Anyone use .204 cal rifle?

stratts

Well-Known Member
Was chatting to my shooting buddy about CF rifles last night and he'd been looking into the .204. Tbh I'd not heard of this cal so does anyone use it?

Quick wiki look tells me it's a fox or long range bunny only cal as the bullet weight isn't enough to take munties or CWD!

Cheers
 
Was gonna be my next question as my local chaps don't stock it mate!

Rifles seem ok price for 2nd hand on guntrader though.

Howa why so special then mate are they low recoil? Do you use it for charlie only?

Ta
 
Quick wiki look tells me it's a fox or long range bunny only cal as the bullet weight isn't enough to take munties or CWD!

Cheers

As it is below a .224 yes, not legal on Muntjac or CWD. The irony of it is that with the popular 39 or 40 gr bullet, it generates more muzzle energy than popular bullet weights coming out of a .223 or .222.

I have a variation on the 204 Ruger - namely a 20 Tac. Know a few people shooting the 20 - all happy bunnies.
 
As it is below a .224 yes, not legal on Muntjac or CWD. The irony of it is that with the popular 39 or 40 gr bullet, it generates more muzzle energy than popular bullet weights coming out of a .223 or .222.

That may be true at the muzzle. But the faster you push a bullet, the higher the rate of deccelation too. So 200 yards down range, how does it compare to a 55gr bullet with a MV of 3250fps, say?
 
Been running a 20 Tactical for about 10+ years now (got it back when the normal response was "A .20 what?"), and its a great caliber/cartridge. Stuff hit with it...dies. Period.

As to its accuracy, I think Muir can attest to some shots taken with it (460yds with H322 and a 32gr VMAX=Bad day for the Prairie Dogs)
 
That may be true at the muzzle. But the faster you push a bullet, the higher the rate of deccelation too. So 200 yards down range, how does it compare to a 55gr bullet with a MV of 3250fps, say?

From Hornady website

.204 ruger 40gr vmax - Muzzle 3900fps - 200yds 3103fps - 300yd drop 4.3"

.223 Rem 55gr vmax - Muzzle 3240fps - 200yds 2500fps - 300yd drop 7"

I'm a novice to CF rifles but I reckon a munty would not like the .204 very much?!

Cheers
 
mate uses 204 on foxes 32gr better than 40gr imo. Anything shot is pretty much dead where it was hit, we have opened up a fox that was hit high in the backside as it dissappeared through a hole in a dyke , it managed another step and was dead in it's tracks when opened up it was mush and looked like it had been shot with a shotgun full of glitter. It can drift a bit in wind and is hopless through even the lightest cover, tending to vapourise on contact with rushes ect . but a 7mm wi mag can brash it's way through scrub to a fox when that shot is required . All in all i think the 204 is a topper of a calibre for foxes and definitly has its uses.
 
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Had a play with Bob's a while back, cracking little round. We were hitting an 8" steel disc at well over 200 yards with ease, you get the feeling any inaccuracies are your own and not the rifle/cartridges fault. My .243 put down a bit (ok, probably a lot) more energy at that range, but the hold over was a lot more too.
 
20TAC myself , 39grn blitzking doing 4000fps for 23.5grn of powder . puts all other fox rounds to same
 
i was a confirmed .223 man for fox and longer range rabbit, i said i would never own a .204 new fangled american calibre lol
well when i was in the market for a new .223 i came across a semi custon .204 and ended up buying it, never looked back to honest, at the ranges its designed to work at it does everything my .223 did and more, the only upside to the .223 was CWD and MTJ legal
 
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