Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Help me decide my groundhog gun!

Well, that's one version of the story. Another is that you can buy the RAR, an Axis, TC Whatzit, or this year's Mossbug, screw on a blister-pack 2-24X scope, and it'll make those 1/2" clusters with whatever ammo is on clearance at Academy.

Actually, it seems that the Bic rifles shoot pretty darn good most of the time, even though I haven't really learned to embrace the concept yet, maybe because I don't own a truck a barn, or a tractor. Had a good friend once who had all three, but he preferred to toss a pretty nice M70 XTR .22/250 on the dash of his old Oldsmobile, ready for action.

I used to woodchuck hunt pretty seriously in central NY 20-30 years ago with my old college roommate. We went throught the "what is the best woodchuck cartridge" debate, and gun upgrades. He started with a Savage 340 222 Rem, and ended up with a 22-250 AI (and a 224 Clark) and a 218 Bee (Kimber 82). I started with a Savage 112 JRS 222 Rem, and eventually got a Rem 22-250 VS for 350-400+ shots. Never got around to rebarreling it to a 1-9" as our long range woodchuch hunting was winding down. My top gun now is a Sako A1 varmint in 222 Rem with 8x Leupold.

Here are my thoughts if I ever started over again "knowing now, what I didn't know then" basis.

Wind drift is a BIGGER factor than pure accuracy for 400 yard shots. Most guns shoot well enough for woodchuck hunting. Just about all our guns could get a load of moa or better. Factory barrels are pretty accurate, and good for 300++ yard chucks. Shooting in even 10 mph cross breeze will cause a miss if you don't pay attention to conditions.

Accurate range estimation is key for long distance shooting. The better the range estimation/determination, the less critical the cartridge selection is for "pure high MV." Get a laser range finder.

A scope with excellent resolution is more important than pure magnification. Too much magnification is an issue, and 10-12x is the upper end. I like 8x.

So put it together. With a laser range finder, you can pin point distance, and you don't need "super high velocity" cartridges. A 222 Rem, with a laser range finder ( and with practice out to any distance, such as 400 yards), works fine. You don't need a 220 swift or 224 Clark. The trouble with factory 222 Rem barrels is the twist of 1-14", which limits you to 50-52 grain bullets (SOMETIMES 55 grainers). That is not good for wind drift.

I would vote for a varmint weight bolt gun chambered in 223 Remington, with a 1-9" twist to handle 69 grain bullets (higher BC) for less wind drift at 400+ yards. A Rem 700, Savage, Tikka or Howa 1500 action would be fine. A Win 70 HV in 223 would very nice too.

Scope? Fixed 8x Leupold, or equivalent. I have a Lyman All American Permacenter 8x scope which has excellent resolution. I could see the wetness of a chuck's eye at 400 yards with it. I had it on my 22-250 to make many 400+ first shot woodchuck kills ( when wind wasn't a big factor). The best part about a scope WITHOUT TOO MUCH magnification is the ability to spot the shot through the scope ( feedback if you missed to make a correction). I sold the Rem 22-250 as it had a 1-14" twist. It was fast ( Mv 3500 fps+) , but 50 grain bullets got pushed by 8-10 mph wind. Wish it had a 1-9 twist, but I used 50 grain Sierra Blitz Kings for 0.6 moa loads. Sold it, due to wind drift issues. Didn't want to rebarrel it.

What to look for? A 223 rem , with varmint weight 1-9' twist barrel, laser range finder, 8 or 10x scope with good glass would take you to 450+ yards. You can get a McGowan custom barrel for about $350 ( chambered), to get an accurate rig with the barrel twist of your desire-maybe even 1-7" if you want to shoot 77 grainers to really address wind drift . My shooting buddy's Rem 700 22-250AI has a 1-7" twist Kreiger barrel on it. We call it "the wind cheater" as it slings 77 grain .224" bullets that seem to defy the wind to 500 yards. It is amazing.

Another excellent cartridge platform is either a 22 BR or 6 BR (both GREAT in the wind with proper bullets and twist).

Many choices, but really focus on wind drift ( faster rifling twist), range estimation ( laser range finder) - not just pure muzzle velocity, and "moderate scope magnification" (8x), and you will meet your woodchuck hunting needs to distances further than you listed in your post.

Would love to hear your experience!

204 with 40 grain Bergers

God Bless, Louis

+1 on the 25-06...

I live in central PA. It's my go-to groundhog rig. With 90 gr Sierra Blitzking over IMR4831, it'll group 5 rounds under an 1" at 200 yds. I've scored 500 yd kills every year since I had the gun.

