17hmr or .223

[Greg223 4]

its not the calibre but the quality of barrel and how good you are at re loading that shrinks the groups.norman clarke and outhers have shot a 223 out to 1000 yds competitively.is that good enough?

 

Silly question as the biggest factor in group size is the shooter before even getting into the equipmen! 1000 yrd .223 is insane!

[redtailhawk1 84]

I have a CZ527 .223 and can't fault it. Only pushed it out to around 200yds at present, but very accurate rifle

[zx10mike 137]

thats why i have gone with the 1 in 8 shooting 60 to grn bullets.not to shoot at 1000 but if 500 is accurate thats a good start.in the 204 50 grain is max but not very accurate.mine used to shoot 40 grn bullets into .25 no problem. at longer ranges the heavier bullets are better hence the change.that said sir slots and outhers would out shoot me every time with a 17 cal.have you seen sir slots alot on you tube?

[Greg223 4]

Cz is a very reliable accurate gun and at decent money! The hmr i seen was a cz 452 siloheutte and my dads .222 is also a 527! I hant heard of him i better go look hime up if hes that good!

[zx10mike 137]

yep it will impress you.

[charlie caller 3,654]

Ive been looking into upgrading my air rifle to either a 17hmr or a .223 (sounds like a big step but i have experince with rifles and regularly shoot my dads .222 when lamping) and was wondering if anybody has any experience with either calibre for general hunting/lamping (fox and smaller i have permission on a few farms)

I would like abit of range 200+ yards is the 17hmr capable of this?

Is there any big difference in ammo prices (i have reloading equipment just need .223 dies)

Totally different animals mate, the hmr is a pop gun compared with a .223 the hmr will kill foxes at close range, but is not really suitable,it is far better suited to popping bunnies and crows,they suffer terribly from wind drift and make just as much noise as a .223 and of course you cant shoot deer with a hmr, you can with your .223, Roe in scotland,muntjac and water deer in England and wales, if you reload the .223 then not too expensive, might I suggest an alternative if you dont want to shoot deer, a .22 hornet cheap to reload,very accurate, and with the right ammo will drop charlie out to 200 yds,it has 2.5-3 times more power than the hmr and imho is a far better choice.

[TWOTWOTHREE 152]

Hi

I have a remi 700 in 223 if you get some decent glass for it and a good mod and you won't look back,easy 200+ yds with factory ammo, I pay £12 for 20 remi rounds and they perform great in my rifle.so not expensive and if you think about re loading that makes it cheaper,I don't bother but many do,hmr is ok but nothing compared to the 223,

Atb

 

[Hawkeye. 26]

Just in the process of playing around with my 204,the craic is the 204 likes it warm...apparently.Not going to run it hot but it needs the speed by the looks of it.Don,t think my HMR will be seeing much use once i've got the 204 running right.

 

Are you reloading? If so, Powder ? bullet? Primer?

[Fisheruk 1]

Big step up from air to .223. You will probably we advised to go for rimmy first and then apply for .223 after you have gained experience with 17hmr. Not many forces approve 17hmr for fox although it will do them if you don't stretch the range.

[kingnewport 19]

Ive appied for both, each rifle what ever there caliber has a place in the cabinet, different guns for different jobs

[The Duncan 802]

Big step up from air to .223. You will probably we advised to go for rimmy first and then apply for .223 after you have gained experience with 17hmr. Not many forces approve 17hmr for fox although it will do them if you don't stretch the range.

I'll never get my head round that. If you're sensible with it and only headshoot them with the .17 hmr they are dead before they hit the ground:

 

 

100 yards, didn't know a thing. Just got to have them close enough to make the humane headshot. I'm sure some will say engine room shots are ok, but I wouldn't go for that myself.

 

That said, if I was going to be after foxes a lot, I'd be getting a .243 and use 55grain bullets, heavier bullets for deer.

[Greg223 4]

Think ill go for .17hmr (cz 452 silloheutte) and call them in closer. Theres no big difference in ammo costs per shot, should get it on permit easier as its a rimmy and less meat damage on rabbits with hmr if i get round to cooking one! duncan thats quite a nice fox and shot to match!

 

Hope this is helpful to others aswell

Thanks everybody for your imput

Greg

[richmcgin 32]

I think this is an easy chioce, if its long range rabbits your after buy .17 if its foxes then the only ethical choice is a 22 centre fire.