What is the best coyote gun? - Page 2

mitchlizard7896 · June 2, 2016, 04:25 PM

Dicks sporting goods has Remington 700 Adl with long bull barrels is several yote calibers for 575. The scopes are crap but they work until you can get a better one.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

Worc · June 2, 2016, 09:37 PM

Quote:

Do you mean the least expensive to shoot ? .....

Yes, thanks

t45 · June 3, 2016, 09:22 AM

Get the best of both worlds and get an AR platform in 243.

Art Eatman · June 3, 2016, 10:12 AM

From some of the varminter websites, the .243 with 55-grain bullets commonly doesn't exit, making that load popular with hide-hunters.

I've found that the Sierra 85-grain HPBT is ruinacious on coyotes.

CLC · June 3, 2016, 02:42 PM

I didn't see what state OP lives in? In PA we can't use semis and we are mostly wooded. I'll use a 835 with #9 buck or honestly a .22. I have a Remington in .223 with harris bipod that could make quick work of some yotes.

TimSr · June 3, 2016, 03:00 PM

I don't think the OP is engaged in his own thread any more. Posted duplicates and disappeared.

Bwillsonhunter4 · June 4, 2016, 03:27 PM

Thank you everyone! I'm just wondering why you would pick the 223, 22-250, 204 ect. over a 30-06? I don't know much about rifles so any reasoning is a good one for me

michaeldarnold · June 4, 2016, 04:04 PM

Coyotes aren't a very tough animal, and not that big. So a larger caliber, while still being able to render the animal dead, will impart more damage to the pelt or meat or whatever.

Also, 30-06 is a fun round to shoot but repeated firing can wear you out. Loads for smaller calibers .223, 22-250, 204, etc, will be much more pleasant to shoot repeatedly, and they get the job done without destroying meat or pelts. However, most people don't eat coyote. (yuck)

Art Eatman · June 4, 2016, 07:52 PM

Any cartridge in the general performance of the .223 is plenty good for coyotes. Basically, trivial recoil. So, a very light weight rifle makes for easy walking. Why carry more weight around than is necessary?

The hot-shot .22s and suchlike need long barrels to live up to their reputation. The .223 does not. So, it's easy to work up some combination which makes life easy. And you then don't mind the weight of binocs, range-finder, snacks, canteen, yada, yada, yada.

Sure, an '06 does in a coyote with ease. I've killed three with mine, but I used it because that was what was in the truck at the time.

Any time I've deliberately gone after Ol' Wily, I've used a .223 or .243.

Boogershooter · June 5, 2016, 11:38 PM

I stated in my previous post that 220 swift was my flavorite. I've had one purposely set up for crows and coyotes for years. Is it best? Prolly not but if I had to pick what I would consider the absolute best with no consideration to cost of ammo would probaby be the 257 weatherby with 100 grain ballistic tips. I'm sure I'm fixing to catch alot of flack but he did ask for the best. I can't imagen anything better than that.

979Texas · June 5, 2016, 11:47 PM

@Boogershooter, I like and agree with everything in your last post. No flack from me. I know I stated that .22-250 would be best, but with no consideration to ammo availability and cost, I would take the .220 swift over it for slightly better ballistics and trajectory. So I agree with you there, also I like your thought of the .257 Weatherby, or really any of the Weatherby's in .257 in below would be a really fun and excellent coyote gun. Especially loaded with lighter bullets like you said.
Also just for fun throwing it out there, check out the Lazzeroni calibers, they are very rare and ungodly expensive but they take common concept calibers and just turn em out to even exceed the Weatherby's in performance, ballistics, and trajectory.

Boogershooter · June 6, 2016, 12:29 AM

I've owned and sold the 300 lazzeroni and Dakota. Simply couldn't afford to shoot them at the time. I don't know how true it is but I've always been told the bores in the lazzeroni rifles were extremely tight. Basically they were .001 under. I'm sure it's just a myth. I acquired them from a friend of my father's who was going thru a divorce. Before I sold them I asked if he wanted them back. He had recently gotten remarried and couldn't afford them.

Mobuck · June 6, 2016, 05:44 AM

"also I like your thought of the .257 Weatherby, or really any of the Weatherby's in .257 in below would be a really fun and excellent coyote gun."

