Universal predator cartridge

We used to have a Remington 700 in .221 Fireball when I was kid. I'd give one half of my reproductive organs to have that round become mainstream again. Is it better than the .223? Not really. Is it cooler? Yes, very much.
 
I only have the .17 HMR, and wouldn't mind an HM2. I've never been really interested in the .17 Remington, but the .17 Fireball seems like it would be a better option. It gives up very little to the larger .17 Rem case, a 5 grain lighter bullet runs about the same speeds as the .17 Rem.

I hated reloading for the .204 Ruger because of small bullets. So I can't imagine those little .17 cal bullets. So I'll probably stick to rimfires in .17 cals.
I had a 17 fb before my rem and the steeper shoulder angle made feeding sometimes a pain in the butt that's why I switched to the rem. My first rem I built was on a ruger american action that used ar mags and that gun was absolutely flawless. This other one I built is on a bighorn orgin action I got for a good deal. As far as reloading goes I just hate any flat base bullet even 22 Cals but it's not horrible if ya put a little chamfer on the case.
 
We used to have a Remington 700 in .221 Fireball when I was kid. I'd give one half of my reproductive organs to have that round become mainstream again. Is it better than the .223? Not really. Is it cooler? Yes, very much.
Haha I hear ya one just came up at a sale I was gonna go to and I'm glad I didn't because I really wanted it and it went for 2100 I think. Kinda how I feel about my 218 bee
 
Haha I hear ya one just came up at a sale I was gonna go to and I'm glad I didn't because I really wanted it and it went for 2100 I think. Kinda how I feel about my 218 bee
There is currently a basically brand new Remmy .221 on the big auction site with a starting bid of $2300. If I remember correctly, the one we had was a stainless fluted version with the laminate stock. I'm not 100% sure. It was a very cool rifle though.
 
I'm not a fan of the 17 Remington, as when they first came out the only round you could get was a 25-grain hollow point running at 4200 feet per second MV. They would sometimes blow apart in flight if they hit a snowflake or rain drop even tall grass or weeds. They often would tumble, and I've had them hit coyotes sideways and explode on the hide not penetrating. For fur saving I like no smaller then 55 grain bullets and the Seirra 55 grain boat tail GK running at 2900 feet per second MV, in my 223-bolt action group well, less than 1/2 MOA penetrate well into the body cavity, then open up and on red fox or jackrabbits only small fragments of copper will exit the opposite side of them, on coyote most times they expend all of their energy in the animal and the hydro shock makes them go stiff legged and tip over, never to wake up. On smaller varmints like your marmots, they will sometimes make a mess or if you have bad shot placement on any animal. If I'm just killing animals any caliber will do the job, it's a matter of how messy or how efficiently I want it done, respecting the animal's life and taking it as humanly as possible is my goal.
^^^^^^^What Dave said. I have a very accurate CZ527 in 17 rem. I bought as a fur gun and calling rifle. It is a wonderful rifle and very accurate. I have just had too many runners over the years. I have shot coyotes at 250 yards and they were bang flop. However. I have shot coyotes at 20 yards and had them run off. Last coyote I shot with it a couple of weeks ago ran 100 yards but it was a heart shot. Love the gun and the caliber, but with fur prices as they are the old 22-250 and 6 creed are getting all the action. It is a great fox caliber.
 
^^^^^^^What Dave said. I have a very accurate CZ527 in 17 rem. I bought as a fur gun and calling rifle. It is a wonderful rifle and very accurate. I have just had too many runners over the years. I have shot coyotes at 250 yards and they were bang flop. However. I have shot coyotes at 20 yards and had them run off. Last coyote I shot with it a couple of weeks ago ran 100 yards but it was a heart shot. Love the gun and the caliber, but with fur prices as they are the old 22-250 and 6 creed are getting all the action. It is a great fox caliber.
I had 1 runner with mine so far but it was at 350 yards and a stiff crosswind. For fox I absolutely love it
 

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