Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 220 swift for Antelope??

A 60 grain Partition would be my first bullet of choice in a 220 Swift. I bet the 64 gr PP would work well too. I’ve killed feral hogs with them.

We've killed antelope and deer with the Hornady 60SP, with no problem. It will do fine.

Since they have a 60 grain minimum I would go with the 60 grain Hornady. Try both the HP and SP. Go with whichever shoots best.

Back in the late 90's, I bought a Mod 700 Classic in .220 Swift from a retired AF Colonel. He shot he Hornady 60sp in it for depredation hunts here in Utah. He and some friend shot several pick up loads of mule deer and antelope culling. I had that rifle made into a 6.5/284, which was pure dynamite, but later had that 24" Swift barrel put on a Model 7 and a Kepplinger single Set Trigger. I used the then available Federal Factory load using the 55gr Trophy Bonded Bearclaw. I killed mule deer and varmints in Utah with it, blackbuck antelope and axis deer in Texas. The old Rancher wanted the rifle so I traded it toward a Scimitar Oryx about a year later ( with a 6x47 Wildcat/85 xbt) My wife's cousin's husband ( wow that was hard) has used a Ruger 77 220 Swift since HS, about 45 years now...its wicked! Have a ball man...:)

PS. I shot a lot of those Sierra 63 smp in a regular 22-250 (factory twist) a 22-250AI in 9" twist and in the 224 TTH ( 8" twist) it is Jim Dandy also.

This is my thought exactly.

With option #3 being the 63 Sierra, which is the best-shooting 22 caliber bullet I've ever shot. They shot extremely well pushed to about 3500 in a 223WSSM. I never killed anything with them, but I would not be afraid to.

55 grain would be illegal, so that it the wrong suggestion.

Based on pig shooting, the 55 gr Ballistic Tip in a 220 isn’t a good bullet for anything like a deer. The 63 gr Sierra SMP would be my first choice, having used them on a few deer and pigs. My 220 has a short barrel (20”) and will not stabilize the 60 gr Partition, which would be my first choice if it would stabilize, which it almost does. If I had a longer barrel and could push the Partition faster, I think it would work.

Of the 60 gr Partition, the 64 gr Nosler BSB, and the 65 gr Sierra GK, only the Partition would stabilize under certain conditions. The 64 gr BSB keyholed and I have no idea where any of the Gamekings went, but it wasn’t on paper. I have heard from trustworthy hunters that the 55 gr Sierra GK bullet will work on deer and pigs. I have some loaded up, but haven’t tried them out on game. They are very accurate and print almost in the same place as the 55 gr Ballistic Tips.

Hale killed several deer and a couple of pigs with the 70 grain Speer in a 223 with a 9” twist. Shoots sub MOA and all shots have been complete pass through. Interested to see how people do with it in slower twist and faster rounds.

According to state law gotta be 60 gr minimum.

My bad.....didn't read very closely!!

One bullet I miss for this application id the old Nosler 60gr Solid Base.

It stabilized properly in 1:14" and was a great killer!

I shot my last box on a springbuch cull hunt in Namibia some years ago and I really miis them,

I don't know how big your deer are but the 55 Gamekings work on our whitetails here in western Missouri. Shoot through most with a 223 and shoot through better than half from a 22-250, behind the shoulder lung shots.

What type of terminal performance did you generally get? Was this in a 22-250?

The 64 g win power point works well on deer and is kind of short so it may stabilize. I used to load them for my little brother so he could kill deer with his 12 twist 223.

I've got some of the nosler Bonded solid base 64s and they look pretty stubby too but I haven't shot them yet.

Bb

I got pass-throughs most of the time but then, a springbuck is a lightly framed animal weighing somewhere around 60-80 lbs. Tissue damage was quite adequate even in lung shots that would not touch any heavy bones.

This was in a 1:14” 22-250.

In a 5,6x57 with a 1:10” twist I always had the impression that they would expand more, possibly due to cybe higher spinning rate.

Alvaro

They make a bonded solid base from time to time. Unfortunately it is almost a semi-spitzer in shape. I guess for slow twist barrels. The 55 & 60 grain Hornadays always worked for me in the 223 and 22-250 on deer. My only reservation is if the wind starts really kicking up the Swift would be limited in range.
Like the old bad joke of a Wyoming wind gauge being an anvil on a chain.

Nosler makes 60 gr. Partitions