Varmint gun
 

I need a small caliber varmint gun for coyotes and other stuff. What caliber should I get? I need a left handed gun. Any thoughts?

It's according to how you are going to hunt. I.E. calling in a field where you may get longer range shots, calling in a cut line where you will more than likely be setting up for short range encounters, field hunting groundhogs, ground squirrels, P-Dogs. You have all different kinds of predator/varmint hunting and all kinds of different ways of doing it. So, all that being said, tell us a little more about your intentions of game and type hunting you have and maybe we can better help you figure out what sort of firearm you need.

Open field shots with some badgers and coyotes 200-400 yards

Anything chambered in .204 Ruger, .223, .220 swift, .22/250 will do the job you are asking for. Then, if you want to get fancy and seriously long distance you could go with a custom 6mmRem AI pushing an 87grain V-Max at around 3700fps :) or a .243 loaded up with a 58grain V-Max smoking out there at 3900+fps :) (same bullet 6mm but different case).

Actually, if you want a good rifle caliber/cartridge that you could get factory loads for and use it for Varmint as well as whitetail, it's pretty hard to beat a .243. 58 grain for varmint and 80-100 grain load for whitetail.

Now if you are a reloader, your options open up significantly. But since you don't feel you will be shooting past 400 I won't bombard you with those.

As far as being a lefty, your bolt action options are limited but if you want a good semi like an AR pattern rifle you can get all of those previously mentioned cartridges in either a AR15 or AR10- (LR308) platform and you can get ambidextrous controls. I shoot left and right handed rifle and the ejected case never hits me in the face nor does it disturb my sight line when shooting lefty. I did a brief search and found a few good lefty bolt actions with Ruger, Savage, and Remington but it seemed a little salty price wise in comparison to the right handed models. But I guess that's probably par for the course.

Also, don't skimp on glass. Glass will either make or break your shots.

Keep it simple - you won't be disappointed
 

The .223rem is the most practical and suitable cartridge for that purpose, assuming you care about recovering hides. The .22-250 and .243win can get a bit messy on badgers and coyotes, and the .204ruger gives up a bit of range for its super-light bullets. The .223rem sits right on the sweet spot with 50-55grn bullets for coyotes and badger. Affordable and readily available ammo, minimal reloading cost, and plenty of performance, the 223rem is where it's at.

If you don't care about recovery of pelts, then the .243win is the most practical. It'll get messy on badgers especially, and often on coyotes, but it'll anchor dogs with authority way, way downtown.

If you're looking for a superb rifle and if you're interested in a heavy barreled varmint rifle, then the Savage 12 is a fantastic option. The BVSS Varminter is my favored stock model, but the newer VLP-DM Low Profile Varminter (detachable box mag) is also a fantastic stock. My wife's 12bvss in 223 was under 0.2moa out of the box, my 223 was under 0.6moa and my 22-250 version was under .4moa.

For budget friendly models, a Remington 700 ADL can be had for under $400. The Savage Trophy Hunter 11 is a good option in this price range as well. I bought a .22-250 Trophy Hunter for my dad two years ago that printed under 1moa, and a recent ADL 243win that I bought was under 0.8moa after bedding and lapping the lugs.

I believe the .223/5.56 is the best all around cartridge for what you want to do also.

I have fewer boxes of ammo to keep track of now that I have both a AR & a boltgun in the same caliber (I stock up heavily in fewer calibers now).

I take either gun depending on my set-up / conditions.....................

I do like my .243 if I expect it to be windy or expecting longer shots.

Yeah I didn't even consider pelt damage. Haven't sold a yote pelt since I lived in Pa so it didn't cross my mind. My Swift doesn't do up a yote TOO bad. But it will flat blow up a ground hog :) My .243 isn't all that bad on them though. It's been a while since I popped a yote with it as I usually get out ole swifty :) but I don't recall that much damage to the pelts from 58 grain V-Max's. Inside of the yote was a different story though :)

I love my 22/250 it is just awesome. Changing the bullets helps if you want to save the pelts. I use the 50 grain v max for hogs and hotels. When I'm saving the hides I use the Remington 50 grain hollow point. It sounds funny but I shot a bobcat in the chest at 40 yards and didn't even have a exit hole. The only hole was pin size where it went in. Good luck on your choice I did notice that the 223 ammo is cheaper than 22/250 here in texas