Never owned a varmit cartridge, you rather have 223 or 22-250. Please give me reasons why as I know zero about either one. Thanks
which one?
- Thread starter knightrider
- Start date
KPH
Well-Known Member
22-250 while in most cases can not be loaded with as heavy bullet as the 223, in most cases does shoots a little further and flatter.
7mminatree
Well-Known Member
You're looking at an average of 200 to 400 fps in favor of the 22-250. The .223 has more options in twist rates in factory barrels than the 22-250, but you can get a 1:9 twist in a Savage. I used to have a Savage with the 1:9twist and it would spin the jackets off of cheaper jacket bullets. But I could push a 55 gr nosler bt above 3700 fps and I will tell you that load will vaporize a groundhog. Both are good varmit rounds, but with speed of the 22-250 hits are dramtic, lots of red mist floating in the air when it's calm. :mrgreen:
223
If going for a .22-250, why not a .243 and have even greater selection (55 gr - 100 gr factory loads)? I always looked at the '250 round as a tweener. Between a .223 and .243. When you look at the amount of powder it takes for a .223 to do 90%+ of a .22-250, I can't justify the extra powder being burned.
Find a guy at the range shooting factory ammo in an AR and you just found your source for free brass to reload.
Find a guy at the range shooting factory ammo in an AR and you just found your source for free brass to reload.
22-250 is hard to beat... In the past it was cheaper to shoot the .223 but not sure that's the case anymore.. I have always heard the 243 with the 55gr bullets was a very unstable load and very hard on the barrels... If you wanna go by ballistics the 25-06 with 85gr pills is a very flat and fast shooter..
Hunter 257W
Well-Known Member
22-250 for sure with one exception and that is if you ever intend to go on a prairie dog shoot. That's where I might give the nod to the 223. A 22-250 produces a lot more barrel heat and would shoot out a barrel faster when firing one shot after another for a long period of time. Otherwise the 22-250 will always outperform a 223.
Since you say you want a varmint rifle, I'm assuming you aren't wanting to shoot 100 grain bullets from a 22 in a desperate attempt to make it into a deer rifle. In that case, the fact that some 223's have a faster twist to stabilize longer bullets is not an issue. You don't want to pay for those bullets anyway if you are just shooting coyotes, crows, groundhogs, etc. Speaking of twist rate and bullet stabilization, one factor that surprises me when nobody ever considers that a 22-250 doesn't NEED as fast a twist as a 223 to stabilize a given bullet. When talking about stabilizing a bullet, the factor that matters is bullet spin rate not twist rate and you have to account for velocity to get bullet spin rate. For instance, a 22-250 will give you about 500fps more velocity with a 55 grain bullet compared to a 223. That's about 16% more velocity. With the same rifling twist rate then the 22-250 bullet would be spinning about 16% faster than the same bullet fired from a 223. This means you can stabilize the same bullet from a 22-250 with a 16% slower twist rate. Something to consider.
For me, the 22-250 is the ultimate factory varmint cartridge. Super flat shooting with 50 to 60 grain bullets with very light recoil and a reasonable barrel life as long as you don't shoot too fast to over heat it. A 55 grain Nosler BT loaded to the max can drop a coyote way out there.
Since you say you want a varmint rifle, I'm assuming you aren't wanting to shoot 100 grain bullets from a 22 in a desperate attempt to make it into a deer rifle. In that case, the fact that some 223's have a faster twist to stabilize longer bullets is not an issue. You don't want to pay for those bullets anyway if you are just shooting coyotes, crows, groundhogs, etc. Speaking of twist rate and bullet stabilization, one factor that surprises me when nobody ever considers that a 22-250 doesn't NEED as fast a twist as a 223 to stabilize a given bullet. When talking about stabilizing a bullet, the factor that matters is bullet spin rate not twist rate and you have to account for velocity to get bullet spin rate. For instance, a 22-250 will give you about 500fps more velocity with a 55 grain bullet compared to a 223. That's about 16% more velocity. With the same rifling twist rate then the 22-250 bullet would be spinning about 16% faster than the same bullet fired from a 223. This means you can stabilize the same bullet from a 22-250 with a 16% slower twist rate. Something to consider.
For me, the 22-250 is the ultimate factory varmint cartridge. Super flat shooting with 50 to 60 grain bullets with very light recoil and a reasonable barrel life as long as you don't shoot too fast to over heat it. A 55 grain Nosler BT loaded to the max can drop a coyote way out there.
Plateau Hunter
Well-Known Member
.223 since you don't have either; a 22-250 is nice for a secondary harder hitter in special situations.
Encore Eye Candy
Well-Known Member
My choice is the 204 and I want a 22-250.
:tu: that's the conclusion I've come to may just by another 243mike243":4mlsf458 said:
