Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles A Proper 223?

Is it too much to ask for a stainless (or even nitride), micro-length, decent OAL-capable, fast twist 223 bolt rifle?

I guess it is.

Also, Howa, come on and import that SS Mini!

What does micro-length mean?

Micro length action.

My other requirement is weighing under 6 lbs. I’m too picky, I know.

Buy a Howa mini and Cerakote it whatever color you want.


Or buy a mini action and CF barrel and stock. My Howa .223 9 twist is the most accurate factory rifle I have. It’s heavy AF though with a Varmint profile barrel.

You’re asking for a mini action 223 but requesting a fast twist and decent OAL. You won’t get the oal with the mini so the twist doesn’t help much.

Tikka connects the most dots but it sounds like the action length will bother you. I’m not sure if the standard length Howa is offered with a faster twist barrel or not?

Yeah, the Howa is the closest. With bottom metal to get 2.45ish OAL and a decent stock, but it’s not stainless!

The Tikka would be great too, but I can’t handle that giant action on what should be a petite rifle…

The new Remington's have an 8 twist. Pick up a short action and shorten the barrel until you get under 6 lbs. I have a Ruger American compact in .223 with an 8 twist and 18" barrel. I have never weighed it but it's less than 7 lbs. The only downside is the magazine.

kwg

A very easy and worthwhile fix, buy an AI magwell directly from Ruger so you can use the AI magazines. turns the downside into an upside, then to finish it off schitt can the trigger and put on a timney

I have an American to use at work, but I’m too snobby for that Tupperware stock

The mini with bdl seems closest to the listed want. Shoot out the barrel and replace it with stainless. I prefer a stainless action but I can live with cm there.....a cm barrel irks me more than a cm action. Just grabbed one in Grendel and I'll likely rebarrel at some point....but I'll enjoy the cm barrel for a while.

A stainless M7 action with .223 bolt, AICS bm, and a stainless barrel is a nice custom route. Can also be done in bdl or adl.

A Defiance anti in the M7 length with a .223 bolt, AICS bm, and stainless barrel of choice is the upper end of light done right....though it's still going to be large compared to the mini.

A stainless Kimber Montana in .223 is close but needs mag work for oal and a faster twist.

I've got a friend gacking through this at present. Kimber is really the only option if you're looking for a SS action, scaled down diameter (it's still long enough for 2.8" cases), that the mag-box can be modified to accept a ~2.5" COAL, and you still need a new bbl with a faster twist for most of the higher BC 75gn+ projectiles. NOBODY makes one outta the gate. Perhaps when the KIWI Fieldcraft is reintroduced???

Ask your wife.. ha ha..

Build what you want.

I'd probably just chop an SS700 at 18", thread it, and put it in a McMillan of Edge-fill. It might not be sub-6lb, but it won't be that much over.

Ok,,,,, FWIW this is what I've been Shooting for awhile now, and both Shoot-Lights Out, as long as I do my part..... and the weight isn't an issue for me, but then again,,,, I'm just an Old Retired Marine,,,,,, but I've been Doggin, since about 1963, or there abouts......
Lj

I need mine to be smaller and lighter than that, so I can carry 7 of them at once, along with my 100# dumbbells, and run faster than my buddies on their snowmobiles, and shoot 25 wolves per day, since 1928, and still have enough energy to come home and play with my 5 sets of male triplets, from the 5 times I was in the same room as my wife for more than 60 seconds, and then brag about it on internet gun forums…

Good advice all, and thanks for the laughs. I’m hard to please; I know this. As does my wife.

The Montana is a great option, and probably the best one for me, but if my 223 is the same size as a 308, something just seems off…

Build one on a M700 action and run AICS mags/BM. An advantage over a micro action is commonality of form factor with your “real” rifles, and also almost unlimited high quality aftermarket parts.

Mine is an AI (hey jeff, 2008 called, they want their 223AI back, lol) and frankly, the AI is worth it, if you have the twist and COAL to properly take advantage of the extra case capacity.

My kid wrecking clays at around 500. Pac Nor barrel, Timney trigger, Outlander stock and Greyboe BM (thanks Stick).

Beautiful pic. I do love the AI and would much prefer it, but it seemed too much to ask for in a production rifle. Maybe I just need to buy a Mini action, have it nitrided, AI'd, and put it in a carbon stock...

I love the .223AI. I've had them ADL and BDL (with the mag box mod) on 700's and 7's. They can be made to feed ok....but after using the first AICS, they're all AICS now. That however is Rem action based.

Thinking specifically of the mini, I'd like to see Jeferson Oudoors bdl and blind mag setups to see if they are centerfeed. If they are, it might make the .223AI feed smoother.

Thanks pka! She’s a good kid.

I did the rebarrel on mine, and yes the AICS mags made a world of difference with the feeding, but I should’ve cut more of a bevel at the chamber mouth while I had it all set up originally. It was my first rebarrel and I erred on the side of caution; I left it a bit too sharp and you can feel that steep AI shoulder going over it. One of these years I’ll pull that barrel back off, throw it on the lathe, and fix that.

I also have a couple pounds of Lever and the intent is to switch it over from H335 to the Lever (with 75 ELD’s). But boy, the H335/75 ELD combo “ain’t broke” if you know what I mean!

If you look closely there’s a little brake on the muzzle. I made that; it’s a 2-slot semi copy of the early Holland brake. It wasn’t to reduce recoil per se, it was to reduce muzzle jump so I could see the little bullets hit at longer ranges. Works great! LOUD.