Well, since the California Condor Lead Ban in california has been passed, I've been prevented from persuing my hobby of abliterating the ground squirrel population.

This just happens to be co-inciding with my Remington 700 VS in .223 Rem pretty much being shot out and I've pretty much decided to get it re-barreled, my question is what caliber should I go for?

I can get Barnes Lead-Free Varmint Grenade bullets in 26gr .204 cal, or 36gr .224 cal so some cartridge that will shoot these bullets accuractly from 10-350 yards or so would be perfect.

I could go back to .223 again, or even .223 AI, but the small calibers have caught my eye. In fact I was thinking of putting together a .17 Hornet AI or .17 Fireball before the lead ban, too bad they don't make lead free .17 cal bullets.

I've been reading posts on this forum about the .20 Tactical and think that might just be the thing, since I've got tons of left over .223 brass, but the dies are a little more expensive and from what I've searched, there are few die companies making them.

The .204 Ruger sounded like a viable factory offering, and then I could just pick up a Savage or Ruger varmint rifle in the caliber already, probably for cheaper than I could re-barrel my remington. But then brass is pricey.

I saw the 5mm/35 SMc and this round looks cool. I'm all about efficiency in cartidges, but I couldn't find brass for it...

Ao any help pushing me for or against any of these calibers or any other caliber I havn't considered would be helpful. I'm thinking of having Pac-Nor do the work, but I'm going to ask around at my local range to see if there's someone local who'd do a good job too.

One thing I havn't considered is cleaning effort. How fouled do these rifles get when pushing a .20 cal bullet at 4000+ fps? I'm more of the type to shoot 150+ rounds in the field, walking and stalking before returning to the truck and maybe not even cleaning til I get home...

Sorry for the long post, and thanks

Just to confirm, you know the lead ban extends only to certain areas in California? Are you sure you shoot in the lead-restricted area?

I've shot the Barnes 26 grain in my .204 ruger and I didn't notice any more fouling than normal lead bullets. I normally don't shoot more than 75 rounds in one outing though.

I'm in the middle of Condor territory and I've bought some 36 and 50 grain Barnes .224 bullets but I haven't gotten a chance to try them out yet.

Have you considered ground up politician in a J-4 jacket, with Enviro-winnie ashes for powder?

Just a thought (oops I forgot we aren't supposed to think)

muck

ducboat - Yup, my main hunting grounds, my cousin's small ranch outside of Paso Robles is smack dab in the middle of one of those condor areas. In regards to the 204, have you noticed if it fouls any worse than say a 223? I was just thinking since it's pushing a bullit at 4000fps it'd foul worse...

I've got some 36gr and 50gr bullets for my 223, but my barrel is pretty shot out (would have to seat the bullet well outside the case to reach the lands ) and well, I guess I could work up a load for my dad's 223... I'll have to try that Enviro-winnie powder

quote:

Remington 700 VS in .223 Rem pretty much being shot out and I've pretty much decided to get it re-barreled, my question is what caliber should I go for?

.223 Rem. with a 1-9" twist. The one I'm playing with shoots the 36 and 50 gr. Varmint Grenades very well and the Barnes 55 gr. Multi Purpose Green bullets look promising too.

The 36 gr. VG shoots well out of my .222 Rem. with Alliant 10X.

I wish Speer would hurry up and release the 43gr. TNT Green bullet that Federal is loading as component bullets.

Depends on the varmints you're hunting. I firmly believe the 4-legged ones will be no problem of any calibre once you take care of (eradicated) the rampant, rabid, Legislatus Ignorami which you Californians have personally allowed to breed like flies. Now their colonies have taken over much of your hunting grounds. What a surprise...NOT!

So, the question is not one of rifle caliber, but citizen caliber as I see it. I'm only sorry there is no East Berlin style fence around Kalifornia, New York, Washington, D.C., and northern Illinois to prevent their outmigration.

It's really not that simple AC, the condor/lead issue has been an issue for a long time and versions of the same bill that passed last year had been killed in the legislature for the previous decade.

It's honestly better that the legislature did this and gave the F&G Commission the leeway to develop liveable regulations.

The other option, and highly likely, was that this issue be put before a Federal judge since it can be argued that lead fragments in game taken by hunters which are ingested by California condors resulting in their death is a 'taking' under the Endangered Species Act.

BTW, NorCal and OR are future release sites for CA condors as called for in their recovery plan.

The only way to save the Condor is to give it a Season and allow Hunting.

All the Lead eating fiasco is simply a bunch of foolishness which ties up money and resources which could better be used elsewhere.
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Hey Greg, I just got the August08 Issue of the NRA American Hunter and I believe I saw something about CCI working on a TNT Greenie. Since it is CCI, perhaps that is a 22LR for the califoney loonies. Pitiful!