Not been on here for a while so thanks to you all for the input. I will certainly try pushing the 25grn V-maxes a bit quicker and also have a look at those lugs on the inside of the Barrel channel on the stock to see if removing them improves the accuracy. Having said that, the Berger 25grn Match Varmints seem to be working well, have a decent BC (same as the 20grn V-Maxes) and despite the tiny hollow point, expand violently with devastating effect on small game.

I've had a fair amount of success with the rifle since my original post and I am still absolutely chuffed to bits with it. The Swaro 6-30 x50 Z6 on-top has a really fine crosshair that is perfect for long range small varmint use (the crosshairs don’t even cover a rabbits eye at 300yards on 30x mag). It is relatively quiet when moderated and very low on recoil allowing you to see the shot much more easily than larger c/f calibres and to be honest, since I’ve had this, I don’t think either my .222 or .22-250 have even been out of the cabinet.

The only thing I do want to change is my moderator. I am currently using a .25cal Ase Utra S5 which works well, but is a big old lump on the end of the barrel, so am considering either a .17 calibre specific Hardy Gen IV or an Aimzonic, just to improve the balance a bit. The DM80 sounds good but is I think a bit heavier than these two? If anyone has any experience of how effective either of these are on a .17Rem I’d be interested to hear about it.