Does anyone have any experience with a 204. Ruger?
M.P.M asked:
I have hunted coyotes for many years with my dad and his best friend and his son. Now i usually use there guns but now i want one for my own. I know all about the 223. and i dont want it. I also know all about the 22-250 and i love that gun but the other gun i love is the 204. ruger.
I have hunted coyotes for many years with my dad and his best friend and his son. Now i usually use there guns but now i want one for my own. I know all about the 223. and i dont want it. I also know all about the 22-250 and i love that gun but the other gun i love is the 204. ruger.
The gun i get will be hunting coyote, fox, praire dog, ground hogs, and all types of small game and varmint. I really want to hear your thoughts on the 204. ruger but only if you have one or shot one. I know the 22-250. and the 223. are the more prefered for varmint but i dont care. i just want to know about the 204. because not alot of people use them
April 23rd, 2009 at 2:43 pm
The 204 will more than handle the game you described. Although i havn’t shot one i did a lot of research on them. I almost bought one when they come out but i did’t. Due to the fact that i needed one to handle deer to. The 204 is the same casing as a 223, just necked down. I only could find shells for the 204 in 32 grain ballistic tips. But they might have more out by now. The only thing i would caution against is that it might be harder to find shells for the 204. But its a fine caliber
April 23rd, 2009 at 5:56 pm
There is very little if any differance between the 204 and the 22-250.* The 204 has a much shorter barrel life, which is not good.*
April 26th, 2009 at 9:09 pm
I use my .204 almost daily. I have the NEA Handi-Rifle and have bee delighted with its performance. I’ve got it topped off with a Gameseeker scope (nikon?) and its a very good shooter out to 400 yards. It might be better than that, but I’m not steady enough to shoot that far anymore.
The heaviest bullets I’ve used it with it is a 45 grain hornaday, which I have found to be ample against ‘yotes. I’m typically taking 200 – 300 yrd shots at cormorants ( a goose sized bird), but have used it against a variety of varmints (otters, beaver, ‘yotes and other predatory wading birds). You can get bullets as low as 20 grain up to 60 grain.
I respectfully disagree with DCA about the 22.250 having a better barrel life. I think the .204 fares better in the battle of the barrels.
It seems the harmonics match up real well with the .204 and the short barrel of the Handi-Rifle.
April 29th, 2009 at 9:56 pm
The .204 isn’t a necked-down .223. It’s a necked-down .222 Remington (just FYI). It’ll be good for your applications out to around 400 yards. If you want to stretch it to 600 fine. But the small light bullet will NOT buck wind well AT all.
I’d go with a 22-250. It gives you that extra power out at farther ranges. It also has a heavier bullet that matches the ballistics of .204; yet with a heavier and bigger bullet.
If you don’t care to save the pelts on a coyote or fox, I’d go with a .243. It’s got extended range compared to a .204, .223, and the 22-250. It is also an excellent deer cartridge if you decide you want to hunt them also.