AusVarmint

Hi All, New here, great site wish I had found it earlier but better late than never.

I started off many years ago with a Anchutz m1400 .22 which I bought new in 1966 and still use today, over the years I got the big bore addiction lots of cals up to the 470ne, I have been selling them off over the last year or so ,,,well now I'm just getting back into the small stuff and am really enjoying it, bought a Tikka 223 S/S Varmint and it shoots superb,

Now I want a 17hmr, where does one start, I'm leaning towards the CZ 453 varmint, how do you guys rate this firearm say compared to Anchutz, Savage, Marlin etc ,,and if price was no barrier what make and model would you buy,,,all based on out of the box accuracy.

Thanks........tracks

The Savage & Marlin are both good brand of HMR but are abit more agricultural.
The CZ & Ruger are slightly better.
Then there are Sako & Anchutz, nicer triggers & more accurate from the box (less likely to get a lemon).

With that being said, all of the brands will do the job.
Out of the box most of them will shoot fine, Savage and Marlin have made some real accurate HMRs but the frequencey of that is lower than the Annie or Sako.

The main let down is the ammo quality, it is a hunting round not a target round.
If it shoots 1MOA it is going good but realisticly upto 2MOA is more the normal, but some do exhibit better accuracy.
Over the HMR normal shooting range it will still put all the shots into 4".

cz

CZ all the way i love mine

Tracks to me it all comes down to how much you want to spend.I have an Annie 1517 DHB (thanks Krudd) and love the rifle but you have an Annie so that would be like preaching to the converted.
You know you want to grab a 1717

I have a marlin 917VS and with the shitty plastic stock and a rifle basix trigger i have shot .33" groups at 50m with it. WHen i replace the stock i will take it out past 100m and see how it goes.

From selling them and owning them I can say this

Savage Heavy varmint with thumbhole shoots well above its price range however the CZ453 heavy shoots very well for only a bit more coin.

I use a Sako Quad Heavy Varmint in 17hmr and my young fella busts bunnies at silly distances however its really quite expensive for a rimfire.

Decide on your budget first and then decide on the best gun in that price range.

PS Leave enough for a decent scope.

cheers
chappo555

Thanks for the reply guys.

Missed-- I've had my eye on a 1717 at Whitehorse arms but the bloody price tag $2100 + scope + mounts = a bloody lot of $$$'s and yeah I would love one but if I got a cz and it shot crap i would probably be up for the same sort of money by the time the smith finished with it..I'll have a few beers and ponder that one. thanks again,,,,,,, tracks

HMR=Fizzer.!!
Overated-Prepare for disapointment.
Before you ask why, do a search and all will be revealed.
Native

Don't read too much into what Native Hunter says as he's never even owned a .17HMR.

As others have said, and with so many other things, the more you pay the more you get. The base model Marlins and Savages are plain and agricultural in appearance but many shoot well for the cost. There have been various complaints about the magazines on these brands. The Marlin trigger is bad out of the box but can be fixed. I think that quality can be patchier with these brands than the European makes - and I say that as someone who has a Savage .17 BTVS (and loves it!)

CZ represent good performance for the money and certainly the CZ Varmint is a nice, quality rig.

Anschutz have apparently finally come into the 21st century and offer a stainless option, which should be a good performer.

There is also the Browning T-Bolt which has a 9 shot rotary magazine and comes in an array of fit outs.

Ruger - about the best magazine going, and solidly built in all respects. Trigger is ordinary out of the box. I have heard a few reports that the latest Ruger 77 models have the barrel threaded into the receiver instead of using the occasionally problematic (with regard to accuracy) wedge and screws arrangement. Lots of options regarding finish, stocks etc.

Accuracy - the ammo isn't intended sold as match grade and these are meant to be hunting rifles. Accuracy with pretty much all of them (bar rogue specimens) will be good enough (or better than good enough) to take small game out to the limit of what is generally reckoned to be the edge of the HMR's effective range (around 150m).

MISSED wrote:Tracks to me it all comes down to how much you want to spend.I have an Annie 1517 DHB (thanks Krudd) and love the rifle but you have an Annie so that would be like preaching to the converted.
You know you want to grab a 1717

I love my 1517DHB, even though it doesn't get as much use over here as it did back in the UK. Friends have CZ's that shoot as well, but they're not in the same league quality (Or price!) wise, so it depends what you want!

Actually it looks like the stainless Annie is only in .22LR and a limited production - with an action of blued steel....

fenring wrote:Don't read too much into what Native Hunter says as he's never even owned a .17HMR.
Accuracy - the ammo isn't intended sold as match grade and these are meant to be hunting rifles. Accuracy with pretty much all of them (bar rogue specimens) will be good enough (or better than good enough) to take small game out to the limit of what is generally reckoned to be the edge of the HMR's effective range (around 150m).

Fenring-I expected that.!!(Predictable)
The ammo isn't intended sold as match grade. Excuses,excuses.!!!
There alone is a reason why I would never have one,I suppose some people are just happy with mediocre accuracy,I'M NOT.!!!
Native

Likewise Native, likewise - I know you suffer from anti-HMR Tourettes syndrome and can't help but decry the calibre.

To your problem with the HMR I have a solution - don't buy one.

Those of us who have one and love it will continue to go out and slay copious varmints using the "mediocre accuracy" to good effect.

The HMR seems real good on the internet.
But i don't find the results as good.
The price of ammo is high.
You can reload most 17-22cal centrefires for cheaper & more accurate,
but if you are a volume shooter like fenring you would spend ages in the reloading room.

Myself i take out 22LR for most stuff, need any more power or range i skip to my 223.