Deciding on a 200yd caliber

[MAShooter1]

Short summary: I live in Massachusetts, and most ranges I'm near to don't extend beyond 200 yards. I'm looking to invest in a quality bolt action gun to start developing good marksmanship skills and also further my reloading habit. I already own an AR and it is serving me very well but I think my next venture will be into bolt actions. Because the ranges I'm near to don't really offer much long range shooting, I'm thinking that .223 Rem would be the logical choice- I already reload for it for my AR, and it appears to be very effective at 200 yards. Is there anything I'm really missing here?

 

[Niles Coyote]

Nope, roll with the 223!

 

[TOP PREDATOR]

should be good to go with .223 for 200Y.

BTW i may have a rem 700 to sell, NIB, heavy barrel, .223....

 

[tipper]

200 yrd range gun, heavy 20"-24" barrel 16-12 twist 40-62 gr bullet = one holer

 

[redneckbmxer24]

CZ 455 or Sako Quad in 22 if you want to make 200 yards fun. 200 yards with pretty much any center fire short of a subsonic round gets boring really quick.

 

[GeneralPurpose]

200 yrd range gun, heavy 20"-24" barrel 16-12 twist 40-62 gr bullet = one holer

I agree with the heavy barrel profile and bullet weight, but why a 20-24" barrel when he's only shooting 200 yards? A 16" would be more than enough at that range, and be lighter / more maneuverable.

 

[SPEAK338]

223 Easy choice inside if 400

 

[MoBoost]

Short summary: I live in Massachusetts, and most ranges I'm near to don't extend beyond 200 yards. I'm looking to invest in a quality bolt action gun to start developing good marksmanship skills and also further my reloading habit. I already own an AR and it is serving me very well but I think my next venture will be into bolt actions. Because the ranges I'm near to don't really offer much long range shooting, I'm thinking that .223 Rem would be the logical choice- I already reload for it for my AR, and it appears to be very effective at 200 yards. Is there anything I'm really missing here?

223 will be very good. 6PPC would be perfect. 6BR will open doors for longer ranges.
308 will be a jack of all trades - good for all, perfect for none - but at least you'll learn to manage recoil.

 

[billyburl2]

CZ 455 or Sako Quad in 22 if you want to make 200 yards fun. 200 yards with pretty much any center fire short of a subsonic round gets boring really quick.

I agree! A bolt-action rimfire will really allow you to work on your marksmanship skills at 200 yards. It will show more of the small mistakes at that limited range.

 

[predatornut]

I agree with the heavy barrel profile and bullet weight, but why a 20-24" barrel when he's only shooting 200 yards? A 16" would be more than enough at that range, and be lighter / more maneuverable.

Weight and maneuverability are not huge factors when shooting at the range. Short barrels are nice for hunting or matches, but come at the expense of increased muzzle blast. For my money I would be looking for a Remington 700 5r in 223 with a 20" barrel.

Sent from my C771 using Tapatalk 2

 

[GeneralPurpose]

Weight and maneuverability are not huge factors when shooting at the range. Short barrels are nice for hunting or matches, but come at the expense of increased muzzle blast. For my money I would be looking for a Remington 700 5r in 223 with a 20" barrel.

Sent from my C771 using Tapatalk 2

That's a good point about muzzle blast. My 20" 5.56 with a brake is a kitten to shoot compared to my 10.5" 5.56 with a brake. I tend to like barrels on the shorter end of the spectrum for a few reasons, including fitting them in my safe easier, or carrying two rifles in one rifle case.

 

[jakelly]

Can't argue with the .223, but I really like the .222 if you hand load.

 

[Jon Lester]

Everything succumbs to the PPC at that range!

 

[SUIScide]

At 200 yards a 221 fireball would be a good chambering if you want to be a little different from the crowd, but it's hard to argue with the practicality of the 223

 

[DCR]

Where are you in Mass? There are some 600 yard ranges around you can get access to if you don't mind driving a bit. One bing Nashua Fish and Game in NH. They have thursday morning practice session open to anyone on thursdays. Usually starts in April and runs till October. Reading Range has some events you could shoot at.

Nashua Fish and Game Association

Reading High Power

 

[leadbullet]

200 yds max, Smith and Wesson 686 357 mag with a 6 inch barrel or a 4 inch to make it more challenging, otherwise a Ruger 10/22 will do just fine.

