Best predator gun?

[Snacks]

The .17 Rem upper from Dtech with the Shilen barrel (not fluted and not including bolt assembly and charging handle) is 825 with a 13 month lead time. It sure would be sweet though.

[Cajun Blake]

find you a 17 Fireball or 204 and you will have boatloads of fun !!!!


FYI , I have a custom 20" DTECH 223 upper ; it's very nice, but not in the top 5 of my "go to" rifles to shoot varmints/predators

RRA lower
RR NM parts kit
RR 2 stage trigger
JP bolt carrier with hardcoat treatment
Magpul PRS stock
Magpul trigger guard
DTECH custom built upper , receiver detailed and squared
20" Shilen Select match 1:8" fluted barrel .223
integral compensator , barrel duracoat finished
KONI-Enidine hydraulic recoil buffer

[Snacks]

find you a 17 Fireball or 204 and you will have boatloads of fun !!!!


FYI , I have a custom 20" DTECH 223 upper ; it's very nice, but not in the top 5 of my "go to" rifles to shoot varmints/predators

RRA lower
RR NM parts kit
RR 2 stage trigger
JP bolt carrier with hardcoat treatment
Magpul PRS stock
Magpul trigger guard
DTECH custom built upper , receiver detailed and squared
20" Shilen Select match 1:8" fluted barrel .223
integral compensator , barrel duracoat finished
KONI-Enidine hydraulic recoil buffer

That's a sweet rig Blake!

[Tommyh]

I just loaded 20 rounds with tsx, hopefully it doesn't exit

tsx is built to exit . 85gr has good performance out to 250 and 95gr is the sweet spot out to 400. the 85 doesnt flower much passed 250. penetration is phenomenal in these bullets.


take a look at all the bullet performance on 68forums.com.

[okrattler]

The best gun for saving fur is a shotgun.Every critter I've ever shot or seen shot with a shotgun looked like it had been scared to death.

[BlacktailSlayer]

.17HMR hands down

^ This

[BlacktailSlayer]

Any good .17 HMR suggestions? As far as brand

Savage is my favorite.

[courtatlawjudge]

I've got the .224/6mm sometimes known as .224 TTH. Has 1:8 twist lilja barrel on blueprinted 700 action. Shooting 80 grain berger VLD hollow points in front of 45 grains of RL22. Shoots 3550 fps. Has been deadly on coyotes out to 611yds, cats, hogs ou to 834 yds, some big whitetail and a 240 lb west Texas mulies last week at 263 yds. Rarely get an exit wound, never torn up hide and it's big enough to carry the mail when you need it with almost no recoil. It has become my go to gum for everything. 700 rds down the tube and still shoots one-hole.

[TXHUNT3R]

I have a single shot New England Firearms .17HMR By far the funnest gun I shoot. I ear hole hogs with this thing alot and they drop like a rock. This is no lie, I took a squirrel at 175yards. It did take two shots because it dropped a bit more than I thought. You won't ever regret getting any kind of .17!

[txstringbender]

.17 HMR
.22 mag
.223
Get one of each.

[okrattler]

In my honest opinion the .17HMR or any other rimfire really isn't the best choice for predator hunting.The ones you drop will have a little hole in the pelt.But I'll go ahead and let you know now that you'll see more run off with a little hole in their pelt than you'll see drop dead where you shot them.

A 55gr. V-Max out of a 22-250 on the other hand will straight dump a yote in its tracks more times than not and usually isn't too rough on the fur unless you hit bone or gut shoot one. I shoot a .223 using 53gr. Hornady Match HP's and so far I've only tore up a few due to a bad hit.But you'll find that in any caliber where high speeds and frangible bullets are envolved. When that happens a needle and fishing line are usually needed to put the pelt back together.

[ckamp52]

I love my 223 , gets the job done with smaller game and have killed every rifle hog ive shot as well, I don't have a 17 but its on my list, have shot a few and they are great-accurate and and just enough punch

[wilcohunter]

I would steer clear of the .17 hmr if you want an all around vermit rifle...sweet shooter but lacking some power. I use my 22-250 or my RR .223.

[Jethro]

Saving pelts but having enough moxie to get the job done consistently in varying conditions, that is the predator hunters conundrum!

Dad logged over 500 coyotes killed in the last 20 years, and shot them with a lot of different things. Eventually he settled on a 25-06 with 115 grain Ballistic tips to handle coyotes in all conditions. It was very accurate, shot long range well, cut the wind good, and had the gas to get the job done when it got there. Fur friendly though, it is not. He didn't save hides so it didn't matter.

You can use some of the smaller stuff and be pretty easy on fur (depending on the key factor, bullet selection!), but the problem is anchoring them consistently. You will lose a lot more of them. Coyotes can be tough! Personally, if I was really trying to save hides I would "compromise" with a big .22 centerfire (22-250, .220 Swift, etc.) and as frangible a bullet as I could get away with, and try not to let them exit. You will have some catastrophic exits on occasion, and ruin some furs, but that is going to happen no matter what you do. At least they have plenty of energy to get the job done in most situations without too much damage on average. As far as the .204, it seems getting the right bullet for it is the key. Some do real well, some are real messy.

You will hear a lot of different opinions on this, it is argued on every predator calling board out there. The best way to think about it is a sliding scale compromise between lethality and pelt damage. Whatever increases one, increases the other; whatever decreases one, decreases the other. You have to figure out where your compromise on that scale is.

[Cajun Blake]

I'm partial to the 17's travelling at over 4,000 fps

tiny entrance holes as the right pill explodes inside, no exit

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