.17 hmr advice

considering a .17hmr and need advice
i was at walmart today picking up some nightcrawlers and usually will look in their gun cases when im there and saw a marlin model 917v that caught my eye as well as a savage 93r-f. fom what i noticed the marlin had a much nicer stock, a much heavier barrel, sling studs already attached but no sights, the savage also had the sling studs and no sights but the stock felt cheap as though they took the stock from a $30 bb gun and slapped it on in a hurry, there was no weight to it and it felt like if i dropped it then it might shatter. im a taller guy and suprisingly both felt ok as far length but they have those stupid trigger gaurds so i wasnt able to evaluate trigger pull unfortunatly but i did work the bolt on both a few times and it is buttery smoothe on both but the savage was just a little bit smoother. both rifles were between $200-225 so the price diference will not make a differnce. i will mostly use it for killing time and paper but possibly aslo groundhog/squirrel/yotes around my place. do any of you have experience with these? about how heavy is the trigger on each? based on this information i have provided wich would you choose and why? thanks in advance.
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I've had a 93 in 17HMR, and 17vs Stainless (erlier model of 917)
The Savage had a "slightly" better trigger. And both shot the same as far as accuracy at 40 yards.

My best shot was on a Starling at 110 yards on a farm in Grainger county. With the Savage...
(Yes, starling are open year round in Tn)
I got rid of all my .17 cals, and went .22 mag.

I say get the one that fits and feels the best. Because the performance is just about equal.

My son has a Savage with the nice laminated thumb hole stock and I have an older Marlin 917-V that was a pawn shop buy. I like his accu-trigger better than the Marlin's, but they both are extremely accurate out to about 150 yds. I liked his stock so well that I dropped mine into a Richard's Micro-fit stock. Bottom line is that they are both good rifles.

What I always worry about when a new caliber comes along is if it will remain. My dad bought a 5mm rem mag when I was a kid and like the 17 it was in all of the rags and was all the rage. Well, fast forward 10 years and he couldn't find ammo for it and if you did it was way expensive.

I'm not saying the 17 will be like this, but it is something to consider. The 17 really does nothing better than a 22 mag does. And if you need faster for longer shots you are better served again with a centerfire 22 or some flavor.

JMO

Centurion makes 5mm Rem. Mag ammo now.
I've seen calibers come and go, also, but I think the 17HMR and it's little brother the 17 Mach 4 will be around for a long time. I believe in them enough that I traded off both of my .22 mags.

I dont think I would shoot a Coyote with a .17....little too inhumane...but then again im no hunter.

I have the Savage 93 BTVS and shoot 1/2MOA strings of 5 @ 100yrds all day long. These are really tac drivers. They only like the Federal V Shock ammo, CCI TNT spreads out to 1" or worse. Ammo isn't cheap either. You gotta get bulk to get any deal at all. The trigger is to die for. The new Accu-Trigger is adjustable and comes real nice OOB. Each to his/her own but, come Christmas, my big bore tac driver is going to be a Savage just because of this gun.

Originally Posted by timcalhoun

What I always worry about when a new caliber comes along is if it will remain.

I'm not saying the 17 will be like this, but it is something to consider. The 17 really does nothing better than a 22 mag does. And if you need faster for longer shots you are better served again with a centerfire 22 or some flavor.

JMO

The .17HMR isn't going anywhere but onward. I'd say its one of the top 5 selling calibers and has been for a couple years now.

Originally Posted by Magiccarpetrides

I dont think I would shoot a Coyote with a .17....little too inhumane...but then again im no hunter.

I would shoot one within 120 yrds and not think twice. But then again, my shot would be well placed. I've dropped 2 wild dogs with it no problem at 100 yrds or just a bit less. Will penetrate the skull and will drop when hit heart/lung. If you're not able to shoot well enough to kill you shouldn't hunt. (Not you MCR, just in general)

I've got 3 ground hogs at 160yrds. The first dropped and did the Curly Shuffle as I followed up quick with a second shot. The next two dropped on the 1st shot. You drop about 3" between 100 and 150 yrds plus you loose 1/2 your energy.

Don't get on me too bad..... but I don't like the accutrigger of the savage. The Marlin trigger isn't much better but you can upgrade to an after market one when the wallet allows. I was hung on the savage until my buddy told me (and I can't back this up) that the Savage isn't American made but the Marlin is. I went on a whim and got the Marlin. I like mine! I have shot prairie dogs back in CO with mine when my 22-250 is cooling out to 300 yards. NO joke. Of course there was no to very little wind and a lot of KY windage involved as well as luck. Go American made (if this is true)!

I love my savage 93. Can shoot out a dime sized hole or better at 100yds w/five shots. Mine seems to shoot better w/Hornady, but there isn't that huge of a difference with other brands, that I've noticed anyhow. Plus, I think the .17 cartidge looks cool, just a baby centerfire