 

[valkyries]

Id go with a Weatherby Vanguard. I have an old one in .243 with a wood stock and 24" barrel. Very accurate, affordable, good looking, and proven. I think the new ones are guaranteed to put three shots in an inch at 100 yards. Not sure why there arent more talk of them on these forums. Also if you ever plan to shoot past 500 yards the .223 is a poor choice. Id look into 6mm, 6.5mm of 7mm. Light recoil with these and much better downrange ballistics.

 

[SporterII]

One of the 'undesirable' 10 twist Tikkas in 223. 50 and or 60gr. Vmax or the like. If you load for an AR, you are set. I just bought a Dicks 700 in 223 [399.00] . 12 tw. 26" for a '200yd. gun'. Something to heat up on the close range dogs. First 5 foulers went to 1". It will settle right in.

 

[Kirkd]

Ive kind of been eyeing the 17 remington fireball vs 17 hornet. Has the fireball round died out as I see tge Remy 700 in that caliber has been dscontinued? Reload, so ammo availability is not a problem. I figured it would be a good caliber to ndroduce my nephew and GF to that wont kick the shit out of them. Now my GF think that the 243 kicks to much. Not too interested in a 22lr with all of the ammo availability with that caliber.

Whick 17 caliber is going to stick around?

 

[Layton]

For my money I would be looking for a Remington 700 5r in 223 with a 20" barrel.

This!

L

 

[Shanerbanner10]

Rim fire all the way anything cebter fire would just be boring.

 

[Layton]

No reloading with rim fire. That was one of the OPs objectives. And he already has the gear.

L

edt: Already being set up to load for 223, anything else he goes with will take monies away that he could spend on the rifle and optics.

 

[KYS]

I'd roll with a 223 or 223AI (for the fun factor). I shoot 90gr Bergers out of my 223AI and its a 1000yard gun if I want it to be.

 

[Pinecone]

I would go with .22 rimfire. Even without reloading, it is very cheap to shoot. And out to 200 yards will really hone your skills.

If you want centerfire, I am going against the grain somewhat and saying get a .308.

More expensive to shoot, but if you find some longer ranges, you will have the rifle for it.

But .223 is a nice compromise.

Heck, buy them all.

 

[SporterII]

Ive kind of been eyeing the 17 remington fireball vs 17 hornet. Has the fireball round died out as I see tge Remy 700 in that caliber has been dscontinued? Reload, so ammo availability is not a problem. I figured it would be a good caliber to ndroduce my nephew and GF to that wont kick the shit out of them. Now my GF think that the 243 kicks to much. Not too interested in a 22lr with all of the ammo availability with that caliber.

Whick 17 caliber is going to stick around?

I tried a 22 hornet for a while. I could not get it to shoot. Soured me. 223 always works, easy and can be loaded to powdwer puff levels and with light bullets. 222 also still a very good suspect do not overlook.

 

[2brothers641]

.204 ruger would be my recommendation. Very fun to shoot, easy to reload, and factory hornady ammo is accurate. IMO, .223 anymore is an AR only round.

 

[Deadshot2]

For my money I would be looking for a Remington 700 5r in 223 with a 20" barrel.

Couldn't agree more. The 5-R rifles are a serious cut above the rest. Out of box accuracy is awesome. I went looking for one in .223 after having such good luck with my 5-R in .308. Ended up with an SPS-Tactical in .223 which also is a great rifle ----------Once you get rid of the "Gumby" stock they put on it from the factory.

$265 spent at "Stockys" for one of these

fixes the problem with the rubber Hogue.

At 200 yards with Berger 73 gr BT's it's a "one holer". .223 is a nice round to reload and shoot. About half the cost of loading for the standard 30 cal rounds and the accuracy inside of 500 yards is astounding. Also doesn't beat you up to the point where you need a muzzle brake and extra padding on the buttstock

I now have to choose which rifle to go shooting with. They all seem to say "Take Me, Take me!" Sometimes I take all three, the 5-R, the SPS-Tactical, and one of he AR's. Makes for a wonderful day at the range.

 

[mcc308]

222 is great choice over looked for no good reason. Easy to get to shoot and super accurate.

6br is also a great choice. Also easy to get to shoot and super accurate.

