Guys, remember that thread a while back about the .204 and .220? Now VarmintGuy is pretty headstrong and I don't always agree with him. But he was so convinced the .204 was the real deal that I ordered two. The first arrived this week: a Ruger No.1. Beautiful wood - stunning for a factory rifle. I took it today and shot it with factory ammo. Once I got it zeroed, I took 5 shots at 400 yards, shooting sitting with a bipod but without a sling (so pretty wobbly). The five shots measured 3.25 inches.

I also tried the new Varmint reticle on a Leupold 4.5-14 on a .300 SAUM. Very nice scope. I had them add target knobs since I love to crank, but the holdover lines work quite well as long as the target is exactly at even 100 yard increments.

Anyway VarmintGuy, so far I love that .204. Maybe I will get lucky and shoot a coyote with it.

AnotherAZWriter: Congratulations on that splendid shooting there with your new 204!
Whenever someone gets that kind of grouping to begin with AND with factory ammo then things are looking REAL dandy!
I am happy when I hit the 12"x12" steel gong at my 400 yard range (sitting position from my bipod)! Let alone get a great, no, SENSATIONAL group like you did!
Yes all three of my 204 Ruger Rifles shot factory ammo quite well indeed! I mostly shot the Hornady factory stuff in both 32 and 40 grain varieties!
You sir though, have no excuses NOW for failing to make fur fly on those desert Coyotes!
Be sure not to blink at the shot because you can see your hits if you don't blink!
As soon as the rest of the VarmintFamily gets back to college and the Holidays are done - I will be out on the high plains and up in the various Rocky Mopuntain Ranges with one of my 204's in hand!
I will be Hunting both Coyote and Bocats as well as Wolverine!
I really want to be the first Hunter in Montana to take a Wolverine with a 204 Rifle!
Again SUPERB shooting there with your 204!
What other model of 204 are you "expecting"?
Wishing you every success with your 204's! And if you find fault with the cartridge - blame me!
I can take it.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

AnotherAZWriter: Also this - my good friend Jack from out Puget Sound way (Washington state) has owned a Ruger #1-V (stainless steel version) in 204 Ruger for 2 years now! He LOVES his 204 and in fact sold THREE (3) other Varminters he owned, once he got this Rifle online and had it out in the Varmint fields!
He sold a 221 Fireball custom, a 223 and a 22-250!
Now back to his heavy barrel 204 #1 - he has shot five shot groups in the low 3's at 100 yards with this Rifle!
I have seen him shooting Prairie Dogs, Rock Chucks and Ground Squirrels with this Rifle and it is nothing short of being a "great looking Laser Gun"!
He has also killed several Badger with this rig but I was not along when he has taken those. He has an 8x32 power Bausch & Lomb variable on his 204.
He is, a "204 believer"!
And I meant to comment on your #1 with the stunning wood - in my opinion there is just about no other factory Rifle that looks better than a Ruger #1 with beautiful wood on it.
Again good for you and your new Rifle!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Guys, you are being uncommonly nice and congratulatory towards each other. Not nearly entertaining enough! Hmmm, must be the season...

AAZW, how about some pics of your new toy and associated groups??

- mike

MHO:

I don't know how to post pics (please, I know it is easy).

I also got a 9.3x62 No1 but the wood isn't nearly so nice as the .204. The 9.3 is the Henry style.

VarmintGuy: as you know, I am a dedicated 700 fan so naturally I ordered its smaller cousin, the Model 7, in .204; a CDL model. Part of the appeal of varmint hunting to me is that you can shoot wood stocked guns and not be worried about bad weather - cuz normally I am not on an extended trip, and if the weather is bad, I leave the house with a synthetic stocked rifle.

I was in WA yesterday, but south of Puget sound. Was in the Longview/Portland OR area. Nice view of Mt Hood.

AnotherAZWriter: I looked the Model 7 CDL up in my 2,006 Remington catalog and that is a great looking Rifle!
I hope it performs well for you.
Be sure and let us know how IT shoots.
Yes Mt. Hood is one of the most beautiful mountains around!
Shame about the mountain climbers getting lost up there!
I remember some trivia from many years ago.
The #1 most photographed mountain in the world is Mt Fuji in Japan! #2 most often photographed mountain is Mt. Ranier in Washington State and the third most often photgraphed mountain is Mt. Hood there in Oregon!
I have skied on Mt. Hood many times.
I hope you enjoyed my old stompin grounds while you were out there.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

VarmintGuy:

I can already see the beauty of the .204 for PDs - flat shooting without the blast of the .220 Swift. I will test it versus thte Swift for wind drift, but since my Swift shoots heavy bullets, I would be shocked if the .204 beats it. Does anyone make a heavy .204 bullet? That might be the ticket if you could get a fast twist barrel.

Headed to Chicago for Christmas - no shooting for a week.

