Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Predators and Varmints Going for speed - 22-250, 220 swift, or 223 WSSM?

I had it and 3 others built to shoot. When they aren't shooting, they sure are a pleasure to look at...

Can I have one?


Travis

It's a beautiful rig, I go with some pretty high end smiths but I go with Mc stock vs. wood.

yeah, I've always noticed that Shrapnel always has some pretty Cadillac stuff...

just gorgeous pieces of equipment...

he hasn't posted them in a while, but he sure has some great photos of the impact on PDs on the receiving end.. always love to see him post pics of his rifles and his hunts..

In a factory rifle, which is what you (OP) mentioned it would be hard to beat the standard .22-250 especially if you don't reload. The great .220 Swift beats it but is harder to find these days it seems. If one could be had and you reload it's a great choice.

One rifle in a hot pdog town on a typical summer day, that barrel will be pleanty hot, even a heavy varmint type.
I switch between a .222 Rem and the .22-250, by the time they are both hot, you're waiting for the little buggers to come back out anyway. I've also given a lot of thought to the .204 Ruger for the next pdog rifle.

Thanks for the kind words, I was out again today with a set of 222 mags. These can easily be considered speedy as well. Very accurate cartridge and still sends a 40 grain bullet down range in excess of 3800 FPS. Shot some prairie dogs and a harmless rabbit...

Cool stuff as always there Shrapnel!

I like those nice of Sakos...passed on one about 10 yrs ago, that belonged to a Doctor Friend of mine, who died and his wife wanted me to have it.. it was chambered in a 222 Rem....

I thought it should stay in his family...but I am sure it was taken and hocked by his nephew...

it was a sweet rifle.. he picked it up in Oz when he went down there for a few years to work on a sheep station in west Australia back in the late 50s and early 60s...

Ross Seyfried wrote an article about his pet 22-250 rifle and loads for Guns&Ammo years ago. Anyone have a copy they could scan me or let me know what issue it was and ill find one?
Thanks

Jeffrey, If your going to use strictly factory ammo I would go with the Swift, The 22-250 is easier on brass but in your case you can just clean off the swift cases and sell them on here as once fired and move on. I personally set my rifles up for specific distances when I hit the Prairie Dog battle field. This is how I do it. One thing I should mention is my Swift has a 1-8 twist I shoot both 52G and 75G bullets with a simple adjustment of the scope.

22 Rimfire 10- 200 yards
223AI 100-400
220 Swift 100-750
25-06AI 300-1000

A quick twist 22-250 built on a barreled action that mirrors a 700 CDL-SF and bedded in a McM McM Hunter would do the trick for me. My current 22-250 deer rifle is a Marlin XS-7 with a rechambered Stevens 200 1-9" ROT 223 barrel. That rifle and the 60 grain Partition is a sure deer killer within my self-imposed limits. No recoil, flat shooting, accurate, easy to load for, what more could you want?

Just have to put in my opinion on this thread since I have been shooting a swift a 22-250 or a variant of both for most of my adult life.

For some reason H380 seems to work well in a 22-250 but is the worst powder I ever tried in a swift, dont know how it is possible but H380 is somewhat stable in a 22-250 but is ultra temp.sensitive in a swift.
My powder of choice in the swift is H414 (Win760).

As for VVN550 I have witnessed it burn up barrel's in half the time of the "1" series powders like VVN160, an extra 50fps is not worth it to me.

For the 1-8" twist in both the 22-250AI or swift AI shooting the heavies, I like RL19 or IMR4831.

A 17 rimfire magnum would be fun. I see lots of them laying on the ground where I hunt.
If you reload the .223 with a 40 gr Ballistic Tip or V- Max at 3700 fps you will have lots of fun. My 220 Swift will throw the 50 gr as fast as a .223 will throw 40 gr. However the .220 Swift is loud and heats up fast and has more recoil. But if you like special effects it is your huckleberry! Before I owned a .220 Swift I had a 25-06 with 75 gr hp @3500 fps. It turned prairie dogs into three stage rockets!
Enjoy while it is still legal.
whelennut

I gotta agree with the fella that said .204 with 40 grain Vmax. Speed, factory ammo, .20 cal components easier to find this year. Less barrel heat than a 22-250, but not by much. 50 rounds of Fiocchi factory for $30-40/box. Less powder, less heat. Lots of nice factory guns to choose from.

I love my .220 Swift Ruger #1V. But for prairie dogs you need to have more than one so you can let one cool while you shoot the other one. I think the .204 Ruger would get plenty hot after some shock and awe.
whelennut

Spotshooter, I bought the 220 Swift Ruger #1V and would do it all again!
whelennut

A picture of Beauty and the Beast.
whelennut