.22-250 load and general questions.

[TOMY,HMR 0]

Hell again everyone.

 

I should hopefully have my license back through the post in a few weeks, with my request for a .22-250 and .22lr granted, To go along side the .17hmr. I have

done a lot of research into reloading and all the other issues regarding the .22-250. I do have a few questions i need answering.

 

1. What are the pros and cons of using a heavier bullet (55gr) and what are the ballistic characteristics, does it combat wind drif better?

 

2.Is accuracy better with match bullets than say ballistic tip bullets? Do match bullets richochet more? And in general does the .22-250 round have a tendonsey to richochet badly? and what would you consider to be a safe enough back stop for the calibre? does it deflect badly of general ground (soil and mud)?

 

3. Can you all please give me some good receipes for loads. I have been researching from reloading manuals and dvds, but i cant seem to find a good solid load. Info on what is good brass, bullets, primers and what powder to use?

 

4. I was thinking for the rifle a remington 700 SPS tactical or varmint. But i might save up a bit more and go for the Remington 700 VLS. Are these good guns in this calibre?

 

5. If i was to get a rifle with a heavy target barrel, can they be fitted with a mod, or does the width of a target barrel prevent the use of a mod such as the T8 or predator 8.

 

6. When reloading what would you say is the most critical point of the process,ie... case overall length, powder weight, seating depth, weathere the case mouth has been turned or not, etc.......

 

 

Thank you all for you time and answers, I n i must sound very in experienced but we all have to start somewhere dont we. Cheers

[SNAP SHOT 194]

pros and cons of a heavier bullet, all depends on the style of the bullet, but a heavier bullet may be harder hitting even at a slower speed.

cons make sure the twist rate in the barrel can stabilise the bullet. can a heavier bullet stand wind drift better, all depends on what is called the ballistic coeifficent of the bullet, the higher the B.C. the better as it is more aerodynamic.

 

2) Accuracy better with match or ballistic tip, all depends on the load used, seating depth, you just have to find a good bullet, powder combination that your rifle likes. Safe back stop, something solid like a hill, i never shoot at anything unless i'm sure i know the bullet will stop at in case of pass through.

 

3) recipies for loads reloadersnest.com is good

 

4) yes heavy barrels can be fitted with a mod. but the mod will then heat quicker than the barrel as is the case with a light barrel but look at the weight of the rifle with both a heavy barrel and mod, it will be very front heavy.

 

5) critcial reloading processes, are proper case length, powder weight, and case overall length, some rifles like to touch the lands of the rifles other like a little jump, all depends on your own weapon. seating depth is critcial.........it should be as consistant as possible. As for neck turning there is no need to on an ordinary hunting rifle. no need to measure the weight of each bullet, or the brass either, this is for benchrest shooting or extended distances with hand made rifles.

 

6) safety is paramount when reloading, pay attension to each and every process along the way, one mistake may cost you a good rifle or your life.

 

7) i always find hornady and sierra and nosler, make extremely good bullet heads. start with hornady.

 

enjoy it.

[TOMY,HMR 0]

Cheers Snapshot, Any more people care to help?

[SNAP SHOT 194]

Also forgot to add LAPUA brass is the best you can get, norma, good also, winchester also good.

 

 

http://www.reloadersnest.com/frontpage.asp?CaliberID=21

 

 

Varget also gives excellent accuracy with most of the hornady range of bullets for the 22-250.

[FJager 0]

I would have to say Snap Shot has given some very good advice there, the only thing I can add is start at moderate loads and work your way up to maximine.

Boat tail bullets are the choice in my opinion with a PSP.

55 grainer is probably perfect for the .22/250, remember the speed it is putting the projectile out at.

As for richochet, this is possible with any rifle.

[SNAP SHOT 194]

I would have to say Snap Shot has given some very good advice there, the only thing I can add is start at moderate loads and work your way up to maximine.

Boat tail bullets are the choice in my opinion with a PSP.

55 grainer is probably perfect for the .22/250, remember the speed it is putting the projectile out at.

As for richochet, this is possible with any rifle.

 

the only thing I can add is start at moderate loads and work your way up to maximine

 

 

Thought this would have been common sense but overlooked it, well spoted

[gyrfalcon 0]

Snap shots covered it all well.

