I've got a 222 coming that I need to start working up loads for.Would like to shoot something heavier than 52-55 grainers,which is my bread and butter in my other 222s.

I'm interested in trying the Hornady 60 grain SP,Nosler 60 grain Partition,and the Sierra 63 grainer.

Any chance any of these will shoot worth a damn in a 1-14 222?

Thanks,
WB.

Norma says no, and several other good sources as well. Conventional wisdom says no heavier than 55 gr. in a .222 with std twist, and 50 gr. is better. Why not risk $20, buy a box of 60's and find out for yourself?

That's what I'm planning on doing,just asking to see how bone headed it is.

I'm fairly certain the Hornady 60 SP would shoot fine,don't know about the Nosler or the Sierra 63 though.

WB.

I've had 4 .222's with 1 in 14 twist. They all shot 40 to 52 gr. bullets very well. Some of them put up with 55's but didn't shoot them as well as the lighter bullets. None of them shot 60 + gr bullets worth a dam.

A 22-250 is powerful enough to stabilize the shorter 60 grain bullets ok, but loses it with the longer ones. A 223 does ok with a 55 grain with standard twist. It is more powerful than a 222. 50 grainers sound about right for you.

Think I'll try to find a box of Hornady 60 grain Spire Points locally.If they don't shoot,I'll just stick with my old standby Speer 52 grain HP.

WB.

Both the 63 grain SMP Sierra and the 70 grain Speer SMP will stabilize in a one in 14 or one in 12 twist, even at 222 velocities...that is what they were originally designed for...heavier bullet, slow twist, 222 velocity...

That's my experience,too. It's the LENGTH of the bullet not the weight that dicates twist. The longer the bullet the faster the twist needs to be to stabilize it.

O

One of the more accurate bullets in my 1 in 16 22Hornet is the Hornady 60gr SP. At a gues. I'd say you could use the Speer 70gr semi-point. Depending on the BC of the 70gr semi, the 60gr SP might be flatter shooting.

Speer's 70 gr. Semi-Spitzers are what I shoot in my 1:12 twist 222 Rem. over a compressed load of Win. 760/H414. They shoot quite well; I even took a deer with one of them at around 80 to 100 yards with my 222. In fact, thus far, no animal I've hit with one of these got away.

They're also my bullet of choice in a 223 Rem. & a 22-250 (also with 1:12 twist barrels). I like them so much, I bought a lifetime supply in case Speer decided to stop making them. I took a deer with one of these out of my 22-250 at 360 yards; one shot, DRT so they're flat shooting enough.

My Cooper 223 has a 1:14 twist. It will put 40 & 50 grain Vmaxes into one hole ususally but won't shoot anything above 55 grains worth a hoot. Recently I tried 60 grain Partitions and they ran about 1.5" in a gun that shoots most lighter bullets in the .1's and .2's.

Trying to turn a cartridge into something it wasn't designed to be is the first step on the road to insanity. My dad was one of those guys. He developed varmint loads for .270's, a 7RM, an 06 and them tried to shoot 60gr bullets in his .22Hornet. This usually meant he never knew what anything was sited in for. He had fun but he dealt with frustration better than me.

I prefer to just buy another rifle and shoot one load in it. One of the great selling points of the 30/06 is it's versitility. Golly, it shoots everything from 110gr bullets to 220's. Good luck with getting them to both hit the same side of the planet.

Great info guys,thanks.Guess I will buy a couple boxes of this and that and see what works and what won't.I have a bunch of the 70 grain Speers,as they shoot really well out of one of my 22/250s.

I mainly want to shoot a heavier bullet out of this particular 222 (an Anschutz),because I want to deer hunt with it.But my grandfather and father have killed a mountain of deer with the 222-grandpa used whatever factory loads were on sale,and Dad used Speer 52 grain HPs.

But both of them are WAY better shots than me.But what is strange is that most of dad's deer he shot with the 222 with the 52 grain HP,were body shots.99% of grandpa's he shot between the eyes.

WB.

I shoot 15-20 does a year with a .223 shooting the 52 grain Speer HPs. I shoot them in the neck and 99.9% are dead in their tracks.

Guys,

How does one tell what twist rate you have without calling the manufacturer ? This is a special production run Ruger 77 MKII 222 stainless with black synthetic stock. I've only shot factory Remington 50gr and reloaded some Nosler 50grBT & Hornady 50grSP.

Ken

know how to do the old cleaning rod trick to measure the twist?

put cleaning rod in there all the way.. mark a point right at the muzzle on the cleaning rod.. slowly remove the road letting the rifle twist turn it as you remove it... as soon as the mark comes back top dead center, make another mark on the cleaning rod right in front of the muzzle...

then measure the distances between the two points... if it is 14 inches, your twist is one in 14, if it is 12 inches, your twist is one in 12... etc...

not rocket science, but close enough for government work...

If you can find some round noses they should shoot ok. I use 70 gr pointy bullets with the tips cut off to 60 or 65 gr.

This rifle (Rem Mod 7) has a Hart Stainless .222 1/14 twist 20" barrel..



It shoots Sierra 60gr HP's @ 2657 fps...



And last week I set the (so far) record for the gun,
Prairie Dog at 556 yards, plus a bunch of 'em at 250 to 300.

It also shoots 50gr BT's very well, but the 60's are worth a try.

WCB, my old Sako Vixen 222 has a 1:14 twist and handles the 70 gr Speer just fine.

Ted

I've never had great luck with 60 grain spitzers even in 1-12" twisted 223s. However, two heavier (shorter) bullets, the Sierra 63 and the Winchester 64 have shot quite decently in most 223s and several 222s I've loaded them for. Don't make the mistake of simply following formulas. Each rifle has rules unto itself.

