.204 Ruger AR Loads

Shooting a Rock River Varmint A4 LAR-15M

- Patrick Meitin

My Mossberg MVP Varmint in .204 Ruger has effectively rendered my custom .22-250 Remington obsolete. Yes, the .204 Ruger will do anything the .22250 can do, but with less bluster and powder consumption. Blame it on traditional 1:14 to 1:12 rifling twists and the light bullets/low ballistic coefficients this limits them to.

Don’t believe it? Here are real 500-yard/10-mph crosswind numbers derived from a trusted ballistics calculator while using like-label Sierra varmint bullets (all other factors remaining equal). The .22-250 Remington with a 40-grain BlitzKing (.196 BC at 4,000 fps) has 39.1 inches of drop and 37.6 inches of drift. The 50-grain BlitzKing (.248 BC at 3,800 fps) drops 37.4 inches with 29.4 inches of drift. The .204 Ruger with a 32-grain BlitzKing (.221 BC at 4,100 fps) drops 34.9 inches with 31.6 inches of drift. A 39-grain BlitzKing (.287 BC at 3,750 fps) drops 32.7 inches with 23.8 inches of drift. These are actual loads tweaked for accuracy, and small-varmint tested. All are delivered at velocities a step below maximum.

Tiny, frangible .204 bullets delivered at scorching velocities dramatically dismantle burrowing rodents and provide “dead-right-there” impacts on larger rockchucks and coyotes. The .204 Ruger is accurate and offers pleasant all-day shooting through negligible recoil and relatively low muzzle blast. Of course, it’s among a select few varmint cartridges that can be stoked to touch or best 4,000-plus fps. Such velocities can lead to premature barrel wear, so when a barrel becomes hot to the touch, set that rifle aside temporarily.

Twenty-caliber bullets have gone mainstream and are now offered in a huge variety of weights and styles.