My longest first round coyote hit/kill was with a 257 Wby w/100 grain bullets. Measured both ways at 535 yards on flat ground. The sun was behind me and when the bullet hit I could see the puff of fur and steam on the far side-DRT.
I wouldn't make the Wby my first choice due to recoil and expense.
I've made hits that far with a 22/250 but not DRT's. All made some distance before expiring.

Steffy · June 12, 2016, 05:50 PM

I have shot coyotes from 15 yards to just short of 500. I regard them as large varmints. My coyote rifle is a quick twist .22-.250 using 70 and 75 grain hollow point boat tail bullets.

Coyotes can range from 35 pounds, like to one in the photo. Some may weigh 50 pounds plus. I have heard of one shot in Washington state that weighed 55 pounds. I saw a dead one on a beach in Massachusetts that must have weighed over 50.

The rifle in the photo is one of my favorites. The coyote was shot using a 75 grain Berger VLD bullet at about 3100 fps. The range was about 250 yards - DRT with a complete pass through both shoulders of the 35 pound canine.

I don't shoot that many coyotes to be concerned about ammo costs but having a rifle that is light enough to tote around is a bonus.

I apologize for the blood, I usually try to exclude blood in my photos. I like to pose them like they are sleeping.

603Country · June 13, 2016, 07:58 PM

I used a 220 as my primary coyote caliber for years. Worked great till the pigs moved in on our place. The 220 just didn't drop them fast enough, so I'd have moved up to a 243 if I had one. What I did have was a 260, so I loaded up some 100 gr Nosler Ballistic Tips and that did the job on the pigs and coyotes and I used it quite successfully on deer.

As for the size of our coyotes, most are small, but I did kill one that weighed an even 50 pounds. Just that one.

And I should mention that my 223, with 40 gr Nosler BT's, really will knock a coyote flat. That little bullet must dump all its energy in the coyote, because they seem to drop them better than the 55 gr bullet.

Boogershooter · June 14, 2016, 12:44 AM

603 you mentioned what grain bullets you were shooting in the 260 and the 223, you did not mention what grain bullet you were shooting in the 220. I do agree the 220 doesn't get much penetration with most of the common choices of bullets designed for it. I must also say that at longer ranges, the thud of bullet impact from the 220 on a decent size hog is quite amazing. It's a sound that's hard to duplicate and really gets my heart thumping. I've shot hogs at various ranges with everything from 17 hmr to 458 winmag. I don't recommend it for hogs unless you are really set up for the perfect shot ( neck or ear ) but it truely is a sound I wish all could hear. Ultra velocity hitting a hard, flat, and wet target is simply awe inspiring.

603Country · June 14, 2016, 09:06 AM

Boogershooter, the 260 bullet that did good all-around use was the 100 gr Nosler BT. The 220 bullet I was using was the Nosler 55 gr BT, and I have switched to the 55 gr Sierra GK due to the Sierra being a bit tougher. For a time I used the Sierra 63 gr SMP bullet, and it did work pretty good on pigs. I'd like to be able to use the 60 gr Partition or the 64 gr Nosler Bonded Solid Base in the 220, but they won't quite stabilize. In the 223 I normally only shoot the 40 gr Nosler BT. It's the rifle I keep handy in the house (we live way out in the country in Texas), and I wanted a bullet that would fragment and not ricochet. That little bullet flattens coyotes way better than I ever imagined.

And, just for additional random info, I have found that in the 260 the 120 gr Nosler BT is more effective on large pigs (and deer) than the 100 gr version. The 100 gr version kills them, but I seem to have to do more work, since they manage to get 30 yards into the thicket when I tap them with that smaller bullet. Dragging a 200 pound hog 30 yards was not working out for me, since I'm not a kid anymore.

To summarize, any of those rifles and bullets work great on coyotes, but when pigs are added to the mix, I step up to the 260. Probably a 243 would be an ideal caliber for coyotes and pigs, and a 220, 223, or 22-250 would be perfect just for coyotes.

I tapped a few pigs at about 225 yards, in my hay field, with the 220. Just didn't drop them quick enough. I tap them with the 260 and they don't go far. I took a few coyotes and pigs out to 400 yards with the 260. Never would have tried the pig shot with the 220 or 223.

