TigerOnThe Hill
Well-Known Member
Annually I go to the panhandle of OK for 2 or 3 prairie dog hunts every year. PD Hunt #1 was in May this year and it was good. Normally hunts #2 and #3 are in June and September, but this year they were pushed back to July and October. For both hunts I took my usual handguns: a 20 VarTarg I built using a McGowen barrel, Howa Mini Action, JTAC chassis stock and Vortex 6.5-20X rifle scope; a Remington XP-100 in 223 Remington Ackley Improved with a custom thumbhole stock and Vortex 6.5-20X rifle scope; and a Nosler Custom Handgun in 22 Nosler with a Shilen barrel and Bushnell 4.5-18X AR/223 scope. Of the three handguns, the 20 VarTarg is my favorite. Not only are the 32 gr Nosler Ballistic Tip and V-Max bullets very destructive, but I can usually also spot my own shots. I usually start the day with the VarTarg and move to the 223 AI with 50 gr bullets as the wind picks up. The 22 Nosler and its 55 grain bullet is reserved for higher winds. All three handguns have a suppressor.
For the July hunt I invited a local school teacher/coach, his son and his dad. They've been on number of pd hunts with me. They shot a variety of guns including 204 Ruger, 223 Rem, 22 Nosler and 243. I drove by myself after work Wednesday since they planned to arrive late Thurs. After sleeping a little the next morning, I spent the rest of the day looking for new towns and scouting the usual towns. I didn't shoot much Wednesday, but it was a good shoot. The next 2 days I hunted with the rest of the party. Friday was a good day, but Saturday was very windy, gusting to 40 mph. Regardless, it was a good 2 1/2 day hunt. The weather was hot in the upper 90's and there was no rain, but the wind gusted to the 30's frequently. My biggest disappointment was my fault: my 223 AI fell off the floorboard of my truck onto the ground early on day 2. After that, I couldn't hit anything. It was too windy to sight it back in so I took it out of the rotation. When I got home, I found out the 223 AI hit 5" to the left at 100 yards.
We had a good hunt Saturday, but when the action slowed in the afternoon I relaxed in my truck a few minutes before driving to a different pasture. When I turned the radio on, I heard the live broadcast of the assassination attempt on President Trump. It was really weird listening to the chaos of the live broadcast.
The three guys from Baton Rouge, LA who hunted with me in May also accompanied me for the mid October hunt. They left a day earlier than me, but spent all day driving to OK, stopping at nearly every gun store/pawn shop on the way. They bought 2 guns and hand loading supplies. We had a birthday party for my wife Wednesday night so I didn't leave until really early Thursday AM. The shooting for them wasn't very good Thursday with winds gusting to 45mph. I didn't know what gale force winds were, but I found out. The wind was down a little on Friday (40 mph gusts) and ever "better" Saturday (only 20 mph gusts). Unfortunately, the last two days were overcast while pd's like it sunny. There was no rain and the temperatures were very mild with lows in the mid-50's and highs in the mid 70's. Early on the second day I had an unfortunate incident with the 20 VarTarg. It was sitting on a bipod and sand bag on the rotating table in the cargo box of my truck. I dropped a cartridge so I reached down to pick it up. The table rotated a little just as the wind gusted, blowing the gun off the table onto the cargo box tool chest, then to the ground. I felt sick. Aside from a scuff mark on the scope, it looked ok. I shot it once at 40 yards and hit 5" low and 2" to the left. It was so windy I thought it'd be useless to try and sight it back in. Because of the wind, the 22 Nosler and 55 gr bullets got a lot of action. The next day the wind was calmer so I shot the 223 AI more while the VarTarg stayed in time out. Every mid-afternoon the Baton Rouge guys would go dove hunting. After they left Saturday for a dove hunt, I found a small area in the Wind Mill pasture loaded with dogs. There was tall vegetation between us, partly hiding me from the dogs. Since the shots were close (+/- 150 yards) and the wind was mostly at my back, I made a lot of shots in a short time. The Baton Rouge guys really like rabbits, so I shot one for them. Unfortunately, the 50 gr TNT bullet is not rabbit stew "friendly" at 50 yards. The Baton Rouge guys shot a variety of guns including 204 Ruger, 223 Rem, 22-250, 22 Mag and 17 HMR.
Although the wind was not our friend, we had a good hunt and a good time. We all shot plenty of rounds and they each also got their daily limit of doves. We found a couple of new pastures to look at for next next year. During the winter I'll be building a new gun, a 17 Remington Fireball, using a Howa Mini Action and JTAC chassis stock. It'll basically be a little brother to my 20 VarTarg. I'm hoping for approximately 3700 fps with a 20 gr Hornady V-Max bullet. Everything for the build has arrived except for the 16" Pac-Nor barrel. I've pretty much narrowed down my choice of bullets for the other guns. The 32 gr Nosler Ballistic Tip, V-Max and Varmageddon are my go to bullets for the 20 VarTarg. The 34 gr Midway HP is good, but doesn't reliably feed from the magazine. In the 223 AI, I'll be pursuing the 50 gr NBT, Speer TNT and V-Max bullets. Since the 22 Nosler is my "wind gun," it will be using heavier bullets like 53 gr V-Max and 55 gr NBT, V-Max and TNT bullets. The 50 and 55 gr Hornady SX and Speer spire point bullets just don't seem as destructive as the others.
