Shot placement on big Eastern groundhogs.

[comfisherman]

You can't find shells for the 204 unless you pay outrageous prices from individuals on line. Must reload and good luck finding components!

Situation has got to be improving a little bit. I payed 27$ for a box of ntx fresh stock to try and they had fiocchi shooting dynamics 50 round boxes for 50$. That's not a great price but neither was the 5.39 diesel or the 3.79 chicken thighs I bought that day as well. Reality is stuffs expensive now, those ntx are up about 30% b.c. but retumbo and the cartridges that burn it are near 100% more. So all things considered it's doable. If new production is showing up in Alaska, things must be getting better.

I've got 250 pieces of brass inbound and looking forward to it. Been using the two boxes of old brass that came with the rifle. It's been the duct tape of brass, but it's got me through.

 

[ohlongarmisle]

A few years ago a farmer not far from here was infested with woodchucks on her farm. She asked me if I could help her get rid of the chucks, which I was more than happy to do. We were out in the country so noise was not an issue but instead of my AR I chose the Tikka T1x in .22 LR. topped with a Vortex Crossfire II 4 x 16 x 50. The particular cannon fodder the rifle likes and which proved to be deadly is Winchester Silvertip 37 gr hollow point segmented bullets. This ammo is actually listed as defensive handgun ammunition. With a muzzle velocity of only 1060 fps it's not super high velocity but it's terminal performance is unbelievable. Accuracy from the Tikka is around 0.7 MOA, I had the rifle zero set at 100 yards. There were some 30+ chucks on her farm, some undermining the foundations of some out buildings. Ranges of the shots varied, but the longest shot the range finder reported at 130 yards. At that range I held on the eyes and the round dropped down into the chest with the same results as all of the others. One shot, one chuck. The destruction these little segmented bullets made was unbelievable. I do have to admit that all of the shots were from either a prone or bench supported positions
Since then I have been asked to do some more chuck eradication by other farmers in the area. Surprising how word of mouth works. Anyway used the same rifle and same ammo on all of them. When I arrived at the farms some of the farmers questioned using a simple .22 on something as big as a woodchuck. Once they saw what that little .22 could do it made a believer out of them.
While this may not constitute what others here consider long range, it is long range enough for a .22. One of these days I am going to haul the Tikka up to the Northwood's Range in Gordon, WI. It will be interesting to see how a .22 LR performs accuracy wise at 200 and 300 yards.

I also have a Tikka T1X topped with a Weaver grand slam 4x20 I've shot dozens of coyotes over bait out to 100 yards, CCI Velocitor DRT. It can be done but shot placement is critical eastern hogs are tough. Good shooting.

 

[chucknut]

Nice
Loved hunting Chucks up in NE PA. Started hunting them with my friend's 308 deer rifle around 1970. Alot of Chuck Hunting changed over the years, There wasn't much if any interest in chuck hunting except from the farmers. In the 80's there were a few guys that wanted some more hunting rather than the short Deer season and small game in PA. The 22.250 came out as King and getting someone to build in a heavy Barrel. Remington 40XBR was the shooter and getting out to 500yds you were considered a King Chuck hunter.
In 2004 Ruger came out with the .204 Ruger. A 222 Mag with a 32 or 40 gr Hornady bullet the 32 gr could get 4,200 fps. Ruger sold a Mark II Target Grey with a 26" heavy barrel. I bought one of the first off the line. When I went to PA to shoot with the old timers that all shot 22.250 or 6mm Rem thought that the bullet and cartridge was too small. Once I started hitting chucks out to 500yrd they still were not convinced. It was like a Laser and good in the wind. I did change to the 39gr SBK. . Well every visit I would shoot and hit the long shots. Then would miss the less than 100 yard shots. I also brought my Volquatsen17HMR and then was told that it may be illegal due to semi auto so I never shot it. Heck was shooting squirrels at 200 out of trees here in GA.
Anyway the .204 Ruger was claiming high kills and with the SBK 39 gr. was devastating on chucks and Yotes. Hugh front SPLASH . Would destroy the chuck.
One of my last visits before my mom passed I took my custom built .260 with a Bartlein 26, 1:8 5R put into an AX AICS Chassis.
l WAS GETTIN <1/4" MOA. started shooting chucks out past 3-4 farmers fields 1.000yds ++. Also had a Vortex Razor 7x27-56. That was some good shooting over the 22.250
TRULEY MISS THOSE DAYS AND THE FRIENDSHIP WITH FELLOW SHOOTERS AND THE OWNERS OF THE FARMS. Saw then go from being broke 365 and then getting a NG Lease or Well on their property. Story of Poor to RICH. Was extremely happy for all of them.
Getting back to the post.
Go with a .204 Ruger!!!!