I have a 22-250 that is quite reliable as well out to 400 yds. However, even with a 55 grain bullet, it's a little more susceptible to wind. My longest kill with it was 548 yds. But I get a more misses beyond 400.

Well, to me the ultimate ground hog gun is a 6 Ackley imp. 55BT4200-4300 FPS shoots incredibly flat and explodes varmints into many many small pieces! But you definitely won’t see your missed but definitely will see your hits! A heavy barrel 22-250 with 55 VMax or BT is a very fine chuck gun. I would guess ( I’ve not done it yet....) that you probably could see the misses with a suppressor. I don’t have a 204 but just took my 20 practical built by Mr Jim Borden out to Colorado for pdogs and it was simply awesome. That man KNOWS how to build a rifle! It certainly seemed to shoot through the wind better than the 223’s I took. Since I got back I’ve told a few of my buddies that the 204 Ruger should be their next varmint gun.... so if you can’t do the 6AI.... I’d recommend a 204. 39 BK still had enough in their tanks at 720 yards to toss pdogs off their mounds. But I also believe a 22-250 with 55’s would hit a big chuck harder.... your call. There aren’t any bad ones in what anyone listed. Now you’ve got me over thinking it!😂

Good luck and happy hoggin!
Ben

Heavy barreled Savage 22-250 in a laminated stock.


If that suited your requirements, I know where you could find one!

If you are deaf, its quiet.

And it's too heavy to kick.

The 6BR is not noisy and is very accurate. Mine has a 1 in 14" twist, and I wish it were faster. However, I have killed woodchucks out to 450 yards with it.

You guys are better shooters than I.


I struggled with a fast twist 22-250 beyond 350yds or so. 50gr NBTs. Between wind and crawl offs, it was tough. I expect a gun to be loud. When I'm in the groundhog fields, I bring ear protection. I don't care enough to kill a groundhog to blow my ears out. Done it once and learned that lesson.


A 22cal with a fast twist and heavier bullets could work better.

A 243, 257, 264 might be better. Depends what you really want. A gun capable of better results at longer ranges will still kill em dead at shorter ranges. A lighter caliber/smaller bullet will do great at shorter ranges and really limit things as range is extended.


Where I used to hunt, the 22-250 was rarely limiting and worked great. When I found some longer fields, I learned that she doesn't have much gas and the winds will take that little bullet and do some crazyness.

Remember that time in flight has an affect on wind drift. Less time in flight, less wind drift. And I find my 223 AI with 40 gr BT's to be pretty darned effective at 450 yards at around 3900 fps for the 223 Ai , along with my 22-250 at 4200 for the 22-250 same bullets. My limiting factor these days is having enough scope power to see something that far away with my old eyes.... I find my 6.5 - 20 Leupold and Bushnell 4000 elite 6-24 are up to the task....

And one thing I found over the years. If you are shooting prone a lot, which we need to do here- a lot of shooting in a day can give me a pretty sore shoulder even with the 22-250 at the end of the day. Makes a second day not as enjoyable as I would hope a couple times. I find the 223AI has sufficiently reduced recoil to keep that from happening. Just my experience....

Bob

Another reason I sold my Rem 700 VS 22-250 (factory 1-14" twist barrel) was that it was " too easy" for 200 yards chuck shots, 300 yards were pretty much "automatic", and a bit lacking at 400+ yards Due to wind drift. Truth be told, there were more available shots 300 yards of less, than 350 yards of more. I didn't really NEED the 22-250. My hunting rule with it was: <200 yard shots were to be taken offhand to keep things interesting.

Sold my 22-250, and focused on using my Sako A1 222 Rem . A 300 yard shot with my 222 was satisfying. A fast twist heavy barrel 223 Rem (1-9" twist) would be ideal for my chuck hunting-which I don't do much of these days. With a laser range finder, and 69 grainers from a 223 Rem 1-8 to 9" twist barrel, you should reliably be able to reach out to 450++ yards, and be in good shape to buck the wind if you have accurate trajectory readings for your elevation come-ups.

My hunting buddy is using his Kimber model 82 single shot 218 Bee heavy barrel more than his 22-250 AI (1-7" twist) . He has made some 250 yard shots with it (218 Bee) using 40 grain ballistic tips. Pretty impressive. It wears a 6x Leupold.

I do most of my groundhog hunting with the .17 Fireball or .17 Hornet these days. The Hornet goes if I expect shots no longer than 250 yds. However growing up, and for years until the .17's came out, I shot hundreds of them with the .222 and some with the .223. If you want relatively quiet and low recoil, I'd go with the .222 with 40 gr - 50 gr bullets. If you reload, get a .223 and load to match .222 velocities.

Drover is spot on with all of this.

A .223 makes perfect sense. Components are plentiful as well as bullet selection.