.17 HMR for Prairie Dogs

psdan000

psdan000

Member
I'll be taking a trip to Montana this September for a prairie dog hunt. I'm Going with a friend who has been before but this will be my first time. I'm planning on taking just 2 rifles and I will definitely be taking my rem 700 .223, but I wasn't sure what else I should take. I'll either be taking my savage .17 HMR or a Rem 700 VLS .243. My concern with the HMR is how effective it will be on prairie dogs out to 200 yards, and if for some reason I am stuck using just the .17 HMR, will i regret not taking the .243. On the other hand, HMR ammo is a lot cheaper than .243 ammo. Any help appreciated /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
 
I KNOW A COUPLE GUYS THAT TAKE THE 17 HMR AND THEY LIKE IT OUT THAT FAR EVEN OUT TO 300 IF THE WIND IS NOT BLOWING TO HARD /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowingsmilie.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowingsmilie.gif
 
All I know is that

If I was going to take a "trip" I'd be taken everything and then you won't be lookin back saying "I should've took my other rifle" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smiliesmack.gif

My advise is take all three, you won't regret any of it then!!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
I use the 17 hummer for about 50% of my PD shooting but I limit it to under 150 yards. Most of the fun is watching the "flyers" and you won't get many with the hummer. The .243 is a little over gunned but they sure will fly when hit!!
 
I use my 17HMR for pd's on occasion here in west tx. If the wind isn't blowing, you can gets hits pushing 300yds. 150yds is the effective range. Take it, it will save you some noise for the close ones before you pull out the centerfire rifles.
 
My longest distance on PD's has been 265 yards and that was cleaning off a group on a mound when the wind was light. The 243 is way over the top but should have some good acrobatics! If you are driving, take everything you have. I fly out West and ship my ammo ahead of time and take a two gun case.
 
Wowsers! What a great place to get good advice.

I use my HMR in the PD towns a lot. It works Great! I reserve it for shots under 200 yds. Mostly under 150yds. Hard to believe, but on Saturday I killed three pups with one shot, a feat normally reserved for the centerfires(very lucky shot). I also take along the .17 Remington for longer shots. I am tuning on my 220 Swift for the still longer shots.

The guys are right! Fill all your brass and bring all three rifles! Have a great time!
 
Quote:
All I know is that

If I was going to take a "trip" I'd be taken everything and then you won't be lookin back saying "I should've took my other rifle" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smiliesmack.gif

My advise is take all three, you won't regret any of it then!!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif



+1 Take em all.
 
Im kinda limited on only bringing 2 rifles or I would bring all 3. There is a decent sized group of us going and we will be limited on space in the vehicles so I was told to only bring 2 rifles.
 
So go buy a 2-gun hard case and just kind of "slip" the other one in. "OOOOPS, Sorry guys, I don't know how that got in there." /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif But honestly, how much room does one more rifle take up? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smiliesmack.gif

If there's alot of dogs, and the shooting's hot and heavy, you'll like the HMR.

We shoot both and like both but here's how it weighs out:

The .243 can reach out there and nail the long ones, but you usually can't recover from the recoil fast enough to see the "results". With varmint type bullets, it puts on a heck of a show for whoever's spotting for you. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

You didn't mention whether or not you reload. For me, this would be the deciding factor. We wouldn't be shooting the .243 much at prairie dogs if I had to buy factory ammo.

If there's plenty of dogs, you won't regret taking the .17HMR. Good luck. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
 
Duckdog, I do not reload for the .243, so that's why i was thinking .17 HMR. I might try to get all 3, but I was asked to only bring 2...we'll just have to see how it goes. But I think if it's going to be just 2, i'll have to leave the .243 at home...
 
I just returned from a 5 day PD trip covering three states. I carried 5 rifles and my dad carried two. One of his was a 17HMR. He fired more from that one gun than either of us did from any of the other guns carried. It was not spectacular in the acrobatics department. What we found out was if we could define his head with the naked eye, the HMR would get the job done. He would do a walk about with it and using a bipod from a sitting position, he would clean out a mound before they were aware of what was going on.

I plan to go on another trip soon and will be taking my HMR when I do.
 
Quote:
I just returned from a 5 day PD trip covering three states. I carried 5 rifles and my dad carried two. One of his was a 17HMR. He fired more from that one gun than either of us did from any of the other guns carried. It was not spectacular in the acrobatics department. What we found out was if we could define his head with the naked eye, the HMR would get the job done. He would do a walk about with it and using a bipod from a sitting position, he would clean out a mound before they were aware of what was going on.

I plan to go on another trip soon and will be taking my HMR when I do.


Sounds like a blast! man now I really cant wait /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
 
the other day while i was fixin fence i shot 60 rounds out of my savage 17 btvs and killed about 50 prairee dogs from 20 yards to 300 yards had alot of fun it didnt cost me a dollar a round and made me remember how fun it was to shoot take your 17
 
By all means bring it, but one thing we have is wind. 5 mph is considered
dead calm, 15 mph steady with higher gusts are common so the .243 with
75 grains will save your trip if you have high winds. The 17 is better on
wind than 22 rimfires but not by enough for what you may have to shoot in.
Sept. is one of the calmer months but you never know. We have a saying up
here, "if you don't like the weather, give it a minute". Hope you have a great
trip.
 


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