.17hmr recomendations
 

ill be doing mostly squirrel hunting and plinking with it. if i run across a yote i may endup shooting it, but i will have another caliber dedicated to that. ill also do alot of recreational target shooting with it too. so iguess im looking for a good all around rifle. if you have one tell me what you like and dislike about it and ill go from there. thanks

Marlin 917V

^ I'm not sure if you ment coyotes by "yotes" but my .17hmr takes out coyotes easily without a say, they drop in a instant. I killed one at 200 yards. Its a powerful gun.

:fighting0007:

Here's my .17 HMR - just got it, so still break'in her in, but love it already.


http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firear...m/917VS-CF.asp



Put a Burris 4X-16X 44MM Signature Select on her.


http://www.burrisoptics.com/sigselect.html

Bought a rem 700 .204. Love the rifle. 4200 FPS. Shot a Bobcat at 350 no problem. Ammo can be hard to find. But if you reload it's a never ending fun.

i have a savage .17HMR and love it. you will not find a more accurate rimfire. i have killed squirrels at 140yards. and if you want to eat them just shoot the FMJ ammo. hardly any damage at all. i also have a sweet 17 scope. check that out to.

I've had a Marlin 917 for years and really like it. Still don't understand some of the bad press about the .17hmr tearing up small game. I've shot plenty of squirrels and even a rabbit with mine and have never had the animal ruined. If I can't get a head shot, then I just shoot them through the shoulder. It can make a good sized hole but you are only losing some rib meat. Also a good gun for plinking at crows and great for knocking a coon out of the top of a tree with a head shot. Never had the occasion to shoot at a coyote yet, but wouldnt have any problems with taking a shot out to 200 yards. I would think it would be about the perfect gun if you are calling in foxes and bobcats and are taking shots within 100 yards and don't want to damage the fur with a centerfire round.

thanks guys, how much difference in accuracy is there from a heavy barrel and normal barrel

I have the same 17hmr just like ridge runner's and i rarely have a group over .5 inch I shot a .12, 4 shot group at 100 yards one day. I have also shot at 200 yards but have never shot paper from that distance but I think I could probably get under a 4 or 5 inch group. once you hit that 200 yard mark those bullets are pretty much carried by the wind alot. I would defintely recommend the savage 17 hmr.

You won't see any accuracy difference. The heavier barrel keeps it from getting too hot but for the most part that's not a problem with the 17. It will make the gun heavier but that's up to you if that's a good or bad thing.

I have the same model as Ridge Runner and its a heck of a gun. For a hunting situation heavy barrel or no is really just preference. Its not a FACT that heavier barrels shoot better. You're going to shoot well with something you like. Savage and Marlin both make excellent bolt action rifles in the 17. The slight advantage is going to have to be given to the savage in my OPINION because of the accu-trigger system.

For squirrels and other small game the 17 is pretty much perfect. As for yotes, I personally prefer a larger rifle for them but if you must them I would make it a head shot.

Love my Marlin,its a true regular tack driver with any ammo I put through it..Its also a regular yote,fox and bobcat killer with the 20gr xtp bullet..If you put that little bullet where its supposed to go,then you will have a dead animal.

so take 2 of the same gun and the heavy barrel will always shoot better? Wrong. There's too many variables. There's tons of guns that are the same model except for the barrel and the lighter one shoots better. Same can be said the other way around because it's not the barrel. We"re talking about rimfire hunting rifles not match guns. Take any 2 identical 17 hmr's they will group different and most likely prefer different ammo. In theory your opinion sounds great but this is the real world.

You just made my point.

anyways...... i ended up getting a 93r17 f savage, i havent shot it yet, im waiting to get my scope! i went with this one because of the synthetic stock and the lighter barrel. i plan on lugging it with me alot and the idea of extra weight wasnt a good one, not to mention it drops the price!:s4: thanks again guys!

Ridge Runner,
You saying its a fact doesn't make it factual. You're theory seems valid even though I'm not really sure you understand the physics behind what you are saying but there is no way to prove you're opinion to be factual. To do prove scientificly, which is what it would take to make that a FACT, you would to eliminate ALL other variables in the rifle except for that of the weight of barrel. There may be evidence to support a theory but that doesn't make it a FACT. A FACT is something along the lines of Force=Mass*Acceleration or Many people in here mistake accuracy for precision when refering to how well a rifle shoots. You're statement is purely opinion because it cannot be proven to be factual beyond a doubt.

Love my savage heavy barrel. The local chuck population isn't too crazy about it. Hornady v-max ammo drops em like a brick.
http://s3.amazonaws.com/twitpic/phot...x5S8ZplTFGQ%3D

then its not fact. As for your explanation of why, I think your blowin smoke but thats just my thought on the matter. Not tryin to further a pointless debate. Hope no feelings were hurt.

i have a brand new NEF .17 caliber. won it at a pheasants forever banquet. if anyone has shot one it would be great to know. If its sumtin the op would be interested in, you can have it pretty cheap.

kweef, pm sent

Ridge Runner,
Sorry, but I can't let this go without making one point. You said in your previous statement that every smith you've talked to has told you that a heavy barrel shoots straighter. Were they at the time trying to sell you a rifle? Just had to ask.

I am pretty sure RR is right... Heavier, thicker barrel makes a more accurate gun. I don't know why anyone is arguing?

I don't really have a dog in this fight in regard to barrel thickness and accuracy. However, this whole discussion made me curious and so i did a google search using "accuracy of thick rifle barrels." You do get quite a bit of stuff indicating that a thick barrel tends to be more accurate for the reasons discussed by Ridge Runner. I have attached one such discussion below. Dunno how expert these guys are, however.....

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/in...9051127AAh3oYT

Bull barrels are around because of HEAT SOAK. That is why we have fluting. It makes the barrel a little lighter but that is not the reason. Fluting makes for more surface area, heat can only radiate so fast from so much surface area. The only way to get rid of more is increase the surface area.
Just look at any thing that has to dump a lot of heat real fast, like radiators. They don't have all those funny little frills at the front for the looks u know.

I just had to say this about bull barrels, its far easier to hold a rifle still if its heavier at the muzzle when using a by-pod or try-pod.
I do the same thing with the bow, its easier to shoot accurately with a weight stuck out on the ends of a stick than it is stock.