Finally dialed in

[Idaho]

A year ago I bought a used 112 BVSS in 25-06 and have been working to get it ready for chuck season this spring. I started by ordering a Nightforce NX8 4-32X50 scope. After it arrived I found that the rifle did not like factory ammo and I did not like the factory stock. I ordered a Choate Custom Tactical and really like that stock. Got lucky with my handloads and found a RL-23 load pushing Berger 115g VLDs that makes bug holes. I zeroed the rifle at 200 yards and put the ballistic data into my Kestrel.

Today I took it to a friendly farmer who spotted for me to try it at longer ranges. First shot with a Kestrel solution was at a rock face on a lava outcrop 530 yards away. The farmer declared it "dead center". Then a curious chuck poked his head and shoulders out from behind a rock 277 yards away and another Kestrel solution blew him off the rock.

Just before I left the wind went to zero so we set up for a long range test at a small bush 970 yards away on another clean lava flow. With a Kestrel solution dialed on the scope the farmer called the shot with L-R windage perfect and the shot hit about 2 feet high. I have a spot where an open dirt bank with small rocks offers great targets at 1000 yards and I will use that to true up the Kestrel muzzle velocity. From that point on I will be fully dialed in for chuck season for chucks over 450 yards away. (up to that range I have a pair of 223s that are deadly accurate)

Now things need to warm up and turn green. :smug:

[yobuck]

Nice job, the 25/06 is for sure no slouch for the longer distances.
I have one on a Savage action and use the same bullets as you for good results.
About a decade ago i got caught up in the 6.5x300 WSM craze and had a gun built on a Savage action.
I did kill a couple of Antelope with it that i could have killed as easily with the 25/06.
That gun found a new place to live, but i kept the 25/06.
I wish that the 6.5 had also been built on an 06 case.
No doubt id still have it.

[Idaho]

Nice job, the 25/06 is for sure no slouch for the longer distances.
I have one on a Savage action and use the same bullets as you for good results.
About a decade ago i got caught up in the 6.5x300 WSM craze and had a gun built on a Savage action.
I did kill a couple of Antelope with it that i could have killed as easily with the 25/06.
That gun found a new place to live, but i kept the 25/06.
I wish that the 6.5 had also been built on an 06 case.
No doubt id still have it.

Years ago when I first moved to Idaho I found the distances daunting so I bought a Ruger M77 25-06 and killed an antelope and two deer with that rifle. Then I got into archery and sold it to buy more bows. Now tired of archery I'm back into long range rifles on very small targets and love it. My pair of Savage 223s are deadly out to 500 yards, beyond if there is no wind. I'm counting on the 25 to reach from 500 to 1000 yards on those small chucks.

[Idaho]

Update. I had the barrel threaded and I installed an Erik Cortina Tuner/Brake Now I can stay on target after the bang. I trued up MV on the Kestrel at a small rock 960 yards away. This week I spotted two rock chucks at 657 yards. The Kestrel solution was perfect and both chucks bit the dust.
Now I'm looking for a longer range chuck. Need to find one soon because they are about to go to ground for the summer and won't be back out until next spring.

[yobuck]

Update. I had the barrel threaded and I installed an Erik Cortina Tuner/Brake Now I can stay on target after the bang. I trued up MV on the Kestrel at a small rock 960 yards away. This week I spotted two rock chucks at 657 yards. The Kestrel solution was perfect and both chucks bit the dust.
Now I'm looking for a longer range chuck. Need to find one soon because they are about to go to ground for the summer and won't be back out until next spring.
So what are you using to find the chucks?
Hitting them is important, but finding them is even more so, because we sure cant hit what we havent found.

[Idaho]

So what are you using to find the chucks?
Hitting them is important, but finding them is even more so, because we sure cant hit what we havent found.

I have a pair of Vortex Fury binos and a Vortex Viper 85x spotting scope. The Nightforce 4-32 power NX8 shows the chucks as good as the spotting scope. Easy-peasy

[Robinhood]

So what are you using to find the chucks?
Hitting them is important, but finding them is even more so, because we sure cant hit what we havent found.

I think your tandem spotting scope will help you find them no problem Yobuck.

