Home Forums Reloading Varmint Rifles Winchester 22-250 White Box 45 gr. Ammo

I was moping around today bemoaning the fact that I have a new Varmint Rifle and the wind won't allow me to shoot it - and hasn't calmed for many weeks now!
Right around noon I am crossing town and I look out my car window over at the County Seat clock tower and the flag pole (with the U.S and Montana flags on it) the flags are hanging straight down!
Not ruffling a bit.
Even though noon is normally about the windiest part of the day in these parts I decide to do a U-turn and head home and load up my new Rifle and range gear and head for the range.
I arrive at the range with my 22-250 Ruger #1-V in stainless steel and set up as quickly as I can.
I am shooting what is left of a 40 round box of Winchester 22-250 45 grain Varmint ammo that comes in their white boxes.
These Winchester 45 grain bullets did well for my last barrel break-in and initial sight in tests on a different 22-250 Rifle.
I rarely shoot factory ammo but I got some of this Winchester ammo at a bargain price some time ago.
Anyway I set may portable target stantion at 30 yards and fire a shot and correct the scope.
I am now noticing the "dreaded wind" on the back of my neck - not much just 2 or 3 MPH.
I decide to forego anymore 30 yard shooting and take the target out to 100 yards.
On my way back to the bench the wind is now almost steady.
I quickly fire another few rounds - I am finally pleased with the bullets impact position on the target and fire three more rounds for group.
I am pleased with the small triangle group the three shots formed as I look at them through my 48 power range scope.
The wind won't calm now at all and is up to 6 or 8 MPH - I decide to try to wait the wind out.
I take my steel rule out to 100 yards and measure - the three shots - they are just under .70"!
Not bad I think and then then I revise that up, to GOOD!
After all its factory ammo and I only have a Leupold 3x9 variable scope on the Rifle for now.
That is about as good as I can shoot with a 9 power scope (once back to home the 3 shot group measured .681").
The wind won't quit and it is now no longer at my back but "quartering" my line of fire.
Poop I say.
I decide to call it a day and head out to my target for retrieval.
On my way out there I spy a fully intact orange faced clay pigeon.
I decide to set it up at 100 yards and blow it to smithereens with my new rig.
I prop it up and head back for one last shot - I squeeze the shot off and nothing happened to the clay pigeon.
The clay pigeon is still propped up there at 100 yards.
I look through my 48 power scope and there dead center in the orange face is a 22 caliber hole!
Not a crack or chip is evident just the 22 caliber hole dead center.
I would have thought it would have shattered?
I debate another shot at the clay target - but now I have 10 fireformed pieces of brass and enough factory ammo to shoot another day.
I wish I had gotten to shoot more today but the quartering wind makes for "iffey" results.
I notice on the end of the Winchester 40 round box of factory ammo the original price tag is still there - $30.25, or about 75 cents a round!
I bought this stuff at a gunshow IIRC and paid less than the marked price for it some time ago.
On my way home I stop at my local sport shop and they have this 3 boxes of this same ammo for $31.50 a box.
My wheels are turning - new brass is $44.00 per 100 cases (44 cents apiece) and loaded ammo that has shot well now in two different Rifles for me is 75 cents apiece.
I think I am going to try a couple of 5 shot groups with this ammo and if it shoots nearly as well as what the 3 shot group showed today I may just buy those 3 boxes of factory ammo and use it up on Prairie Dogs and Rock Chucks this spring! Then I will have about 140 fireformed cases dedicated to this new rig.
I have not as yet used this ammo on Varmints though - has anyone out there used the factory Winchester 45 grain JHP ammo on Colony Varmints?
Is it explosive?
Is it lethal?
Is it at all prone to ricochet?
Any direction/observations will be appreciated.
Way to go Winchester folks - this is some accurate and fairly affordable ammunition.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Yes.

Yes.

No.

No way was I gonna try to get thru that. I'll simply add that the White Box ammo is as good as I've ever seen for factory.

Shoot straight and hunt often!

Dober

+1

It has worked well in both .223 and .22-250 for me - both for accuracy and effect.

Calif. Hunter: I know friends who use the white box ammo in their 223's - I never thought of that.
Maybe its the same projectile in the 22-250 - they don't ricochet that i have seen.
I went to the Winchester Ammunition site and it is not very information specific but there is a probability that the same projectile is used in the white box ammo for the 223 and the 22-250.
And if so, then ricocheting is not a very significant problem.
Thanks for the info.
I shot them again today (before the snowstorm!) and I got two 5 shot groups right at 1" apiece so I may just go ahead and buy the factory ammo and use it initially then handload for it.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

"Ski": Apparently YOU did get through it though!
Sorry if I taxed your mental capacity!
Didn't mean to "over-tax" you just thought I would relieve and relay and some cabin fever induced Varmint shooting info and add a question or two.
Snowed 2" here in an hour - starting just in the noon hour.
I hope YOU can get through this without much harm.
LOL.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

The bullet is indeed the same in the white box .223 and .22-250 ammo. The only trouble I've had with either has come when the barrel REALLY gets hot on a .22-250 when shooting a good PD town. The cores of the bullets evidently tend to get very hot, and can start doing weird things until the barrel is allowed to cool down a little. It doesn't seem to happen with the .223 ammo, probably because of the lower velocity.

A friend and I discovered this on a very warm day on a Kansas dog down, when one of us was shooting a .223 and one a .22-250. Other than that the ammo works very well.

I haven't fired a 22-250 factory round in probably 20 years now, but have heard good comments about that Winchester White Box ammo in various rifle calibers. A few years ago I picked up a stainless 7.5" Ruger Redhawk 44 Mag. from an estate and went through a bunch of different factory ammo just to see what it liked and what kind of velocity it was getting, etc. before I commenced handloading. The Winchester White Box 240 gr. JSP load (stock # Q4240) was the most accurate of the bunch and was averaging 1414 fps. I don't buy factory ammo very often but this stuff is impressive. Guess all those things I heard about the "white box stuff" are true.