204Ruger

Wondering if the 20 calibers - as much as I love 'em - have enough a-- to kill a coyote after poking through a few rows of soybean leaves. I've shot woodchucks through bean leaves over the years but not through these waist-high bushes we see here now, thanks to heavy rains that are all too common around here now.
Yesterday, while groundhog hunting I was able to get of a shot at a running 'yote around 100 yards out in a high beanfield; the only body parts of him showing were his head and top few inches of his back. Kind of like a submariner watching a torpedo head towards its target (but in fast-motion), thanks to the low-recoil .204 and luckily no flinch on my part, I could actually trace the bullet's path by its wake through the leaves as it made what seemed like a broadside hit. Sounded good, too, and I scanned the field for him to re-surface; he never did, but that didn't mean he didn't just lower his head and hit the afterburners if I'd missed or slunk out of the area under the leaf canopy if wounded.
At any rate, after tip-toeing through hundreds of square feet of thick beans looking for a carcass, I gave up and chalked it up to either a flat-out miss or a low-energy hit that probably didn't have a chance of killing in the first place. I'll wait a couple days in case there's a body that starts stinking, but from now on if on a dedicated coyote hunt in/around crops I'll probably be taking my .243 or build a fast-twist heavy bullet .22-250 or Swift.
Later, I set up a cardboard target at the same distance and shot it through several rows. Surprisingly, there seemed to be little deflection, although one of three bullets hit sideways. Can't speculate on energy delivered, though. Also, I'm in no way endorsing shooting through vegetation that might cause ricochets or taking shots at partially obscured targets one is not sure of.

Your very last sentence sums things up nicely, regardless off cartridge. The first question I need to ask before offering a direct reply is: What bullet are you using?

Bullet: 39 gr. Blitzking, out of 24" barreled C-Z. Pretty frangible, plastic-tipped; wondered if my LVSF loads of 35 gr. Berger pointed hp's, although lighter, might have worked a little better....maybe not. None of my .204s. shoot their greatest with weights over 39 gr.

Rowdy, IMO, for anything larger than a rock chuck the 204R shines best with the 35 grain Berger. As for bean plants, and not speaking from direct 'bean' experience.... I doubt a leaf or two would have much effect on any of the bullets. However, the bean plants I have been around also have some decent size woody stems if they are a bush bean type as apposed to a climbing type, like many peas are. Those, I would think, could have a significant effect on trajectory and bullet performance.


Do I believe the 204R has enough horsepower for clean coyote kills with a clear shot? Oh, heck yeah out to 300 yards or so with the Berger. Done it too many times to have any doubt. I used the 39 grain SBK's before the Bergers and switched after two shoulder blade splashes. I still do my best to avoid the shoulder blade, but there is no doubt the Berger out performs the BK on dogs, badgers and such. YMMV but, I highly doubt it!!!

I have had no problem with coyote kills with either the 32 grain bullets, even the 34 grain Midsouth or Midway Varmint bullets. But I Them in the rib cage, side shot or head on and none have gone further than 50 yrds. Most drop with a few feet. I do like the 35 grain Berger also. The 204 R is a fine shooting cartridge on yotes, out to about 300 yds, so far, for me. Bill K

Well, I went out this morning to see if I could find a carcass, hoping a few rare days of hot sun would not only bring out the smell, but might dry and part the bean plant leaves for better visibility. Tried looking a little farther in the other direction than I'd been. Lo and behold, a few rows in from the (far) edge of the field laid the remains of a coyote! Mostly fur, bones and a tail after his compadres, buzzards, maggots and possibly a young eagle I'd seen in the area got done with him/her; man, these must be filthy creatures to attract that much attention when they die. Now I feel more confident about using the .204 on our big Eastern 'yotes. But, to be sure, from now on I'm going to go with all Berger 35s and try to knock back these coyotes some, before they exterminate all "my" groundhogs around here.

I would not hesitate to throw 40 gn Bergers at a 'yote. They will disembowl a woodchuck. But truth be told I haven't shot a 'tote yet. They always look like this (I think this one was 300+ yards):

I've disembowelled some groundhogs, but never like that! One that did look almost that bad after being shot with a .243/58 grain V-Max turned out to be alive and tried to bite me when I went to flip him out of the way with a stick.
I'm gonna grab one of those 10-twist TC Ventures next time on sale, for a truck gun. It should stabilize the 40 grain Bergers well .

i have the T/C Venture in 204 and it shoots the factor 40 grain rounds great,,,,,,