new .204 nut

[zx10mike]

hi chaps,i have been reading the forum for a while now and love it , lots of top tips and info.i shoot 12 bore daystate fac air rifle 30ftlbs,anschutz .17 hmr,and my favorite of course my tikka t3 1 in 11 twist varmint .204.so far by slowing the round down to 3100fps i can get .29 inch and my fastest load (accurate that is).35 inch at 3650fps.looking to achive better long range accuracy so just trying to squeeze it a tad more.have just ordered a neck trimmer would love to here if anyone has found that neck trimming has made a difference or not.best powders are benchmark 22.9 grn a bit on the low side,that is my slow round.and27.2 grn of rl15 my fast load thats of course using 40grn bullets.had a bit of success with 10x and the 39 sbk as my third best load.bullet seems to like being seated at 2.2490 oal ,cci primers.if anyone has a 1 in 11 twist and can reccomend some loads please do.willing to learn!oh i suppose i should also mention im from leicestershire,in england.looking forward to the forum,and thanks for all the help so far
mike

[Captqc]

Mike, Welcome to the forum! Sounds like you have a good setup. Don't forget we love to see pictures around here! Gary

[Sidewinderwa]

Sounds like you already have some good loads for it. Pictures of hunting in the countryside there would be great! Did we mention that we like pictures??? If there is a red mist involved that is good too. You want to keep your cases trimmed for good consistency and to ensure that they will chamber well. Seating depth will influence accuracy as well.

[zx10mike]

thanks for the reply chaps got my camera poised and will take some photographs this weekend.

[zx10mike]

i have finally got round to working out how to post photos,i hope you like.the black one is the tikka .204 and the green the .17 fireball

[jrwoitalla]

I am jealous. Congrats on a fine rifle. I searched relentlessly for that exact same model of Tikka in Ruger 204, but to no avail: as none existed on the North American Continent. Here most blokes love shooting big, to bigger, to massive bore. So Tikka obliges them, as do so many other gun manufacturers. But not us small bore shooters! One would think by the the numbers of and the sizes of canons sold that the Woolly Mammoth, Giant Sloth, and Short Faced Bear still roam our plains. The occasional T3 light in 204 sneaks onto a shelf, but is instantly and greedily snatched up. I am a great Tikka fan(have a 595 Master Continental in 223) as well as a supporter of CZ. Though I still think Tikka is a better gun.
Like you, I am an air rifle lover. I own an Air Arms 410E in 22cal and an RWS 54 22cal. We don't have to bother with fac licenses here in the US. I've got three Anschutz rimfires which are marvelous, especially my 1720 and 1502. I'll post a few pics when I get off my lazy ars long enough to figure out again how. Of all the guns mentioned the Tikka has the best trigger, followed closely by the Air Arms.

[zx10mike]

thought i would add the picture with my air rifle.

[zx10mike]

jealous of your gun laws i am having a problem with the .17 fireball when you chamber a round it dents the neck and causes pressure it has to go back this week and if i need to put in for a variation on my licence it will take two months to come back so i can exchange the rifle.i,m lucky i love the small calibres , you do not need a 50 cal for the rabbits over here. i love watching the internet to see some nutty american (said with respect and admiration) using a machine gun to hunt.i will before my life is over visit america where i understand you can just go into a shop and handle stuff.the laws are getting silly over here. my local police told me i could not have the fireball for rabbits as it was a center fire . i questioned their logic and in the end it was granted.but not on an open licence so if i want to shoot a field i have to get it approved first.it takes three years to get an open licence on any larger calibre than you currently possess. i have had the .204 for two and a half years so both can be open in six months.it would make alot more sense to have a test to show you understand backstops and that you can shoot , an eye test would be a good idea but no they prefer to leave that to chance and if you do not kill anyone in three years you can have an open licence. intelligence is not my strong point but the law seems a farcicle loop jumping exercise in this country.

[Captqc]

You boys from the other side of the big pond have got to figure out a way to come over and and spend a few days with us shooting sage rats. I doubt that you would go back home after that experience. As stated in some of Rick's posts we can each expend over 1,000 rounds in a four day trip. Plus we stop at the local gun shops and fondle firearms and tell BS stories of how good of shots we are. Gary

[zx10mike]

my wife says just that if i go to america i would not come back.over here if you spent a thousand factory .204 rounds that will be 900 pounds please, not to mention finding the stuff.fortunatley i home load but my fire arms officer allows me 150 bullets max in my possesion .everytime some stupid gun nutter shoots people they tighten up gun laws further.were not allowed more than three shots in a shotgun unless you put it on your f.a.c then if granted five is max. no pistols no automatic weapons. you guys have it good.fortunatley it is very rare people shoot each other over here.

[jrwoitalla]

We're not too far behind you here in California. One recent change we have is that in many places one cannot use lead bullets as condors may eat the carrion of one of our kills. The absurdity of it is, is that the law was not instituted by congress but by our Department of Fish and Game-who gave them that much power? If caught with even one lead bullet in your possession in a non-lead area a hunter risks loosing his hunting license, a huge fine, and the loss of his/her firearm(s). What makes it even more ludicrous is, we don't even have condors here! We can handle firearms in the shops, but when we make a purchase an additional FFl fee must be paid, an affidavit must be signed that the gun will be kept in a safe, and then a ten day waiting period begins until the gun can be taken home-that is if the weapon was in stock. If they had to order it, the ten day waiting period doesn't begin until the actual day that the FFl holder takes possession of the gun and the purchaser signs the bill of receipt.
Do you do much rat hunting with the air rifle?

[ryutzy]

ZX10mike
Hey i'm assuming that's a suppressor on your 204? I've been thinking about getting all the paperwork started so that I can put one on my 204. I'm curious how quiet that would make the 204 and how much it will affect the ballistics/accuracy of the 204.

[Sidewinderwa]

Very nice rifles you have! I would like to know how effective the suppressor is as well. Do you have to load the bullets down for the suppressor to work well?

[zx10mike]

i don't have any technical data,but all i can say is that if i took the .204 out without the suppresor when i go lamping it would wake everyone up within half a mile.from were the shooter sits i would say it cuts the noise down by half. it still worked with factory ammo so there is no need to down load,that said my home loads are coming out at 3622 fps for accuracy.i am new to home loading and find some info on this forum beyond me but it shoots .30 @ 100 yds and that is probably better than i can shoot
consistantly. so i presume it does not affect accuracy.it is comonly believed that the moderator improves accuracy over here . i do notice that most guys from the states don't seem to use them .
all the best mike

[zx10mike]

sorry i to answer the rat bit the daystate is mainly used for pigeons ect.i never see that many rats,i did get asked by one of the farmers about the daystate and the next time he has a rat problem in a grain store he wants me to sort it.its very accurate for those who are not familier it is electronic underneath the stock its batteries and circit boards.because its electric valve operated there are no moving parts so it is recoil free and you can set off the trigger with you breath.it has 15 different power settings ranging between 8 ft lbs and thirty i will put a picture up today. handy if your shooting in a barn and want to leave the farmers roof in tact.