Islander7 wrote:Thanks mate - much appreciate all the advice I'm getting here!
English isn't my first language - yes I'm going to kill 2-3 sheep a year for my own consumption.
In relation to .223 for the use on rabbits (some for consumption as well) will it be ok if headshot, or it's overpowered and meat will be wasted?
I'm open to suggestion and happy to go rimfire route if that's sufficient enough for my needs, however I'm concerned it's going to be underpowered (want to shoot them within at least 120-150m).
Is there any rimfire caliber out there that is similar to 22 but effective over longer distances?
Thanks again!
High-velocity rifles are okay for rabbits if you can head-shoot them, or use FMJ bullets into the chest or head. Out to 150m really doesn't need anything more than .22WMR, .17,HMR or the .22Hornet. For rabbits and foxes you want accuracy over terminal performance. I would not recommend shooting rabbits with .22LR past about 70m or so as the bullet has limited hydrostatic effect. With a .223 if you are off and hit the nose you'll still have a clean kill, with a .22LR you'll simply have a maimed rabbit that'll run down a hole to die.
I would strongly recommend getting a .22LR regardless though, it is far and away the best bang-for-buck for learning to shoot well. You can learn everything you need to with a .22LR for very little cost and very little noise. It's also a terrific way to spend an afternoon, laying in a field shooting paper, or steel, or cans. It all translates to the centrefire so all your shooting benefits from time spent on the .22. It will also be a much better choice for dispatching a domestic meat animal.
Are you looking to load your own ammo for the centrefire? If you are, then you can get a .223, .204, .243 or anything else in that range, and load them to suit your specific purposes - right down to subsonic .22LR equivalents. But with full-power factory loads I think even the .223 is more than you'd want just for shooting the occasional sheep, fox, cat or rabbit. You might want to look at the .17HMR for those purposes. From what I've seen of them they tend to be more accurate than most WMR's or Hornets.
I think all farms should have a .22LR and 12ga. shotgun by default. See if you can find a nice secondhand Brno Model 2 for the .22LR. I doubt anybody ever regretted buying a Model 2.