What caliber riffle?

[Ray1]

What caliber riffle for coyote hunting should i buy? I want something really flat shooting, so i can reach out to 500 yards or so. Also what grain bullets would everyone recomend? Any info would be great. Good luck hunting.

[Antler_Creek_Taxidermy]

A 22-250 will do the trick! A 223 would also do it but for 500 yards or better I would go with the 22-250. As for bullets try a couple different grains. I personally use hornadys 55 gr v-max moly, it seems to shoot the best through my winchester model 70 22-250. The exit hole is pretty big with a 22-250 but the coyotes don't go anywhere .

[fisherking01]

Many calibers will do what you wish, but it will take a $$$ scope coupled with your talent to accomplish killing consistently at 500 yards. I don't know too many who can do that. 22-250 is very good all around predator round. Brent

[Ray1]

Thanks for the input guys. Would a 4.5-16 by 40 work ok or do i need bigger? Im used to shooting with that scope on my tikka 25-06 and shoot really good at 300 yds. It's just that all the coyotes i see at my dad's are always 400+ yds into the fields. Thanks again guys.

[picksbigwagon]

ray, if you are going to actively hunt the coyotes, you can call them into closer range. if you just want a gun to shoot at them at your dad's, then just use your 25-06. I use a 223 AR-15 and have only taken a shot longer than 200 yards once, and I missed. be patient and call them in and use your 25-06.

22-250, 223, 17 Rem (not HMR rimfire), 243 and a whole slew of others are used including shotguns. That scope sounds like a good one. if you are comfortable using your deer rifle and are not concerned about the hides, use that rifle. get some hand calls, watch a video, and call those coyotes in closer. 500 yards is a heck of a long hunting shot

[fisherking01]

Ray, you can load down your 25 06 to a 75 grain or 87 grain bullet and perform as well as any varmint rifle. You will want to target many loads and find what load performs the best. I shoot a 257 weatherby mag, which is the same lead as your 25. I am currently shooting 87 grain lead with 2 grains under max powder. This has increased my accuracy to 2 inches at 200 yards. I have not been able to consistently group the 75 grain bal.tip bullets to my satisfaction.

You will be better off having one rifle that you are very comfortable with than several you are somewhat comfortable with . Of course it never hurts to own a few rifles for the fun of having them. The beauty of the 25 cal is the exceptional range of game that can be taken.

Good luck, Brent

[TUMBLEWEED]

Do you reload?? There are some very basic kits out there that

can get you going for a minimum cost. I think the Lee Loader

is around 25 bucks. Add in some primers, bullets, and powder

and you are still under a hundred bucks. You can use your old brass if you saved some. Your 25-06 will out perform a lot of

the varmit class rifles out there. A good example is below:

Conditions= 300 yard zero and a ten MPH wind.

25-06 117 gr 3400FPS 8 inches low at 400 10 inch drift.

223 55gr 3200FPS 12 inches low at 400 20 inch drift

220 swift 44gr 3900FPS 7.5 inches low at 400 14.5 inch drift

You can see the heavier bullets that you can shoot with your

25-06 have less wind drift correction needed, and will hang

right in there with the likes of a top-notch varmitter like

the swift. I have a 270 winny at home, that combined with

90 gr Sierra bullets, will just shine wayyyy out there!

That being said, one poster mentioned there is always room

for another gun!!

Most varmit guns are flat shooting and very fast in the velocity department. When there is a little wind (almost always there is), and the distance is past 300yards, the bullet's weight and ballistic effeciency are even more important. Your 25-06 and scope should be adequate to do the job....

[Ray1]

Thanks guys for all the info. I did still buy a 22-250 and shot my second coyote of the year tonight. I spotted him laying out in a corn field and snuck through some trees. I rested my gun and fired. My guess is that it was about 250 yds. It was hard to step that distance and get an accurate yardage with all this snow. Thanks again guys and happy hunting.

[jlm]

I think you made a great choice, the 22-250 is a great round. After shooting every almost every single round mentioned in this thread, I too settled with the 22-250. The .220 swift is also a very good round. Good luck and enjoy the hunt!

[BigWadeS]

Like many have said when I use to hunt yotes I used a 22-250, I have tried many different ones, .243, 22swift, .22, and 25-06. The 22-250 works very well for long range and also fairly close, they will leave a decent hole but if you can find full metal jackets the exit hole is minimal. Also make sure you get a good quality scope and if your ground blind also might want to get a bipod to help as well. Good luck and have fun, one hobby I miss