.17 hmr

[drjay9051]

I am looking to get into "plinking" and am searching for a good round. I'm thinking .17 HMR as opposed to WMR. I believe the HMR has flatter trajectory. Not looking to pick off squirrels or other game just shooting at metal targets etc for fun around the farm. Distance would be a couple of hundred yds max.

Any thoughts as far as gun, optics etc? Any other caliber suggested?

Im not looking for a $1,000 scope or rifle just a good solid platform that will do 1 MOA or better .

It's been suggested to me to get into something like 22-250 as it is more "versatile" than .17 cal. I have no plans of taking a deer so I don't need the 22-250 but aside from hunting thoughts on .17 vs 22-250 etc.

I already have Colt 5.56 so see no need for 22-250. Colt outfitted with Eotech but am playing with idea of going for a scope or other form of magnification such as ACOG.

Re: ammo cost. Isuppose if I went bolt action .223 Icould use my Lake City ammo which is pretty cheap. No needto buy yet another caliber. So toconfuse the issue maybe keepaway from the .17?? As you can see I am a bit confused regarding this issue.

Any help is appreciated.

 

[bradystrib]

Okay, I bought one because I was really interested in the round. It is a fun round to shoot. I bought a Savage 93r17 TR (one in the boyd's tacticool stock and enlarged bolt handle) and put a cheap centerpoint scope on it. It is a super accurate and super fun gun to shoot. I haven't done much anything past 100yards with it. It's price per round isn't as cheap as .22 but it's still not bad at all and is similar in price to .223. So a bolt action .223 might be better if you don't want to add another caliber. I on the other hand enjoy having a ton of calibers. So that's why I ended up with a .17...

 

[cthulhufan]

I have been having an absolute blast with my new Savage 93r hummer. It is a great plinking round for me. I got mine to practice "distance" shooting out to ~250 meters or so on my property and it is a blast. I've been able to catch boxes of 50 rounds on sale for $7.99 here. I picked up a batch of the FMJ CCI GamePoint for picking off rabbit this winter and am interested to see how that works out.

From what I've seen, nobody is putting out a "bad" 17HMR rifle at this point and a good rifle + optics can be had for $450 - $750 depending on your choice of optics.

Good luck and have fun if you do pick one up, it's a hoot!

 

[Fast flyer]

There a lot of fun, and will drop a hog like a bad habit, Allan Warren did a show with the 17 hog hunting, shot 5, all dropped in there tracks, one weighed better than 150, also got 2 with one shot. This round is amazing and reasonable to shoot, as far as the gun, I wouldn't buy another mossberg in 17' the barrel is pinned to receiver with roll pins, groups nice but the groups move, didn't take long to figure it out and fixed it. Remember you get what you pay for! Have fun....

 

[waidmann]

I went the CZ full-stock route, likely not your choice, but I've been exploding cottontails to 86 measured yards with iron sights.
I would suggest you look at one of their models more consistent with your stated application.

 

[CCCP]

I have CZ 452 american. I love it. Scope is Bushnell Banner 3-9x40. Now I would choose FS version, because of iron sights.

 

[TexasPatriot.308]

Savage 93 for the price, cheaper than a CZ and probably just as good. I got a bad hog problem and I too drop big hogs with it even with body shots, it is amazing what a 20 grain hunting tip will do to a hogs innards.....made jello out of one I cut open out of curiosity. most I shoot thru ear. my Savage is a fun gun to shoot, got one of those Simmons whitetail scopes that Midway has on perpetual "half price sale"

 

[LoonWulf]

I bought a 93r17btvs, about 5 years ago. Ive been shooting it steadily every since. For just goofing around i prefer it to the .223 as it makes much less of a bang, and recoil is no existent. Not to say that the .223 is bad, its just nice to be able to watch hits out to 200yds. I use a cheap cabelas 17 scope. Ill likely pick up another whitetail classic if i do not give this rifle to my girlfriends father. I am actually going to move away from the .17hmr as ammo is more expensive then .223/5.56 and my girlfriend has a 10/17 i built a while back So a new bolt .22 will, i believe serve my needs better.

 

[wingman]

My .17hmr is accurate however for target shooting I prefer the 223 or .204 ruger, personally I believe ammo is too high for the 17, a lot depends on where you shoot and what you hunt,for me it would never replace the 223.

 

[spoogie]

I own a .22-250 and a .17 HMR. The 17 is like shooting a 22 rimfire, but more accuracy and slightly better "smack" on a target. The 250 is like shooting a rifle. The 250 will carry energy/knock down to kill an animal and the 17 will bend a 22 spinner target made of 1/4" plate, but that's about it. A 17 will do some damage on a squirrel/prairie dog/etc. inside 150 yards, but after that it doesn't explode 'em. The 250 will make a mess, generally.

I like 'em both. A 17 is fun to shoot, a 250 is for killin'.

I reload, so a box of 50 HMR's is $9.99 on sale, since you can't reload these.

The 22-250 is $25-28/box of 40 Winchesters if you really watch the sales. Cheaper in the long run if you reload or similar price if you use better components (Vmax instead of SP's, etc).

For targets, 17 should impress you after you figure out what flavor of 17 your gun likes.

I bought a cheap Savage before Accutrigger came along, put a BSA Sweet .17 scope on it, and did a trigger job of shimming and polishing. Shoots like a dream with 20 grain CCI's and Hornady's. If I had to do it over again, I might try a CZ, but I haven't upgraded/changed out anything yet.

-S

 

[kenken]

I bought a marlin 917 and it is awesome. I put a Nikon 4.5-14x40, BDC reticle scope on it, installed a Timney trigger and it will shoot amazing groups at 200yds. Everyone that I let shoot it, loves it.. At 100yds, forget about it. One ragged hole, most of the time.

kenken