Rifle for foxes and rabbits

Foxer101

Lads,, Im looking to buy a rifle but i've been told many different calibers are best for this and that.. anyway i'd be using it on foxes,rabbits,crows and mags

one of my mates has a .17hmr and is more then pleased with it and told me if im getting a rifle to get one of those,,

Then i was advised to get a .22wmr but i hear there nowhere near as accurate as the .17

and now someone has told me to get a .223 but i reckon it would be very overkill an small game & varmint

Any advice would be much appreciated:)

Tikkat3

Although I have not owned a .22WMR, I would imagine that while it may not be as flat shooting as a .17Hmr, it will be accurate (given the right rifle - round combination) and subject to less problems with regards wind/obstacle deflection as the .17hmr, ect. as the round goes down range and would be a more potent round for foxes against the very light weight of the .17hhmr rounds.

The .223, which I use myself, pretty much does everything and is cost effective to shoot, while also the most humane of what you mention on foxes.

Personally, given the choice of quarry you mentioned. I would rather obliterate a crow with a .223 and use a suitable weight .223 round accurately for rabbits than try and use a lesser capable fox killing round to kill the smaller quarry and find it lacking in humanely killing a fox.

No doubt there will be far more informed opinions than mine but that is my 2 cents so to speak.

Foxer101

very thankfull for your advice tikka..

And as you said;;

Personally, given the choice of quarry you mentioned. I would rather obliterate a crow with a .223 and use a suitable weight .223 round accurately for rabbits than try and use a lesser capable fox killing round to kill the smaller quarry and find it lacking in humanely killing a fox.

I would think much the same as that,,

johngalway

I'm going to throw my lot in with Tikkat3 as well. .223 or other capable centrefire for foxes.

The magpies and greycrows you can trap pretty easy.

There are numerous ways of controlling bunnies, depends on what you intend their end use to be.

BELOWaverageIQ

.223 all the way.
Perfect for fox and head shots for the bunnies.

Tackleberrywho

BELOWaverageIQ wrote: »

.223 all the way.
Perfect for fox and head shots for the bunnies.

.223 Does exactly what it says on the tin, an inherently accurate varmint round
Available from 10-30€ box of 20:D

clivej

In my opion if your intention is to shoot foxes then go with the 223.

Anything less than a center fire is not on for foxes. I get very good results/groups with American Eagle 55gr HP. There won't be much left of a rabbit to eat if you body shoot them with the 223 but head shots are OK, just make sure you have a safe backstop cos thoses rounds will travel.

tomcat220t

Foxer101 wrote: »

Lads,, Im looking to buy a rifle but i've been told many different calibers are best for this and that.. anyway i'd be using it on foxes,rabbits,crows and mags

one of my mates has a .17hmr and is more then pleased with it and told me if im getting a rifle to get one of those,,

Then i was advised to get a .22wmr but i hear there nowhere near as accurate as the .17

and now someone has told me to get a .223 but i reckon it would be very overkill an small game & varmint

Any advice would be much appreciated:)

The .223 is a popular caliber fox foxes and rabbits but if your looking for better varmint caliber get yourself a .204 .;)

Tackleberrywho

tomcat220t wrote: »

The .223 is a popular caliber fox foxes and rabbits but if your looking for better varmint caliber get yourself a .204 .;)

The Caveat being .204 is a newer cal so ammo is not as readily available as .223.

And .223 ammo can be cheaper due to wider availability.
Either are a mighty foxer!

.243

clivej wrote: »

In my opion if your intention is to shoot foxes then go with the 223.

Anything less than a center fire is not on for foxes.

this i have to disagree with in regards suitability of rimfires for foxes,rimfires have their place for fox control it really depends on distance and how confident you are with it

ormondprop

i'd recommend .204 aswell, hopefully it'll be my next calibre instead of the hornet ,shoots faster and flatter than .223, ammo is readily available around my area as a few lads have them and when you are buying good ammo the prices are the same comparable to .223, the only upside of the .223 for me is that you can buy wolf and umc ammo for 10-15 euro a box but personally for me when i'd only be firing about 100 rounds a year, one night less out drinking would save me the money to buy premium ammo

tomcat220t

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

The Caveat being .204 is a newer cal so ammo is not as readily available as .223.

And .223 ammo can be cheaper due to wider availability.
Either are a mighty foxer!

All the gun dealers in my area have a good stock of .204 ammo ,23-25 euro a box of 20 .

kay 9

Don't go shoppin with Ormond, that lad has deep pockets about to splash out 3000 on a set up. Best luck lads, whatever ye decide on:)

Tackleberrywho

tomcat220t wrote: »

All the gun dealers in my area have a good stock of .204 ammo ,23-25 euro a box of 20 .

.223 Hornady 55 grain Moly €27
Hornady Varmint express €25
.223 Wolf €10-12 Hollow point (depending on dealer)
Remington €13 Hollow point
Remington Accutip €32
Remington premier match €34 www.shoot.ie

These .204's seem same price as .223 hornady ~ are they Moly coated, or do they come free with copper remover?:D

What Brand .204 do you use and prices?

patsat

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

are they Moly coated, or do they come free with copper remover?:D

Have you got your house painted in moly?!either that or your getting commision from hornady!:D:D:D

tomcat220t

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

.223 Hornady 55 grain Moly €27
Hornady Varmint express €25
.223 Wolf €10-12 Hollow point (depending on dealer)
Remington €13 Hollow point
Remington Accutip €32
Remington premier match €34 www.shoot.ie

These .204's seem same price as .223 hornady ~ are they Moly coated, or do they come free with copper remover?:D

What Brand .204 do you use and prices?

