 Ruger - Get one of the Walmart 700 ADL’s in 223 that are on clearance for $290, and change the barrel out to 204 Ruger... you can change the stock & bottom metal out later.
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 11,944
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 11,944 |
I would not overlook the mild manners and pinpoint accuracy of the 222 Rem on varmints. Easy on bores, hard on groundhogs. Yup ..... I'd love to have an older M700 Varmint in 222 with a decent gloss scope for such shooting. Classic 70s varmint rig.
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Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 2,631
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 2,631 |
My varmint rifles are 222 and 6BR.
Couldn't wish for more.
The US in the last 40 years:
Socialism for big corporations and military industrial complex
&
Rugged individualism for the individual.
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Joined: Sep 2018
Posts: 1,186
Campfire Regular
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OP
Campfire Regular
Joined: Sep 2018
Posts: 1,186 |
So I admit, I overthink things. I have been trying to figure out what groundhog gun to get. I am in central Pa, so long shots (400+) are definately an option. I want quiet, fast enough to shoot at least 350 yards, but low enough recoil to spot my shots. A silencer may be an option. I am thinking suppressed 204 ruger, maybe 17 hornet,... I also considered a 20 vartarg, but seems like limited budget options. I can prob swing 800 right now without the glass. So seems like if I want a silencer it leaves me with very little for the rifle. I want something that won't hurt your ears if you take a quick shot without taking time to put in your earplugs. I know, bad idea but sometimes you don't have time. I wish the 17 fireballs were not so expensive, or wish there was an easy and economical way to build one...
By spot your shots are you talking see your bullet hit the chuck or spot your misses so you can correct your hold ? See the bullet hit the chuck....maybe correct hold, but I know in a hayfield or wet dirt I really qont be able to spot where I hit and correct the hold.
......the occasional hunter wielding a hopelessly inaccurate rifle, living by the fantastical rule that this cartridge can deliver the goods, regardless of shot placement or rifle accuracy. The correct term for this is minute of ego.
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Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,229
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,229 |
So I admit, I overthink things. I have been trying to figure out what groundhog gun to get. I am in central Pa, so long shots (400+) are definately an option. I want quiet, fast enough to shoot at least 350 yards, but low enough recoil to spot my shots. A silencer may be an option. I am thinking suppressed 204 ruger, maybe 17 hornet,... I also considered a 20 vartarg, but seems like limited budget options. I can prob swing 800 right now without the glass. So seems like if I want a silencer it leaves me with very little for the rifle. I want something that won't hurt your ears if you take a quick shot without taking time to put in your earplugs. I know, bad idea but sometimes you don't have time. I wish the 17 fireballs were not so expensive, or wish there was an easy and economical way to build one...
By spot your shots are you talking see your bullet hit the chuck or spot your misses so you can correct your hold ? See the bullet hit the chuck....maybe correct hold, but I know in a hayfield or wet dirt I really qont be able to spot where I hit and correct the hold. That's what I was getting at in my first post. Very often you won't be able to spot your misses, even with much larger bullets than .17's or .204's. You can usually tell you hit them with most anything by the sound of the impact if nothing else, not always but usually. Do you still have a lot of chucks down there in central Pa. ? Lot's of folks say they are gone from NY but that isn't true. Some areas are still loaded with them.
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Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 885
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 885 |
When I got into groundhog hunting, I got a heavy barrel .222. It took less powder than a 22-250. I had a 6mm Remington if I needed more range. This year, I used a .223. I still have two deuces. Good luck! There is little more fun than shooting ground hogs!
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Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 28,713
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 28,713 |
Buy a throwaway like an RAR, burn it up, then trade for another one. Cheaper than re-barreling.
My son and his came up yesterday and whacked a couple just over the border with my Hawkeye .223.
What fresh Hell is this?
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Joined: Sep 2018
Posts: 1,186
Campfire Regular
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OP
Campfire Regular
Joined: Sep 2018
Posts: 1,186 |
So I admit, I overthink things. I have been trying to figure out what groundhog gun to get. I am in central Pa, so long shots (400+) are definately an option. I want quiet, fast enough to shoot at least 350 yards, but low enough recoil to spot my shots. A silencer may be an option. I am thinking suppressed 204 ruger, maybe 17 hornet,... I also considered a 20 vartarg, but seems like limited budget options. I can prob swing 800 right now without the glass. So seems like if I want a silencer it leaves me with very little for the rifle. I want something that won't hurt your ears if you take a quick shot without taking time to put in your earplugs. I know, bad idea but sometimes you don't have time. I wish the 17 fireballs were not so expensive, or wish there was an easy and economical way to build one...
By spot your shots are you talking see your bullet hit the chuck or spot your misses so you can correct your hold ? See the bullet hit the chuck....maybe correct hold, but I know in a hayfield or wet dirt I really qont be able to spot where I hit and correct the hold. That's what I was getting at in my first post. Very often you won't be able to spot your misses, even with much larger bullets than .17's or .204's. You can usually tell you hit them with most anything by the sound of the impact if nothing else, not always but usually. Do you still have a lot of chucks down there in central Pa. ? Lot's of folks say they are gone from NY but that isn't true. Some areas are still loaded with them. There are still some around....still see a fair amount hit on the road etc.
......the occasional hunter wielding a hopelessly inaccurate rifle, living by the fantastical rule that this cartridge can deliver the goods, regardless of shot placement or rifle accuracy. The correct term for this is minute of ego.
