sako 75 varmint

[Fostech]

Finnally got my new gun in , it took 7 months to get a sako 75 varmint in a 22-250 , any body got one , just wonder what i should expect for accuricy?

[Bobcat]

Wow...what a great rifle. They will shoot sub-moa out of the box. They are great long range shooters. The Sako's not only shoot VERY well, they are works of art and superb craftsmanship. Which model of the Varmint did you get? What are you going to top it off with?

I think it is time to go hunting!!

Congrats,

Bob

[Fostech]

I just got the regular varmint heavey barrel, not the stainless. i have a leupold 4.5x14x50mm long range tactical to sit on top of it. now all i need is to work up a good load , any suggestions?? then comes the hard part , getting a coyote to give me a peek at him.

[LC '92]

Condiser the Hornady V-Max line of bullets for your .22-250 project. I have used them since they were first introduced. They are accurate, explosive on varmints, and the most affordable poly tip bullet out there. This is important if you shoot a lot like I do. Don't limit that Sako to coyotes either, put a good bipod on it and practice on the local crow population. As Bobcat stated, I would expect sub MOA accuracy from that Sako/Leupold combination.

With best regards,
Jeff

[Bobcat]

Fostech,

Here is a load that my 22-250 likes:

50 gr. Ballistic Tip
39.0 grs. H-380(41.0 is Max)
Win Brass
WLR Primer

I have it zeroed at 240 yards, 1.5" high at 100 yards. This gives me a 280 yard point blank range with a 4" target zone (2" up and down).

You may want to play with some Varget also. It has always shot well in my 22-250's.

Keep us posted.....

Bob

[Fostech]

Finnaly got to do a little shooting with the new gun,
i loaded up some 53gr sierra matchkings with hodgdons varget and IMR 4895, the varget with 37.0gr of powder shot the best , with a five shot group of 0.590" @100 yrds and the Imr came in pretty close at 0.675" with 35.7gr of powder, dont have any V-maxes yet but i plan on trying them.

[Jay Nistetter]

Personally I would stay away from V-Max altogether. I have shot bunches and bunches of them and you'll get splashes. The bullet will crater when hitting shoulder or frontal breast and the coyote will recover enough to take off. The Hornady V-Max is a poor choice on coyote. On many shots they are deadly, but for coyote, you can't always choose your spot. If you have the need for explosive tip bullets, the better choice would be Ultimax.

The best choice would be a soft point 55 grain spire or HP BT. My preference for 22-250 is Sierra.

[ICMCumin]

Jay -I shoot either a .222 or a .223 for yotes and do NOT reload my own rounds.

Is there a manufacturer / factory round that you recommend for this?

thanks.....

[Jay Nistetter]

Black Hills and UltiMax are factory reloads and are good choices, but I would start out with any of Federal, Remington or Winchester factory rounds. You have a pretty good selection with them. If your new gun can't get great groupings with factory, then it's time to check the bedding and at last resort, consider reloading.

Guys who reload are looking to save money, tighten groups up just a smidgeon and take self pride in achieving the mechanics of putting something together that works. All that aside, unless they have a real crapola gun, in the real world, 1 inch groups are pretty darn good when push comes to shove in any hunting situation.

One thing about the 22-250 is that almost everything shoots good enough out of them to be considered more than accurate enough for hunting.

I have never been a big fan of the light bullets (less than 55 grain) as they get finnicky when being pushed to high velocities and may require some playing around here and there. Nobody has ever been able to convince me the benefits of fast light bullets when the heaver ones (55 grain) retians energy downrange making them flatter shooting in the long run. I don't pop coyotes beyond 300 yards anyway. Anyway, the 22-250 wasn't designed for those lighter rounds, hence the barrel twist that comes standard. Some 60 and 62 grain bullets work very well out of the 250 but aren't necessary for coyote.

I'm no ballistics enthusiast, but have shot many a coyote and know what works best for me. I typically stick with one bullet weight per caliber and choose a powder that I know will always be available.

OOPS! 223? That's a little different. Assuming you have a 1:9 twist, I would still stay with 55 grainers, but would also recommend you try something a little heavier too. For some reason (which I'm not smart enough to know why) heavier bullets seem to be more accurate. I've never adopted the philosophy that faster is better. It's a tough call in archery but the trade-off is loss in kinetic energy.

[Fostech]

Jay,

Thanks for the heads up, whats this "Ultimax" bullet your talking about i have never heard of it??

[Jay Nistetter]

Actually I made a mistake. The name is Ultramax. They use a Nosler explosive tip bullet. I have yet to lose a dog with one. They are good rounds. Sometimes the results are gorey, moreso than a standard soft point. My AR seems to like them real well. There is a definitive improvement over the V-max.

I have taken a 250 and 300 pound hog with them. One was a chest shot that lunched the hog but it still ran 80 yards. The second one was a head shot that I double tapped on and dropped it in its tracks.

I have only used the round in 223 out of an AR and have had no bad experiences. Methinks the Nosler has a heavier jacket.

www.ultramaxammunition.com/aboutus.php

[ICMCumin]

Jay - thanks for the information. I normally shoot a 55 grain Hornady or Federal in both my .222 and .223. They are both Remington model 788's.

For a factory stock rifle the .223 in pretty durn accurate and a three shot group at well less than MOA with the Hornady's is not unusual when the hands and breathing are steady and the wind is low.

Really enjoy shooting both of these rifles.The .222 is pretty good too, but not as accurate as the .223.

Both rifles seem to really like the Hornady's, but your comment about the Vmax bullets concerned me.........

[MarkB]

ICMCumin - If you haven't tried the Winchester "whitebox" 45 gr. 223 rounds yet, give them a try. I bet you'll be impressed with them. They go for $10 for 40 rounds and shoot sub MOA out of my CZ527 American .223. (1:12 twist)

[Jay Nistetter]

ICMC. Don't know why you're worried. V-Max bullets shoot real well if you want accuracy.

Don't know what else I can add, except if you tend to be skeptical about them not being a good coyote round, I could round up a couple dozen other people that have experienced it too many times.

Too often the word "Varmint" has nothing to do with coyote. I know that Hornady advertises them good for coyote, but you need to understand that they are in business to make money. Successful advertising is what makes them the bucks moreso than their products.

Let me say right here and now that I shoot only Hornady in pistol loads. I wouldn't shoot Sierra in a handgun because they are proned to blow cores. So you see, I am not loyal to any particular manufacturer.

Writers never tell you the bad stuff. They wouldn't tell you that V-Max is lousy on coyotes and Sierra wouldn't confess to blowing cores. It's bad for business.

But if you like them, by all means go for it. You'll get no argument from me. I was giving my thoughts on years of experience shooting dogs and up pops V-Max 4 or so years ago, so I ended up with over a dozen boxes (moly and plain) from some horse trading. I don't paper punch either. My tests are all on fur and I hate like hell tracking and running down coyotes that other bullets would have anchored.