That has been my experience over the last 10 years here in the countryside.

rickyrick · June 14, 2016, 12:40 PM

With a coyote.... If you hit them in the body between any two of the four legs with .223 or similar, they will go down.

Pick a gun that fits you well in different positions, can tolerate different weather and that you can support for a few minutes.

Deja vu · June 17, 2016, 12:26 PM

I use the 357 magnum from a rifle. I think the best you can get is a 204 Ruger!

Boogershooter · June 17, 2016, 06:45 PM

I know a few people that have tried the 204 on yotes. From what I've been told the bang-flop factor just isn't there. Maybe they are making bad shots, using the wrong bullets, or shooting too far. I've shot them alot at steel plates but not on live critters so I'm speaking purely on second hand knowledge.

Art Eatman · June 17, 2016, 07:05 PM

Some years back, a south Georgia coyote hunter was all "fan boy" about how well his .204 did on coyotes. I'm guessing he was quite accurate, to be able to have his claimed successes. I saw a couple of photos.

Panfisher · June 17, 2016, 09:24 PM

Since I don't specifically go out to hunt them.very often, it's more of a whatever is handy from a 7Mag, to 20ga. Shotgun. A body hit with a rifle is most certainly not a drop em where they stand shot, them rascals can take a hit and still vanish.

979Texas · June 18, 2016, 12:20 AM

I'm sure sometimes they will take a hit and vanish sometimes. But I do agree with the other post about hit them anywhere and they go down because that has been all my experience.

Growing up the guys I hunted with always said that same thing about droppin em with gut shots and such. And to my experience thats been true. I always aim for the shoulder when I can but I'm not to picky, with the exception of one neck shot. Now they might have flopped around on the ground for a lil while before they died from a gut shot but they always did drop in their tracks. But these are smallish East Texas coyotes. And I do imagine that they can take a hit and vanish. I was also using 100 gr. .243 soft points and nearly all of these shots were less than 30 yards as I was sitting in a deer blind for most of em. So even shot in the guts they got drilled pretty hard under the circumstances of the shot itself.

Mobuck · June 19, 2016, 06:59 AM

"I'm sure sometimes they will take a hit and vanish sometimes. But I do agree with the other post about hit them anywhere and they go down because that has been all my experience."

I've shot pickup loads of coyotes and have found them to be exponentially tougher than let's say deer. I've seen coyotes run off fighting the hounds with 5-6 FEET of intestines dragging in the snow(that one shot with a 30/06 BTW). Ditto with legs hanging by a thread of skin. Center shot in the chest, hit the snow, jumped up, and ran 200 yards.
Back in the early 70's, the .223 was so ineffective (due to lack of bullet expansion) that I quit using it and traded off the rifle. My 22/250 was the most effective killing cartridge in our hunting group(other choices were 22WMR, .243, 6mm, .250/3000, .270, 30-30, .308, and 30/06).
Coyotes are TOUGH and if you want them DRT, use a high velocity fast expanding bullet and don't bother with skinning.

603Country · June 19, 2016, 07:56 AM

I suppose experiences shape our opinions. I don't consider coyotes to be that tough. A couple of them that I shot over the years ran off, but most don't. But, for a couple of years I had a three legged coyote on the place. "Tripod" was probably the one I tapped with my 270 late one evening in deer season. Never got that one in the crosshairs again.

I think pigs are much tougher.

But, let's talk speed. Miss a coyote at short range and they can instantly get to an escape velocity that is stunning. They'll be gone so fast that you'll wonder if you really saw one.

June 3, 2016, 02:42 PM	#30
CLC Senior Member Join Date: January 8, 2011 Posts: 603	I didn't see what state OP lives in? In PA we can't use semis and we are mostly wooded. I'll use a 835 with #9 buck or honestly a .22. I have a Remington in .223 with harris bipod that could make quick work of some yotes. __________________ In god we trust, all others must pay cash.