Both these have great barrel life and low recoil.

 

[mallrat]

Could reload .223 subsonic for your bolt gun to emphasize marksmanship skills. Google Subsonic .223 Load Data and proceed at your own risk. Probably won't cycle your AR, some of the heavier bullets may not fit in a magazine, but you can use your existing brass and I've seen load data for a wide range of bullet weights, so you can probably use your existing bullets.

 

[Jig Stick]

6ppc for sure.

 

[SporterII]

.204 ruger would be my recommendation. Very fun to shoot, easy to reload, and factory hornady ammo is accurate. IMO, .223 anymore is an AR only round.

Why 'anymore'?

 

[Deadshot2]

222 is great choice over looked for no good reason. Easy to get to shoot and super accurate.

6br is also a great choice. Also easy to get to shoot and super accurate.

Both these have great barrel life and low recoil.

No argument that these cartridges are super accurate. For me, I chose to hang with "Military Calibers" and have many thousand pieces of brass that didn't cost me a cent. Back before the "Panic", a lot of the public shooters at our range turned their noses up at reloading and just tossed their once-fired brass. I have a large supply of BHA Match, FC GMM, and Hornady Match that will last me half a lifetime in my .308. Followed a couple of police and military groups that left behind 5-Gal buckets of LC brass for my .223. The only brass I've actually purchased in the last 5 years was a box of .223 Lapua Match and a couple boxes of Lapua .308. Just felt like it I guess.

 

[Assault116]

I'm gonna throw out another one that I have found interesting in my AR's and kind of want to build a dedicated bolt gun with. 300 Blackout. For 200 yds it's got all the speed you need and if you want to really work on dialing dope/holds ect go to the subsonic range and that will give you a bit more drop and wind work. It will also cross over to your AR with just a barrel and gas tube change. It's also kind of nice that the powders to work with seemed to be more available during this last crunch.

That said for pure practicality, 223 works well.

 

[garandman]

I would buy a centerfire good for at least 1000 yards. 223 is good at 200 yards, sure, but if yer gonna get a centerfire, why not buy something with greater possibility? If you really are ONLY EVER gonna shoot 200 yards, get a 22rf that will be cheaper to shoot AND require a greater level of skill to shoot at 200.

 

[mcc308]

No argument that these cartridges are super accurate. For me, I chose to hang with "Military Calibers" and have many thousand pieces of brass that didn't cost me a cent. Back before the "Panic", a lot of the public shooters at our range turned their noses up at reloading and just tossed their once-fired brass. I have a large supply of BHA Match, FC GMM, and Hornady Match that will last me half a lifetime in my .308. Followed a couple of police and military groups that left behind 5-Gal buckets of LC brass for my .223. The only brass I've actually purchased in the last 5 years was a box of .223 Lapua Match and a couple boxes of Lapua .308. Just felt like it I guess.

No doubt that mil cals will work for you! The o.p. didn't mention anything about limiting himself to these calibers. While there was a brass shortage, the price of these calibers
doubled and tripled. While the 222 and br was available and for a reasonable price. Also if you purchased 100 or 200 laupa cases you could reload these dozens of times and
they will last a long long time. And they will be more accurate then the mil calibers!!

Merry Christmas,
Chris

 

[2brothers641]

Why 'anymore'?

I guess I say anymore because there are better calibers available. Most shooters love the spray and pray type shooting with ARs. This is where the .223/5.56 shines with many options of cheap ammo.

 

[SporterII]

222 - Bullets, powders, primers [can] intersect with your AR stuff.
Its all about you, learning, I cant help you with load data [lol]
a 223 bolt gun and a barrel.
Switch barrel if Savage.
Damn, sounds like you owe me a beer.

 

[SporterII]

I guess I say anymore because there are better calibers available. Most shooters love the spray and pray type shooting with ARs. This is where the .223/5.56 shines with many options of cheap ammo.

I was advised to buy a M-16 when one could be had at a user price. I did not want one though I had been shooting an SP-1 which I enjoyed. One shot thing. Moving on to multi gun, it had served me well. I could actually run with Anyone in the day. I now have three bolt guns, two 'nice ones' in 223. Burned one out, flat out and had it refurbished.
I still very much like 223 and have competed with one more recently in bolt gun run and gun. To me this is where the 223 shines. Prairie dogs past 300 [one 435yd kill] , Tactical match training and still have a 12" AR and a Dissy. Keeps on shining. Especially if you reload.

