.204 Ruger

[Vapodog]

I just finished my testing of my new .204 Ruger. It's a custom using a #3 contour Shilen barrel attached to a Remington 700 action. I did the chambering with a Dave Manson chambering reamer.

No reloads was tried yet and won't for some time either.....I'm just too cheap to buy the dies right now.

I fired two factory loads.....a 40 grain bullet and a 32 grain bullet. The action was glass bedded and the barrel was free floating and the Remmy trigger was adjusted to a very light pull.....as a matter of fact it was a trifle too light but fine for testing initial loads. A Redfield 18X scope was attached but I'd have preferred a different scope.....maybe a Leupold...

The forty grain bullets left a very disappointing performance of around 2.0" at 100 yards and I didn't even measure them because I was so disappointed in their grouping.

The 32 grain bullets however was far better in accuracy from this gun and I'm convinced that when I start handloading the lighter bullets will shrink to around 3/4" at 100 yards. Berger also makes bullets for this caliber and I'm waiting for a chance to reload in a month or so. Factory loads run right at .95" at 100 yards but I only fired one five shot group. I still don't have cleaning equipment and there's other tasks to do before I get real fastideous.

While the recoil was light it was surprising how much snap on the shoulder it offered.....it did have a fairly sharp rap on me even though it wasn't much. I know that I'd be feeling it after 300 rounds of prairie dogging.

This is not a condemnation nor a recommendation for the cartridge nor Shilen.....it's merely a report of one man's initial firing of the cartridge.

[ColoradoElk]

Thanks for your range report!

I finally got around to shooting my Ruger stainless compact the other day. The recoil was sharper than I expected. I am sure the weight had alot to do with it. I put a Nikon Buckmaster 4.5 x 14 on it, and the Ruger rings are milled so poorly, I was still about 6 inches left, with the scope maximum adjusted to the right. I could get 3/4" with the 40 gr Horandy, but it took so darn long for the barrel to cool down, it wasn't much fun. Groups went to well over 2" with a hot barrel, which happened very quickly. If you are considering a .204, I would strongly discourage folks from the Ruger Compact model.