I use both a 40g nos ball tip and a 50 grain. in a rem 700 22.250 All depends what I'm shooting at and where. 40 g. dissolves corvids, and stays inside geese and foxes at 100 plus yds, so reducing risk of ricochet. 50 will rip a fox open up to 300yds. 50 more stable in heavy wind. Lighter bullet and heavier load will tend to make bullet disintegrate, so far never heard a ricochet with the 40, no doubt it could happen one day, but have when using 50's. Backstop should be as big and sandy as possible, always scout the shooting area in daytime, look at the ground, and see what could be hit if you do have a ricochet. If in doubt don't shoot, no point in ruining your life for one dodgy fox shot.

Currently using hogden varget cci primers, nosler bullets, and the recomended dose on the tin seems to suit the rifle, so sticking with that. Getting .5 inch MOA@150 yds which is fine for me. Generally sight in at 200 yds and don't have to really mess about with elevation when shooting in the field.

 

Now tend to use 40's in 223 and 50's in 22 250. to avoid hassle of resighting.

Hope this helps.

[SNAP SHOT 194]

WILL elvis kindly leave the building........................

[Night Hunter 109]

Hi mate, snap shot is spot on,i have tried and tested most heads powders etc and have settled on 34 grain of vitavouri n140 and 55 grain nosler balistic tip spitzer heads they work a treat in my 22-250 remi as you can see i have the target barrel with a T8 on my remi but the barrel was shortened and there was a need to step down the barrel thickness a wee bit it is not nice without the moderator but it looks the part with it fitted

[straightshooter 0]

here's a decent review from the shooting time on the .22-250:

 

Locking on to loads

I will start with the 40-grain bullet heads. These are ballistically brilliant, however, bullets with thick jackets must be used rather than those with thin jackets, such as for use in .22 Hornet rifles or the Hornady SX range.

 

If you don't, the bullets will come apart as the centrifugal force of the rifling imparts its spin.

 

The Berger 40-grain MEF, Nosler Ballistic Tip and Hornady V-Max are good, and coupled with 36.25 grains of Hodgdon Benchmark powder, maximum load will yield a 4,021fps velocity from a 24in barrel. That is fast by any standards and it is why that little 40-grain bullet shoots as flat as a pancake and is highly expansive when it reaches its target.

 

There are disadvantages - being small, it will lose its energy quicker than the larger bullets and is therefore more susceptible to wind deflection - but at realistic ranges this can be compensated for, with practice.

 

Bullets in the 50-grain and 52-grain range are more like the ideal varminting weight as 35.75 grains of Alliant RL15 generates 3,671fps and 3,611fps respectably. This load makes an excellent long-range foxing round as well as being more than capable for roe in Scotland.

 

If you prefer to use a heavier bullet, especially for extended ranges or for roe, then I use the 55-grain bullets with a powder weight of 38.0 grains of Hodgdon Varget or Vit N140, which achieves a healthy 3,600fps with a 55-grain bullet head.

 

This weight is about ideal in a .22-250 round as it gives predictable accuracy, good wind-bucking properties and a reliable performance on varmints, foxes or roe in Scotland. As with all bullet choices, be sure to match the bullet type, ie. thick or thin jacket, hollow or soft point, to the game you are after, otherwise the heavy bullets will not expand predictably on small varmints such as crows or rabbits, while 40-grain or 50-grain V-Max.

 

TNT or similar may expand too quickly and cause surface wounds with little penetration, which is definitely not what you want on foxes.

 

A 52-grain Hornady A-Max bullet travelling at 3,700fps when zeroed 0.5in high at 100 yards drops 0.9in at 200 yards, 3.1in at 250 yards and 6.2in at 300 yards, thus allowing for minimum sight correction.

 

Getting Heavy

Of course, there are heavier bullets available in the .22 centrefire range, such as 60-, 63- or 70-grain bullet heads.

 

For example, 38.0 grains of H414 gives 3,494fps with the 60-grain head and 37.75 grains gives 3,417fps with the 63-grain bullet.

 

However, because most standard .22-250 factory rifles have a barrel rifling twist rate of 1:14, they are designed to stabilise the lighter bullet weights better.

 

With this in mind, you may find that the heavier bullet weights will deliver poor accuracy, as the bullets will not stabilise adequately. I like the 52- or 55-grain, which gives the best of both worlds for foxes or roe in Scotland.

