Home Forums Reloading Varmint Rifles .220 Wilson Arrow neck reaming

If anyone has a .220 Wilson Arrow, do you ream the neck after forming the cases from .220 Swift as the lower part of the neck has thicker brass (from the shoulder of the Swift case)?

No, but it may need trimming

Do you not neck ream because 1. the brass in the lower neck is not thicker (Winchester brass?) or 2. The bearing surface on the projectiles you use doesn't touch the lower part of the neck?

A friend of mine shoots one and i can tell you that he doesn't even know what an inside neck reamer is. I do know that he loads so that the bullet doesn't even get close to the bottom of the neck as the throat on his rifle is pretty long.

Yes, and that would in the past be the case. But with the new 62 grain ELD-VT, to keep within magazine length, it would seem that the bearing surface might extend down to the bottom of the neck...hence the question. Of course, a fast twist barrel and I expect a reamer with perhaps zero free-bore would probably also need to be used.

I know Joe Darbyshire, who lives in Show Low AZ, has the rifle Ken Howell made in 220 Arrow.

Joe comes to the campfire get togethers in AZ, but I've seldom see him on the campfire anymore, due to being another casualty who didn't feel like putting up with the BS, that has become the campfire.. and is nothing like it is these day.

Maybe Paul or Kent will see this and chime in Paul (CCCC) and Kent ( krp). They know Joe better than I do, and know how to get in touch with him. I've been to his home, but don't have his phone contact.

If anyone can answer your questions it would be Joe... he got his from the source who developed the cartridge if I'm not mistaken.

I think you may be mistaken about who developed this cartridge, but agree with you on the direction that this forum has taken
The tone of the original poster’s replies makes me disinclined to answer further

Your replies were worth nothing because you didn't give reasons. You seem like a dickhead, so don't give any more of your "pretend to know things, but don't really answer the question" replies. Piss off idiot.

Seafire, Believe your thinking about the 220 Howell, off an old forum post. Neck reaming isn’t needed for the arrow.

Ken Howell
New member
JoinedJan 22, 2001
Messages26
LocationStevensville, Montana USA
Thanks, Dan! It's good to be here. I "cruised" the place a long time before I posted the above — not because I was being cautious, but because I didn't have anything to add to what I saw asked and answered here.

Yes, the .220 Howell is one of the cartridges I've designed. Over two hundred by now, I'd guess. Over a hundred I know. The .220 Howell is my current favorite, since at my age (70) and financial status (typical meal: shadow soup made with dehydrated water), I'll probably never hunt big game again. Varmint-shooting has always been one of my favorite shooting pastimes anyway.

I designed the .220 Howell after a long wait for the appropriate bullets (high-BC 75-grain and heavier) and powders (IMR-7828, Ramshot Big Boy, and their near-kin) to be available. I wanted a long-range cartridge that would out-shoot the .220 Swift and my beloved .22-.250 at long prairie-dog ranges on the windy plains, yet not burn barrels up in a day or two of shooting. And that's just what I got. This cartridge makes the Swift look a lot poorer than it actually is.

The rationale or philosophy behind the design takes a little explanation.

• First, it is the high heat that accompanies high peak pressures that rapidly erodes chamber throats. Since the temperature and the pressure are essentially Siamese twins, and pressure is what we "measure" and talk about, the usual (and correct) way of saying this is that "throat erosion is a function of high peak pressures."

• Second, the wise and proper industry concern for shooters' safety has led the industry to establish two "official" pressure levels — (a) proof level, which is for one-time industry use, not for handloaders, and (b) maximum SAFE level, which is for the maximum SAFE use, no matter what effects it may have on accuracy, barrel life, or anything else but S, A, F, E, T, Y.

• Third, it's well established ancient knowledge that a significantly lower peak pressure (and its lower peak temperature, of course) allows the rifle to shoot a heck of a lot more rounds without cooking the throat out.