[yobuck]

I think your tandem spotting scope will help you find them no problem Yobuck.
Im not familiar with Rockchucks..
Woodchucks as in Groundhogs im very familiar with, as at one time Pa was loaded with them.
There are still a few, but very few compared to years back, mainly due to preditors like coyotes and different farming methods.
The large tripod mounted optics are almost a must for serious long range groundhog hunting.
Actually long range deer hunting in Pa came about as a result of long range groundhog hunting.
If you can hit a ground hog why not a deer?
The original 1000 yd benchrest club known as the Williamsport club, although it sits atop a mountain far from that town, was actually started by long range groundhog hunters, not target shooters.
The area is known as the Rose Valley and was at one time teeming with groundhogs.
6.5x300 Wetherbys were being used in that area for groundhogs 60 years ago along with very large WW2 binoculars with 120 mm objective lenses, and some even larger.
Also used were the coincedence type rangefinders used in both WW1 and WW2.
I still have one and would put it against any modern lazer rangefinder produced today, and i did say (any) including the Vectrinix.
But i also have a Leica 1600. lol
Fact is i dont use the tripod mounted glasses for Prairie dogs.
Hand glasses and the rifle scope work fine for those.
But if i were shooting at them at longer distances i would, and i would also team up with a spotter like we do for deer and long range groundhogs.
The spotting scopes allow a person to build their own glasses, and they also have numerous advantages over factory made, especially for hunters.
If you were to set a pair of those on a tripod behind the firing line at one of your matches you would become very busy building them.

[Timb]

Im not familiar with Rockchucks..
Woodchucks as in Groundhogs im very familiar with, as at one time Pa was loaded with them.
There are still a few, but very few compared to years back, mainly due to preditors like coyotes and different farming methods.


I grew up hunting groundhogs every summer, but preditors have just about wiped them out here in WV as well.

[8mm RUM]

I grew up hunting groundhogs every summer, but predictors have just about wiped them out here in WV as well.

Prefect now you can hunt the Predators.

[yobuck]

Prefect now you can hunt the Predators.
Well there isnt much actual hunting involved for groundhogs or prairie dogs either.
Coyotes are a much different subject requiring a much different approach.
Pretty much anybody can expect some element of success with p dogs or g hogs, but not so much with coyotes.
I personally prefer sticking with the easy stuff, and leave the challenging ones to the (experts).

[Timb]

Well there isnt much actual hunting involved for groundhogs or prairie dogs either.
Coyotes are a much different subject requiring a much different approach.
Pretty much anybody can expect some element of success with p dogs or g hogs, but not so much with coyotes.
I personally prefer sticking with the easy stuff, and leave the challenging ones to the (experts).

Some ground hogs can require a little bit of "hunting" in area with pressure. I've hunted farms where the hogs are pretty wild and sensitive to noise and sights. In some places you can pull the truck up and shoot them off the hood, while in others you have to crawl up into place while wearing your green outfit to blend in.

[shoots100]

When I used to chuck hunt, I would sit and spot with bino's, range and pop them.
Now I spot with the thermal monocular that I bought for predator hunting, range and pop them.
The thermal does double duty and really helps spot them quickly when you adjust the settings for daytime use.
Of course once you try a thermal monocular and see how much of an advantage it give's you, you'll soon be wanting a thermal scope.
Then you'll be ready to hunt those pesky coyote like an expert, albeit a poor expert !

[yobuck]

When I used to chuck hunt, I would sit and spot with bino's, range and pop them.
Now I spot with the thermal monocular that I bought for predator hunting, range and pop them.
The thermal does double duty and really helps spot them quickly when you adjust the settings for daytime use.
Of course once you try a thermal monocular and see how much of an advantage it give's you, you'll soon be wanting a thermal scope.
Then you'll be ready to hunt those pesky coyote like an expert, albeit a poor expert !
Ive reached the point that i dont like anything thermal.
Including underwear.
Thermal bullets would help though.

[Idaho]

yobuck, go on Youtube and search for rock chuck hunting videos. Can be pretty fast shooting on varmints that are almost as big as groundhogs. According the Farm Bureau 5 chucks can eat as much forage in one day as a cow does. Farmers appreciate good marksmanship.

