your favourite .20 cal bullet for varmint and coyotes

M

Matt_3479

New member
recently acquired a remington 700 VSSF II in 204 ruger and a semi custom remington 700 tac 20. Looking to get them both loaded up for coyotes and varmints! Thinking of a 39gr blitzking, 40gr vmax, and the 35gr berger.
 
I think you will find that most guy prefer the 35 Berger hp for coyotes and the 39 Blitzking for making smaller critters go poof. My 204's like the 35 Bergers.
 
The 35 gr. FBHP Berger and the 39 gr. Sierra BlitzKing seem to work well with the 1 in 12 factory twist barrels. However, some shooters have problems with bullet stability out of their 1 in 12 twist barrels when using the 40 gr. V-Max. I had good luck with the 40 gr. Nosler BT bullets out of my 1 in 12 twist factory barrel on my Savage 12VLP in .204 Ruger.

In my experience the 35 gr. FBHP Berger is a fine bullet for predators and saving fur. The BC of this bullet is fairly low, but if you keep the distance of your shots down to 200 yards and don't have much wind, the 35 gr. Berger is one fine bullet. I've never used it much for prairie dogs because my load is a hot one and not a good one to use in warmer temperatures.

I also use 39 gr. Sierra BlitzKings for coyotes and prairie dogs. The BC of the 39 gr. SBK is quite high and bucks the wind and shoots very flat out well beyond the capability of the 35 gr. Berger. I have had good results on coyotes and haven't had much fur damage with this bullet. It turns prairie dogs inside out and they do fantastic acrobatics when hit right.

I haven't shot many coyotes with the 40 gr. V-Max, but those that I did shoot wound up with some fairly large holes in their hides. The 40 gr. V-Max has been a great bullet for prairie dogs for me out of my Savage 12VLP .204 Ruger with a 1 in 11 twist stainless steel super match grade 3 groove Pac-Nor barrel.
 
Wow the 35gr Bergers are popular around here. I did some load work for my old mans 204 Ruger and that's where I learned to love the .20 cals and is the reason I finally added not 1 but 2 to my collection. I recently sold of my main varmint rig to my brother in order to fund a custom build and is the reason I had been on the market for a new varmint rifle in a 204. Ruger. Just so happened that the 20 tac was also available
 
I have found with alot of testing on coyotes out of my 204 the 32 gr sierra blitzkings are better than the 35 gr bergers!
 
^^^^^ Bobtails. Do you think it's the high velocity or the bullet construction that's causing the fur damage with the Bergers. I love their accuracy in my tac20 but they are tearing up my animals. I don't get it either as most everyone says their great on fur. My shots have all been under 70 yards with nasty exit wounds. Try to decide if I should slow them down or change Bullets all together.
 
Originally Posted By: BOBTAILSI have found with alot of testing on coyotes out of my 204 the 32 gr sierra blitzkings are better than the 35 gr bergers!

When you say better how so? My 20P and 35 bergers were a deadly combo to past 600 yards. But they aren't easy to always find. So the Blitzlings would be a nice option. I'm not questioning you because I know you kill a ton. Just curious at to what you like better
 
Originally Posted By: WhoCares^^^^^ Bobtails. Do you think it's the high velocity or the bullet construction that's causing the fur damage with the Bergers. I love their accuracy in my tac20 but they are tearing up my animals. I don't get it either as most everyone says their great on fur. My shots have all been under 70 yards with nasty exit wounds. Try to decide if I should slow them down or change Bullets all together.

I think in my case it is bullet construction. I shoot the 32 gr BK almost same speed, just a little faster. 4 years ago I was losing coyotes cause they were hit hard, fall down get uyp and run away. After losing 5-6 coyotes in a months time I switched to the 32's based off of a friends recommendation saying they were magic in the 204. Now 4 years and 50-60 coyotes later I have only lost one and I've shot them from 464 to 30 yards. Still have some of the 35's loaded up I either need to shoot at some chucks or pull.
 
45 gr sp. I have been so impressed with that bullet! DRT and does not bad on fur. I've shot many fox with them as well a couple you couldn't even tell they were shot.
 
Bobtails, I guess I will get a 100 and try them out. Do you know what speed you are shooting them at? My Bergers are at 3940 in that 22" Shillen I got from you a few years back. I just ordered a 16" 12 twist to try, hoping to slow things down and shorten things up with my suppressor.
 
Originally Posted By: WhoCaresBobtails, I guess I will get a 100 and try them out. Do you know what speed you are shooting them at? My Bergers are at 3940 in that 22" Shillen I got from you a few years back. I just ordered a 16" 12 twist to try, hoping to slow things down and shorten things up with my suppressor.


I think I shot some 32 bks out of that upper if its still the one I use to have. Might have some load data for it. I know I wanted speed, and was using H4198 If I remember correctly.

I will look tonight if interested.

Jason
 
I've been using 26.0 of IMR 8208 and getting plenty of velocity & accuracy . My problem is blowing up the fur upon exit. Not sure if it's bullet or velocity related as everyone seems to think the 35 Bergers are perfect. I am going to slow a batch down in a 16" barrel and I just ordered 200 of the Sierra bullets Bobtails suggested. I will try them in my 22" as well as th 16" and see what works better. Thanks for the help guys!
 
I have only had a few that have put more than a quarter sized hole in coyotes. Most it's a 20 cal hole and blows up inside. Never had a splash. Also never had a pass thru.
 
Originally Posted By: BOBTAILSI have only had a few that have put more than a quarter sized hole in coyotes. Most it's a 20 cal hole and blows up inside. Never had a splash. Also never had a pass thru.

I have seen Robs in action with the 32gr. BK's very impressive.. It actually talked me into giving the 204 another try, so far I'm loving it with the 32's..
 
Who, how much velocity are you getting with that load? It sounds more like you need to speed them up some. Like Bobtails, I haven't had any pass thru with the 35 Bergers, but I'm shooting them at 3,900 fps using 8202 at 28 gr.
 
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