Just for discussion- what rifle for varmint/target shooting?

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shredder4286

New member
Howdy all,

This all started a few nights ago when I was in Sportsman's Warehouse here in town. I was fondling a few of the rifles just for the heck of it, and came across a Marlin XL7 "SST". The particular model they had featured a stainless barrel/action, a one-piece rail, a fluted bolt and one of the sweetest triggers I've fired yet. It looks like they did their own rendition of the accutrigger, but MAN, they did a good job. I was hoping to find that Marlin chambers this rifle in .223 Remington, but turns out they only chamber it in 22-250. Now, I'm sure the 22-250 is a great round but I'm really looking for a Super LIGHT recoil, fun shooting varmint/target cartridge, and I humbly admit that the 22-250 might have a little more kick than I want. Anybody think I should keep searching for a different bolt gun in .223, or should I just get the 22-250 since I love the Marlin so much?
 
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taylorce1

New member
I wouldn't worry about recoil with the .22-250 it will be extremely mild. It will recoil less than your .243 Win. If you want to see what it will be similar to I'll give you 100 bullets in 55 grains to reload and shoot in your .243. That is about as close as I can get you since I don't own a .22-250 for you to shoot.
 
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SSA

New member
Don't believe these guys. 22-250 will knock the snot out of you.

It's like an 88 Magnum. Shoots through schools.
 
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Brian Pfleuger

Moderator Emeritus
22-250 and recoil don't even go in the same sentence. There's about enough recoil in a typical gun to bounce the crosshairs off target. I'm not sure a 22-250 set up for varmints with a bipod and fairly large scope has any more recoil than my 10/22.
 
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B.L.E.

New member
Oh, I dunno, looking at that chart, the .22-250 MORE THAN TRIPLES the recoil of a .22 Hornet and has more than 20 times the recoil energy of a .22 long rifle.
Maybe you should be looking at one of the .17 caliber rifles.;)
 
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shredder4286

New member
I wouldn't worry about recoil with the .22-250 it will be extremely mild. It will recoil less than your .243 Win.
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The only reason I was concerned about a difference in recoil between the .223 and 22-250 is from looking at hodgdon data. With Varget, (which generally gives better velocities with lower charges compared to other powders) the minimum charges for a 22-250 are around the low 30's. The minimum charges for a .223 are in the mid to low 20's. The .223 would not only be a complete puppy dog to shoot, but very efficient on powder, and not to mention the availability of factory ammo if the occasion ever arises to need some.

Found this from Chuck Hawks online. Not all rifles weigh the same so this is just a rough estimate.
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That's a pretty interesting look at things. If that table is accurate, the difference is pretty much negligible.
 
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L_Killkenny

New member
There just isn't much that a .22-250 won't do better than a .223 and I've never noticed much, if any difference in recoil. I'll admit, I've never fired both, back to back, in the same platform of gun but the difference is so negligable to be a non-concern.

If you really want to drop down much in recoil you're talking going down to a .222 Remington (A great target round!!) and it's little brother the .204.

LK
 
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pgdion

New member
What size varmint? If they are small then another option is the .22Magnum. Great for target shooting and easily handles smaller varmints. Marlin and Savage both make some very nice .22WMR rifles. I have a bolt action Marlin in .22WMR with the SS barrel and fiber sights. I love this gun, shoots so nice and the accuracy of the .22Mag is fantastic. What I really like is there are a lot of bullet options on the .22Mag

Otherwise I'd stick with the .223 and check some other rifles. I personally do love Marlin rifles but there are other good ones out there of course. My son just got a beautiful CZ bolt action chambered in the .223 (spent over $500 though).
 
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shredder4286

New member
Now I know we can't believe everything we see on the internet, but from my understanding, Chuckhawks is a pretty darn credible source of info. This table shows a trajectory comparison of the .223 and 22-250 to be pretty close.

http://www.chuckhawks.com/rifle_trajectory_table.htm

That being said, the 22-250 has a considerable advantage in muzzle velocity. Look at the data for the 55 gn SP in the 2 calibers. Although, I would be interested to see this table with data out to 300+ yds.
 
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shredder4286

New member
What size varmint?
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We've got a heck of a lot of prairie dogs that need their numbers reduced out here. Same goes for coyotes. Also, I'm mainly looking to shoot a centerfire cartridge which I can reload.
 
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Art Eatman

Staff in Memoriam
From the standpoint of fairly easy ruination on prairie dogs, I'd call the .223 a 300-yard gun and the .22-250 a 400-yard gun.

Not enough recoil in a .22-250 to even notice, in my experience. Call it a third of an '06...
 
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shredder4286

New member
From the standpoint of fairly easy ruination on prairie dogs, I'd call the .223 a 300-yard gun and the .22-250 a 400-yard gun.
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I like the comparison there, Art. I guess with the advantages/disadvantages of each cartridge in mind, why limit myself to 300 yds?
 
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Poodleshooter

New member
I suspect that for most varmint rigs, accuracy of the system, rather than the drop or wind, is the limiting factor.
For the most part, we're talking about critters with 3" or smaller kill zones. (I'm considering this as a chuck or prairie dog rifle). For an honest MOA rifle, that means that even benched, you can only hold on such a critter out to 300yds.
This somewhat marginalizes the benefit of the flatter shooting round in an "average" varmint rifle.
If a reloader, the 22/250 also sucks up more powder.

Just giving some counterpoints. Realistically, either cartridge is great and light recoiling in a heavy barreled rifle.
 
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geetarman

New member
I have been reloading for and shooting 22-250 for over forty years.

It is a GREAT round and there is a lot you can do with it. Either the .223 or the 22-250 are great rounds with huge followings.

If you feel you will not reload and may want to shoot milsurp ammo, the .223 is the way to go.

You really can't go wrong with either one. They are both winners.

Geetarman:D
 
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