June 17, 2016, 12:26 PM	#44
Deja vu Senior Member Join Date: March 14, 2010 Location: Border of Idaho & Montana Posts: 2,584	I use the 357 magnum from a rifle. I think the best you can get is a 204 Ruger! __________________ Shot placement is everything! I would rather take a round of 50BMG to the foot than a 22short to the base of the skull. all 26 of my guns are 45/70 govt, 357 mag, 22 or 12 ga... I believe in keeping it simple. Wish my wife did as well...

June 2, 2016, 04:25 PM	#26
mitchlizard7896 Junior Member Join Date: June 2, 2016 Posts: 3	Dicks sporting goods has Remington 700 Adl with long bull barrels is several yote calibers for 575. The scopes are crap but they work until you can get a better one. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

June 3, 2016, 09:22 AM	#28
t45 Senior Member Join Date: January 29, 2010 Location: Foothills, NC Posts: 782	Get the best of both worlds and get an AR platform in 243.

June 3, 2016, 10:12 AM	#29
Art Eatman Staff in Memoriam Join Date: November 13, 1998 Location: Terlingua, TX; Thomasville, GA Posts: 24,798	From some of the varminter websites, the .243 with 55-grain bullets commonly doesn't exit, making that load popular with hide-hunters. I've found that the Sierra 85-grain HPBT is ruinacious on coyotes.

June 3, 2016, 03:00 PM	#31
TimSr Senior Member Join Date: March 8, 2013 Location: Rittman, Ohio Posts: 2,074	I don't think the OP is engaged in his own thread any more. Posted duplicates and disappeared.

June 4, 2016, 03:27 PM	#32
Bwillsonhunter4 Member Join Date: May 30, 2016 Posts: 44	Thank you everyone! I'm just wondering why you would pick the 223, 22-250, 204 ect. over a 30-06? I don't know much about rifles so any reasoning is a good one for me

June 4, 2016, 04:04 PM	#33
michaeldarnold Senior Member Join Date: April 8, 2016 Location: St. Louis Suburbs Posts: 137	Coyotes aren't a very tough animal, and not that big. So a larger caliber, while still being able to render the animal dead, will impart more damage to the pelt or meat or whatever. Also, 30-06 is a fun round to shoot but repeated firing can wear you out. Loads for smaller calibers .223, 22-250, 204, etc, will be much more pleasant to shoot repeatedly, and they get the job done without destroying meat or pelts. However, most people don't eat coyote. (yuck)

June 4, 2016, 07:52 PM	#34
Art Eatman Staff in Memoriam Join Date: November 13, 1998 Location: Terlingua, TX; Thomasville, GA Posts: 24,798	Any cartridge in the general performance of the .223 is plenty good for coyotes. Basically, trivial recoil. So, a very light weight rifle makes for easy walking. Why carry more weight around than is necessary? The hot-shot .22s and suchlike need long barrels to live up to their reputation. The .223 does not. So, it's easy to work up some combination which makes life easy. And you then don't mind the weight of binocs, range-finder, snacks, canteen, yada, yada, yada. Sure, an '06 does in a coyote with ease. I've killed three with mine, but I used it because that was what was in the truck at the time. Any time I've deliberately gone after Ol' Wily, I've used a .223 or .243.

June 5, 2016, 11:38 PM	#35
Boogershooter Senior Member Join Date: December 9, 2014 Posts: 645	I stated in my previous post that 220 swift was my flavorite. I've had one purposely set up for crows and coyotes for years. Is it best? Prolly not but if I had to pick what I would consider the absolute best with no consideration to cost of ammo would probaby be the 257 weatherby with 100 grain ballistic tips. I'm sure I'm fixing to catch alot of flack but he did ask for the best. I can't imagen anything better than that.

June 5, 2016, 11:47 PM	#36
979Texas Senior Member Join Date: January 24, 2015 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 177	@Boogershooter, I like and agree with everything in your last post. No flack from me. I know I stated that .22-250 would be best, but with no consideration to ammo availability and cost, I would take the .220 swift over it for slightly better ballistics and trajectory. So I agree with you there, also I like your thought of the .257 Weatherby, or really any of the Weatherby's in .257 in below would be a really fun and excellent coyote gun. Especially loaded with lighter bullets like you said. Also just for fun throwing it out there, check out the Lazzeroni calibers, they are very rare and ungodly expensive but they take common concept calibers and just turn em out to even exceed the Weatherby's in performance, ballistics, and trajectory.

