Field testing - PD bench, 20 VT, 204, 223 AI (GRAPHIC!!!!)

[acloco]

Wanted a sturdy but transportable shooting bench for some time. Hoping the added benefit of a platform would up the hit percentage.

Made the bench out of 1 1/8" plywood with a oak looking laminated top. Purchased the table legs at Ace Hardware for $20. This is probably the best 20 bucks and 30 minutes that I have spent on this sport/hobby/obsession!!! In the "hit percentage" column, I can hold my own with any other factory rifle with anybody that has similar shooting experience. Now??, watch out. Easily into the 80/85% at any varmint range. The wind was gusting right to left today, but can easily adjust for that now.

Proof.... 1st shot from the Savage stainless, single shot, short action model 12 with factory stainless fluted 26" barrel and BVSS stock, SSS recoil lug, and 12x40 Leupold. 1st shot, cold barrel, 490 yards...on the fenceline. My full size Chevy pickup is to the right and above the tree/bush in the picture. I am standing on the mound looking back at the pickup (pickup makes a GREAT target for the rangefinder).



40 gr VMax, neck sized 1x fired Win brass, over 25.6 gr of Benchmark, & Rem 7.5 primer. Trust me, I did NOT believe I made the shot until I got up there to take the pic. No, not my longest confirmed kill, by far, but, 1st shot out of a cold barrel.....chaCHING!!







Some of the multiple prairie dogs that are now munching on sweet clover in that never ending field in the sky.....via the 20 Varmint Target. 34 gr Dogtown over 18.3 gr of H4198, Rem 7.5 primers, all squished into 1x fired & neck sized brass.








This is a LARGE prairie dog. I was walking to see if the 490 yard with the 204 was true and decided to snap some other pics of the carnage along the way. 20 VT did the job, just a touch over 200 yards. One day, I will bring a fish scale to weigh one of these whoppers.



Check the size of the TEETH!!!



1st kill with the AR that I just finished assembly on. CMMG lower, RRA upper, DPMS stainless varmint barrel (1:9), and a P.O.S. scope....using 69 gr Nosler HPBT, 25.0 gr H4895, new Win brass, with CCI450 primers. This barrel shoots 2.5" groups at 300 yards...with the P.O.S. scope on it. I see a scope upgrade in the very near future.





If anybody ever had any doubts about chambering a rifle in 223 AI or using the cheapest 55 gr soft point bullets you can find....well...sometimes a picture really IS worth a thousand words.
(midsouthshooterssupply 55 gr sp nightmare bullets sell for $140/2k)..... 27.3 gr of Benchmark, CCI450 primer, 4x fired RORG brass....shot out of a Remington 722, 27" Hart barrel, & Nikko Stirling 6-24x56 mildot scope....shot was just over 250 yards. Velocity is in the 3600 range - I backed off a couple tenths.



PS....I forgot the sunscreen!!!

[Hotshot]

Great job, acloco, good pictures. And you got some nice equipment.

[Captqc]

Looks like you had a good time, hope the lack of sunscreen wasn't too big of a problem! Gary

[acloco]

Thanks. EVERYTHING I do, is on a budget. The AR took quite a while to build due to the funds it takes, etc, etc.

This past year has been, well, kind of been kickin' my arse...shooting prairie dogs, target shooting, reloading, a little gunsmithing, etc, etc....can be good for the soul as they say. (prairie dogs are like chicken soup????....LOL!)

Camera is a 5.0 megapixel that was on sale several years ago. The pics are good because I was lucky enough to find a large memory card at a stupendous price a year ago.

[Ray P]

"Great job", acloco, good pictures.
Thanks for sharing and glade to here all the rifles worked well for you. As far as "Graphic"...........nope, I think it showes good bullet performance........haha. Your cold barrel 1st shot hit is alway a plus in your book, knowing that everthing is on the money.
Great write up thanks for sharing.
Later
Ray P

[Hotshot]

acloco,

Is that first prairie dog picture your 490 yard hit? That vmax took the whole bottom half of the dog off. I don't think the 39sbk does that much damage especially at over 400 yards.

[glenn asher]

Nice shootin', camera AND rifles. You making it hard to wait this last week , I don't leave until next Monday, and it's tough to wait it out.
Hopefully, I'll get some good pics, too .

[acloco]

acloco,

Is that first prairie dog picture your 490 yard hit? That vmax took the whole bottom half of the dog off. I don't think the 39sbk does that much damage especially at over 400 yards.

Yep. In the very first picture, I am standing on the mound, looking back at my pickup parked in the section line. Look to the right of the top of the bush...pickup and bench are there.

I also tried some 40 gr Nosler's, but neither of my 204's likes them.

Of note, the 25.6 gr of Benchmark is max load in the reloading books (of course, depending on which book you look at). I have actually backed off from the load that I normally use (more than a grain higher), to save on barrel life and copper fouling.

