Thread: Wanting to build a new varmimt rifle

2700 with an 87 in a .243 is very anemic. Should be capable of ?? 3300, certainly 3200.

Originally Posted by 6x47

2700 with an 87 in a .243 is very anemic. Should be capable of ?? 3300, certainly 3200.

2700 is on the sad side & .75MOA groups larger than i would want for varminting . . . but its a start and gets ya out there doing it.

if this addiction sticks it wont be long untill you want more performance from your setup & yourself . . . R

Originally Posted by rossi.45

2700 is on the sad side & .75MOA groups larger than i would want for varminting . . . but its a start and gets ya out there doing it.

if this addiction sticks it wont be long untill you want more performance from your setup & yourself . . . R

Yep your right. I haven't shot it for 6 months. For a factory barrel I'm not to worried. I'm going to start pushing it faster from here. And hey if I burn the barrel out oh well

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from the research on the web i did 1000 shots seems to be the average people talk about before a .243 barrel is done for varminting . . . some guys go as low as 750, others a high of 1500, so who knows.
probably depends on your accuracy expectations, the barrel and how you shoot and clean it . . . so far mine is just over 500 shots and still under .5MOA

next time i am seriously looking at the 6BR

iv had really good runs out of remington factory barrels, im of the opinion that there is a pill it will love
usually they shoot better once the suppressor goes on. thats odd

if you struggle for accuraccy try a flat based bullet they seem to shoot

Originally Posted by rossi.45

from the research on the web i did 1000 shots seems to be the average people talk about before a .243 barrel is done for varminting . . . some guys go as low as 750, others a high of 1500, so who knows.
probably depends on your accuracy expectations, the barrel and how you shoot and clean it . . . so far mine is just over 500 shots and still under .5MOA

next time i am seriously looking at the 6BR

I thought 6br vs 22br, went 22br.
Your right depends on what you expect as far as accuracy, people say .223 does like 3000 rounds or something, I got rid of mine at about 1000. A rabbit is a small critter at distance. And I just like accurate rifles.

Originally Posted by bully

I thought 6br vs 22br, went 22br.
Your right depends on what you expect as far as accuracy, people say .223 does like 3000 rounds or something, I got rid of mine at about 1000. A rabbit is a small critter at distance. And I just like accurate rifles.

thats interesting @bully . . . what twist barrel did you use ?

1:8 I haven't tried 50gr in theory they will blow up, and not what I built it for. Probably need faster twist for 90gr I haven't tried. and understand not many people were having success with them.
80gr is good, or even some of the new bullets 80.5 etc. Run the numbers on one of the 80gr projectiles at about 3200 26 inch barrel, and less recoil.

you could always talk to a gunsmith like mitch maxberry
he specialises in rem 700s and more than likely can set your barrel back and rechamber it to 6mmbr

a nice fresh chamber and throat will nodoubt help as would a recrown

seems far more work than a ladder test with a few loads tho

even more interesting @bully . . . your right for the same bullet weight the 224 bullet has the higher BC than a 244, not sure about the less recoil part, there is supposed to be but i could never really tell most of the time.

i remember reading one of those lines that goes ' choose a bullet and build a rifle to use it ' so what bullet/brand do you use & how far are you shooting critters out to . . or just as important how far do you want to eventually go out to ? your rifle / setup makes me think it might be a looong way out there.

I'm thinking of the 87grn. VMax which i use with success in my .243 . . . seems doable to get 3000fps in the BR.

i look at some of those long sleek high BC bullets and wonder if theyre not more designed for target work & they are expensive comparerd to the VMax etc
which is important if you have a small budget and shoot a lot . . . in my case with at least 5 other CF varmint rifles

@6x47 comment ' The 87 V-Maxs are accurate but just don't come apart violently past 200 ' is something to think about . . but then again i dont know what velocity he has or how much smash effect he wants, i am happy enough with a good centre hit which floors Rabbits but maybe doesn't rip them in half at extended range.

Originally Posted by rossi.45

even more interesting @bully . . . your right for the same bullet weight the 224 bullet has the higher BC than a 244, not sure about the less recoil part, there is supposed to be but i could never really tell most of the time.

i remember reading one of those lines that goes ' choose a bullet and build a rifle to use it ' so what bullet/brand do you use & how far are you shooting critters out to . . or just as important how far do you want to eventually go out to ? your rifle / setup makes me think it might be a looong way out there.

I'm thinking of the 87grn. VMax which i use with success in my .243 . . . seems doable to get 3000fps in the BR.

i look at some of those long sleek high BC bullets and wonder if theyre not more designed for target work & they are expensive comparerd to the VMax etc
which is important if you have a small budget and shoot a lot . . . in my case with at least 5 other CF varmint rifles

@6x47 comment ' The 87 V-Maxs are accurate but just don't come apart violently past 200 ' is something to think about . . but then again i dont know what velocity he has or how much smash effect he wants, i am happy enough with a good centre hit which floors Rabbits but maybe doesn't rip them in half at extended range.