Any powder recommendations for the 222 ? I've tried H322 and I just loaded 50 Nosler 50grBT with H335. Favorite powder and load ?

Ken

It doesn't get much better than RL7 close to 20 Gr should do it.

I just happen to have 2 lbs of RL7 on the shelf. I'll give it a try. Thanks.

Ken

"standard twist" for the .223 is 1-12. I shot 63grn Sierra's and 70grn Speer's out of a M788 - I wish I still had!

Accuracy was better than my ability to shoot at the time.

Twas me with a 'Duece,' I'd follow the advice already given and start working up loads with 50's, 52's, 53's and 55's. Depending on results would determine if I tried 60's.

I like him already!
Those 60gr Hornady SP's work for me. They kill better than do 55gr bullets.

303..,

I'm a big Hornady fan but, I've never had the long, pointy 60 grainers work in anything. The 63gr Speer is purposly built short and heavy for slow twist guns. Now that one has worked in most applications including a slow twist .222 and a 1/7 twist .223.

Nowdays if I want near that weight I go to 55gr VMAX in a .243 or 6mm.



O

OUTCAST, I have not tried the 63gr semi-point because in the hornet I would lose the flat shooting edge and the hornet is a small game cartridge anyway. I have found that the 60gr Hornady Spire Point does not penetrate the length of a possum but rips it on side on chest shots. (By that I mean the bullet does not reach the chest cavity from the rear). Which Hornady bullet did you try? I use the Spire Point and find it stabilizes fine in my 1 in 16 twist barrel at about 2500 - 2580 fps. But then for some strange reason, my hornet is also stabilizing a 55gr Boat Tail! That one is still to be tested at longer ranges but at 100m I got 4 out of five into 1/2 inch. Those were some old Nosler BT's. What knd of range do you get with the light weight 6mm V-Max's?

63 grain sierra semi point holds together well in the 223 and is wind resistant/flat enough to be of little issue out to 200 yards pretty easy. 222 isn't that different.

Jeff

rost..,

That's my experience,too. I've taken a big doe and a middlin buck with the 63grainer in my AR15. Both inside 100yds but it looked like a .270 in the chest cavity.

O

303..,

My dad tried the 60SP in his Hornet. Dismal failure as it had a 1-16 twist. He tried many differant heavy (longer) bullets and the thing just didn't shoot a decent shotgun pattern. When Hornady came out with the 35gr VMAX I loaded them with H110 and used small pistol primers - wallah - it became a one holer. Changed the nature of the gun completly. It now shoots more like a .222 inside 150yds (haven't tried it further).

I've tried the 60gr Hornady in .222, .223 (1-7 twist) and 22/250.
Accuracy just wasn't there. All the rifles shot just fine with other bullets. Not knocking Hornady at all. That particular bullet just hasn't worked for me using a variety of differant guns, calibers and load combos.

The 55gr VMAX has proven very accurate in both a 722 in .244 and a Ruger#I in 6mm. When the 55s are sited dead on at 100yds, 85gr Sierras hit about 2 1/2" high. Great deal that, allowing the same site in that's ideal for both varmints and deer without changing the scope.

I've actually got more experience with the 75 VMAX in .25/06. That thing is like shooting a lazer. Point- Pull- Poof. I've vaporized stuff out to 200yds, but have just not had a shot at a further target. I have confidence in that rig as far as I can SEE. I doubt the 6mms will be much differant - just can't quit pickin' up that 25/06 long enuff to find out.

O

That's interesting. I found the 60gr Hornady SP to be poor in my mini-14 with its 1 in 10 twist. But in the 1 in 16 twist hornet it shoots just fine. My first test with with the 60gr used 11.6gr Lil'Gun. That produced vertical stringing (but still a good group). I have worked my load up to 13.1gr Li'Gun with that bullet seated to fit the magazine. That means right down to the base of the neck. I speculate that the compression of the powder is what keeps the pressure down. That and the fact that I do not size the neck. I have not tried the 35gr V-max. Maybe its time I did.

I like the idea of your 55gr and 85gr loads being interchangeable. I have found that often the point of impact goes down with increase in powder charge. Do yours do that without shifting left or right? One day when I have my No.4 rebarrelled to 257R I will attempt to achieve the same for the same reason as you. (It might take a few different bullets worth of testing).

P.S. On Saturday I popped off a feral goat using a 55gr Hornady SP from the hornet. This is plenty gun and bullet for goat sized animals. The liver was blown apart and full penetration was achieved. The goat was still kicking so I gave it another shot that went too far to the rear. That one angled through the gut and exited through the rear leg. That would be close to 18 inches of penetration (maybe as little as 12?) It expired at that point. Range was about 90yds.

303..,

As I wrote earlier I usually stick with one load-one gun. But I bumped into the 55gr/85gr thing by accident.

I discovered a box of 85HPBT (game) and a box of 85SPT (vermin) left over on dad's reloading bench. The same load put both bullets right down the pipe with less than a quarter inch elevation difference. Both about 2 1/2" high at 100yds and grouping under an inch. Finished with that.

A friend showed up and wanted me to load some 55VMAX for
his .243. So, I loaded up some for my 6mm. Wonder of wonders, without changing the scope, the 55's were dead on at 100 at around 1/2". Never would'a tried them if it weren't for him.

I now had a 6mm that put 55's dead on (ideal for vermin) and 85s 2 1/2 high (ideal for deer)at 100yds without lateral dispersion. Pure dumb, unintended luck. To beat all, the gun is a Ruger #I which is not noted for accuracy.

Better lucky than good any day!

O