What types/make of Varmint rifles are popular these days

Zxthinger

Hi All,

Thanks for reading and hopefully your going to help out here..lol
I am Remington 700 guy when it comes to centrefire vermin shooting.
However as of late i have heard several reports from dealers that Remington rifles are no longer popular.

Is that the case and if so why and if that really the case then can you shine a light on which guns or models/makes which are becoming more popular.

Regards
Zxthinger

The pigeon man

I'm the same. I have a Remington 700 in 223. Fine rifle for foxes and cheap to run for a centre fire.

I think the tikka rifles are really popular now. The are deadly accurate and at a reasonable enough price.

zeissman

At one time the only varmint rifles I would of seen in dealers were the Remington and ruger.
Tikka seems to be the most popular now and they are excellent rifles.
Most of the older varmint rifles had 26in barrels but most shooters nowadays are using moderators with barrels of 20 to 22 inches.
I still have a rem 700 but the only original part left on it is the action.

cookimonster

I would hazard a guess that as European Firearms manufacturers expanded thier markets and production internationaly out side of main land Europe they would have incorporated popular calibre choices to thier catalogues of rifles.
The 223 rem is a hughly popular round in the US not only for its greatness as a calibre but like the 30-06 and the .308 it benefits from its shared history with the 5.56mm another military round and this has always been beneficial in the marketing and acceptance of ammo in the US.
The .223 would have probably faded into history if the .222 Rem had been picked up by the military for use in Stoners AR platform. As it is the .222 Rem is still in use in mainland Europe and the UK.
Wheather or not the .223 suffered the same faith in Europe as other military ammo such as the 30-06 and 308 which where banned for civilian applications because of thier military pedigree, I'm not sure. Recent changes has seen the military 30 calibres now legalised in many European countries.
Another point to be taken, is the acceptability and or use of the round out side of Ireland and the UK. Hunting styles vary so much on the continent from that of here and our closest neighbours. Driven shoots for small ground game inculding foxes are very popular as is walked up shooting while large game drives can inculde foxs and the likes European jackals. The use of such a calibre as the .223 may not find a niche in many European hunters collection. As for use on smaller large game such as Roe and Chamois, they all ready have thier own tradtional calibre such as the 5.6 RWS.
So as I said in the beginning the old reliables such as Remington, Winchester, Rugar, Marlin etc, etc who had a huge chunk of the international market may now see forgein brands baying at thier heels and because our market is so small the variations in models and calibre choice are slower to filter here. Look at the UK where calibre choice is almost a fashion statement and you will see trends driven by marketing and demand, were as here its a bold choice by individuals to pick certain calibres that may be fairly main stream in other countries but are like hens teeth to get here.

badshot

i have a remington 700 40xb in 243 win great for foxes crows
hope to change it when this lockdown is over
like to get a 204

Zxthinger

badshot wrote: »

i have a remington 700 40xb in 243 win great for foxes crows
hope to change it when this lockdown is over
like to get a 204

Is the connection very slow here today?
Anyway, yes 204 would be nice however the sub 224 barrels are renowned for strict cleaning being a prerequisite to use.

High quality barrels supposedly have a reduced cleaning frequency meaning more shots between cleans.

So then it boiled down to who making the best barrels on factory offerings?
Which gun are avoiding plastics componets and should this even be considered
Are the guns with aftermarket parts to provide improvements or is this a strategy or trait that's aiming to fail strait out of the block.

I'm not a crack shot but I need 1/2 moa, good wind resistance, flat shooting, cheap ammo options, moderate cleaning, all weather, day/night, non-temperature-sensitive shooting.

Calibre is one thing and 223 just doesn't appeal to me. I like the m controversial cartridges, 17rem, 17 fireball, 220 swift,
The 204 has appeal but so does the 243 which has power, the 260 can't be got, the 270 is a little over kill for crows and rabbit and even I dare say on foxes.

Hunting was not the point of the thread so keeping it real.
Out of the box? What's got it! that doesn't need a timney trigger, a Bell Carlson stick, Devcon Bedding, steel piller action screw shrouds, stock inletting, muzzle threading, bottom metal replacement etc etc.
OMG Where does it end..

Hunter456

Remington, howa, ruger, tikka, Cz Are the most popular Varmint rifles on the market today and all very good brands.

Hunter456

Remington, howa, ruger, tikka, Cz Are the most popular Varmint rifles on the market today and all very good brands.