I am looking at a new rifle for ground hog termination and I am curious about the difference between a .22-250 and .223 wsm. It seems the .22-250 is going by the wayside. I saw Browning does not offer it at all anymore. So what is the best cal.?
SIXmm Remi built on Stolle Panda action with fluted ss Lilja barrel.
Just throwing some dirt at ya.
Traditional mid range choices would be: 6mm, 22-250, .222, .223, .243. I would go with .223 Savage bolt "varmint ed" gun and put real good quality scope on it. I almost bought classic "light varmint" Mod. 722? Remington rifle in kal. .222.
the .22-250 is not going away anytime soon....it will most likely outlive all of the wsm varieties in my opinion.
Steve
I'm looking for an Browning a-bolt medallion actually, as I have one in 25-06 and it puts holes in holes. Recently I restocked my bro in laws Rem. 788 in 22-250 and when I re zeroed it I really liked the way it felt and shot. So I'm leaning toward the Browning but the Remington is not out of the question. just can't find the Browning in 22-250., but it is all over in 223. So I was wondering about the comparison of the two rounds, 22-250 vs 223 wssm.
SKB is absolutely right. .22-250 survived for decades as a wildcat without commercial brass. You will be able to find components or loaded ammo several reincarnations from now. What cal. is best? Depends on many factors such as range, wind levels, acceptable noise level, ricochet danger, etc. I shot 18 groundhogs from the house last summer with a .22 LR Romanian army trainer that will equal a $1000.00 Kimber with cheap Winchester SuperX lead hollow points. Popped one 3 days ago with same gun at 70 yds. with a bullet right in the earhole and that was that. However, I just got a .222 Rem. Contender Carbine barrel as I want something with a little more power and range than the .22, but quieter and more efficient than my .22-250 or 6m/m. My longest kill with the 6m/m was 560 long paces. Then again, I shot many hogs with reduced loads of 50gr. FFG under a patched roundball in an open sighted flintlock where 60 yards was a long shot. Does this answer your question?
About 10 years ago, I went through the same processs but it was 22-250 vs 223. (cheaper ammo) A friend of mine had a remington sendero 22-250 with a fluted SS bull barrel and synthetic stock. Not fine walnut and nice blue but he told me how it would shoot and another friend who has a catfish pond and loads 4500 rounds a year to shoot comorants, herons etc. (yes he has a permit) said to buy it and he would buy it from me if I did not like it. It often shoots groups at 200 yards that touch each other. I started back handlocding but it does not seem to be particular. It shoots everything well. After not deer hunting for 18 years I took it to shoot a doe for a party. First deer that came out was a buck, 20.5 inch spread 11 point. 146 score net typical. I have since shot dozens of deer, they drop in their tracks up to 300 yards when shot in the neck. (6.5x20 50mm Leupold) Always count the deer in the field first, they drop so quick that you might think you missed and shoot another. (No problem here in Alabama where the limit is two a day for the whole 75 day season.) I could not say enough about this gun or caliber. My son shoots beavers with it and it is amazing. With all of my nice (to me) doubles, this is the one gun he never wants me to sell! Just my opinion, but do not sell the 22-250 short!
.223 -------55gr. bullet -----3240 fps-----1280 ft-lb.
.22-250 ----55gr. bullet -----3680 fps-----1655 ft-lb.
It's not your head that should concern you, but your wallet. Just keep telling yourself that your new rifle, like your old double shotguns, will be an investment. Unless Obama wins.
All true. So I guess my question should be, if you had to choose...22-250 or 223?
Personal choice? Or is one really better than the other. I WANT a 22-250, but 223 is more available in my gun of choice.
One is not "better" than the other. One is just more powerful and longer range than the other. Depends on what you need it to do. If you like the .22-250, change your gun of choice.
so does the 22-250 have a longer range than the 223? My 25-06 should cover long range.
Can you tell I'm a rifle novice?
Living on the coast with lots of wind, I found 22-250 inadequate for me, too much drift. The 25-06 makes a drefful bang but works best for me on crows, woodchucks, coyotes, foxes.
Hope I can help a bit- Love varmint and precision (sniper grade) rifles- I use a older Sako L579 Forrester BA 22" sporter barrel custom stock glas bedded in .243Win. with a Leupold Vari-X111 4x12x44 AO scope. This is my "main rifle" as we also get shots at both coyotes and red foxes along with woodchucks in the MI farm belt where I shoot-I use Hornady 55grain moly-tips- I also have an older M54 SuperGrade (pre-1940) in .220 Swift- 26" stainless barrel and again, same Leupold scope. I use Hornady 50 grain moly-tips also. Both are deadly out to 400 measured yards, although most of my shots in MI are 200 yards or less. I like the .22-250, almost bought a used Ruger No. 1 single shot with 12x Redfield-for some time the .223, as a military issue round in the M-16 "clones" was scarce in certain areas-now that our Armed Forces in "The Sandbox" are going back to the great M-14, that could change. I use the .243 Win also for pronghorns and other mid-sized soft skinned critters, so that's one reason I like the cal. as it is versatile-I doubt if I would do that with either the .220 Swift or the .22-250, unless I was certain of a standing headshot in profile and could put a round in the animal's ear--Are you going to reload? RWTF
so does the 22-250 have a longer range than the 223? My 25-06 should cover long range.
