Thread: 223 for varminting?

Originally Posted by Flyblown

There's a .17 Hornet for sale now on here.

If I wanted a specific rifle to shoot only shooting rabbits, hares and corvids, I'd go with either a .17 Hornet or .17 Remington, or a .204 Ruger. I had a .204 Ruger in Aus for a while and liked it a lot, but it was a T3 and that's unnecessarily big for the cartridge I'd want a mini/micro action next time round.

I'd also be thinking about where I was shooting it, the terrain, range and the likely wind effects, that would determine whether I went for a .17 or a .22.

The .223 I use is a fantastic varmint rifle. I also use it a lot on goats and for head & neck shooting deer and pigs. For me the .223 is more of an all-rounder, rather than a specialist varmint cartridge.

If you go .223, you won't be sorry, but if you want a real varmint rifle, there are some more specialist options to consider.

Oh yeah a 17 rem would be amazing, but I think 223 will be the go. Plenty of reasonably priced rifles to choose from and plenty of projectiles to choose from too.

As for terrain, most of its shooting would be on flat to rolling farm land. I live in the manawatu so wind is almost always around haha what is the 223 you are using if you don't mind me asking?