Think I've decided on a Savage 12 btcss.

Having a hard time deciding between .204 & 22-250.

Primary use will be seated calling stands not too terribly far from ATV (so not worried about weight). Really like the idea of the .204, but maybe the 22-250 is s little more well rounded caliber. Might get into pigs with it at some point.

This will be my first dedicated varmint/long range rifle, so looking for any advice.

Might even be talked into a good varmint setup in an AR platform (if a respectable setup exists for around $1k).

Thanks in advance.

22250

I say 22-250 for the reason ammo can be easier to find if you happen to leave it at the house

If you might want shoot pigs I'd go with the 22-250 too.

22-250 only because the factory ammo is better. The hornady 204 factory ammo doesn't have enough pnetration for my likings. However, I hand load my 204 with bergers and love it.

22-250 no dout

.223 Remington

Bullet selection and shot placement are more important.

It will make you a better marksman and ammo is easier to find/cheaper.

Plus

Always has to be one that throws out something that's not in the equation.

take the 250

Thanks for all the input...anyone with anything to say about the rifle itself (good or bad)?

Do they offer the 22-250 with a faster twist? If so, then you can shoot heavier bullets, which would include the 60 gr Nosler Partition and the 65 gr Sierra GK. A 1 in 12 might spin them fast enough, but my 1 in 14 won't do it.

I loved the only savage I ever owned and it was a cheap 110. Other than that I wouod get the 22-250. I really wouldn't suggest either cal. u have interest in for hogs. But of the two thats my bit.

bloodtrail does have a good point. I finally parked the 223 and the 220 Swift and went to the 260 when I started seeing more hogs than coyotes. My 223 is now for small varmints in the front yard (pasture) and the 220 sits in the safe and pouts.

22-250. I've never owned a .204 but I've killed many animals from 1 to 400 lbs. with the 22-250. It's hard to beat for an everyday gun.

Hogs will be the exception rather than the rule. That being said, I would not hesitate for a second to fire the 22-250 at any hog (given appropriate placement and bullet of course).

I REALLY was hoping somebody could steer me towards the 204, but I think the ammo argument against it is too strong right now. I'm not yet setup to handload. 603Country, they do offer a 1:9 twist in their low profile rifle, but not in the btcss. Y'all probably know more about it than I do, but I think I might worry a little more about rifling wear in the beginning of the barrel with something as fast as 1:9. Thoughts?

I love my 220, but when I shoot pigs they tend to drag their wounded carcasses into heavy brush. I tried several bullets, but didn't find any miracle bullet. I'm thinking that if I could shoot the 60 gr Nosler Partition or that 65 gr Sierra GK, that would drop the pigs a bit better and faster. For that, ya gotta have a faster twist than the standard 1 in 14 that the 22-250 and the Swift normally have. You can shoot those bullets in the 223 if you have a 1 in 9 twist, and that would probably be enough to do the job, but I would really like to have the bullet speed the Swift would give me. Bottom line, this is the way I see it:

204 - great coyote cartridge, but limited on anything bigger.

223 - with the right twist, you can shoot a fairly heavy for caliber bullet and you can also load and shoot those little 35 grain pills that zip along about as fast as the 204 can shoot them. With that fact, what can the 204 really do for you other than give you a reason to buy another gun. I'd pick the 223 over the 204 10 times out of 10.

22-250 - well, it isn't the Swift, but it ain't bad. If you can get that faster twist, you can shoot the tiny pills at crazy velocities and still shoot the larger bullets that'll anchor (probably) the pig.

243 - You can shoot a 55 gr pill at 3800 fps (as fast or faster than the 22-250 can push it) or a 100 gr pill at about 3000. That's a wide range in capability.

Looking at the above, the easy answer is the 243 if you reload. If you don't reload, you should reload. If you just want the 204 or the 22-250, I'd try hard to get the 22-250 with a twist fast enough to stabilize the bullets I mentioned above.

If you get the 204, you are likely to make the same noises my BiL makes when I ask him how many coyotes or other critters has he shot with his 204. The answer is that he's shot nothing. He's afraid to take the 204 because he might see a big hog. And THAT is why you want a 22-250 or a 243.

And don't worry about barrel wear. It's a very minor issue for most all of us except the serious comp shooters.

22-250

I completely agree here. IMO 243 is the way to go, hornady 58 grain V-Max is perfect or coyotes and smaller and it's about as flat shooting as you can find. Then you can move all the way up to 100grain for pigs. I have even been dropping hogs with the 58 grains lately, so I don't bother switching out anymore.

I could find 204 when there wasn't a round of 223 anywhere.

This...I am of the opinion, the .204 is a good caliber for prairie dogs, woodchucks, and paper punching...22-250 is good for these species and everything up to deer sized game...have dropped deer/hogs in their tracks with 22-250. I use a .243 quite a bit, also. However, for a hog gun, I prefer a 30-06 Remington semi auto with a ten shot clip. Whatever, i varmint hunt with, I prefer a relatively light and compact gun. Can't speak to the Savage, but hear lots of good stuff from other folks that shoot them.

I have a Rem 700 bolt gun in .223. personally, I don't like the .204 or the .223 due to wind drift issues. I usually hunt in horrible wind conditions and accordingly have no confidence in these calibers to take any game at much distance. Yes, under ideal conditions, you can do a sufficient job on game with these calibers...but for my preferences, I choose to upsize in either bullet weight, powder grains or both...

You don't need to go as fast as 1:9. 1:12 will stabilize 60 grain bullets in most -250 bores and it will like 45 grain bullets a lot more if you want to go light and fast. If this was a competition rifle and you were a handloader who wanted to load 75 grain bullets then a faster twist would make sense, but, really, you're probably not going to shoot to kill anything at ranges past about 350 and if you shoot at pigs it will be behind the ear... 45, 55, 60 or 75 grains all do the same thing that way.

EDIT: Oh, and about the Savage... If you decide that you want a .243 Winchester, a .260 Remington or a 7mm-08 instead of the .224 you can literally buy a new barrel and install it yourself later rather than buy a whole new rifle and sell the .22-250.

22-250