R-15 .204 vs .223

.204

.204

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Have narrowed it down to the Remington R-15 VTR for my new varmint gun(mainly coyote calling and the occaisional jack rabbit)and was just curious as your guys' opinions between both calibers. I have owned the .204 caliber in the past in a model 12FV savage and it was a sweet shooter just a little bulky on the longer walks to stands. I currently don't reload but have a friend that will for me. In my research I haven't found many accuracy reviews on the .204 in the r-15 for factory ammo or reloads and was wondering if anyone is having good luck with it. I know the price on factory is much more in the .204 but it sure is a fun caliber. On another note I need it to be effective out to 400 yd+ range. Thanks for your input
 
I don't know much about the .204 but I love my R-15 in .223. I handload and this rifle is very accurate with my loads. I never put a single factory round through it so I don't know about the accuracy of factory ammo. The .223 would be my choice since your going to shoot coyotes and want a gun to reach out farther. It will carry a little more knock down I would think. I'm sure the .204 will still reach out to the distance you want but I'd rather have more gun than not enough at longer ranges.
 
I would say go with the .223 unless you're really gonna hand load. You could spend a lot of money with the .204 on factory ammo. I think either caliber is suitable for 400 yards. the .204 is much flatter shooting, however the .223 has a great selection of bullets to shoot- 36grn on up to 77grn. Velocities of a 40 grain .204 is very comparable to a .223 shooting a 40 grain bullet. so that's something to compare too. I've had both calibers and agree the .204 is more fun to shoot. But the versatility of the .22 calibers is great.
 
I'd get the .223.I have a nice Browning micro in a .204 but can't see myself owning one in a R-15.Save yourself some troble and get the Byron South model too! You see lots of posts about the horrible trigger on the regular ones.But on the Byron South model you get a very nice 2 stage match trigger plus other goodies.So you don't need to buy anything more except ammo!
 
I had that in the back of my head too about the Byron South Edition and horror stories about the factory trigger. Anybody have any input on the two triggers and extra accessories you get on the Byron South edition and if its worth the extra money? I heard the factory grip was kinda plastic-like and cheesy too. Thanks for all your replies
 
i personally love my R-15 in 223 and i guess i got lucky with the trigger mine is great, the hand grip is a cheesy plastic-like grip, but i fixed that for 30 bucks by buying a rubber ergo grip, (just like the Byron South edition)
 
Yea you get a very nice 2 stage trigger! What actually sold me the rifle and I sold my other R-15.A yankee hill float tube,Euro grip and 2 of those pickney rails to put a light on or other stuff.Just ask anyone who has one and I bet they say the trigger on their Byron South model is awesome!!
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I really enjoy mine!For me the trigger alone was worth every penny I paid.
 
I have a R-15 in 223 and a D-Tech AR in 204. I just had Bill Springfield do a trigger job on the R-15 trigger for 50.00 and got a Ergo grip for 25.00 at a gun show. I was going to buy a Timney trigger for the R-15 before reading the glowing reviews on Bill's trigger work, so I sent him mine for a makeover. I cant say enough good things about the great job he did. Also saved me about 150.00 bucks.
Both rifles are good Coyote guns, I will say from my experience that the 223 with 55 grn hollow points kill with more authority than the 204 with 40 grn BlitzKings.
Just my experience with both caliber's.
Ken
 
I have ARs in both the .223 and .204...I think it boils down to 'how often' you will be making those 400yd shots and if you are potentially going to start reloading...

I got into the .204s when 20 round of Hornady factory was selling for $12.95 and it didn't take very long to realize that my AR was going to break me on a Prairie Dog town of any size...The investment in reloading equipment and time is well worth it..

I have one .223 AR with a 'slow twist' (1/14) barrel that allows me to pump up 40gr V-Max bullets to some really accurate, long distance shooting, that will almost match my .204, but I can't shoot them that hot in my 1/9 twist AR...