[yobuck]

yobuck, go on Youtube and search for rock chuck hunting videos. Can be pretty fast shooting on varmints that are almost as big as groundhogs. According the Farm Bureau 5 chucks can eat as much forage in one day as a cow does. Farmers appreciate good marksmanship.
Yes, i did as you recommended and watched some Youtube videos.
Lots more action than groundhog hunting from what i saw.
Almost like PD hunting but in different type terrain.
Much of the eastern ground hog hunting revolves around crops, and when they get harvested.
Untill the hay gets cut for example it can be very hard finding the target.
They love alfalfa fields and can chew up much of the farmers income if they arent controlled.
But the Coyotes seem to have them pretty much under control now days without much help from hunters.
Stalking the edges where a woods and a field meet or along hedge rows seems to be how most are being taken now.
The days of high number kills at long range as was common 40/50 years ago isnt happening much today in places like PA.

[Idaho]

Well, my chuck season is now over because they have mostly gone to ground until next spring. But, before they did we had spotted a chuck at 806 yards. It was sitting on a rock and was silhouetted against dry grasses on the hill behind it. For a few seconds after I pulled the trigger nothing happened and we were all wondering where the bullet splash was. My Kestrel told me that it took a full second for the bullet to get there. After about 4 or 5 seconds the chuck rolled over dead with it's feet in the air. High fives all around.

One of my 223s has suffered a barrel failure, it now shoot worse than a blunderbuss so i've ordered a pair of Criterion barrels. One for this 223 that has somewhere between 5 to 6,000 rounds down the barrel and the other for my second 223 that probably has 3 to 4000 rounds. Criterion is going to cut the chamber in both barrels with my custom reamer. That reamer cut chambers that produced 1/4 moa rifles for thousands of rounds. It is unconventional but man does it work.

Now I need to reload more 25-06 and develop a ELD-M load for the second rifle, I have been shooting 77g STMKs in that rifle but have not found any for over a year, I do have quite a stockpile of the 75 g ELDMs so I should be in good shape.

I've also decided to take the plunge and change out my barrels myself. How hard can it be?

[Robinhood]

You can't just tell us about a custom reamer and then just move on.

I believe with a little learnin' you wont be having much of an issue installing the barrels.

[Idaho]

Yes, i did as you recommended and watched some Youtube videos.
Lots more action than groundhog hunting from what i saw.
Almost like PD hunting but in different type terrain.
Much of the eastern ground hog hunting revolves around crops, and when they get harvested.
Untill the hay gets cut for example it can be very hard finding the target.
They love alfalfa fields and can chew up much of the farmers income if they arent controlled.
But the Coyotes seem to have them pretty much under control now days without much help from hunters.
Stalking the edges where a woods and a field meet or along hedge rows seems to be how most are being taken now.
The days of high number kills at long range as was common 40/50 years ago isnt happening much today in places like PA.

I grew up shooting groundhogs in Ohio. One of the guys I graduated from high school with makes his living taking hunters on guided groundhog hunts! He gets hunters from all across the USA.
You are correct in your assessment of the differences between hunting groundhogs and rock chucks. Rock chucks are way more prolific and produce thousands of babies in mid May, lots of targets. BUT, they are mostly gone to ground to hibernate until next spring because the world dries out here in Idaho and their food sources dry up. (except for irrigated fields of course but evolution sends them underground anyway) Groundhogs on the other hand are out into October. That would be nice. From March to the first of August the shooting can be fast and furious here in Idaho.

[Idaho]

You can't just tell us about a custom reamer and then just move on.

I believe with a little learnin' you wont be having much of an issue installing the barrels.

My reamer has no traditional throat. On the print that I have Manson calls that section just in front of the chamber the freebore, mine is zero. Then the taper for the 'throat" is 0.300 long and has a shallow taper. It allows me to seat long bullets and have plenty of room in the short Savage magazines. Over the years both rifles have made some amazing shots and the barrels have lasted for a loooong time. Of course I don't push the bullets hard, just around 2780 fps.