I want to buy a coyote gun but I don't know which caliber. I can't afford expensive ammunition and I can't afford an expensive rifle. I looked at a CZ in 223 for $500 and a Remington 700 ADL in 223 and 22-250 for a little over $400. Should I save up for a better rifle or stick with one of these?
Any help will be welcomed.

Youngh, After 25 years and about 25 varmint rigs, both factory and custom if I were to get a general purpose var
mint rifle with coyote emphasis it would be a Savage bolt gun in .223 or .22-250, or secondly a factory Rem in .17 Rem. The Savages are generally inherently accurate rifles (most theorize due to the floating bolt head assembly), and are ready to go right out of the box with but maybe a little trigger tinkering, and the .17's are the sweetest cartridges to shoot due to lack of recoil. But if you have a significant other that likes to shoot, don't let her get her hands on it, or else it will be gone.

P.S. take a look at the topic, "Would you buy a Savage?". There's a lot of good info. there

younghunter,

I have < $600 invested in a new Remington 700 ADL in .223 with Redfield base and rings and a Simmons Whitetail Expedition 4x12 AO. There is nothing pretty about this package except the little tiny groups that it shoots with factory ammo. The first 5-shot group that ever shot with it measured .309", if I remember correctly this was a 55gr Sierra Gameking in Federal Classic. This Fall when I zeroed it at 200 yards with Winchester Premium 40gr BST the groups were slightly over 1/2".

Sounds like Tony has a good outfit. He's got enough money invested to get some quality stuff but not so much as to be afraid to use the outfit. I would be more inclined toward the 22-250 but that is a personal preference. If you get the .223, you can get a lee loader, a sack of 50gr bullets and a can of h335 and shoot for a loooooong time.

sscoyote,
I couldn't find the topic "Would you buy a Savage?"

Just some observations. When I started out I had a Rem 722 which is a really cheap rifle but I did not know that and I was very happy with it.

But the scope that my dad got me was the state of the art at the time. Rifles come and go and I still have that scope and it's as good as new as far as I am concerned.

The Leupold brand is really a good value and the VX line goes for $180 in 2X7, $200 in 3X9 and $250 in 4X12 via mailorder. This choice would be my first requirement.

If you found a used rifle in a caliber that was good for varmints and you had a good relationship with the store you might ask if you could shoot it and if it did not work out could you return it for credit? In the $400 to $600 range for rifles you have to consider that you may do some trading before you keep one.

Not with the scope. Sure enough if you get a good scope you will have it on some rifle or other years from now and if the rifles that come and go don't shoot all that well you will know it's not the scope!

Good luck.

Youngh. "Would you buy a Savage", is about 20 topics down as this is posted.

For varminting, a Rem 700 ADL in 223 or 22-250 would be hard to beat no matter how much money you had IMHO. Top that with a Leupold 2-7, Weaver V-10, Nikon Buckmaster 4.5-14, etc. and the local yotes will rue your existance!!! Let us know what you choose and how it works for ya!

i shoot a savage 24v 222 over 20 guage with a weaver 6x scope.

With 2 kids and a wife to feed the dollar comes between me and my wants too much. However, I usually scan the used racks and find something used not abused for less money. This sucks when you want it right now though. If you don't reload I would say to go with the .223 but save as much money as you can to get the reloading gear. My varmint rig is a savage 110 in .220 swift that wears a hand me down scope ( bought used for 50 bones) and shares its stock with my .416 Taylor ( until next week when I order it's own Boyd's)

Good Luck!

I have many guns and love all that I have. They all shoot well or they don't stay around long.

My first .223 was a Rem700VSF w/1/10 twist 26" BBL. It shoots a 68,69 or 70grn pill well but will not shoot the lighter stuff and therefore did'nt get much use.
My wife bought me a Rem700 sendero VS SSF w/1/12 twist in .223 amd do I love that gun for coyotes.

Bad thing happens to guys that like guns, they find more guns to like and I did just that.
!8 months ago I found the 20 cal stuff, now I'm shooting the Tact20 and Love that gun and chambering to death.

For a first gun, go with a rem700vs ssf, it will serve you well

Slydog

younghunter,

What you need isn't a rifle... you need a PLAN!

And it goes something like this: Shop around and find a rifle you like and that costs as little as possible! It may be ugly. It may have some scratches nicks and dings, but that's okay. Just make sure it has a clean bore. Go with your gut feeling here. Brand does NOT matter! I'd encourage you to get a .223 with a heavy barrel. Then, spend the rest of your $$$ on a good scope. If you can find a Leupold or Burris at a used price get it! If you buy new, get a V10 weaver. I have a K6 weaver on a 223 of mine and love it! Best scope for the $.

Anyway, the plan continues don't spend a dime on reloading gear! Instead, have the rifle accurized. (Free floated barrel, bedded action, trigger honed, action squared, barrel crowned, chamber re-cut, etc, etc).

I went this route with a cheesy Rem ADL .243. Now it is a heavy barreled 22-250 in a used VLS stock with a used Burris scope, used factory barrel, used base, and used Basix trigger (mostly all acquired via the AR classifieds BTW)... but I bought new bottom metal for it! With ordinary Winchester White box ammunition it will shoot in the 4's all day long. Moral of the story, take a few months and build the gun you want. The cost of decent reloading equiptment and good gunsmithing services are about the smame. Oh and without the scope, this rifle cost a little more than $675 gunsmithing included!!!

Also, for the price and time, .223 is hardly worth reloading when you have a half inch rifle anyway.

JMHO

I'll really start the flames. A couple of months ago a gunstore I deal with had a HANDI- RIFLE/.223 trade in that just kept sitting there. The owner said take it, if it won't shoot bring it back.
$190.00 out the door, $40.00 for synthetic stocks, trigger tuning, Bushnell 4x12x42 a.o. Winchester White Box Varmint Pack 45gr. hp.
.465" average group size for 100 rounds.
This was just meant to be something cheap to leave in the gunboot on the Polaris.
DUH!

No flames here Terry,

When we were in H.S. I picked up an old Savage 219 or whatever that top break model is in .22 Hornet. It was just a $12 gun then and only had a Weaver .22 scope on it. I loaned it out to friends for chuck hunting. That rifle was a lot better than nothing and it get's mentioned now and then.

I let my .223 Handi Rifle with a 4-12 Bushnell AO go to my brother but sometimes I wish I hadnt. Very accurate and cheap to shoot for less than $250.00 total. He still loves it, in fact I talked to him last weekend and he told me about how his girlfriend outshot him with it! he was using his 6.5 sweede.

I was looking at .223 a few months back and my savage dealer had a new .223 with a scope already mounted with a sling and case all for $349 can't beat this IMO. the scope may be crappy but at that price what do you have to loose. I am also interested in getting a NEF rifle just to keep behind the seat of my truck to dispatch any wondering coyotes or whatever else i might see. If you don't reload i would recommend a .223, ammo is so cheap and lots of selection I looked all over at pawn shops and used guns places and now one seems to have very many small calibers like anything in .22 and if they do they want too much for it, too bad you can't get a good varmit rig for the price of the average .270 or 30-06