20 VarTarg
223 Ackley Improved
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22 Nosler
For the July hunt I invited a local school teacher/coach, his son and his dad. They've been on number of pd hunts with me. They shot a variety of guns including 204 Ruger, 223 Rem, 22 Nosler and 243. I drove by myself after work Wednesday since they planned to arrive late Thurs. After sleeping a little the next morning, I spent the rest of the day looking for new towns and scouting the usual towns. I didn't shoot much Wednesday, but it was a good shoot. The next 2 days I hunted with the rest of the party. Friday was a good day, but Saturday was very windy, gusting to 40 mph. Regardless, it was a good 2 1/2 day hunt. The weather was hot in the upper 90's and there was no rain, but the wind gusted to the 30's frequently. My biggest disappointment was my fault: my 223 AI fell off the floorboard of my truck onto the ground early on day 2. After that, I couldn't hit anything. It was too windy to sight it back in so I took it out of the rotation. When I got home, I found out the 223 AI hit 5" to the left at 100 yards.
We had a good hunt Saturday, but when the action slowed in the afternoon I relaxed in my truck a few minutes before driving to a different pasture. When I turned the radio on, I heard the live broadcast of the assassination attempt on President Trump. It was really weird listening to the chaos of the live broadcast.
The three guys from Baton Rouge, LA who hunted with me in May also accompanied me for the mid October hunt. They left a day earlier than me, but spent all day driving to OK, stopping at nearly every gun store/pawn shop on the way. They bought 2 guns and hand loading supplies. We had a birthday party for my wife Wednesday night so I didn't leave until really early Thursday AM. The shooting for them wasn't very good Thursday with winds gusting to 45mph. I didn't know what gale force winds were, but I found out. The wind was down a little on Friday (40 mph gusts) and ever "better" Saturday (only 20 mph gusts). Unfortunately, the last two days were overcast while pd's like it sunny. There was no rain and the temperatures were very mild with lows in the mid-50's and highs in the mid 70's. Early on the second day I had an unfortunate incident with the 20 VarTarg. It was sitting on a bipod and sand bag on the rotating table in the cargo box of my truck. I dropped a cartridge so I reached down to pick it up. The table rotated a little just as the wind gusted, blowing the gun off the table onto the cargo box tool chest, then to the ground. I felt sick. Aside from a scuff mark on the scope, it looked ok. I shot it once at 40 yards and hit 5" low and 2" to the left. It was so windy I thought it'd be useless to try and sight it back in. Because of the wind, the 22 Nosler and 55 gr bullets got a lot of action. The next day the wind was calmer so I shot the 223 AI more while the VarTarg stayed in time out. Every mid-afternoon the Baton Rouge guys would go dove hunting. After they left Saturday for a dove hunt, I found a small area in the Wind Mill pasture loaded with dogs. There was tall vegetation between us, partly hiding me from the dogs. Since the shots were close (+/- 150 yards) and the wind was mostly at my back, I made a lot of shots in a short time. The Baton Rouge guys really like rabbits, so I shot one for them. Unfortunately, the 50 gr TNT bullet is not rabbit stew "friendly" at 50 yards. The Baton Rouge guys shot a variety of guns including 204 Ruger, 223 Rem, 22-250, 22 Mag and 17 HMR.
Although the wind was not our friend, we had a good hunt and a good time. We all shot plenty of rounds and they each also got their daily limit of doves. We found a couple of new pastures to look at for next next year. During the winter I'll be building a new gun, a 17 Remington Fireball, using a Howa Mini Action and JTAC chassis stock. It'll basically be a little brother to my 20 VarTarg. I'm hoping for approximately 3700 fps with a 20 gr Hornady V-Max bullet. Everything for the build has arrived except for the 16" Pac-Nor barrel. I've pretty much narrowed down my choice of bullets for the other guns. The 32 gr Nosler Ballistic Tip, V-Max and Varmageddon are my go to bullets for the 20 VarTarg. The 34 gr Midway HP is good, but doesn't reliably feed from the magazine. In the 223 AI, I'll be pursuing the 50 gr NBT, Speer TNT and V-Max bullets. Since the 22 Nosler is my "wind gun," it will be using heavier bullets like 53 gr V-Max and 55 gr NBT, V-Max and TNT bullets. The 50 and 55 gr Hornady SX and Speer spire point bullets just don't seem as destructive as the others.
20 VarTarg
223 Ackley Improved
22 Nosler