There is a .204 #1 at spostmans right neer my house, and it has a beautifull chunk of walnut at both ends too !
I really don't give a rip for varmint calibers , but I just bet that thing would be a blst to shoot.
Wish the 300 win mag (also a 1) sitting next to it was as prety.
...tj3006

Thomas Jones: My good friend Jack from Yelm, Washington is quite a Ruger #1 fan. He has probably owned 30 to 40 of them over the years. Now my man Jack IS left-handed and is an exceptional shot on Varmints and such. He also is a great admirer of beautiful wood on Rifles and shotguns.
Jack has been known by me to - "swap" wood on Ruger #1's! By that I mean he would come across a situation like you have seen and he would simply buy BOTH #1's and swap the wood! Then he would have the better wood on the caliber he wanted. I believe I have owned at least one of these "upgraded" Ruger #1's he has swapped wood on in the past.
Jack is KNOWN for owning a Rifle a year or two and then getting the hots for something else and selling his stuff "in a hurry" to get the new item - what ever it may be!
I keep a close eye on Jack and his whims and tradings.
One of the local Gun Shops out his way nicknamed him "High Volume Jack"!
Jack would simply peddle the "unwanted" Ruger #1's on the Gun Show circuit.
He SELDOM lost much money on these "unfired" #1's!
Think about it.
Also this, Thomas Jones - where is the "sportsmans neer your house" at - exactly? I may be a player for that nifty wooded #1.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Been working on a .204 Rem 700 with my 'smith and we are tearing our hair out (what's left of it) and haven't been able to get it to do anything consistently except pattern. Been bedded, recrowned, scope swap, etc. etc.

Maybe next week--perhaps I'll end up with it in my reloading shop for an accuracy workup, as all shooting has been done with a variety of factory loads.

I bought the CZ 527 Varmint a couple weeks ago and picked up some factory HSM ammo loaded with the 40 grain Berger. Last weekend I shot the 40 grain Hornady Vmax load in almost ideal conditions and had 10 shots in about .8 @ 100 and 4 shots at slightly over 1"@ 200. This morning was windy with 10-15 crosswind so only shot the Bergers at 100 yards but they shot into a nice tight .6 group at 100 with the crosswind. I love this little caliber so far.

Tped: I am so happy to hear your CZ in 204 is shooting so well! Good for you!
Now lets get dustoffer's 204 Remington to shooting!

Dustoffer: Hmmmm...... lets start with those scopes! What power are you using now?
Which factory ammo are you shooting?
Save that brass and get right to the Berger 35's and Federal 205M (Match Grade) primers for your handloads!
Which Model 700 is it by the way?
Additionally is it a factory stock Remington 700 (as opposed to a 700 action that you added a 204 barrel to)?
Patterns.... hmmmm..... maybe some Cerro-Safe in the chamber will show some annomaly there in?
I am sure you have checked the bolt lugs for even contact... hmmmm....!
How large are the "patterns" (groups?) at 100 yards?
I am not even gonna ask how long a throat (how much bullet "jump" there is) you have - if its a factory barrel I know its long.
But long throats don't usually cause "patterns".
I am worried you may have to go to 45 grain bullets in your handloads to change the barrel whip (vibration) to something that is gonna help you accuracy wise.
Good luck.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy
P.S.: I have some load suggestions for when you get going with the load development.

After my Bro and son-in-law had seen what groups I was getting with a Ruger MK 77 VT MK II Gray .204 Ruger they each got one . The three Ruger rifles shoots 1/2 inch groups at 100 Yds.

quote:

Originally posted by dustoffer:
Been working on a .204 Rem 700 with my 'smith and we are tearing our hair out (what's left of it) and haven't been able to get it to do anything consistently except pattern. Been bedded, recrowned, scope swap, etc. etc.

Maybe next week--perhaps I'll end up with it in my reloading shop for an accuracy workup, as all shooting has been done with a variety of factory loads.

My friend bought a 700lvsf in 204 that had been lightly used. He fought with it through many load sessions and checked everything he could to get it to shoot reasonable groups.

I lent him my can of wipe-out when he reached the point he was going to send it away to be checked out by a smith. He cleaned it out and the next trip to the range he was putting most of his 35 grain bergers in the same hole.

His seems to like to be extremely clean.

Cariboo_kid: I will remember that "trick" the next time I run across a "difficult to get shootin" Rifle!
I have in the past cured the problem you describe with a very thorough cleaning and going over with bore pastes!
I have not tried the "Wipe-Out" accurizing treatment as yet.
I am glad that 204 LVSF got perked up without major headaches!
ESPECIALLY with Varmint type Rifles, whenever I buy a used Rifle I clean it til the bare metal of the bore shows and shines - the first time I clean it!
Speaking of bore cleaning I have been known to "lightly" clean the bores of my "known" Varminters. My reasoning is to get a barrel down to the bare metal every time it is cleaned takes a lot of cleaning (wear and tear). This down to bare metal cleaning also almost always necessitates a few or several shots down the barrel to get "back in the proper point of aim" groove!
In fact if I have not shot a Rifle in some time and I want to check its "sight in" before going on a Varmint Safari - I will fire three shots through it and if its sighted correctly (has held its point of aim!) I wipe the exterior down and put it in its travel case and go Hunting with it. I won't clean it after the sight in check, in other words.

Dustoffer: Have you had any better luck (results) with your 204 since Christmas time?
I hope you have!!
My Remington 700 in 204 seems to "like" everything I pour down its bore!
Same with my XR-100!
Let us know.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy