please help me decide what caliber for fox cats and yote w/ minimal damage. I am not set up for reloading so it will have to be factory rounds.
I do have a couple stripped lowers on order so there is that option too.

With not knowing if I will have the ability to run my line this year or not I might make a few stands in fairly open country.

.223 gets my vote

" overall", I think AntiGov is right.

223 should take care of it. Sure like mine.

.17 Rem.

https://www.ableammo.com/catalog/no...hollow-point-4200-fps-rdbx-p-130607.html

... When I'm ready for a new predator gun it'll be high on my list! I've done a lot of reading on it and like what I'm hearing.

.223 is boring...

Yep, 17 Rem. For those who say it's not enough gun for coyotes, I beg to differ.

This debate can and Will go on forever but overall, for someone who does not reload, the .223 is a good choice.

ok .223 with what twist rate? Also any preferences to certain ammo?

how far would you say the 17 Rem is effective to?

I love all my .223, but i really enjoy my 22-250. Great caliber. Have a brother with a sweet .204

I have just this week started playing around with a .17 wsm I purchased. What a fun little caliber. As a rimfire it’s a very affordable gun to plink with. Mighty quick little laser, out to 200 yards I would not hesitate to use it on coyotes as the energy it carries out there is very good. I wouldn’t push it much farther on something that large.
I plan to really put it thru it’s paces out west this winter, so we shall see.

Osky

1:9 and 1:8 do well with 55gr

the 1:12 can do 55gr but may prefer the 40 or 50gr better

the nice part is there is a lot of 223 ammo available for the non reloader

.223 for me to say and it's easy to find ammo about anyplace you go.

My limited experience with my 17 has left both me and the yote wondering if he had been hit .

On open ground we both eventually figured it out

In the trees only the yote knew

I appreciate that knowledge. I am primarily a badlands and open range shooter. I am planning on visiting a couple places east of Bend this winter and I will take heed of what you said not knowing what I am getting into. I will have my forever trusty .243 along and .220'swift if the .17 isn't worthy of the task.

Osky

Its fun to shoot Osky , so give it a try . You may see better results.

I shot one from the truck out about 200 or so . He went into a fast run and covered some ground

I thought i missed and got back in the truck and started driving off when he fell dead in his tracks ....lol

That's interesting Anti... Hmmm.
To the OP in the end as Bucks prints it will forever be debated with so many great options available. .17 up to and thru the .243 size. In the end it will come down to what rifle you can afford, what scope you can afford to put on that rifle, and what ammunition you can afford to play with to learn the gun and then use to hunt.

Good luck
Osky

224 Valkyrie gets my vote. Flat shooting and hard hitting. Barreled upper will fit right on your AR lower. Easy to reload if you go that route.

Which ammo is the most readily available of the options that have been hashed over?

.223 for easy to find ammo. I prefer my .22-250 though.

I've been curious about the valkyrie for awhile now. How big is the exit hole?
I've plinked with the wsm just worried about the exit on a gray or a bobcat.
Will the .22-250 be too much for fox?

This topic is interesting for sure. Keep them coming