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Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 4,066
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 4,066 |
I want quiet, fast enough to shoot at least 350 yards, but low enough recoil to spot my shots.
The 20 Vartarg may be your huckleberry, but I don't think you could get one for $800. I lucked into a used Cooper 38 in 20 Vartarg, but I have not had time to shoot it, yet. I plan to post something later when I finally get around to doing it. You never mentioned whether you plan to reload or shoot factory ammo. If you plan to reload, I think you could make the 223 Remington and 204 Ruger behave ballistically very similar to a 20 Vartarg. I wish I had some empirical data for you on the 20 Vartarg. Like you I have been looking for that perfect blend of recoil and performance.
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 6,365
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 6,365 |
Buy a throwaway like an RAR, burn it up, then trade for another one. Cheaper than re-barreling.
My son and his came up yesterday and whacked a couple just over the border with my Hawkeye .223. That would be the logical thing to do but it would not be the 'Campfire way. The 'Campfire way is to buy a $400 Walmart Rem 700, have it rebarreled for $600, put it into a McMillan stock for $600, put a Jewell trigger on it for $250. Now for only somewhere around $1850 you have a rifle that MAY shoot 1/2 " groups rather than 1-1/4" groups. Then post pictures of the rifle and target extolling how good the $400 Walmart Rem shoots with only some minor modifications. You would then own an $1800 Rem 700 that you could sell for $800-$900, if you are lucky enough to find the right buyer. That's the 'Campfire way. drover
223 Rem, my favorite cartridge - you can't argue with truckloads of dead PD's and gophers.
24hourcampfire.com - The site where there is a problem for every solution.
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Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,229
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,229 |
Over the years I've had a bunch of chuck rifles and I've killed thousands of chucks with them. My first chuck rifle was a 5mm Remington Magnum Rimfire. My first center fire chuck rifle was a .222. After that there have been several more in 17 HMR., .22 Mag., .22 hornet, .222, .223, .22-250 and .243.. The most fun and most used were always the .222's and .223's. Anything bigger is getting a bit too noisy for consistent use in more settled farmlands and their extra range is rarely needed or even usable around here due to the rolling terrain. Right now I have 4 chuck rifles. If I were only going to have one it would definitely be a .223 with a .222 a close second choice.
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Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 2,084
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 2,084 |
So I admit, I overthink things. I have been trying to figure out what groundhog gun to get. I am in central Pa, so long shots (400+) are definately an option. I want quiet, fast enough to shoot at least 350 yards, but low enough recoil to spot my shots. A silencer may be an option. I am thinking suppressed 204 ruger, maybe 17 hornet,... I also considered a 20 vartarg, but seems like limited budget options. I can prob swing 800 right now without the glass. So seems like if I want a silencer it leaves me with very little for the rifle. I want something that won't hurt your ears if you take a quick shot without taking time to put in your earplugs. I know, bad idea but sometimes you don't have time. I wish the 17 fireballs were not so expensive, or wish there was an easy and economical way to build one...
A 22RF will send a bullet over 350yds! It say's on the box dangerous to 1 mile, some say 1 1/4mi!
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Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 85
Campfire Greenhorn
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Campfire Greenhorn
Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 85 |
Retarded,Rich,Famous
Hunting,Target Shooting,Women
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Joined: May 2010
Posts: 7,336
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 7,336 |
I have a pre64 220 Swift for that purpose, but because of development places to hunt for groundhogs are becoming increasingly harder to find here in PA. Another issue is coyotes, the farmer whose land I hunt for bucks in Chenango County, NY told me that he very seldom sees a woodchuck on his 400 acres anymore, coyotes have essentially cleaned them out.
"When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro."
Hunter S. Thompson
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Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 95,929
Campfire Oracle
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Campfire Oracle
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 95,929 |
.222 Rem would be a good choice IMO.
Life Member SCI
Life Member DSC
Member New Mexico Shooting Sports Association
Take your responsibilities seriously, never yourself-Ken Howell
Proper bullet placement + sufficient penetration = quick, clean kill. Finn Aagard
Ken
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Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,229
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,229 |
I have a pre64 220 Swift for that purpose, but because of development places to hunt for groundhogs are becoming increasingly harder to find here in PA. Another issue is coyotes, the farmer whose land I hunt for bucks in Chenango County, NY told me that he very seldom sees a woodchuck on his 400 acres anymore, coyotes have essentially cleaned them out.
Nope, not many chucks out in fields in Chenango County. There are still lots in some places not far from Chenango County though. Heck there are even some spots in Chenango where there are still a few chucks out in the hay fields. Pay attention along route 12 between Greene and Oxford late in the afternoon and you'll see a few. I think your farmer is wrong about the coyotes being the main culprit though, as the farms I kill dozens of chucks on every year have plenty of yotes around too.
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Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 111
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 111 |
I hunted with several calibers in the day. The most game was taken with one of two guns. One was a flat bolt Ruger 77 with 12x Leupold scope in 220 Swift. The other rifle was a Remington 700 Varmint Special with 10x Unertl Scope in .222 Remington. No problem with either. If asked, will share may experience.
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Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 111
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 111 |
I hunted with several calibers in the day. The most game was taken with one of two guns. One was a flat bolt Ruger 77 with 12x Leupold scope in 220 Swift. The other rifle was a Remington 700 Varmint Special with 10x Unertl Scope in .222 Remington. No problem with either. If asked, will share may experience.
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