June 6, 2016, 12:29 AM	#37
Boogershooter Senior Member Join Date: December 9, 2014 Posts: 645	I've owned and sold the 300 lazzeroni and Dakota. Simply couldn't afford to shoot them at the time. I don't know how true it is but I've always been told the bores in the lazzeroni rifles were extremely tight. Basically they were .001 under. I'm sure it's just a myth. I acquired them from a friend of my father's who was going thru a divorce. Before I sold them I asked if he wanted them back. He had recently gotten remarried and couldn't afford them.

June 6, 2016, 05:44 AM	#38
Mobuck Junior member Join Date: February 2, 2010 Posts: 6,846	"also I like your thought of the .257 Weatherby, or really any of the Weatherby's in .257 in below would be a really fun and excellent coyote gun." My longest first round coyote hit/kill was with a 257 Wby w/100 grain bullets. Measured both ways at 535 yards on flat ground. The sun was behind me and when the bullet hit I could see the puff of fur and steam on the far side-DRT. I wouldn't make the Wby my first choice due to recoil and expense. I've made hits that far with a 22/250 but not DRT's. All made some distance before expiring.

June 13, 2016, 07:58 PM	#40
603Country Senior Member Join Date: January 6, 2011 Location: Thornton, Texas Posts: 3,998	I used a 220 as my primary coyote caliber for years. Worked great till the pigs moved in on our place. The 220 just didn't drop them fast enough, so I'd have moved up to a 243 if I had one. What I did have was a 260, so I loaded up some 100 gr Nosler Ballistic Tips and that did the job on the pigs and coyotes and I used it quite successfully on deer. As for the size of our coyotes, most are small, but I did kill one that weighed an even 50 pounds. Just that one. And I should mention that my 223, with 40 gr Nosler BT's, really will knock a coyote flat. That little bullet must dump all its energy in the coyote, because they seem to drop them better than the 55 gr bullet.

June 14, 2016, 12:44 AM	#41
Boogershooter Senior Member Join Date: December 9, 2014 Posts: 645	603 you mentioned what grain bullets you were shooting in the 260 and the 223, you did not mention what grain bullet you were shooting in the 220. I do agree the 220 doesn't get much penetration with most of the common choices of bullets designed for it. I must also say that at longer ranges, the thud of bullet impact from the 220 on a decent size hog is quite amazing. It's a sound that's hard to duplicate and really gets my heart thumping. I've shot hogs at various ranges with everything from 17 hmr to 458 winmag. I don't recommend it for hogs unless you are really set up for the perfect shot ( neck or ear ) but it truely is a sound I wish all could hear. Ultra velocity hitting a hard, flat, and wet target is simply awe inspiring.

June 14, 2016, 09:06 AM	#42
603Country Senior Member Join Date: January 6, 2011 Location: Thornton, Texas Posts: 3,998	Boogershooter, the 260 bullet that did good all-around use was the 100 gr Nosler BT. The 220 bullet I was using was the Nosler 55 gr BT, and I have switched to the 55 gr Sierra GK due to the Sierra being a bit tougher. For a time I used the Sierra 63 gr SMP bullet, and it did work pretty good on pigs. I'd like to be able to use the 60 gr Partition or the 64 gr Nosler Bonded Solid Base in the 220, but they won't quite stabilize. In the 223 I normally only shoot the 40 gr Nosler BT. It's the rifle I keep handy in the house (we live way out in the country in Texas), and I wanted a bullet that would fragment and not ricochet. That little bullet flattens coyotes way better than I ever imagined. And, just for additional random info, I have found that in the 260 the 120 gr Nosler BT is more effective on large pigs (and deer) than the 100 gr version. The 100 gr version kills them, but I seem to have to do more work, since they manage to get 30 yards into the thicket when I tap them with that smaller bullet. Dragging a 200 pound hog 30 yards was not working out for me, since I'm not a kid anymore. To summarize, any of those rifles and bullets work great on coyotes, but when pigs are added to the mix, I step up to the 260. Probably a 243 would be an ideal caliber for coyotes and pigs, and a 220, 223, or 22-250 would be perfect just for coyotes. I tapped a few pigs at about 225 yards, in my hay field, with the 220. Just didn't drop them quick enough. I tap them with the 260 and they don't go far. I took a few coyotes and pigs out to 400 yards with the 260. Never would have tried the pig shot with the 220 or 223. That has been my experience over the last 10 years here in the countryside.