Hotshot - check the other pics as well. The 20 VT using 34 gr Dogtowns did very well. The 55 gr SP's realllllly do a number on the pdogs as well. Just my observation, but the 55 gr SP's do just as well or better than the 40 VMax's in the 204. BUT, that is NOT comparing apples to apples. 50 or 55 gr VMax's in the 223 AI.....well, words just cannot describe the carnage. Ever see a full size prairie dog cut in half at 500 yards with both parts being sent sideways 10 feet?

In case nobody has figured it out, I am a HUGE fan of the 223 AI since buying one and chambering another rifle for this caliber. IMHO, this is the ONLY round that comes close to 204 performance. Someday, I would like to try a 204 Practical as well. Anybody have a 204 Practical reamer I can borrow/beg???

[acloco]

Nice shootin', camera AND rifles. You making it hard to wait this last week , I don't leave until next Monday, and it's tough to wait it out.
Hopefully, I'll get some good pics, too .

But the wait will be SOOOOOOOO worth it!!!!! I hope you get to ask yourself....,"Did I bring enough ammo?"

[Hotshot]

I like those 50 vmax really well in a pd town. I've shot thousands in 223, 22-250, and my favorite the 220 Swift. I really should try a 223AI, but I'm kinda wrapped up in this 20 cal stuff right now. The problem with a 220 is keeping the barrel cool and clean doesn't leave near enough shooting time. My current project is a 17 Fireball, but it won't be ready for my June 19 pd trip, so I'll shoot the 220 a little and the 204's a lot. I got a new camera, so I'll take some pictures and see if I can get them on the forum.

[rayfromtx]

Hotshot-
From my experience last week, the vmax, the 39sbk and the 40 gr bt Bergers all perform that well at over 400 yards. Blowing the back half off a pd at 400+ just doesn't seem to be much of a trick for a 204.

[glenn asher]

Neither of the two .223s I have are really, really liking my favorite PD load(50VM, 26.0 Benchmark), the one I loaded in quantity . They'll shoot them well enough to shoot rats, but nothing special. As dumb-bass luck would have it, both DO LIKE my plinking load, with 52 Sierras and 2230C. I have about 300 of those loaded and packed , along with the Benchmark load, and some 69 Sierras, in case the wind blows a little. Even some Calhoon 37sm, just for giggles. All told, about 1100 rounds or so.

Then I've got 450 rounds of .204, mostly 32VMs, as my rifle just doesn't like heavier bullets, and 400 or so .221 Fireball, in case I want to shoot it a little, and about 250 rounds of .17 HMR. I think that'll be enough for two days, probably................

Most of the .223 is loaded into once-fired Federal cases I got for free, from a buddy on Louisville's SWAT team. I've worn the stuff out, pretty much, with several loadings. This time, the ammo gets shot, the cases go into the nearest dog hole, and I don't have to mess with the cases when I get home. I can always get more once-fired brass from Dave.

I DID experiment with sizing and trimming them down to Fireball specs, to get some more life out of them, but frankly, the primer pockets ain't as tight as they used to be, so in the doghole they're goin'......

[Hotshot]

g a,

Don't throw any primers and powder down them holes or the pd's might load 'em up and start fightin' back.

[rayfromtx]

Glenn-


Recycle



thanks



Ray

[Rick in Oregon]

acloco: Thanks for sharing the pics of the event. I'm depending on you guys to keep me entertained during my mend-up period, and it appears you're pulling your weight; nice shootin' there, especially the first shot/clean barrel.

Like you, I also favor the 223AI, and consider it the companion rifle to my two 204's. I started shooting the 223AI after being wooed into it by Darrell Holland and Steve Timm (who used to be a regular writer for Varmint Hunter before retiring). Steve Hanson (A Varmint Hunters Odyssey) is also a big fan of it for both PD's and ground squirrels and features it in his book extensively. Anyone who's into this sport/obsession should check Varmint Odyssey out....Digest size, covers everything we discuss here in great detail and with good authority. Steve has connected on rock chucks at over 2,000 yards shooting his .338-416 Rigby varmint rifle in Montana! He's a fanatic. There's some great varmint shooting stories as well as tons of load and rifle information in his book for those interested.

Anyway, I've found that by using both the 32 and 39 SBK's in my 204's, and the 50gr Nosler BT in my 223AI, the various wind and range conditions are pretty much taken care of in the field. Add in my Swift with 55gr Nosler BT's or 243AI with 70gr Nosler BT's for when the wind is really up, and there is not much of a conditon or range to a rat you're not prepared for at any range suitable for a rifle. Only bummer is by the time you load up all that weaponry, you need an APC to haul it around! Talk about a gadget sport, eh?

If a guy had to have just one varmint rifle for chucks and rats, I really don't think you could beat a good accurate 204 though.