They go down range.... it is a matter of trajectory, drop.
Go here, you can play with comparing factory loads
http://www.remington.com/products/ammunition/ballistics/The 22-250 shoots flatter. The 25-06 can load a 100gr slug and thus deliver more energy down range.
Which is better? That is your choice.
Pete
Oh yeah the 06 is a BIG gun to plink hogs with. That's why I'm looking for an alternate. I like the 06 a lot but I would like less bang.
I have one rifle for groundhogs, a 222 remington, slightly less a cartridge than the 223. My scope maximum power is 12X and I shoot chucks to 250yards. The 223rem is said to be a 300 yard gun. With my outfit 100yards is a casual shot the 200+ shots get challenging due to buffeting wind on the rifle and the limits of 12X. My experience tells me and accurate rifle with a 18x or 24x scope may make 250-300yds less interesting and then the range of the 22-250 will bring back the thrill(once you get going). Some other things to consider is what you plan for your expanded setup. I use a simple folding chair and a tripod to steady my shot. If your planning on shooting from a mobile bench, my guess is that in short order your going to want to shoot longer ranges(=22-250). Actually in my area if I was buying a second gun it would be a .17hmr as I have many places with lots of hogs, but with homes in close proximity I would rather not draw much attention from. Get an accurate rifle and a good power scope and start shooting. If you have long range shooting available go long range with you outfit. I personally find making a hit at 100yards my responsibilty to the farmer, a hit at 200+ a thrill and a miss at any range very annoying. Kurt
Bet that Romanian trainer didn't look like this.
I shot more crows with this rifle filled with Eley sub-sonics than all my pure varmint cals put together.
LG, your piss ant .22LR has nothing to do with this discussion!
DT,
If the 25-06 is a tack driver that can be used at extreme range and lower muzzleblast/recoil is a desire, possibly the next bridge could be a .22 WMR or one of the newer 17 mag rimfires? The .22 centerfires seem to have significant muzzleblast to me.
Another thought would be the .204 Ruger or one of the various .20 caliber wildcats that preceeded it. Cooper builds rifles for several of them. The ballistics of a .20 caliber bullet, particularly one of the heavier ones, is surprisingly good. Check out the information available on the web site of the Woodchuck Den (I think it's
http://www.woodchuckden.com. Todd Kindler will be happy to talk with you at length about .20s, as he was instrumental in reviving the caliber.
Some of these newer rounds are going away such as the 480 Ruger.To many new rounds show little real difference to the old ones except when reloading and most don't.I would take the 22-250 over the 223 because it can do more.One of my favorits out to two hundred yards on small stuff is the 22Hornet,very cheap to reload.The 25-06 is about right there with the 264 win and in a pinch with the right bullet could turn out the lights of anything walking.Companies go with the masses and the masses say cheap hence the 223 takeing over the 22-250,not cause its better or equal but dollars.JMHO
Oh yes it does ole pintsize.
In civil rural places, a crack of a small bore screamer maybe too much in the dead of winter.
If not my Kimber, then my Cooper JSR in 17Hmr.
Unless you let those furrie things rot, the larger varmint rounds tend to make a mess outta the fur at ranges you guys can shoot.
I've long let these things run, but hunt squirrels 'n crows baked in a pie.
Remember, you had better eat that red fox, or do something with the pelt other than blast it to bits.
Ok well I went shopping today. I ended up with what I think is a pretty nice "working gun". I bought a Howa 1500 Varminter. Thumbhole laminate stock, blued receiver and bull type barrel in .22-250. So tomorrow I get to set it up and then go whack a hog or two. I did some home work and the gun got good reviews both in the press and from owners. It's basically the same as a Weatherby Vanguard but with more toys. For your opinions?
Much depends on how it shoots with quality ammo.
I was offered one of them .270 or '06 Vanguards in sealed box for $399. Very tempting and was going to take it until I realized I already have 3 rifles. The action of this gun is like a brick shithouse with nothing to break.
PS. The only gun I owned on this action was kal. '06 Winchester Model 777. It shot very well with Federal 'Premium' ammo and it was pretty much nicest factory rifle to wear Winchester name. Truly impressive quality piece from lil' folks from far away. I traded that gem for Heym 'Classic Safari' in brutal kal. .375H&H.