I have decided to get a varmint gun. What is the best caliber in your opinion. i am stuck mainly between the 22-250rem or the .17rem. I am open minded though. I need to get something smaller than my 270 because the selection is not all that great on varmint ammo. What caliber and brand/model of gun do you recommend? varminting looks like a lot of fun to me. What about the cci .22 stinger? well, please help me the best you can. Thanks in advance.

it pretty much depends on what you are going to use it for . i personally dont own either one i do own a 220 swift which i think is awesome. it is extremelly accurate and it is slightly more powerful then the 22-250. but i own a ruger 77 /22h which is a 22 hornet i wouldnt trade for the world .ive shot woodchucks at close to 250 yards , ( pushing it a bit ) its almost recoilless cheap to shoot and quiet ! just my 2 cents

Get the 22-250, no doubt about it.

The .17Rem is not a very commonly chambered round. I think Remington chambers the M700 in it, but I don't know if anyone else does, unless you get your chosen rifle rebarrelled. Thompson/Center probably offers a .17 Rem barrel for their Encore, or you could get a custom barrel from a place like Bullberry. Another problem with the .17 Rem is that, at least in my area, there isn't any .17 Rem ammo on the shelves of any local gun stores, and you'll probably have a hard time finding some too unless you order it online or are lucky to have a shop that stocks it.

22-250 on the other hand is a very popular cartridge (it's in the top ten best sellers in the U.S.) because it has a solid reputation for accuracy, velocity and effectiveness on varmint and predator sized game. Every manufacturer chambers almost every model rifle they sell in 22-250, and the ammo is cheap and easy to come by. I think my local Gander Mountain stocks 5 or 6 different varieties of 22-250 from the big three ammo makers, and I can pick up a box of 40 Winchester USA 45gr JHP's for $17. I don't think they stock .17Rem at all, at least I've never seen it. Also, if you plan to handload like you said before, there isn't a great selection of .172cal bullets to be had for the .17Rem, while every bullet maker makes a wide selection of bullets in .224cal, and they're cheap.

Another thing to consider when choosing between these two is performance. The .17Rem seems like a real screamer, but it's only launching a 25 grain bullet to just a bit over 4000fps. The downside is that that tiny little bullet has a very low ballistic coefficient (BC), meaning that it's going to shed velocity very fast and be very susceptable to any little bit of wind. It's also going to lose it's downrange energy as fast as it sheds velocity.

The 22-250 also isn't the most stellar performer when the winds blowing hard either, but it's quite a bit better than the .17. There are loads that are just as fast as the .17Rem's 25gr load (I've chrony'd the USA 45gr JHP's at a mean of over 4000fps), but my 250 really shines with 55gr loads which all leave the muzzle at a shade over 3700fps. It also hits a lot harder at any range and shoots just as flat, or even flatter as the range gets longer because its bullet is going to have a little higher BC. And recoil isn't really an issue since, while the 250 has relatively speaking a lot more recoil than the .17, it's still pretty negligable. Especially in a varmint weight rifle.

For more info on each of these cartridges go to the following links:

http://www.chuckhawks.com/22-250rem.htm

http://www.chuckhawks.com/17Rem.htm

Mike

What driftrider said, plus, if you're going for anything larger than priarie dogs or woodchucks, then the 22-250 is by far the better choice.

For all the reasons mentioned above, 22-250. Look into the savage varmint rifles.

I agree with the .22-250 advocates. I owned a Model 70 Featherweight in that caliber, and it was a beautiful shooting gun. It also made quick work of anything from woodchucks to Coyotes.

The 22-250 is the better all-around choice. If you shoot the 22-250 alot it's going to get expensive, if you do not reload?
Look at a 223 if you plan on shooting only factory ammo.
I own both a 22-250 & 223, the 223 is the gun I grab most often. I reload for both, but I just love my 223.
I will also give another vote for Savage. I have the Savage Model 12-FV chambered in 223. The thing will shoot one ragged hole hole @ 100-yards.

Hi Turkey Blaster,

If it has to be between the .17 Remington and the .22-250.....I'd get the .22-250. It is much more popular, has a far greater ammo selection, and a larger selection of component bullets in the event you ever decide to take up reloading.

If this is to be your very first varmint rifle than I'd say as was already suggested....look at the .223 Remington as well. It is even more available than the .22-250.....but a really nice feature...is the availability of inexpensive ammunition for practice. You can obtain ammo for half as much as the .22-250 and practice twice as much. You will be giving up some performance with it in comparison to the .22-250...but it is a great first varmint caliber!

Good luck with your final decision!

P.S. The CCI Stingers are a great little .22LR load.....but they don't compare to the centerfires!

I don't readily agree with what most of driftrider stated and I do not feel like arguing so I will suggest that you visit a site that has very high standings with the .17 caliber rounds.

www.coyotegods.com

If you visit their forum, you will learn an immense amount about a caliber that is not as popular as the .22's but nearly just as effective for varmints. While I will agree that there aren't many factory rounds available (Remington is the only brand I can think of that loads for it), there is a very good selection of bullets for the .172 calibers if you reload.

In no way am I trying to say that you should buy a .17 but I am just trying to give it a fair chance in your decision.

I would go with the 22-250 for the above mentioned reasons love mine. remington 700 heavy barrel. But when ever I am looking at picking up another gun the 17 always enters my mind.