17 HMR and PD's

[Va varminter]

If I were to go on a weekend PD shoot, would the 17 be a good 2nd rifle. 1st would be a 204 of course. I was thinking that if I went on short notice, I would not have to load up twice as much centerfire ammo. Just buy a brick and go.

[huntsman22]

Ever since I have had a hummer, I won't go doggin' without it........Even if it is taken as a second rifle. Heck, I won't go doggin' without my colt woodsman 22 pistol either........... Don

[Rick in Oregon]

VA Varm: Huntsman's right, but if you're goin' all the way from VA to a PD state, better buy THREE bricks of HMR ammo!

Huntsman's also right about the rimfire pistol, be sure to take along your favorite belt-gun too. I never leave home without one of mine. (I only wish I hadn't sold my 3rd Model Colt Woodsman years ago.....dang it!)

[Va varminter]

OK, which do you recomend? Savage, Marlin, Ruger, or maybe just a new barrel for my T/C? I like the varmint model of the 77/17. Heavier barrel and a laminate stock. But it may be a little too $$$. I do want something with more of a varmint feel than a .22 feel.

[huntsman22]

77/17 all the way............Well worth the extra jingle.

[Rick in Oregon]

VA: For what you want this rifle for, I'd say get a repeater, and forget the T/C thing, as in a hot PD town, the single shot will only frustrate you.

Check out the new Savage M93 Stainless, Laminated, Thumbhole, looks great, shoots very well, and not too expensive.

Also check out the CZ 452 or 453 Varmint in 17HMR, my 452V shoots bugholes.

I took my Ruger 77/22 Mag, made it a switch barrel rig by way of a Lilja 17 HMR barrel to get the best of both worlds. Great rifle, very accurate.

Here's the 77/17 doing its thing on Skippy (bedded, floated, Moyers trigger):



The CZ 452 with an Eric Brooks trigger, bedded/floated:



One thing for sure, for a good shooting 17 HMR, you have lots of good choices.

[Va varminter]

Looked at some 17s today at the sportsmans warehouse when I went to look at handguns. The CZ452 is a nice looking weapon. I liked the barrel length of the American, but the heavy barrel of the varmint. Would the extra 1" or so of barrel on the american really help somethind like the 17? Or do the bennifits of the heavy barrel outweigh any increase in speed?

[foxwhistler]

Dont know if this helps but i`ve got a CZ 452 with a 16 inch barrel and it still puts out 2487fps.If you want to know more,take a look at this,to find out about the effect of barrel length on velocity.
http://www.bullberry.com/HMRdata.html
Meanwhile if people are posting pictures,here`s one of mine.



Hope this helps.

[Captqc]

I've got a 77/17 and love it. CZ's are cheaper (cost) and I've heard good things about them. Some guys around here are Savage fans but they don't float my boat. The .17HMR will wack rats out past 200 yards and I go to it when I'm letting my .204 cool off. Gary

[Hotshot]

I love shooting pd's with my very accurate Savage 17HMR, but if it is at all windy(10 or more) the fun goes away fast. Although it is fairly easy to make hits at 200 yards in no wind conditions there is very little energy and not much satisfaction for me. I would recommend two centerfire rifles instead of one rimfire and one centerfire. First thing I pack for a Mt. or Wy. shoot is two 204's, then 220 Swift AI or 6mm-06 for long range and wind fighting ability, then 17HMR for "driving around gun". Shooting 400 centerfire in a day is turning hobby into a job as far as I'm concerned. 200-300 is very possible and a more relaxed pace is easier on you and your equipment. Shooting a hot barrel wears it out much faster than keeping it cool. We usually take turns (10 shots) spotting and shooting. It can be just as much fun being a good spotter and helping your partner make good hits as actually pulling the trigger. We fire less shots but have a very high percentage of hits with good spoting, cool firearms, and clean barrels. Good luck on your trip and enjoy the sport of kings.

[glenn asher]

My very inexpensive Marlin has averaged .6" with Hornady VMaxes, although it does somewhat better with certain lots of ammo. Honestly, that's better than most centerfires I own. It won't shoot the HPs or 20 grain loads worth beans, but feed it what it likes...............


I had a barebones Savage, too, it didn't shoot quite as well, averaging 1" at 100, but it shoots everything well. I gave it to my buddy, (who desperately needed an HMR, but just didn't know it ) He invested in a SSS trigger for it, and it's a peach, buttugly, but shoots well.

The nice thing about an HMR, is that no matter the price tag, they all seem to shoot well, from a $175 Savage, to a $1500 Anschutz. And the difference in accuracy isn't measured by price, my Marlin has, with a certain lot of ammo, shot .25" groups a time or two. I save that bunch for PDs .

[Va varminter]

Went to the gun show on Saterday, but didn't get anything. Wife would not leave me alone long enough . I went with my dad, and he kept saying get the Marlin. Of the Marlins with a bull barrel, they ranged from $219-$320. He kept teling me he got his w/ bbl at the Wally World for $209. I had not really seen the Marlin bbl before Saterday. It really looks nice. $200 save on a gun (CZ $399) is $200 saved for busting PD's .

[glenn asher]

If you do buy a Marlin, also budget some money for the Rifle Basix trigger, as Marlin's trigger "could stand some improvement" to say the least. I took mine to the local gunbutcher for a trigger job (before Rifle Basix triggers were available). He didn't do a very good job, but it's useable, and I haven't bothered to get a Basix trigger. Mine is the barebones model 17V, one of the earliest rifles out of the factory. They did a pretty good job on it, though, it's been a shooting machine for me. Crows at 175 yards, PDs at 250, and all manner of other stuff. It's not spectacular for red mist, but it's still fun, even if you just tip them over.

[Va varminter]

Well, I got my 17 today . A Marlin with a bull barrel. Also put a Nikon 3-9x40 w/bdc on top. I don't know how the BDC works with the 17 tradj. but I figured for $10 more, what the hay. I don't know when I am going to get to shoot it. It has been windy it seems like every free day I get.

[huntsman22]

And it'll prolly be windy every day on the killin' fields....... Best get used to it. Don