17 Remington

[idcwby]

What’s the good, bad, and ugly about it? It’s a cartridge that has always appealed to me for some reason. Finally got a gun, that I could turn into a 17, so just seeing what everyone else’s thought on the cartridge is?

 

[mallardsx2]

I knew an older gentlemen who had a .17 fireball.

He had to carry a ramrod with him and some cleaning patches when he shot woodchucks because after about 10 shots the barrel was so fouled that it threw bullets everywhere. He told me that wind drift was a pretty significant factor as well.

I have no idea what bullets and powder he was using but I do know he reloaded his own ammo for it and that he only neck-sized his brass. (Which at the time I had no idea what that even meant...I just said, "oh thats cool!" lol)

For what its worth, I know he really liked the gun and he was one of the local 500+ chucks/year kinda guys. We used to cross paths pretty regularly and we shot side by side a few times until I moved away.

I have never owned one. For long range I always stuck with the 22-250.

 

[JimP]

While it looks like it would be a fun round to play around with I think that it is way too specialized as to what you could kill with it effectively.

Don't get me wrong I do believe that it will kill a coyote and perhaps even a deer sized animal but it would be a combination of luck and the shooters skill that would do it. I don't think that there are enough different weights of bullets to really have fun with it.

I'll also stick with the 22-250

 

[go_deep]

I use to have one, killed coyotes just fine out to 150 yards. Killed a opossum one time at 200ish. I just decided a .223 would do it all just fine for a varmit round and went that way.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

I have an HMR .17 that I use for prairie dogs. It is fine as long as I stay at 100 yds or so and there is no wind. Like the others said...I'll stick to my ...oops not a .22-250, but a .220 Ackley Swift..

 

[mallardsx2]

I have an HMR .17 that I use for prairie dogs. It is fine as long as I stay at 100 yds or so and there is no wind. Like the others said...I'll stick to my ...oops not a .22-250, but a .220 Ackley Swift..

When I was a young kid I wanted a ruger #1 Varminter in 220 swift pretty bad.
Never gathered up enough money to buy one and then they stopped making them.

I also had a 17 HMR when they were the hottest buzz 15 years ago. It was a NEF bull barrel. It was pretty accurate out to 100 yards but after that like you say, the wind blew that little bullet all over the place. I had the trigger re-worked and it was one of the finest triggers on any gun I have ever owned to date. I eventually sold the gun because it simply cost too much to shoot the thing. Never had any regrets selling the gun but it looked pretty cool and it certainly killed woodchucks stone dead. Rarely leaving an exit hole. I killed one chuck with it at 300 yards. I always liked the "WHAP" noise it made on a fat chuck. lol

 

[NE69]

I bought a Ruger 220 swift in 1976. My first new rifle I ever bought. It shot great and put down a lot of coyotes. Still have it plus another I inherited from my BIL when he was killed in a plane crash in 1978. They are both shooters.

 

[steve6x6]

Ruger #1 22-250 is my go to.

 

[idcwby]

I’m taking it you all prefer something bigger. I already got a 6mm Rem for shooting more distance. That’s part of the reason this little cartridge looks so fun.

 

[ScottR]

This is honestly one I know zero about, I dont' think that I have ever even shot one.

 

[idcwby]

This is honestly one I know zero about, I dont' think that I have ever even shot one.

Other than what I’ve read about it, I’m in the same boat. Just something about it has always peaked my interest.

 

[shootbrownelk]

A friend of mine has a .17 remington. You had better reload for it as ammo is scarcer than lips on a chicken. I use a .223 Remington 700.

 

[sigpros]

I have one in an AR. great coyote rifle and easy on the pelts. It's my go too if saving pelts, if not then the 6x45 gets the nod