SmallCaliberCentral

Hello
I have unfortunately fallen to the .204 craze. I have been researching getting a small caliber for some time. I have always wanted a 22-250 for as long as I can remember. When I got serious in the fall. I did a lot of research and decided on getting a .204 ruger.
I ended up picking up a Tikka T3 Varmint. The store had a used Leupold Mark 4 8.5-25 50mm. It was a good price and there was no way I could pass it up.
I picked it up in late October. I took it out to the field where my range is and tried to sight it in. I am a little embarrassed to say how much ammo I wasted before I was willing to admit that the problem was with the scope and not me.
I took it back to the store and they offered to refund it and sell me something else. I couldn’t see myself being able to get anything close to this scope for what I paid for it, so I opted to have Leupold fix it.
So I sat for about a month looking at my new rifle not being able to shoot it. I was tempted to take a scope of another rifle to temporally, but held off.
While I was waiting for the scope to come back I decided that this rifle was the perfect excuse to get into reloading. So needless to say I am now a reloader.
I finally got the scope back at the beginning of December. Unfortunately this was not a good time to make time to go sight it in. That and the fact that I would have to go out to my range on a snowmobile as there is no road access this time of year.
The other factor playing against me has been the temperature. It has been very cold.
So I found a place that I could drive to and shoot into the side of the hill. So I waited until the temp warmed up. I finally had a day that was only -5c.
So I got my target set up 100y away and started to sight in the 32gr’s. To my delight the scope problems appeared to be fixed. Not that I thought they wouldn’t be. Bad news was it started to snow right when I started. By the time I got the rounds almost where I wanted them it was snowing so hard I could barley see the target.
I was about to pack up and call it a day, but I really wanted to see if my rifle would shoot the factory 45gr Hornady’s.
So I loaded up three and leaning across the hood of the truck and fired them. I couldn’t see any bullet holes on the target because of the snow.
When I measured them they were well under an inch. Not bad for barley being able to see the target, leaning over the hood of a truck. Looks like they will work well
I’ve been dying to get out to fine tune the last adjustments in the scope, but it has been in the -30c for the last week. It’s supposed to be warmer tomorrow so I have my fingers crossed. I want to go out and get some coyotes!
I have a bunch of different loads for 39gr Sierra’s, and 35gr Bergers loaded up. I am looking forward to seeing what loads my rifle likes. I also would like to test the accuracy of 40gr’s.
Curtis

I followed your same path and a year later I have a 204 Howa, 20VT Cooper and 17HH Savage, not to mention a match barreled 10/22 and I nice 22/45 pistol.
Reloading equipment snowballs in proportion as well! Reloading the 204 is easy. I bought a few hundred rounds of factory Fiocchi ammo (I recommend the 40 grain Vmax) and now just use my Lee neck sizing die and 32 grain Z maxes for full effect. The 22-250 is a classic cartridge and has plenty of uses, but the .204 is a worthy opponent and I am glad I went with it over the 22-250.

Now that I have started reloading I really want to get into a wildcat caliber. I see you have a Cooper 20VT. I am extremely interested in getting that very rifle. I was also thinking of getting into .17 like a 17Tac or Predator. However with Berger not making 30gr bullets anymore I think I might stick with the 20 cal (At least for my first wildcat).

I'd suggest getting a few years of experience under your belt before venturing into the world of wildcats....an entirely different ballgame with twists and unexpected hazards not encountered in "normal everyday handloading". Just a thought from experience.

I would listen to RIO, as I know he knows from experience. I bought a Cooper in 20VT about 1 1/2yrs ago. I started reloading about 40yrs ago. Not too seriously for the first 30yrs or so, but for the last 10yrs, I got the bug to go after the best accuracy I could achieve, and still load as much volume to keep me shooting to my little hearts content. I was warned by a couple of my mentors, to stay away from wildcatting. I listened to each one of them very seriously, but being who I am, I followed my heart. Getting into the 20VT has been, at times, fun and rewarding. Other times, not so much. I have been so frustrated and pissed, that I was ready to sell that Cooper for a song. I like a challenge as much as anyone, so I stuck with it, and am just now getting most of my headaches ironed out. I still need to develop loads, and get out to see how they shoot. This is just my experience. Let us know what you decide, and by all means enjoy the experience. Try to keep your sanity!

Vey good advice indeed. I want to get into a wildcat, but there is no rush. Just something I know I will do eventually.

I would give it a year for sure. When you take the plunge, I have yet to hear a complaint about 20 VT. It's one of the easier wildcats to load. Also .20 Tac is good if you have a supply of 223 brass (tough these days). If you want a "factory wildcat" try a 17 Hornet or 17 Fireball (if you can find one). They're based on popular wildcats. For more reading, check out 6mmBR.com they have a great section on 17 & 20 cal wildcats. Have fun!

Well I finally had some time and a nice day right around 0 C to go out. I tested loads for 39gr Sierra and 35gr Berger's. I took all the shots standing off a barricade at 100 yards. No bench, and too much snow to shoot prone. I worked my way up from minimum's.

The Sierra's seemed to like the max (Sierra's load data) at 25.7 gr of Benchmark.



I pulled the third shot.

The Bergers liked 26 gr of Benchmark best.

I really like those Bergers!! here's my 50 - 300y range test with 40 gn, I think that's 26gn Benchmark for me also...: