A friend of mine was using v max bullets in his 223. Those things really blew up on ground squirrels. That got me thinking about trying the 58 grain v max in my 243. I have a factory orignal winchester post 64. Will the twist in this gun do ok with this small of a bullet? What kind of powder do you use? How fast should they be? I am thinking close to 4000 fps with 5895? Any other Ideas?
Ron

You'll find alot of post about the v-max bullets in 6mm here if you check the varmint hunting board. I use the 58 grain V-max in an older Savage 110 (243 Win) with IMR 4064 powder loaded to about 3600 fps and they actually dismember ground squirrels out to 300 yards regularily. I'm grouping them at .5 - .8 MOA on a regular basis even with over .125" jump to the lands in a throat worn barrel.

[ 06-03-2003, 06:07: Message edited by: Fjold ]

Ron, I generally use bullets in the 70 to 80 grain range for my 6mm varminting, but have tried the lighter bullets just for fun.

I have a custom built 6mm Remington with a tight neck that wears a 26 inch Shilen SS barrel. Both the 55 grain Nosler BT and the 58 grain V-Max shot quite well in this rifle, which has a 1 in 12 twist.

However, the V-Max provided MUCH better terminal performance on ground squirrels and prairie dogs. I called Nosler about this and they basically did not want to hear about it.

What the 58 grain V-Max does to a small varmint has to be seen to be believed. When shot at 4200 fps or so it just uterly DESTROYS small varmints!

And yes, 4895 is a good powder to zip small bullets out of a 6mm of any sort with.

Maybe it was just the batch of bullets I had, but I have had much better terminal effect with the 70 grain Nosler Ballistic Tip than I have the 55 grain version.

Anyway, the V-Max bullets in most any caliber are VERY good varmint bullets.

But, then again, no bullet works well in every gun. That same 6mm Remington mentioned above shoots the 75 grain V-Max only so-so. My buddies .243 Winchester shoots the 75 grain V-Max in one ragged hole. Go figure!

R F

Ron, Give Hornady a call @1-800-338-3220 and see what they'd suggest you use, they make a 65grainer also. Thing is with the shorter bullets, you'll be so far away from the lands, you may not get the accuracy as with a 75VMAX, which is still going to do a number on anything it hits. And the velocity will be the same as your buddies 223 with 50grain bullets, plus, with its higher BC you'll be able to shoot further with the 75. R Flowers, Nosler should be proud of their bullets, My Rifleshooter Mag. just did a test on some of the Varmint bullets, and concluded the Bal. tip was the best all-around varmint bullet, because it didn't blow-up like the VMAX and Blitzking, it all depends on what varmint your going after, Pdogs&yotes=VMAX & Blitzkings, 'Yotes'=Bal.tips. Jay.

Thanks guys! I have always shot 100 gr at everything. After seeing the V-max 22's HELLA shred those squirrels I was HELLA impressed. I am going to try some. I also was with him when he shot a HUGE rock chuck. The thing was about 25 pounds. The bullet just went in and blew up. It had no exit at all.
Also thanks for the phone number for Hornady!
Ron

Hi, Ron - nothing to add on the V-max in .243, but I love them in .223.

By the way, my Dad was born in Buhl - in 1925.

Ron;
The 58 grain V-max in my .243 Win Ruger 1 is just plain nasty! I recently got some 65 grainers to try and they work equally as well and I can seat them out a little closer to the lands both are equal in the accuracy department, but 65's buck the wind a little better.

[ 06-04-2003, 04:01: Message edited by: Marsh Mule ]

In response to Jay Gorski:

Jay, for the 22 caliber versions I have to admit you are pretty much correct, use the V-Max on small varmints and the Ballistic Tip for coyotes.

However, ALL is not well with the Ballistic Tips at all times. I had some 6mm 55 grain BT bullets that did not expand well at all. AND, I will not even consider using the current 85 grain Ballistic Tips in my 25-06 on a coyote again.
The current version of the .257 caliber 85 grain BT is SO fragile that I have had a real hard time killing coyotes with it!! I shot two in the same morning at a range of about 200 yards and both bullets blew up on the surface (shoulder shots) and did not penetrate at all. Both coyotes had to be shot again to finish them off. The surface wounds were rather amazing, to say the least. I do not understand how an 85 grain Ballistic Tip will not get through a coyote's shoulder while a 40 grain BT fired out of a 22-250 AI at over 4500 fps will penetrate inside and kill a coyote RIGHT NOW!

But yes, the 22 caliber versions of the Ballistic Tips work quite well on all varmints from ground squirrels to coyotes.

R F

You guys got me fired up to try these. SO you are saying the 1 in 10 twist will do ok with the 58's?
I will be shooting them out of a winchester feather weight.
Calif Hunter, Do you still have any family here? Ron

I run the 65 grain V-Max in my .243 with pretty good accuracy; 3 out of 4 under a dime and all 4 under a nickel. I haven't had the chance to see how they do on dogs yet, probably some time this summer. 35.1 grains of IMR3031 .020" out gives me the best groups.