Yes, I built around the 80amax, which I had success with the .223 but thought more speed would be good. Unfortunately they were not consistent enough, but the 77gr tmk is! It's just a bugger the tmk is expensive. Amax are cheap compared to other target type bullets like Burger. They didn't have 80.5 when mine was built, I think there maybe another new Hornady out that would be good too. (Probably in the country now, wasn't before) Or use targex 80gr.
Target type bullets like the amax work well on critters.
My initial intended range is 6-700, as ideal, I don't mind trying any distance if i can find them. I don't get that chance too often where I shoot, and it's a whole new ball game just to locate a rabbit that far with binos or a spotter, they get a whole lot smaller. Nobody told me to prepare to update all your binos, spotters etc.
I use a 8-32 scope, I wouldnt have a problem going bigger again.
I've had good success at the full bore range too.

From memory I looked at it something like If the 80 was 100 faster than the 105 (6mm) I'm on par, yet I'm faster again. Probably cheaper bullet too.
I forget the exact details, it was a while ago, don't quote me.

Originally Posted by bully

My initial intended range is 6-700, as ideal, I don't mind trying any distance if i can find them. I don't get that chance too often where I shoot, and it's a whole new ball game just to locate a rabbit that far with binos or a spotter, they get a whole lot smaller. Nobody told me to prepare to update all your binos, spotters etc.
I use a 8-32 scope, I wouldnt have a problem going bigger again.
I've had good success at the full bore range too.

bit of a ramble . . .

been thinking about your last post for a few days @bully . . . and the difference in location and animal numbers etc makes to choices of optics


in Central Otago i dont need spotting scopes or overly powerful optics to find the rabbits at LR . . i have my favourite spots on the station & i know there is going to be rabbits about, the question is how many and whats the wind doing

i use 10X kahles binos which have great colour / sharpness . . . spotting rabbits at 7-800yrds is not a problem in this landscape

recently changed the scope on my .243 from a MK4 Leupold 6.5-20X50 to a Nightforce NXS 8-32X56 . . . some thoughts . . . the extra magnification is helpful when checking accuracy / bullet drop at longer ranges but for me thats all, it hasnt given me longer range on the rabbits . . . i use a 2.5inch square target for LR, if the bullet lands inside the square we are good to go, a great group outside the square is of no use . . . sadly what i can do on my makeshift range doesnt transfer over to field shooting . . you get 1 shot in the field, no adjusting for wind or shooting strings untill you walk the bullet in . . which is all part of it & makes for the challenge eh.

i have successfully missed rabbits out to 900 yards . . i could see them clearly thru my 6.5 - 20X scope, just sometimes ya can't hit the little fckrs . . . ya come close, a few inches of drift out, but close enough so you want to come back and have another go another day.
watched an aussie guys vid shooting rabbits out to +700yrds with a 3-15 Nightforce, that magnification is to low for me even with a very fine crosshair.

this spot shooting across the gully is a real challenge, the toughest spot on the place . . and the most fun . . up drafts, down drafts, always cross winds blowing around all over the place . . when you connect its a buzz



final thought . . . is it worth having a separate thread on Varminting only and who is doing what / when . . . the rifles, gear etc

end of ramble . . . . R

That's probably the difference. Like you say they are always there. Where as I'm looking for a needle in a haystack often. If there is movement that will help.
Optic quality probably makes a difference. I use Bushnell fusion the higher power ones, 10 or 12 I forget. Range finding can be difficult too, with mine at least. Big cross hairs for the ranger. Even my scope could be finer, I'm just a sucker for a moa reticle. My spotter is nothing flash.
I'm the kind of person that uses max power at 100 on a rabbit. I guess I just like to put the cross hairs in exactly the right spot..
They say varmints are much like target shooting, with the same gear. I think they are right.
Sure start a varminting thread, just don't mention Harley Davidson, it will go way off track and be pointless. Haha.

Originally Posted by clickbang

Just see this pop up.
I still have the rifle as pictured.
Managed to get it shooting a 3/4 inch group with 87g vmax doing 2700fps
Then put a second hand gun works suppressor on it and it is shooting a bit average.
Have not done anything with it for the last few months as have been busy.
Will sort it shortly as there's plenty of rabbits about

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243 shooting 87vm at 2700, thats way too slow. My 6BR runs them at 3050 with 33g 2208

I have built 2 x 6BR, then 20Br, then 22BR and now onto 6BRX.

I have a spare 0.204 pacnor supermatch 1:9 twist and a a 20BR no neck turn zero freebore reamer if your interested in shooting the 55g bergers in the 20br. Same BC as 6mm 87 vm going at 3600 fps

I should not have looked in here. My wallet hurts. Where is this Varmint thread?