The only thing that I MIGHT say about the Kimber, is that it's a pretty fine rifle, and sometimes "fine" isn't what you want. There are few things that I hate to see more than a big ding or scratch on a fine walnut stock. Coyote calling is fast paced and highly mobile and concealment is key. You'll be jumping in and out of sets, making it easy to bang or scratch your stock. You might also decide to wrap your rifle in camo tape, and leaving gooey residue on a fine walnut stock just seems sad.
But I suppose that's true for any rifle. Personally, I highly recommend Savage 10 and 12 rifles, specifically the Savage 12 Varminter (12 VLP-DBM). Incredibly accurate, easy to rebarrel yourself, and they come with in stainless steel with a durable wood laminate stock.
There are a lot of older hunters like Bernie that will all swear that low mag scopes are the way to go, but in general these are the guys that will also tell you that a 3" group at 100yrds is all you need to kill a deer. Frankly, a TALL coyote is only 24" tall, and a coyotes HEART is about 3", so delivering 1MOA accuracy at 250-300yrds is pretty critical for taking coyotes cleanly. A 3" group at 250 out of a 2-7x33mm scope is impressive to say the least, regardless of the marksman or rifle's capabilities. I shoot at 600 and 1000yrds regularly, and, without bragging, would consider myself an expert marksman (as would the NRA and CMP), and I would not bet on myself to deliver 1MOA at 300yrds with a 2-7x33mm scope.
Grab a workhorse rifle that has surpreme accuracy, top it with great glass, and learn to shoot it well. At the same time, learn to keep yourself hidden and play the wind. Figure out calling along the way and you're golden for coyotes.
If I were building the ideal coyote rig from ground up and wasn't a reloader, it would be EITHER a .223rem or .243win Savage 12 Varminter VLP-DBM, with an OLD Savage Varminter stock (inlet for the detachable mag), topped with a Silver Leupold VX-3 LRT 6.5-20x50mm.
Practice with your rifle at various ranges, including a little practice (or a lot) with unknown range targets. Between 0-250yrds, there isn't much drop, but the windage can still be an issue. I personally don't like to "plan to miss", so the whole "point blank range" stuff isn't for me. I like to dial in to exactly where I need to be to place the shot for a dead on hold that I know is going to HIT where I'm aiming, every time. Holding over is nothing more than educated hoping, and counting on a flat shooting round to make up for point blank drop is even worse. So another word of advice I would give you is to buy a turret scope, and learn how to use it. You'll be glad you did.
|