• Fourth, it's also solid, ancient knowledge that a more aerodynamic bullet (which almost always means a heavier bullet) retains its velocity, energy, trajectory, and cross-wind resistance a lot longer than a less aerodynamic bullet that starts out faster but also slows down faster.

So what I did was school-boy simple. I designed a cartridge with about 25% to 30% more capacity than the .220 Swift, but intended to be loaded (a) to significantly less than its SAAMI-safe potential but (b) to more-moderate pressures with slower powders and higher-BC bullets.

The result is a cartridge that starts heavier bullets on their way a bit slower (3,450 to 3,600 ft/sec) than the factory .220 Swift's 3,800 ft/sec, at peak pressures of 45,000 to 50,000 lb/sq in. instead of the Swift's over 60,000 lb/sq in.

The 75-grain Hornady in the Howell slows to the same velocity as the Remington factory .220 Swift bullet at about 180 to 190 yards and rapidly increases its velocity advantage (and related advantages) from that point on out.

A 10-mi/hr, 90º cross-wind at 1,000 yards blows the 75-grain Hornady (from a .220 Howell) about 70 inches off-course, and the Remington .220 Swift bullet about 170 inches off-course.

The brass is available unloaded or loaded. I have a small supply, but not enough for a dedicated, determined prairie-dogger, and I can't afford to buy the factory .220 Howell brass by the thousand, so I'll be re-forming a bucket of new Winchester .25-06 cases.

The .220 Howell case is a .25-06 shortened to 2.400 inches, with a neck 0.375 inch long and a 25º shoulder. Its gross capacity (full to the mouth) is about 61 or more grains of water, depending on the make of the brass and its internal dimensions.

As I said, I could load the cartridge a lot hotter — higher velocities, and even higher peak pressures — and some shooters will, no doubt, being obsessed with the highest possible muzzle velocities and to Hell with barrel life and accuracy. But that isn't what I designed this cartridge for. Throttled back to barrel-coddling pressures, it still out-shoots the superb .220 Swift out where the bullet hits the 'dog.

Why wouldn't neck reaming be needed for the Wilson Arrow if long high b.c. bullets are used with a fast twist barrel? The case is formed by lengthening the neck of the Swift case and using a 30 degree shoulder instead of 21 degrees, and using part of the shoulder to lengthen the neck. In most cases, this would mean thicker brass for the lower neck. Yes you can get away with not reaming it for the 50-55 grain bullets it was designed for, but what about the long modern bullets to seat within magazine length using a reamer with a short throat? Even if the bearing surface of the bullet doesn't touch the lower neck, you are still restricting the flow of gas up the neck with the inside donut.

I could enlighten you, but after that rant, not worth my time.

Swifty, you're another fhucwit along with Castle Rock who pretends to know all but in reality knows very little.

That was predictable, nice tantrum 👍

A pair of very old phag trolls.

Swifty, how come you're so poor that you have to reduce your loads in the .220 Swift by 200 fps so you don't have to replace the barrel? If you have a Swift you run it at full-throttle...that's why you have a Swift. You must really cringe each time you trim brass off the end of your stretching cases. I couldn't imagine being such a loser, having such a low IQ that you are unable to earn enough money to run proper loads, what's it like being so dumb and poor?

Why would anyone GAF about your "issues" after running your suck like that? Sounds as if you already know your POS chambering comes with problems built in, so go flap your gums somewhere else.

Grovey ...I don't care whether do-nothing, know-nothing insignificant schidts like you GAF or not. You don't know the answers to the original question posted and neither does any of the other know-nothing know-alls. It was my thread, so you go flap your gums somewhere else. Seems like all the losers are coming out of the woodwork with this thread.

Sounding more and more like a little twig sock puppet, off to ignore ya go.

Swifty, how come you're so poor that you have to reduce your loads in the .220 Swift by 200 fps so you don't have to replace the barrel? If you have a Swift you run it at full-throttle...that's why you have a Swift. You must really cringe each time you trim brass off the end of your stretching cases. I couldn't imagine being such a loser, having such a low IQ that you are unable to earn enough money to run proper loads, what's it like being so dumb and poor?