Any one else using .204 Ruger on coyotes?

[Cottonwood]

Just got my barrel fitted yesterday on my Handi Rifle SB2 frame, so now its time to hit the bench and get it sighted in.  We have a ton of farms around my area that are just ripe with coyotes, and of course the problems that come with them.  Missing house pets where the results are later found, as well as some farmers that also deal in cattle that birth calves.  The deer populations in our area are down as well, and we are finding in the valley that the results are from coyotes and or other predators taking them down.

I'm making up business cards spacificly just for Coyote Control as some of the farmers do not want the foxes touched (go figure) and I know of one farm where they have at least a dozen fox dens.  We have watched the females with pups exit these dens, run around and then return to them.  I have been tempted so many times, to just nail them but I have to respect what the land owner wants or I loose my permission to hunt there.

[kansasj]

I think the .204 was designed for yotes.  They are deadly and with a properly placed shot most of them never move.  Also there is seldom a exit hole if you want to save pelts.  It really mushes them up inside.  With a Hornady 32 gr v-max zeroed in at 200 yd it will be less than a inch high at 100 and appx drop 4"@ 300.  Little lazers.

[Cottonwood]

Thanks 

[AtlLaw]

Be sure you let us know the results of 204 vs. coyote!  I think that will be my next, if there is a next, handi barrel!   

[Buckskin]

I have a 204 barrel for my Encore and it is by far my favorite coyote round.  I shoot only the Hornady 32's in my reloads and they smack the hell out of them.  My average distance is 330 yards, most of the right behind my house.  If I hit them anywhere near the boilermaker they go down hard.

[Cottonwood]

Be sure you let us know the results of 204 vs. coyote!  I think that will be my next, if there is a next, handi barrel!   

At http://www.204ruger.com if you look you will find plenty of 204 Ruger coyote kills  it goes in but does not exit and plants them.  If you do your part with a 204 Ruger, it will from all the reading and pictures that I have seen just nail them but good and give them a dirt nap.

[AtlLaw]

it will ...just nail them but good and give them a dirt nap.

Cool!  I may stop looking for a .17 Rem!   

[Ladobe]

it will ...just nail them but good and give them a dirt nap.

Cool!  I may stop looking for a .17 Rem!   

The 17 Rem has been doing the exact same thing to coyotes for decades.   Both are excellent choices for coyotes.

[Cottonwood]

I'm going to start off with the Hornady 32-gr V Max as the last owner was using, and in his words it was very accurate with this bullet and load.  I don't have my reloading dies, powder and primers yet.  But those things are on my Christmas list to my wife    She asked me what I wanted for Christmas... you should have seen the list of 204 Ruger stuff 

[billy_56081]

I have several friends that I hunt with that use 204's they all like them and have no complaints about killing power. They are evenly spread between 32 and 40 grain Vmax bullets. The Minnesota coyotes are pretty good sized and we do have a few guys who quit using their 17 remingtons because the bullets were blowing up going through the fur.

[Cottonwood]

Here in Montana, I have not seen real large coyotes.  Maybe we have bigger ones over east of me, but here is pretty much a standard size coyote that I got quite a few years ago while hunting whitetail with my son when he was just a little guy.

I shot this one with a 30-06 

[Catfish]

I have hit several with the .204 and 32 gr. Sierra bullets, but never been able to keep any of them dowm. I called Sierra and they said their bullets were to thin skinned for them. The Sierra bullets have a .009 jacket and the Hornady`s a .014 jacket. From what I hear the best .204 bullets for coyote are the Berger 35 and 40 gr. bullets. I just picked up an upper for my AR in .204 so I am going to give the .204 another try on coyotes. I should say that I have never killed a coyote over a call and been able to place my shots well. All of them I have killed have been running shot eather with dogs or at the end of corn fields when they were being shelled. I am sure that even a .32 gr. Sierra in the chest would do the job.

[Buckskin]

Those buggers are tough to bring down with any caliber if not hit in the vitals.  We used to be shotgun only for deer so we usually take a couple every year doing drives. I have many stories of them taking multiple 12 gauge sabots slugs and we never found them.  I even had one with only one functioning limp and moving faster than you could ever believe.  I even lost one after it taking a 180 gr partition from a 300 RUM.  On the other hand if cracked in the chest with a 32gr pill, they either pile up or run less than 50 yards.