my dad has a .222 remington in a 788 that he never uses. As a result I have been taking care of it. I am now out of ammunition and am thinking about reloading some of the shells. My question is has there been a consensus as to what bullet works best in general out of this gun. The gun put the first two into less than an inch but the third bullet out of the twelve dollar box of bullets opened the group to over an inch. I hope that the gun will shoot better with handloads.

Depends what you are using it for, deer or antelope I would use a barnes TSX, 53 grain I think? If you are going after gophers/coyotes I would use a 40 or 50gr vmax if you can afford them, if not go with a 55gr lead tip, they are about half the cost, although maybe not quite as accurate.

For small varmints, 40 grain VMAX is pretty impressive. For up close, inside 100 yards, it might be worth trying the 35 grain VMAX, but it has a low BC and isn't so good downrange.

(I don't have a .222, I've had .221 and .223, shot a friend's dad's .222 a little, but I'm not sure what he loads it with.)

Tom

I disagree with most of this post,I would never use a 222Rem for deer or antelope. I would never use a barnesTSX or a 55gr lead tip. I do agree on trying the 40gr-50gr V-Max. on all the 222's I have had the 40's seem to work the best for varmint hunting, but for top accuracy the 50gr to 53gr match type bullets have worked the best. I have never owned a 222 that shot 55grainers well.
B

40 grain NBT's are the 40 grainer,IMO, and one I'd certainly try in any 222 I owned.

I have a 722 Rem 222 and have shot deer with it with no problems using 55gr SP but will be trying 70gr SSP this year.
I load 50 & 55 grains for varmints and coyotes.

I use a 222 savage as a kid in Southern Oregon on deer so when a deal came on the Rem 722 I had to go for it for old times sake.
So far it been a lot of fun and would buy a 222 again, not as fast as a 223 or 22-250 but I can live with it.

I use a surplus mil powder with about the same burning rate as H-335.
Larry

As for shooting Deer and/or Antelope with 22 centerfires I have seen it done so many times and so efficiently that I have not considered it controversial for more than 20 years now!
I have done it myself on many occassions as well.
My good friend here in Dillon, Montana has used a 204 Ruger very successfully on Whitetails for the last 3 years!
Shot placement and a good 22 caliber soft point bullet from a 22 centerfire will render a Deer into steaks VERY reliably!
I presently load for and shoot 6 (six) Rifles in caliber 222 Remington - its one of my all time favorite calibers!
And one of my all time favorite bullets to reload in my 222's is the plain old, humble, Sierra 50 grain Blitz (not the BlitzKing!)!
This bullet is accurate, reliably lethal on all manner of Varmints AND it is rather economical by todays standards!
I have yet to try this bullet in any 222 and come up with anything less than "acceptable accuracy".
Best of luck with your 788 and your reloading.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Depends on what you want to do with it. I've had four Deuces and it is a great cartridge. It gives up nothing to a 223 (well a hundred fps and decimals for windage/drop).

Use a 40gr. BT, BK or V-Max for prairie dogs and the like or for no-exits on 'yotes.

I like 50 gr. Sierra Varminters for all around.

Best accuracy is with fifties.

A 222 in the right spot is fine for deer sized game (big surprise).

When you get to handloads and still have your flyer check the forend bedding.

Defintely agree with HawkI. The 3 deuce gives up nothing to the 223. I get the best results in the prairie dog town with Nosler Ballistic Tips; 40 or 50 grainers. VMaxes a close second. I've never had a forty grain B-Tip exit a coyote.

i just picked up a hundred unprimed winchester brass for 18 something. I also got 100 50 grain .224 diameter v-max bullets for 18. I'm going to give them a try. I have some federal and cci small pistol primers. Now I just need some powder. Anyone have a favorite powder?

Reloader #7 and any kind of 50-53 grain bullet.

ReLoader7 or H4198 both are great choices for speed and accuracy in the 222.

Dittos; Reloder 7 and fifty grain V-Maxes shoot SILLY!
Benchmark is also good for the fifties.

I like H4198 and Reloder 10x for the forties.

I would get some small rifle primers though.

Reloader #7 is my choice with IMR-4198 coming in second. Nosler make a 52gr hp Match that shoots 1 hole with 19 or 20 grains reloader 7.Every rifle is a lady that likes something different when it comes to loads.

the most accurate load used in Hunter class shooting a few years back was Win 748 near max load, and 53gr Sierra MK,Primers Fed gold match
For hunting try 55 gr Nosler BT

My old 700 varmint just loves 50 gr. Hornady SX's. Ground hogs do not. Best load for my combo is 25 gr. 748 CCI small rifle primers, Remington cases. I prefer 50 gr or lighter bullets.

I'll echo Britlover on the Hornady SX's, a fine, often overlooked bullet that often shoots better than the V Max, which is saying something. They are also relatively inexpensive compared to the V Max, can't overlook that, either. I don't own a Deuce, but I shoot them in a .221 Fireball and love 'em.

I have to make this one more recommendation! The Hornady SX 50gr has beaten many of the newer plastic tipped bullets in several rifles for accuracy.

It doesn't hurt that they are cheaper, but I'd use them even if they cost more -- accuracy in a .22 cal centrefire is what counts!

John

Just purchased a Ruger 77 MKII stainless in 222. I'm taking notes. Can't wait to pop a dog with this baby. Bolt feels a little gritty and trigger a little stiff but we'll get it worked on.

Ken

Hi Ken

The .222 Rem is the least fussy cartridge I've ever reloaded for -- most combinations work pretty well!

However, do try that Hornady 50gr SX before you stop load development -- that one has surprised me in a few rifles.

However, that bullet just doesn't look as sexy as the plastic tipped ones!

John

My old Remington 722 is accurate with about anything that is assembled right. But the best bullet so far is the old Nosler 50 grain solid base lead tipped, ( I have about 400 left). It is also very accurate in my Swifts. Hornady 50 graing V-max is excellent also. My standard load in 222 is 24.5 grs BLC-2.

79inpa,

Back in the good ol' days, when I only had one rifle for varmints, it was a 788 in .222 Remington. Fitted with a Leupold 8x, it would put the Speer 52-Grain hollow-points, (the one with the BIG hollow-point!) pushed by BLC-2, into one ragged cluster. And man did it do a number on ground squirrels and crows!

But, like I said, that was the good ol' days. Now I have multiple varmint rifles that cost way more than that 788/Leupold combo, and not a single one of them shoots any better. Oh well, live and learn!

Good luck with your reloading adventure!

Rich

That is a cool old piece, you should get it out and give it some exercise.

I kind of have a thing for the Speer 50 TNT, I've found them to be very accurate, very deadly and about as cost efficient as I can find.

You may wanna consider giving them a go.

Dober

My 788 in .222 loves 40 grain VMAX's and Benchmark. I won't trade it for anything. Ugly as a baboon's butt, but oh how it shoots. I shoot Pdogs and ground squirrels out to and beyond 300 yards.

RJ

I have used the 60 gr. Hornady HP and SP for years on deer with perfect results. What few bullets I have recovered were perfect mushrooms. Most i have gotten nickle size exit holes.

I like the 40 gr. bullets such as the Vmax on varmints. but the 50 and 52 gr. Sierras work well and shoot very good.