Antelope/Coyote Rifle?

A

azsixshooter

New member
I'm looking for a rifle to use on Pronghorn primarily, but also for coyote and cougar. Sounds like the 25-06 is the ticket, would anyone suggest a better chambering for my needs?

Anything smaller than a coyote (fox and bobcat) I'll use my .17 HMR. For rabbits and tree squirrels either the .17 HMR for headshots or my trusty 10/22. Anything bigger than Pronghorn I will bow-hunt or use 12 gauge slugs.

The only other animals I can imagine myself rifle hunting would be sheep, but that would be in the distant future and a good excuse to buy a new rifle if the 25-06 wouldn't be enough for them. If I ever move to Alaska I think I'd definitely buy a Marlin Guide Gun in .45-70 Government.

I read a bunch of old threads on the 25-06, but thought it was better to start a new one rather than bump old ones.

Also, I'm interested in saving pelts so if anyone can advise me on how bad a 25-06 exits on a coyote (at longer ranges) that would be really appreciated too.
 
T

T. O'Heir

New member
Any of the medium bores will do nicely. The .243 Win or 6mm Rem, the other .25 calibres, the .270's. All, with suitable bullets, will shoot flat and hit hard enough for antelope.
Don't shoot a .25-06, but a 90 grain FMJ out of my .243 makes a puncture wound. Commercial FMJ's are made for hide hunting. They're not the same as a military FMJ. Thinner jackets.
There doesn't seem to be any .25 calibre FMJ's though. A Hornady 117 gr SST should do out of your rifle. Sierra makes a 100 gr Matchking that'd do for hide hunting, but nothing else other than varmints.
 
T

taylorce1

New member
I think a .25-06 is a good choice and I wish I could tell you how they work on coyotes, but I still don't have one yet. I've been waiting 1.5 years for mine to be built. I have a friend who hunts pronghorn with one and it hammers them. Still most of the pronghorn he has shot has been inside 200 yards so no long range reports on them.

My favorite coyote load to save pelts is a 55 grain Sierra HP in .223 Rem. I handload them to around 3000 fps and they rarely exit. I can understand wanting one rifle to do it all but that will soon change for most people.
 
A

azsixshooter

New member
I was planning on getting a .223 Remington for coyotes and cougar, but thought I'd pique the forum's collective and see what the thoughts were about using a 25-06 on them. I had my doubts that it would really be a good rifle for saving pelts, but figured there's no harm in asking.

I'm planning to buy an RCBS Rockchucker kit after I get a rifle that I can reload for, so I was thinking that maybe I could load the 25-06 down enough to be okay to use for pelts.

I guess the smart move would be to get a .223 now (since I can hunt coyotes and cougars with it now and mostly all year long) and then take my time thinking about a good Antelope rifle. I don't even know if I'll get drawn yet this year so that isn't a rush. I'm just really excited to buy my first centerfire rifle I guess.
 
N

NWCP

New member
25-06 is a great round if you're reloading, otherwise the .223, or .243 is the way to go.
 
T

texastweeter

New member
.22-250 may also need to be considerd. if you can put the pill where itneeds to go then i should be plenty for what ou are wanting it to do.
 
N

nate45

New member
The .257 Wea does everything the .25-06(one of my favorites) can do and more.

For long shots on varmints and pronghorn the .257 is hard to beat.
 
F

Full-choke

New member
I think quarter bore is going to be just the ticket for saving pelts. You might be able to push out to .264"/6.5mm range but I think the .257" will give you all the knock down power you need.

I would look into 257 Roberts, 257 Weatherby and 25-06 as my top three (in that order). Ballistics wise the 257 Weatherby does better then the Bob, but the Bob's ammo is a lot cheaper. 25-06 has always been a trusted round in that category as well, ammo is available, but prolly not as many loadings as some of the other quarter bores, at least around me anyways.

F-C
 
A

azsixshooter

New member
Thanks for the good advice on those 3 calibers. I have heard of .257 Roberts and Weatherby, but I haven't seen many rifles chambered for them. I probably just need to look further or go talk to someone at the gun store. I was looking at a Remington CDL in 25-06, I'll have to see if they offer that in .257 Roberts or Weatherby. Seems like they have it in just about everything.
 
J

Jimro

New member
The 6.5x55 is the ballistic older brother of the 260 Remington, which in metric terms would be the 6.5x51. The older Swede has 4 millimeters longer brass, as well as a slightly larger case head, although Remington just uses standard .470 case head brass for their 6.5x55 ammo.

For antelope and coyote I would get the 270 over the 25-06 only because commercial ammo is cheaper and very abundant. It is difficult to find a rifle in 270 that won't shoot SOME factory fodder sub-moa, but it has been known to happen.

Jimro
 
A

azsixshooter

New member
I'm just going to buy a .223 this month and then I'll have practically all year to figure out what rifle I want to get for strictly hunting Antelope. I'm still thinking 25-06, if I go any bigger than that I'll probably just get a 30-06. Thanks for all the info and caliber suggestions.
 
P

Pathfinder45

New member
Not much difference if bullet weights and velocity are similar. The .270 has advantages in ballistics and especially choices of heavier bullets for larger game. The .25-06 is at its best with bullets of about 120 grains for larger game. But back to the .270: Sierra makes a 135 grain full metal jacket match bullet that might be ideal especially in reduced loads for, "pelt", hunting. If you are more recoil sensitive than most, put a recoil pad on your rifle even if it's a .25-06. I had a friend that cut his eyebrow with the scope on his .25-06. He was shooting prone with a newly mounted scope that probably could have been mounted too close. Just get a .270.
 
T

The Lovemaster

New member
25-06 is awesome, but more so if you reload. You might want to look into the Lee Precision reloading equipment before you drop your money on the RCBS. RCBS is very good, don't get me wrong, but Lee has some innovative engineering at great prices.

I dropped my antelope with my 25-06, he was dead before he hit the ground. It's an effective round.

For coyotes I use my 300 Win :eek:. Actually that was a fluke, we were elk hunting and a yote had the misfortune to cross our path.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top