Home Forums Reloading Varmint Rifles Best powder for a .22-250?

I've used H380 very good accuracy but could never (I mean Never) get the quoted velocities out of that power. Thought I had a bad lot so I bought some more and even with a different lot got the same accurate but slower than advertised MV. Went to IMR 4895 better accuracy and 3800 + MV. Used that for a couple of years then tripped over Benchmark with lighter bullets it's great. I'm matching my 4895 accuracy but now I'm getting 3900 fps and some change in MV with 50 V-Max's and Blitzkings.

RL 15 works for me.

Anything around 4064 (15, VARGET, 4064)

IMR 4895 and RL 7 also!

IMR4895 I can see, RL7 is great for a 222 but put 50 on the end of it and I just dont see it. too fast of a burn rate even for 40 grainers.
B

Benchmark, RL-15 or H380- in that order for the 50-55gr pills. I'm shooting a factory Rem with 14 twist at 26". I found that H380 is pretty sensitive to temperature, so I stick with Benchmark now. Good luck.

There we have it in a nut-shell!

There is never a BEST powder for any rifle. Only what works best in MY rifle counts, and there's no magical single best power or charge that equals an instant short-cut for any of us, a "pet loads" concept or no!

I'm shooting a Tikka Master Class 595 Sporter factory 1:14 x 23" barrel with NXS 8-32x56 mm
Pet load is:
Nosler Custom brass, CCI BR-2 primers, Berger 52 Match 5 thou from rifling, 41.o grains Ramshot BigGame.
Avg. velocity is 3903 fps. Accuracy is 1/4" @ 200 yards
I had tried many of the powders listed in this thread but RAMSHOT Gameking provided highest velocity and best accuracy.
Very easy to pour and has reputation for not being temperature sensitive.
A close second was RL15 in the accuracy and highest velocity departments.
Varget gave the best single digit ES & SD chrony readings.
But the velocity was lower and not as accurate.

As you can see, there are many powders that will work. I hunted yotes with the 22/250 for a long time. I had many 700's and customs. What is very unusual, was that it seemed that everyone of them would prefer a different powder to get down to "bug hole" accuracy.

I prefered (for no good reason) to shoot the Sierra 55's of one persuasion or another or the Nosler 55's on yotes. I would start off with Win 760. If a rifle would love this powder, it was right at the max load which would send the 55's at their fastest velocities for this case. In one VSSF, I got 3850 fps with the 55g C/T bullet with an over book max load of 760, which shot groups in the .250-.325 area.

Some of the other rifles would prefer IMR 4064 34-35.5g with the 55's. Others would like the same powder charge of H 4895.

I shot a lot of yotes with 38.0g of H380, till I ran it across a speed checker...dang, the guy that wrote the reloading manual must have been smoking a joint on break to get the published velocity because mine was 200 fps less. Felt like I should go back and shoot all those dead yotes again, just to be on the safe side.

I have had a couple of very "in the know guys" recommend Benchmark with the 50's...that is on the "to do" list with my new barrel.

Seating depth and Primers choice seems to make a whale of a difference with this little case, no doubt that a powder choice will also have it's choice of primer that it loves.

Good luck!

Well I use a load of 30 grains of RL 7 for 50 to 60 grain bullets and its accuracy leaves nothing to apologize for against any powder in each of my 22.250s...

as far as it being too fast for even the 40 grainers...Lyman 47 lists it with the 40 grainers, with a charge o 33.0 grains as the fastest load with that bullet weight.. accuracy if nothing to sneeze at either...

I load it over by 1.5 grains in my rifle and am getting MVs of 4450 fps with the 40 grain ballistic tips 40 grain Sierra HPs and 40gr V Maxes, accuracy once again is more than adequate for any job you want to give it also...

RL 7 is not too fast at all for the 22.250, at least at my house...

Seafire,
I dont want to have a beef with you, it is just that I am a believer in using a somewhat appropriate burn rate powder in a certain cartridge. using too fast of burn rate powder's can make for pressure spikes and temp sensitive loads.
Using RL-7 in a 22-250 is just like some knucklehead saying that BlueDot is a great powder for a 30-06 (sorry I guess that was you also). if you shot these loads over a chronograph you would find that you would have hi extreme spreads and S.D.'s in the hi double digits or triple digits. they may be great in your "house" but most people prefer their house more in order.
I would hope that most people on this site would have enough common sense not to try 60 grainers in a 22-250 with RL-7.
B

Boatanchor...

not here to argue with you either sir...

I've had good luck with it, and the info was out of an older reloading manual, but it still has worked well for me...

we all can have different philosophies...

and we all can share what works well for us...

I have no problem with someone who might think it is too fast of a powder for the 22.250.... no more than I hope you don't have a problem with someone who thinks it is just fine...

however in this instance.. it was from published load data...

so whether you want to think I am a knucklehead or not is your business.. I won't return the inference....

but many of us use "knucklehead" loads all the time with no problems....so we are knuckleheads only in the eyes of those who think they know more or are smarter, since we use something different than they would use...

but it doesn't make our choices any less right or wrong that someone elses...

I use Either 37 grs. OR 38 Grs of H380 the 37 gr. load shoots consistent 3/8* groups at 100 yds BUT my preferred Hunting load is 38 Grs of H380 ,ww brass,match preped case,CC bench rest primer and a 55 Gr. Sierra Hollow Point.Just Yesterday I took a Coyote at 270 YDS.

What I have found in 45 years of reloading is that each rifle has it's own preferences. My wife's 22-250 likes IMR4064 and mine prefers H4895. If you have have some medium burning speed powders on your shelf try them first. Most 22-250's are easy to please.
Doc

Based on Keith's advice, I just loaded up a bunch of different 60 grain bullet loads for a 22-250 using 4350, and the new RL-17.
Will try them soon.

I suggest 4895 4064 and then varget in that order.

I gotta throw my hat in the ring for IMR 4895, currently shooting it with 53grTSX and 55gr Hornady in a Rem.7 with a 20" tube and still spittin 'em out at 3579 fps.
That powder has worked in a couple other .22-250s for me as well..
Ingwe

IMR4064 is a grest powder for the .22-250!! Buuut; i've been using Varget for the last 5-6 years, so thats another one to look at. IMR4895 is yet another fine powder. Fun as heck isn't it!? Oh, by the way, I only shoot 55gr. Sierra BTHP. Good luck.

Well, gotta be odd man out once again. Went out and shot my tang safety M77 22-250 today. Put 5 shots into a group I could cover with a dime. 52Gr Hornady V-Max and 37 grains of VV N150. I'm pretty happy with that.

Hornady makes a 50 and a 55grain V-Max but not a 52gr V-Max.
You might be refering to the 52grain A-Max ????
B