Guys:

I'm having a coyote calling rifle built and could use a little advise on barrel contour. The action is Rem Model 7 with a PPC bolt face. The caliber is .20 Titan (6.5 Grendel necked down to .20 cal) shooting 55 grain Bergers in a 9 twist Douglas tube. Nothing fancy.

Wondering how heavy I should go on the barrel contour? I figure the gun will be packed in to calling sites 1/2 mile to a mile at most. Most of the time, I'll drive to the calling spot and maybe only have to hike a few hundred yards to set up to call. Will be shooting off a bipod. Don't want to be too heavy on the barrel, but need enough heft to steady the rifle for 300-400 yard shots, perhaps longer.

My plan is to use a Remington Varmint contour (.830" at the muzzle) about 24" long. Sound reasonable or too heavy to you experts? Figure the gun will finish at about 8-9 lbs with scope.

Any advise is appreciated.

Thanks,

Jordan

If you want an 8-9 lb. rifle, you'll need to go much lighter than a Rem Varmint contour. You'll probably be closer to 11 lbs. there, depending on the stock and scope used.

Personally I would go with something along the lines of a Remington Magnum Sporter at the most. A #2 Douglas or Remington Sporter would be just fine, too. The 20 caliber hole is going to add a little stiffness compared to a larger caliber, but it will also add weight, so no sense getting carried away on contour.

Neat idea, by the way. I thought about a fast twist 20 for a while, but never got one put together.

Thanks for the advise Prairie Goat.

Agree ^^^^^

700 sporter contour finished at 22" is about perfect for a calling rig IMO.

Yep.

Another thing to keep in mind is that if a bipod is to be used the majority of the time, a guy can use a little lighter barrel contour and still maintain good rifle balance. For instance, a Kimber Montana is a rather muzzle light from the factory, but with a bipod attached the balance point is pulled just enough forward to really help offhand shooting.

Stick a bipod on a varmint contoured rifle and it's going to be awfully muzzle heavy.

Agree with pg completely. Even a sporter weight Bbl works just fine.The heavies, as I see them ,are to maintain a higher level of accuracy through protracted shooting sessions ( Like a PD town) ...the heavier, stiffer barrel shoots better when hot.
You aren't going to heat it up on a coyote stand, and unless you just like carting around heavy stuff...Id got sporter or mag contour( and I have...) Lots of rifles shoot phenomenally with light barrels.

I ordered a Douglas 5A contour. Prolly a little heavy, but I need the exercise. Thanks everyone for the advise.

Jordan

What are you thinking for a stock and scope?

I actually like a little heavier barrel than most on a calling rifle. Seems no matter how well I plan when picking stands you always have that one coyote that will pop up to the side of you that makes you have to bend in some awkward position that only a stripper or gymnast would be comfortable in. The heavier gun seems to help me make those shots if I cant swing my legs around to make it comfortable for fear of the coyote seeing me. Maybe I should have stuck with my stripping career and it wouldn't be such a bend.

Now that's impressive

PG:

I am looking at Manners, McMillan and then this new company Wild Dog Stocks from Australia. I'll also take a look at MPI. Wild Dog makes a full on carbon fiber product that is light and stiff as heck with nice paint schemes. It looks first rate

Any suggestions you'd care to make?

Haven't really thought about a scope yet. I'll be broke by the time I get that far into it. Any advise here would also be welcome.



Thanks,


Jordan

I was just thinking that you don't want to go too light on the stock with the heavier barrel, as it will balance rather funky. Of course this is all somewhat dependent on the scope you will be using.

Mcmillan standard fill stock, and a SWFA 3-9 for dialing or a Leupold of your choice for holdover work.

Yes, I've thought of the problem of going too light. It won't balance right. Have you any experience with Manners? They look nice. Stocks sure aren't cheap these days. Manners wants an arm, a leg and your firstborn. I'll have to check into SWFA scopes. Don't know a thing about them.

Was thinking a 3 x 9 or 4 x 12 30mm tube with Kenton ballistic turrets.

Jordan

My personal experience with Manners is limited (have only been around them briefly, have not owned one), but they seem like nice stocks. Manners seems to get good reviews - in fact there was just a thread in Custom Rifles & Wildcats about them. I'll seriously consider a Manners on the next rifle I have screwed together.

Something like a Manners MCS-T with the carbon fiber shell might be a good option.

As far as turreted scopes go, it's pretty tough to beat an SWFA for the money. Or at all, for that matter!

FWIW, I've found anything similar to a Remington Magnum contour to be about perfect for most field work. Light enough to pack, steady off the sticks.

Remington standard sporter contour in a 20 cal will be plenty heavy/stiff.

Sounds like a nice rig. Since you've already ordered the barrel already you'll have to live with that decision.

My calling experience is that you will have a lot more oppertunities at under 100 yrds than over 300. I set up my gun for that scenario. I use sticks instead of a bipod as it is much easier to swing the rifle to coyotes that comes in from odd directions than one with legs hanging down than can tangle in the grass and brush. I use sporter weight barrels 22-24" and my scopes in the lower range variables. My favorites are 1.5x6x40mm(Sightron, Burris, Alpen) scopes with a duplex or #4 reticle as my guns shoot flat enough to hold on fur to 300yrards. I have a couple guns set up with an Elite 4200 2.5x10 that I'm going to give a good work out this winter. I've had an Rem 700 LVSF in 22-250 set up with one for years but never seem to grab it as the 1.5x6's have been more than enough. I'll be hunting coyotes in WA, UT, NV and AZ from Dec. to April.

If you feel that you are going to see more 400 to 500 yrd shots I'd look into something like a ballistic plex reticle instead of turrets that have to be reset. KISS goes a long ways in coyote calling.