 

Shooting a .22-250 does not just mean running at full throttle, sometimes a reduced load becomes useful for those quieter moments in life when the sheer power of the .22-250 is not required. A load of 18 grains of H4198 with a 50-grain Sierra Blitz King bullet, which gives a healthy 2,388fps, is great for around the farm with a sound moderator.

[greasemonkey 0]

Hell again everyone.

 

I should hopefully have my license back through the post in a few weeks, with my request for a .22-250 and .22lr granted, To go along side the .17hmr. I have

done a lot of research into reloading and all the other issues regarding the .22-250. I do have a few questions i need answering.

 

1. What are the pros and cons of using a heavier bullet (55gr) and what are the ballistic characteristics, does it combat wind drif better?

 

2.Is accuracy better with match bullets than say ballistic tip bullets? Do match bullets richochet more? And in general does the .22-250 round have a tendonsey to richochet badly? and what would you consider to be a safe enough back stop for the calibre? does it deflect badly of general ground (soil and mud)?

 

3. Can you all please give me some good receipes for loads. I have been researching from reloading manuals and dvds, but i cant seem to find a good solid load. Info on what is good brass, bullets, primers and what powder to use?

 

4. I was thinking for the rifle a remington 700 SPS tactical or varmint. But i might save up a bit more and go for the Remington 700 VLS. Are these good guns in this calibre?

 

5. If i was to get a rifle with a heavy target barrel, can they be fitted with a mod, or does the width of a target barrel prevent the use of a mod such as the T8 or predator 8.

 

6. When reloading what would you say is the most critical point of the process,ie... case overall length, powder weight, seating depth, weathere the case mouth has been turned or not, etc.......

 

 

Thank you all for you time and answers, I n i must sound very in experienced but we all have to start somewhere dont we. Cheers

hi, been shooting foxes with a 22-250 reminton 700 bdl[standard barrel],for 15years,best advice ican give you is use lapua brass,37g of h380,55g balistic tips by nosler ,sierra etc, buy a case trimmer because this case grows in lenght with every firing .this loading in my gun will shoot thumbnail size groups at one hundred yards,dont bother with a heavy barrel unless you intent to use it for target shooting and it makes the gun a pig to carry, most match bullets are fmjs which can in a worst case senario go straight through what you are shooting at and leave it wounded then carry on at a tangent and hit something you dont want to hit. when hand loading build up to maximum loads in small increments keeping an eye open for pressure signs[flattened primers,tight case extraction etc] this is an excellent choice of round for fox control stops them without a twitch in most cases. shoots flatter than any other .22 centrefire[excepting220 swift] .good luck and happy hunting ...greasemonkey

Edited August 17, 2008 by greasemonkey

[dicehorn 38]

hi, been shooting foxes with a 22-250 reminton 700 bdl[standard barrel],for 15years,best advice ican give you is use lapua brass,...greasemonkey

 

 

I would like to know where you get Lapua in 22.250 please

[greasemonkey 0]

hi, been shooting foxes with a 22-250 reminton 700 bdl[standard barrel],for 15years,best advice ican give you is use lapua brass,...greasemonkey

 

 

I would like to know where you get Lapua in 22.250 please

yes sorry, i did not realise lapua did not make brass for the 22.250 someone else earlier in the thread recommended lapua brass so i presumed it was availiable and as i reload in 6.5x55 and 7.62x53r in lapua brass, and the cases are the best i have used i endorsed the recommendation.i reload for a dozen different calibres using several different brands of brass and none of it comes close to the lapua including the winchester brass i use for my 22.250.shame lapua brass is not availible in in ths calibre, apologies for any confusion..greasemonkey

Edited August 20, 2008 by greasemonkey

[jamie g 17]

hi, been shooting foxes with a 22-250 reminton 700 bdl[standard barrel],for 15years,best advice ican give you is use lapua brass,...greasemonkey

 

 

I would like to know where you get Lapua in 22.250 please

yes sorry, i did not realise lapua did not make brass for the 22.250 someone else earlier in the thread recommended lapua brass so i presumed it was availiable and as i reload in 6.5x55 and 7.62x53r in lapua brass, and the cases are the best i have used i endorsed the recommendation.i reload for a dozen different calibres using several different brands of brass and none of it comes close to the lapua including the winchester brass i use for my 22.250.shame lapua brass is not availible in in ths calibre, apologies for any confusion..greasemonkey

 

try some norma brass and nostler custom bass in the 22/250