June 14, 2016, 12:40 PM	#43
rickyrick Senior Member Join Date: March 15, 2010 Posts: 8,238	With a coyote.... If you hit them in the body between any two of the four legs with .223 or similar, they will go down. Pick a gun that fits you well in different positions, can tolerate different weather and that you can support for a few minutes.

June 17, 2016, 06:45 PM	#45
Boogershooter Senior Member Join Date: December 9, 2014 Posts: 645	I know a few people that have tried the 204 on yotes. From what I've been told the bang-flop factor just isn't there. Maybe they are making bad shots, using the wrong bullets, or shooting too far. I've shot them alot at steel plates but not on live critters so I'm speaking purely on second hand knowledge.

June 17, 2016, 07:05 PM	#46
Art Eatman Staff in Memoriam Join Date: November 13, 1998 Location: Terlingua, TX; Thomasville, GA Posts: 24,798	Some years back, a south Georgia coyote hunter was all "fan boy" about how well his .204 did on coyotes. I'm guessing he was quite accurate, to be able to have his claimed successes. I saw a couple of photos.

June 17, 2016, 09:24 PM	#47
Panfisher Senior Member Join Date: July 30, 2010 Location: Missouri Posts: 1,337	Since I don't specifically go out to hunt them.very often, it's more of a whatever is handy from a 7Mag, to 20ga. Shotgun. A body hit with a rifle is most certainly not a drop em where they stand shot, them rascals can take a hit and still vanish.

June 18, 2016, 12:20 AM	#48
979Texas Senior Member Join Date: January 24, 2015 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 177	I'm sure sometimes they will take a hit and vanish sometimes. But I do agree with the other post about hit them anywhere and they go down because that has been all my experience. Growing up the guys I hunted with always said that same thing about droppin em with gut shots and such. And to my experience thats been true. I always aim for the shoulder when I can but I'm not to picky, with the exception of one neck shot. Now they might have flopped around on the ground for a lil while before they died from a gut shot but they always did drop in their tracks. But these are smallish East Texas coyotes. And I do imagine that they can take a hit and vanish. I was also using 100 gr. .243 soft points and nearly all of these shots were less than 30 yards as I was sitting in a deer blind for most of em. So even shot in the guts they got drilled pretty hard under the circumstances of the shot itself.

June 19, 2016, 06:59 AM	#49
Mobuck Junior member Join Date: February 2, 2010 Posts: 6,846	"I'm sure sometimes they will take a hit and vanish sometimes. But I do agree with the other post about hit them anywhere and they go down because that has been all my experience." I've shot pickup loads of coyotes and have found them to be exponentially tougher than let's say deer. I've seen coyotes run off fighting the hounds with 5-6 FEET of intestines dragging in the snow(that one shot with a 30/06 BTW). Ditto with legs hanging by a thread of skin. Center shot in the chest, hit the snow, jumped up, and ran 200 yards. Back in the early 70's, the .223 was so ineffective (due to lack of bullet expansion) that I quit using it and traded off the rifle. My 22/250 was the most effective killing cartridge in our hunting group(other choices were 22WMR, .243, 6mm, .250/3000, .270, 30-30, .308, and 30/06). Coyotes are TOUGH and if you want them DRT, use a high velocity fast expanding bullet and don't bother with skinning.

June 19, 2016, 07:56 AM	#50
603Country Senior Member Join Date: January 6, 2011 Location: Thornton, Texas Posts: 3,998	I suppose experiences shape our opinions. I don't consider coyotes to be that tough. A couple of them that I shot over the years ran off, but most don't. But, for a couple of years I had a three legged coyote on the place. "Tripod" was probably the one I tapped with my 270 late one evening in deer season. Never got that one in the crosshairs again. I think pigs are much tougher. But, let's talk speed. Miss a coyote at short range and they can instantly get to an escape velocity that is stunning. They'll be gone so fast that you'll wonder if you really saw one.