Home Forums Hunting & Shooting AR and Tactical Rifles Comments from WOA on 22 Nolser & 224 Valkyrie

From their current newsletter.

Notes From The Shop
Spring has finally arrived in Central Illinois and two new cartridges the .22 Nosler and .224 Valkyrie continue to keep us busy, not only making the barrels, but answering questions too. So much information is available online, some of it even accurate information, but much of it just marketing hype. The result being that it is very hard to sort the wheat from the chaff and it is leaving a lot of people confused.
We are working on an article for next month’s newsletter to hopefully shed some light on the topic, or maybe just add to the information overload. Bottom line is both are great cartridges with just enough difference that they each fill a slightly different niche. Both have also had its obstacles to overcome. The Nosler was hindered early on by some poor brass, and with the Valkyrie we have learned again that the 90 gr .224 bullets do not reliably stabilize in a 1-7 twist (we learned that the first time back 20 years ago when we were shooting the 90’s in our service rifles). Nosler has made improvements to the brass which from early testing looks to have taken care of or at least greatly reduced the problems, and we are working on ramping up our inventory of 1-6.5 twist barrels for those who want to shoot the 90 gr and 95 gr bullets out of either cartridge. At this time we are assuming the 95 gr will work in a 1-6.5 twist based on Sierra’s information, but we have not done our own testing. However I have found that you can usually trust Sierra for such information (the Sierra box said that the 90’s needed a 1-6.5, it was the Federal box that said 1-7 would do). Fortunately, there are a lot of very good 75-83 gr bullets that will stabilize in a 1-7 and give excellent long range performance.
Again, we hope to have something put together for the next issue with some chronograph data and our thoughts on the cartridges and the differences between them.

MM

If John offers it, it will be a success.

Most likely; they are about the nicest group of people in the industry to deal with.

Depending on where things go, I could be very interested in the Valkyrie.

MM

Me too.....glad I didn't jump in early but can't wait to get one set up for LR varmint hunting......

I am very interested in the valkyrie too, I would like to compare it to a 22-250 with similar rifling.

I'm a big fan of WOA! I had the opportunity to have John and son, Ben, here for a hog hunt a few weeks ago. A real down to earth guy. At the Shilen Swap Meet I noticed that Shilen now has a 1in6.5 twist barrel. Wade said it was for the Valkyrie.

They should have had the 6.5 twist when we were still shooting.. could have kept the business here instead of at Pac Nor.

I was thinking the valkyrie was the 6.8 necked down and as such its been around a long time, I was thinking the nosler might be a bit faster and more worthwhile... I"ll have to google all that at some point.

Be nice to read Johns article when done.

Here's an article that gives some case capacity & other info..............they hadn't quite come to the conclusion yet when this was written that Holiger has regarding the needed twist on the Valkyrie as they are still talking about a 1:7 twist.

Only real downside, if you can call it that, with the Valkyrie is the need for a bigger bolt face than .378"...........it needs a .422" case head diameter.

MM

American Hunter Comparision

Another interesting article on the Valkyrie.

Velocity Comparisons

MM

Not all John touches is a commercial success, but he is up front about capabilities and pluses and minuses, and that is but one of the factors that keep me doing lots of business with him.

The Valkyrie requires a new bolt in addition to a new barrel. But you can run 6.8 SPC brass if I'm understanding correctly which makes it easy to feed.
The Nosler allows you to use your 223 bolt, but you're stuck using their brass.

If I were shopping, I'd go Valkyrie just because I'd get a new bolt with an new upper as a matter course.

John has tons of experience with this class of cartridge. He developed the 6mm WOA and helped out with the PDK, and built HAGAR uppers (including for Carl Bernosky's which he won multiple Highpower Championships with). He's flagged the stuff that worked as well as the stuff that didn't and is honest and forthright about sharing either.

I don't see much of a problem using a 6.8 bolt. What are they? About $50? I eat bolts for lunch.

No, there's not a problem.

MM

Who takes care of your hemorrhoids?

Hot sauce dissolves the steel.

I am interested in the Valkerie with 90 grain bullets. What you want sometimes is never going to Be available. A 20 inch pencil barrel profile is fine for what I have in mind. Good info that 1-7 is not fast enough for the Valkyrie 90 grain.

I'm not so sure that a 6.5 twist is need for 90 gr SMK's...............probably for some of the longer, tapered VLD type bullets, though.

If I build one, I think I'm going to focus it around the 80 ELD bullet as it's the ballistic equal of the 90 SMK when started at 2950-3000 FPS & it should run just fine in a 7 twist. And I can get there with a 20" barrel................I don't want a 22 or 24" barrel; if I did, I'd put it into a bolt gun.

Guess I won't really know 'till I try it though............be a summer project to get all the parts I would want & build the upper. This stuff is gettin' expensive.

Maybe I can just get me a Radical Arms $100 barrel & shoot .750" groups all day, every day, as long as I do my part.

MM

You are right, it's not needed. A 1/7 will handle the 90 SMK at 223 velocities just fine, at least out to 600. The 90 Berger VLD on the other hand......

90 JLK was were it was at for best BC when I was shooting.

I never saw any real advantage of the 90 smk at the time, but maybe out of a mag there could be some really good stuff actually.

FWIW 90 jlks I shot a lot of out of a 7 twist, enough to say with WARM loads, they were just a bit on the edgy side, and not quite round holes at 300 yards already showing. 6.5 twist changed all that.

I don't see the use of going barely there personally and would err to the side of caution if I were to head down one of these paths.

Especially since I never had a 6.5 twist that would not shoot 52 smks into snug groups, though it would tear apart thinner jacketed bullets like 60 flat base Sierra HP typically... so those were out the window for practice, but 68 hornadys were around plenty cheaply at the time...

Last caveat my JLK days were running 80s around 2725, though you could get to 2775ish but it was not needed and was tough on brass and more pressure than I cared for... so 2725 was enough FPS with a 90 jlk to stay supersonic at 1000 yard matches easily.

Yes, I agree with you, Jeff.

Maybe by the time I get around to buying a barrel, Holiger will have some 6.5's available; ARP is saying latter this summer too for them to have 'em.

MM

Well before JLK brought the 90 onto the scene, we shot only 80s as heavies.

Even back then, we shot a lot of 8s, 7.7s and 7s. I always had the best luck with the 7s... Not sure why as to some they would be a bit much...

OTOH my benchrest buddy Nez still shoots slow on purpose in the AR... 9 twist with 80s. LOL. Go figure. I always thought we were similar skill set levels.