I too miss those days. Got my first chuck in susquehanna County with a 25/06 AI at age 10 . That was over 50 years ago. Killed many many chucks 90% with a 22-250 rem. The drilling took some of my fields,but still good shooting up there. And I don't think chuck hunting is as popular as it used to be....sad.

 

[chucknut]

Nice shooting you spanked my numbers this year I tallied 54! I'm from western pa and I shoot em with a 22-250 and 22 hornet and even the hornet launching a 40 vmax at 3000 won't anchor them if you make a less than ideal shot. They are seriously tough little critters. Here's a few pics from my season this year.View attachment 409494View attachment 409495

Two good looking rifles. What are they ?

 

[Coyote Shadow Tracker]

I too miss those days. Got my first chuck in susquehanna County with a 25/06 AI at age 10 . That was over 50 years ago. Killed many many chucks 90% with a 22-250 rem. The drilling took some of my fields,but still good shooting up there. And I don't think chuck hunting is as popular as it used to be....sad.

Mostly all the Oldtimers I knew hunted with 22-250. I hunted some fields in Mountain Top. Originally born and lived in Bear Creek, West of MT! Mostly hunted Chucks north of Tunkhannock in Meshoppen, Montrose, Wyalusing, Towanda. Lot's of old Dairy Farms in the mountains. I probably have at least 50 marked in my GPS. It was getting more difficult to get permission to hunt the farms, but going there for 50 years and having a friend that hunted 3-4 days a week basically knew all the Farmers. Have not been there in 3 years so a lot may have changed with all the Fracking. That area had the most Natural Gas PLUS Oil under the NG in PA. Some GREAT Trout fishing in that area also. Would hunt chucks during the day and night fish on a little lake (Quaker Lake) at night.

 

[unclecroc]

Two good looking rifles. What are they ?

One is a cooper 54 montana varminter 22-250 the other is a browning a bolt micro hunter 22 hornet.

 

[HOOFER]

Montana wood Chuck. 610 yards.

7mm Rem works good

 

[LoneTraveler]

Those were the good old days when my brother and I killed around 100 groundhogs a year each. 222 rem, 243 Win. Even 338 WM when we was getting ready for a Moose hunt, Just for some trigger time on our rifles.

Since the Coyotes have moved in on the main farm we hunted no ground hogs. We went to the Rogers field where we use to kill 10-15 an evening. Set on field from 2pm till shadows fell never seen a hog. The Farmer told us that evening, When he mowed the field there was no paths around the 2 rough sections. The only groundhogs you see in our area now is near civilization.

 

[comfisherman]

Story plays all around the states. Predators population so big the fun stuff starts to be residential or dead. Elk in Idaho from wolves, deer in Oregon from the cougars, peninsula caribou from every predator that twitches or wiggles, hogs and coyotes in PA....


I was about early 20s and an elderly native guy came down the flat to visit. I mentioned jumping a wolf outside his driveway in the early am on my way to the boat. He retorted "when I was your age we decided between wolves and caribou and sea lions and king salmon".... "we should hunted both gone. Have fun eating wolves and sealions".

Looking back on it he was prophetic dang near nation wide.

 

[VarmintBob]

Where did you find that many. Seems most have been poisoned out in SE Colorado last June were we went. Maybe 100 or so in three days. Not worth the 800 mile drive

I shot 650 out of one ranch and the rancher came along and poisoned them after that. 650 was a significant part of the original total. Go figure. There is no respect for varmint shooters.