 

[VJJPunisher]

One of the 'undesirable' 10 twist Tikkas in 223. 50 and or 60gr. Vmax or the like. If you load for an AR, you are set. I just bought a Dicks 700 in 223 [399.00] . 12 tw. 26" for a '200yd. gun'. Something to heat up on the close range dogs. First 5 foulers went to 1". It will settle right in.

This is full of fail

 

[SporterII]

I am honored, on Christmas, thank you.
200yd. Bolt gun for a new shopper. One who 'reloads' for an AR.
Its all casual, but what would you suggest?

 

[ranger1183]

I agree that staying with one caliber has a lot of advantages. If I had to do it again, I'd still choose the AICS .223 magazines system for you bolt action rifle and simply seat the bullets out longer to 2.55 inches. It really turns the AR-15 version of the .223 Remington into a different creature all together. Shooting the heavy 80-90 grain bullets out of a slow twist barrel is a lot of fun.

 

[HD1911]

I agree that staying with one caliber has a lot of advantages. If I had to do it again, I'd still choose the AICS .223 magazines system for you bolt action rifle and simply seat the bullets out longer to 2.55 inches. It really turns the AR-15 version of the .223 Remington into a different creature all together. Shooting the heavy 80-90 grain bullets out of a slow twist barrel is a lot of fun.

You mean't Fast Twist right?

 

[ranger1183]

You mean't Fast Twist right?

Ouch! too much "holiday cheer"! Yes, a Bartlien 1:6.5" twist to be exact. Good catch.

 

[VJJPunisher]

I am honored, on Christmas, thank you.
200yd. Bolt gun for a new shopper. One who 'reloads' for an AR.
Its all casual, but what would you suggest?

sporter, your suggestions are sound, the "full of fail" comment was because you gave dick's sporting goods money

 

[KYS]

I guess I say anymore because there are better calibers available. Most shooters love the spray and pray type shooting with ARs. This is where the .223/5.56 shines with many options of cheap ammo.

"Better calibers" is debatable. 223 has killed many a creature, wether 4 legged or 2. I have 2 bolt guns that are 223 and both a very accurate with Hornady Superformance ammo. They have taken countless groundhogs, skunks, coyotes, possums, etc. I would never want to get rid of them!

For a cheap to shoot, no recoil setup….. the 223 is the way to go.

 

[boyscout]

6 ppc will beat all comers at that range.
6 br would be next.

 

[KYS]

These 6mm wildcats are a bit overkill for 200 yards, max range…

 

[FUNCTIONAL]

I'm by no means against more rifles but is there any reason you don't want to just build a nice dedicated AR upper for the heavier .223 rounds? a 1/7 twist at 18-20" should easily achieve your 200yrds (even a 16") but if you have the room to stretch it to 600yrds you still have that capability.

 

[Deadshot2]

6 ppc will beat all comers at that range.
6 br would be next.

Except for the 30BR one of our club shooters "campaigned" all year. Took shooter of the year honors with it. One match he shot a perfect 400-17X. That was at 300 yards, not 200. The target 10 ring is a little over 1" with the "X" just under 3/4.

The thing about the 30 cal bullet is that it "kicks the wind in the ass" rather than the other way around with the smaller bullets.

I hear that there are a lot of barrels at our club being "reamed" for 30BR and tuned up for the upcoming season.

 

[MoBoost]

Except for the 30BR one of our club shooters "campaigned" all year. Took shooter of the year honors with it. One match he shot a perfect 400-17X. That was at 300 yards, not 200. The target 10 ring is a little over 1" with the "X" just under 3/4.

The thing about the 30 cal bullet is that it "kicks the wind in the ass" rather than the other way around with the smaller bullets.

I hear that there are a lot of barrels at our club being "reamed" for 30BR and tuned up for the upcoming season.

30BR exists purely for score shooting. Even though 6s can be more accurate - the .060" makes enough difference in "breaking the rings" to win the "X"s.
The wind thing is plain wrong - 30BRs shoot flat base bullets with G1 less than .300; while 6BR would shoot 90gn+ with BC .400+.