Choosing between 17 Fireball, 221 Fireball and 22 Hornet

G

greengt88

Well-known member
Im sure this has been discussed before, but looking for help choosing 1 of these calibers for a dedicated fox rifle.
Max range would be around 250yd and i do not reload as of yet, however plan to in the future.

Im looking at used factory rifles in all of these calibers and having some trouble there as well, im not fond of the CZ 527 after having 2 bum 17 Hornets and hate the Savage 25...any recommendations appreciated.

i do have a rem 700 LA laying around, but dont think any of those calibers would work simce they are so much shorter.

thanks in advance
 
I just had a 17 FB built on a Ruger #1 action and it shoot lights out as far as accuracy is concerned. I have a three shot cloverleaf with all shots touching at 100 yds with the 20 gr factory Remington ammo. Barrel is a Lilja (1:8) in a Ruger varmint profile.

I know thats not one of the guns you are looking at but the round out of a good barrel is fantastic. My plans are to tune it with 25 gr stuff for coyotes. Remember loaded 25 gr stuff is hard to find if you decide to go that way. Also, Remington has not produced any 17 FB cases in a while but they can easily be made from 221 cases and bought made from 223 cases from High Plains brass. I have a stash of virgin breass that will likely keep me for some time. I am also having mine custom reloaded.
 
I have the what i think is the perfect fox gun.The pre 17FB,the 17 MIV shooting 20 or 25 vmax's at about 3800fps.
fFom what i can tell theres not that much difference between the the two (calibers).Killed a bunch of foxes with it, the majority have one little hole no exit,on occasion it will tear them up pretty bad.I try and get my shots at a 100 or more yds.I set mine up with a 21in. barrel with a 4.5-14 Luppy.It points really fast, no recoil, get to watch the hits and kills them like they have been hit by lightning.Killed a handfull of coyotes with it with same results.I use it when im callling smaller country mostly farm fields and there edges so the odds of having a shot over 300 yds is not that great.Hope this helps
 
Another vote for 17FB. Mine is a Remington Model 7 and I really like it.

I continue to see Remington Accutips in 20gr for sale and that is what I shoot in mine. I also have some HSM brand 17FB in 25gr. and it shoots good too.
 
Originally Posted By: greengt88

Im looking at used factory rifles in all of these calibers and having some trouble there as well, im not fond of the CZ 527 after having 2 bum 17 Hornets

Wow, not one but two bum CZ 527 17 Hornets?! Dang, you must have some seriously bad luck...
 
Originally Posted By: B23
Wow, not one but two bum CZ 527 17 Hornets?! Dang, you must have some seriously bad luck...

He did, Bryan. I sent him a PM and asked him about it. One was a magazine issue. Didn't you have a mag problem too? Mine stutters a bit sometimes but it usually feeds OK. Since I single load most of the time this is no biggie for me anyway.
 
I had a 17 fireball and shouldn't have sold it. I look almost everyday for a model 7 in 17 fireball. I still have 1000 brass and a lot of woodchuck 30 gr bullets. So if any one has a fireball let me know. Great fox and coyote caliber
 
thats kinda what my gut told me, and u guys confirm.

I do have a trusted friend that just hates 17calibers, my only concern is wind, i dont generally hunt in more than 10-15mph.

from whats available for rifles, it looks like the Rem 700 will suit my needs best but
prices on gun broker are crazy, $1100+?
 
I shoot .17 Fireballs in both T/C Encore and Remington 700 platforms. It's absolutely my favorite for groundhogs, fox, and even coyote. You'll be hooked if you get one. You could consider building a custom Encore with an MGM barrel.
 
at the effective ranges for fox or coyote with the furball, wind will NOT be an issue. I'm in the camp with everyone else, the furball is the way to go for what you're looking for.
 
Originally Posted By: RustydustOriginally Posted By: B23
Wow, not one but two bum CZ 527 17 Hornets?! Dang, you must have some seriously bad luck...

He did, Bryan. I sent him a PM and asked him about it. One was a magazine issue. Didn't you have a mag problem too? Mine stutters a bit sometimes but it usually feeds OK. Since I single load most of the time this is no biggie for me anyway.

Yes, my CZ 17 Hornet was far from butter smooth feeding through the magazine when I first got it and if you weren't aggressive with how you racked the bolt it didn't want to feed very well at all but after a little light sanding then polishing the bejesus out of the feed lips it made a significant improvement on how it feeds through the magazine and is now good to go.

Also, of the three choices the OP mentioned, for me, it would be an easy choice and I think a 17 FB in a mini action like the CZ 527 would be more fun than a barrel of monkeys.
thumbup.gif
 
Put me down as another who has no use for .17 centerfires. I kill big groundhogs at 250 yards with a .221 Fireball; probably would do okay on fox, too. More factory ammo and rifles out there.
Since you're going to learn reloading, and possibly down the road feel the .221 doesn't carry enough energy/fps at longer ranges: you could always convert it to .20 VarTarg.
 
Originally Posted By: deathwind IIPut me down as another who has no use for .17 centerfires. I kill big groundhogs at 250 yards with a .221 Fireball; probably would do okay on fox, too. More factory ammo and rifles out there.


I was watching a video not long ago where Dave Affleck was blowing away 400 yard rock chucks with his .17 Predator. Quite impressive! I dont remember seeing one of them that needed a second shot.

Here is one of his post about it:

"Carrying the .17 Predator. I killed 26 rock chucks with 27 shots, and every one of those 26 chucks was a clean, instant one shot kill, and I saw every single hit cleanly through the scope. This was using the fireforming load too, by the way. Truly a memorable day of hunting and absolutely stunning performance from the new rifle."

Sounds like a .17 caliber would be fine and dandy for groundhogs. Especially if it was a .17 Predator.
 
Have you given any consideration to something chambered in 204 Ruger?

One of my CZ 527's is chambered in 204 Ruger and it shoots extremely well.
 
Originally Posted By: B23Have you given any consideration to something chambered in 204 Ruger?

One of my CZ 527's is chambered in 204 Ruger and it shoots extremely well.

+1

thumbup1.gif
 
Since the OP's original question was for a fox gun, I'm thinking there's pretty much no factory load for a 204 that'll NOT blow up a fox.....unless handloaded and downloaded.
 
Quote:Sounds like a .17 caliber would be fine and dandy for groundhogs. Especially if it was a .17 Predator IMO, the .17 predator is in a different league than the .17 fireball, as is the other "hot rod' .17's.
With that said, a groundhog at 250 yards should be easy peasy one shot kills with a 25 gr. pill out of a .17 fireball.
 
Originally Posted By: Mike BI'm thinking there's pretty much no factory load for a 204 that'll NOT blow up a fox

You make it sound like that's a bad thing. lol And, I like to make sure they are dead dead.
scared.gif
 
Back
Top