A terrific little cartridge, but one that gets absolutely no respect from the media, rifles normally chambered for it, no local availability of commercially loaded ammunition and higher prices for it when you do find it. I've got a Cooper .221 Fireball that is a great choice for Wisconsin because our varmints aren't so big or abundant as in other places and the distances where we can shoot are usually full of trees. The Fireball was named correctly given the flash that I saw coming out of a friend's XP100, but in a rifle it is a real joy to shoot. Less noise and recoil than a .223 or .22-250 with longer case life. More oomph than a Hornet or K-hornet and it doesn't blow around like a .17 something. Given what I've seen since I bought my Fireball, I should have probably opted for a .222 or .223 because I fear my Fireball is going the way of my old .222 Remington Magnum. A great cartridge with no visible means of support.
