Groundhog gun

[ghuns]

I use a 17 REM. It does the job quite well and doesn't ruin the meat.

Now that's redneck right there.

They are great eatin if you don't mind their flea and mange issues. If I get a reasonably young one with all it's hair, that little bugger is going on the grill. Like eating the worlds fattest rabbit.

 

[doggy1953]

Used to shoot them with a Rem 222. Very accurate rifle, bolt action.

 

[foxmustang]

I Just Picked Up A Savage 93 In 17. $258 Out The Door W/Scope And A Box Of Ammo. Next Day Shot One Off A Ditch Bank At 120 Yards. For Longer Ranges I Prefer 308 With 110 Gr Vmax @ 3400 Fps.

 

[ru44mag]

Now that's redneck right there.

They are great eatin if you don't mind their flea and mange issues. If I get a reasonably young one with all it's hair, that little bugger is going on the grill. Like eating the worlds fattest rabbit.

I had a good buddy. His dad was in WWII and also from Kentucky. Best stories ever. My buddy and I were driving around one day and he was in a ground hog shooting contest that year. He wanted to check this "spot." We didn't have a rifle. All we had was my Super Blackhawk. He said I'll be right back. I heard shots and went running. He's standing there jumping up and down with my revolver over his head. I stepped it off. He had plugged that ground hog at 118 yards with my gun. That was probably 20 years ago. He took it back to his dad. He said whenever he gets a young one like that his dad liked to cook 'em up. Haven't tried it myself.

 

[kruger]

+1 on the 204. Ammo as well as components haven't been hit nearly as hard as the 223. It has a lot of energy for a little pill.

 

[Hookeye]

Groundhogs can be incredibly tough, seemingly shock resistant.
I lost a lot less going down the hole (scored as a miss-nobody, no count)...............when I switched from a Ruger Blackhawk .357 to a Superblackhawk .44.
Of course that switch and being rather gung ho in my youth, has blessed me with constant ringing in my ears.
My 1st SBH was a duplicate serial number 3 screw and it shot fantastic, but was rather beat up.

 

[NLVMike]

A CZ452 in .17 HMR is something you will not be disappointed with. No recoil, so a sub-$100 BSA sweet 17 scope will work great.

 

[MordecuS]

I am partial to 22 MAG but a Mosin would do you well just the same.

 

[BugI02]

In the halcyon days of my mispent youth I had a lovely .22-250 that I used very effectively to thin the groundhog herd. Farmers would pay you to kill 'em.

 

[Hookeye]

Had a farmer say $2.50 per chuck when I was a kid.
Now I might have been of small stature, but I had a Ruger #1B in .243 with a Leupold on top.

Pops had a 1B in .22-250.

He shot two or three. I killed 10 (all in one afternoon). Farmer watched me shoot a few and was thrilled with the mess I made of 'em

 

[kludge]

A .22LR high velocity round will work from 25-50 yards and is accurate enough at those distances for head shots.

A .22 WMR on the other hand has as much or more velocity at 100 yards as a .22LR does at the muzzle. 125 yards is a good rule of thumb for the .22 WMR. I have no personal experience with the .17 HMR, but suffice it to say that I consider it the equal of the .22 WMR, and you can argue all day about the minute differences. A good heavy barrrel rifle in either should be able to hold 1" groups or so at 100 yards.

Any of the rimfire rifles should be able to fit in the $400 budget.

If you reload, the .22 Hornet costs about the same as the .22 WMR and you get a much more potent round - a model of efficiency, the .22 Hornet -- and you have a rifle that will be useful out to 200-250 yards, depending on you skill level. You might be able to push the 32-35 gr bullets over 3,000 fps and 300 yards. With the thin .22 Hornet brass it makes sense to buy new brass, neck size only, and hope you get more than 5 loadings from each piece of brass.

If you can find good once-fired brass for the .223 Rem, then reloading won't cost you any more than the .22 Hornet. You can download the .223 to Hornet levels if you want, but the .223 is easily a 300 yard varmint cartridge, beyond that, its a matter of the load, the rifle, and skill of the rifleman/woman.

In the $400 budget area look at Savage Axis, Stevens 200, Marlin XS7, Ruger American, or Mossberg.

If I didn't reload and I could live with 125 yards maybe 150 max, then the .22 WMR would be my choice... after that I would jump straight to the .223 Rem.

 

[walleyepw]

22 win mag should be good for shots out to 125 maybe 150. I have used my .22win mag on squirels to 75 to 90 yrd head shots. Never have used a 17 rim fire, but don't think that you gain a bunch on yardage. If you are going over 150 yrds, I would go to a 223.

 

[MadTownGunny]

Ar15. Those little boogers are quick

 

[Hookeye]

I still have a soft spot for a 660 in .222

but would be happy with an old Varmint Special 24" walnut, non skipline checkered walnut 700

 

[JLL101]

I would think a hit with a decent quality .223 round impacting almost anyplace in the torso would kill a ground hog, either immediately or over a short period of time because of the wound cavity a .223 should produce. Back in the late 1970s when I farmed near Winchester, IN, I used to carry a 30/30 (right format?) on my tractor and at times the critters would just sit there and watch me. I would stop the tractor and fire away. Back then I could still hit targets with iron sights and any fleshy hit killed the animal right away. I would think a mid priced scope (maybe variable) mounted and sited in would help make relatively easy hits of these fair sized critters. Only problem with a .223 is ensuring your rounds were impacting something solid after your shot so as to not endanger your neighbors, etc.