If the 400yd shot is an occasional thing, then stick with the .223 and concentrate on your bullet selection, as there are a lot of load combinations to choose from...

The .204 will routinely be more accurate past 300 yards for the average shooter...if for no other reason than the trajectory is more consistent...
 
Thanks for all the great replies guys, and thanks for the welcome Jack. It sounds like that trigger is pretty sweet. I see the Byron South only comes in an 18" barrel? Any pros and cons on 18" vs. 22"? This will be my first AR and usually shot longer barrels on ny bolt type guns and am a little leary on the shorter barrel. Thanks again
 
My R-15 was also my first ar and i wasn't sure about the barrel length either, but i looked around and the most common answers i found were the 22" barrel will give you a faster trajectory and results in better long range shootin, since i shoot mostly under 200 yrds. i went with the 18" barrel.
 
Hey guys, wanted to let you know I ended up ordering the Carbine CS in 18" .223 and plan on topping it with a Nikon Monarch 4-16x50 SF BDC. I'm like a little boy waiting on Christman morning to roll around, I can't wait to get it. Anything special for barrel break in on these? Not sure how to treat a Chrome Moly barrel. I found info on the chrome lined AR barrels and that you just shoot the bleep out of them until they polish themselves but I believe chrome moly barrels are a little different.
 
Originally Posted By: .204Hey guys, wanted to let you know I ended up ordering the Carbine CS in 18" .223 and plan on topping it with a Nikon Monarch 4-16x50 SF BDC. I'm like a little boy waiting on Christman morning to roll around, I can't wait to get it. Anything special for barrel break in on these? Not sure how to treat a Chrome Moly barrel. I found info on the chrome lined AR barrels and that you just shoot the bleep out of them until they polish themselves but I believe chrome moly barrels are a little different.

Good choice, I also have a R-15 18" barrel in .223 with the A2 buttstock though. you won't regret it. it is becoming my go to coyote gun!
 
I hunt coyotes in the south-east so Ive never had to make a shot over 300 (nailed him) I use a USA Tactical 16" HBAR with a 2 stage trigger set at 4 lb.s and shooting 62 grain handloads. Just my opinion, some people go too long with barrel length. Sure it gives more velocity/but are you gonna use this rifle for huntimg or bench? Ifyour hunting weight is a factor. I agree with everyone in here thats teling you to stay with 52 or 55 gr.n = just sayin.....
 
Hey everyone, I have an AR (Stag) in .223, and I have to say the fmj PMC stuff is crap extraordinaire for ammo on targets at even 50 yards. I can chunk a bowling ball more accurately using only my left foot to lob it.

I have been told by folks at the range that the 55 grain ammo is too light (short) and that I need to go to a longer bullet, and that I need to stop using the PMC ammo (something about Korean production?) and use nice factory stuff or load my own with something closer to 70 grains.

My question is, for those of us whom are new to this particular platform, and using a Carbine barrel with a chrome lining and 1:9 twist on A) Targets or B) critters the size of a coyote or up to perhaps a small deer during the appropriate season, and C) informal range target shooting, what weight bullet seems to be most accurate, and for hunting critters we are not concerned about overpenetration on, what is the SHORTEST bullet we should be looking at for accurate shooting?

The reason I am asking this in this manner is that I have a swaging press, and am about to plunk down a LOT of money on a die set, and I want to be sure that I pick the right caliber (there are others in contention) and bullet style for the work I want to be able to handle, and the rifle is new to me, as is this particular caliber. I can reload if there are not factory ammunition options that make financial sense, I can reload almost anything in fact!

I was told that the 1:9 twist rate was too slow for the shorter bullets, so does anyone know where I should start for rolling my own weightwise to see what the bullet range for this platform and caliber might be? I suppose I am asking for a starting point and a stopping point, I need to know what the length (weight) window is for this twist rate and caliber within this platform. That is a better way of asking it.. Thanks!
 
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