Sporter barrel vs. Varmint barrel

[Bowhunter57]

I'm considering the purchase of either a 22-250 or a 243, for varmint (groundhogs & coyotes) hunting. I'm interested in Savage rifles and a couple of their options are a Sporter barrel that's 22" long or a heavy Varmint barrel that's 26" long. I'm after accuracy and speed with 55gr. and up to 85gr. bullets, out to 400 yards.

Which barrel would you choose and why?

Thank you, Bowhunter57

 

[rcmodel]

Considering that I am getting too old to carry a heavy barrel varmint rifle from the house to the truck??

I'd chose a CZ 527 .223 light sporter to replace a Medium Heavy barrel 25-06.

Oh wait!
I did.

400 yards is not that far on a coyote if you know how to shoot a rifle.

On the other hand, if you call them in close in the brush, a heavy barrel rifle is way more hindrance then help by far.

Bottom line:
For a walking around varmint rifle, go light.

For a drive to the hunting spot and set up your blind, bipod, and spotting scope?
Go heavy.

rc

 

[witchhunter]

RC nailed it, a coyote rifle and a varmint rifle are two different animals. I use a light 22" barreled .22-250 with a Leupold 3.5-10 for coyotes and a very heavy 26" barreled .220 Swift and .223 with a 20x Leupolds for prairie dogs. The 250 will heat up the light barrel in 5 shots. I can shoot the .223 20 times before it gets hot.

 

[Geno]

I like heavy, 26" barreled firearms (18 to 20 pounds package weight) because they are so stable. Just my preference. Others may disagree.

Geno

 

[Hummer70]

Yep RC nailed it.

 

[Bowhunter57]

rcmodel,
I currently own a Stevens in .25-06 with a 22" sporter barrel. I've been reloading for it and am not impressed with its' accuracy...compared to a previously owned Savage 22-250 with a 26" varmint barrel.
* The 22-250 would shoot 1 hole at 100 yards and 5 out of 5 inside a penny at 200...using a 55gr. V-Max @ 3855 f.p.s.
* The .25-06 will shoot a 5/8" group at 100 yards and 1 1/4" group at 200 yards, using a 85gr. BT @ 3300 f.p.s.

So, it's not the carry weight that concerns me, it's the accuracy differences...if there are any. Therefore, my posted question...and my concerns with the experiences of these 2 rifles.

When hunting coyotes, typically I'll take a shotgun and a rifle. The shotgun is my front weapon and the rifle is sitting close by on a bi-pod, in case something thinks it's out of range.

When hunting groundhogs, I have plenty of time to take a shot, as I'm usually sitting and waiting.

Bowhunter57

 

[joed]

I'm 64 years old and still carry a heavy barrel rifle in the field. I own rifles with sporter barrels but they do not shoot as well as the heavy barrel rifles for my hunting purpose

For hunting in OH I don't have a problem with the weight. For a few of the mountainous states I would use a sporter barrel.

I'm not a hunter that will walk for miles either, I'm a sniper. My hunting consists of walking to a hiding place and waiting for game. That influences what I carry.

 

[nastynatesfish]

I'm kinda leaning heavy. I always run either bipod or sticks anyhow if I take a bolt. But I like my heavies

 

[mljdeckard]

I use a Remington 700 VSSF 22-250 for both, but for coyotes there is no reason not to use a lighter barrel. I'm not taking any shots where the varmint barrel would make a difference. I'm mostly to superstitious and lazy to buy, keep, and run two different rifles.

When I get the .243 upper for my AR-10 I might move it over to main coyote and deer duties.

 

[X-Rap]

Back quite a few yrs ago before I started accumulating larger amounts of guns I used a Ruger 77V in 280 as my primary BG rifle. I was quite young at that time as well so the extra weight didn't bother so much.
Now days I have more to choose from but still carry what some would say was a heavier rifle than average for BG hunting.
For Coyotes I switch between an AR with M4 profile or light carbine barrel, a couple 788's and now a Lightweight Ruger 77 Tang Safety in 243. While none of them would be considered "heavy" barrels the 788's have a profile that sure wouldn't be called light but I really have little use for the very "heavy" 1"+ at the muzzle rifles even for my prairie dog guns so I guess it depends on what you are calling a varmint barrel.

 

[Cee Zee]

I have a Savage 12 LRPV with the 26" heavy barrel. Mine is a single shot with the target action and trigger. It's chambered in .223. At 400 yards it takes a pretty serious mistake to miss (or an unexpected gust of wind). I thought about buying a .22-250 but the ammo prices steered me to .223.

I have shorter barreled Savages and they just aren't as accurate but of course they are lighter and easier to handle in close. Having two weapons available for certain varmints is certainly a good idea if you're sitting in one spot either looking for long range shots or trying to call the varmints in. IMO the best of both worlds can be achieved through the use of bait for coyotes. Dump an old turkey (the kind you bought as an extra for Thanksgiving 5 years ago and it's still in the freezer) at a spot 400 yards or so from your back porch with a clear line of sight and you're ready for some serious varmint hunting. I need to do that myself but there are too many houses in this neighborhood. There are even more coyotes unfortunately for the local pet population.

Determine what kind of shooting you want to do and go from there. RC already pointed this out of course. It's pretty straightforward.

 

[dagger dog]

I had 4 heavy barreled rifles at one time 3 center fire and 1 rim fire, 2 are 26", 1 24".

The 26" ones are HEAVY, the Savage 12 FV at one time sported a full aluminum bedded Choate stock, one piece steel scope mount, steel split rings , Burrris 4.5X15 Scope Harris bipod, leather padded sling and weighed in about 18 lbs. Needed a 2 wheeler to get it to the field. I stripped it down to 11.5 lbs. I haven't really worked hard with it but have shot some quarter size 5 shot groups.

The other 26" is a Ruger KM77VTMKII 308 Winchester still box stock with scope 10.5 lb add an extra 1/4 lb with a full magazine and one in the spout. It was my first heavy barrel and I worked a lot with it off the bench got some one ragged hole 5 shot groups in the 3/8" range.

The 24" is a Savage 22 Hornet single shot it's only 9 lbs with a small scope. This gun's a hunter shoot it off a bipod and it has shot, with me at the trigger, a 20 rnd 7/8" group off that bipod.

So I kinda have an affinity for those bull barrels, but I hate humpin' them around.