I use 39gr federal ammo at 23 euro a box of 20 .Hornady 45 sp at 25 euro for 20 .Non moly coated!Why would copper remover be need for .204 non moly coated ammo

Tackleberrywho

patsat wrote: »

Have you got your house painted in moly?!either that or your getting commision from hornady!:D:D:D

I'm an engineer by profession so I like coolant to be used on very hot rounds
From my reading on the .204 they seem very flat round, But that fast as round generates some amount of heat and therefore melts copper and leaves some in barrel
Moly cools this effect and same accuracy but no copper fouling.
I can't understand why .204 are not Moly coated from an engineers perspective that is.

I only know of one Dude with a .204 Ruger, He shot a Ruger swift for years too, and they were a screamer of a round too. When you clean your barrel do you get green copper deposits yet?
Or have you fired over 200 rounds yet?

Fergal White looked at my barrel with a magnifying glass and was impressed at how clean it was after 600 rounds had gone through it in comparison to some barrels he see's from Hot rounds:D

In regards to Hornady, I just like there philosophy, Accurate,Deadly,Dependable
If I was going for a .204 i would use Hornady no questions asked, But I'd wait until they bring out a Moly round;);)

tomcat220t

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

I'm an engineer by profession so I like coolant to be used on very hot rounds
From my reading on the .204 they seem very flat round, But that fast as round generates some amount of heat and therefore melts copper and leaves some in barrel
Moly cools this effect and same accuracy but no copper fouling.
I can't understand why .204 are not Moly coated from an engineers perspective that is.

I only know of one Dude with a .204 Ruger, He shot a Ruger swift for years too, and they were a screamer of a round too. When you clean your barrel do you get green copper deposits yet?
Or have you fired over 200 rounds yet?

Fergal White looked at my barrel with a magnifying glass and was impressed at how clean it was after 600 rounds had gone through it in comparison to some barrels he see's from Hot rounds:D

In regards to Hornady, I just like there philosophy, Accurate,Deadly,Dependable
If I was going for a .204 i would use Hornady no questions asked, But I'd wait until they bring out a Moly round;);)

4 of my mates shoot .223 rifles and now and again we turn up together for some long range bunny bashing .One thing we all seen straight away was that the .204 barrel doesnt get near as hot on a quick 5 shot string as the .223 rifles do of simular weight barrels.The .204 is a fast round but for some reason not that hot .I have fired 600-650 rounds through my barrel and no fouling .As for copper fouling ,it your barrel that fouls not the ammo

Tackleberrywho

tomcat220t wrote: »

4 of my mates shoot .223 rifles and now and again we turn up together for some long range bunny bashing .One thing we all seen straight away was that the .204 barrel doesnt get near as hot on a quick 5 shot string as the .223 rifles do of simular weight barrels.The .204 is a fast round but for some reason not that hot .I have fired 600-650 rounds through my barrel and no fouling .As for copper fouling ,it your barrel that fouls not the ammo

Is yours a heavy barrel? Does it have a heat-sink/fluting?
Are your mates Rifles the same type of rifle as yours; just in different calibre?
And fouled barrels lose accuracy!

What grain .223 rounds do your mates use, and are they Moly coated rounds??;)

tomcat220t

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

Is yours a heavy barrel? Does it have a heat-sink/fluting?
Are your mates Rifles the same type of rifle as yours; just in different calibre?
And fouled barrels lose accuracy!

What grain .223 rounds do your mates use, and are they Moly coated rounds??;)

Its a medium fluted barrel on my .204 .I am using an ultra fast small round(non moly) down my barrel with no fouling .Imo, this has more got to do with how well the inside of the barrel is rifled and how well its finished (lapped) rather than the speed or heat it generates .I am not an engineer like yourself ,just joe soup who enjoys shooting an accurate rifle .The facts are that the .204 does not need free copper remover when using non moly ammo unless the barrel quality is s..te.

Tackleberrywho

tomcat220t wrote: »

Its a medium fluted barrel on my .204 .I am using an ultra fast small round(non moly) down my barrel with no fouling .Imo, this has more got to do with how well the inside of the barrel is rifled and how well its finished (lapped) rather than the speed or heat it generates .I am not an engineer like yourself ,just joe soup who enjoys shooting an accurate rifle .The facts are that the .204 does not need free copper remover when using non moly ammo unless the barrel quality is s..te.

As an Engineer I have to bow to you as you have one and i don't.

My mate uses .38special wad cutter in his S&W686 and they look like they can not be accurate but they are!

Is your Rifle a Ruger? Is your Rifle a factory barrel or Custom?
What is your twist rate. I would just be interested in learning from your experiences.

I never said it was a bad round, I just would have thought so from my opinion on it.
I am always open to new things. Thats why I started using Moly in .223 in the first place!
That's why I like boards as the experiences of others can be learned from.

tomcat220t

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

As an Engineer I have to bow to you as you have one and i don't.

My mate uses .38special wad cutter in his S&W686 and they look like they can not be accurate but they are!

Is your Rifle a Ruger? Is your Rifle a factory barrel or Custom?
What is your twist rate. I would just be interested in learning from your experiences.

I never said it was a bad round, I just would have thought so from my opinion on it.
I am always open to new things. Thats why I started using Moly in .223 in the first place!
That's why I like boards as the experiences of others can be learned from.

Its a remingtion VLS with a lothar walther 1/12 twist ,26" barrel .Got it built with John Greene in waterford .I clean it every 20 rounds or so and no copper problems at all .Even from the first clean bore shot its poa is bang on .Its your barrel not the round thats the main problem with copper fouling ,imo;)

patsat

I've put plenty rounds through my .223, well over 200 and find that there is very little copper fouling! Nothing that a good cleaning can't sort out!