22-250 re-barreled in a 1-7" Twist

S

Scalloper

New member
I have always somewhat liked the 22-250. But I have never understood why we can buy a factory rifle with a faster twist to shoot the longer heavies bullets offered today. So, have any of you built a 22-250 with a fast twist to shoot 90-100 gr pills? If so were you happy with the results?
I have a Tikka T3 Light in 22-250 and I am about to send her in for a face lift.
 
If you are going to have it barreled, and are faced with the certainty of having to reload, you might as well have it chambered in 22-250 AI or 22 Creedmoor.
 
When I built by Creedmoor, I considered both the 22-250Ai and the Creedmoor. For me, it came down to brass prep....necking 6mm Creedmoor down is easier and less time consuming than fireforming AI. Now, with OEM 22 Creedmoor brass, its an even easier choice.
 
The 22-250AI and 22 Creed are nearly identical in case capacity so I'd probably save the extra step of fireforming and go with the 22 Creedmoor, but if you're wanting to sling bullets that heavy, I would skip past both of them and do a 22-243.

In all honesty, I'm not sure you can launch those 90-95gr bullets fast enough to make them out perform the 80 grainers. I have some of the new Sierra 95gr MK's and they are a wicked looking longggggg 22cal bullet, but they also have a very long bearing surface and I'm not sure their better BC will be enough to keep them ahead of the good BC and faster velocity of bullets like the new Hornady 80gr ELD-M.
 
Originally Posted By: ScalloperOriginally Posted By: tripod3Tikka Makes a 1-8 .22-250, pretty much the limit of practicality for me.
Mine is a 1-14"

Yes, they make and sell both.
 
I'm currently working on finishing load development for my 22-250 AI with an 8 twist. I've settled on the 75gr ELD-M at 3400 fps, about 35-40 fps faster than the 80gr version. You have to get out past 500 yards before the 80 outpaces the 75, and it's still just barely. I think 3150-3200 is realistic for the big 95 grainer, so run some numbers and see if it's worth it to you.

I originally intended to use the 80 but that 75 is just too good shooting to try anything different.
 
Originally Posted By: ScalloperI have always somewhat liked the 22-250. But I have never understood why we can buy a factory rifle with a faster twist to shoot the longer heavies bullets offered today. So, have any of you built a 22-250 with a fast twist to shoot 90-100 gr pills? If so were you happy with the results?
I have a Tikka T3 Light in 22-250 and I am about to send her in for a face lift.

If you want to shoot 90-100 grain bullets buy a 6mm.
22-250 was made to take business away from the 220 Swift.
1-12 or 1-14 is the twist rate just like the 220 Swift.
I have been shooting the Swift for 55 years "It is what it is, 4000+ fps 45 gr bullets".
I do not know where all the fast twist rate started but it is stupid.
Just plain "BS" I shoot 90 grain bullets in my 4, 243 win.
 
I own a 243. I want to shoot long heavy .22 cal 85-90gr pills from a 22-250. Thats that. I want deeper penetration and longer distance in a .22 cal. I have no use for a tiny 45 gr pill thats what my Ruger 10/22 is for.
I checked on a Krieger Barrel .22 cal 1-6.5 twist. That should do what I want in a 22-250 AI.
 
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My son has a 224 Valkyrie and so far its been quite impressive. Thats where I thought a 22-250 AI with 1-6.5 or 1-7 would be a valuable tool for me.
 
The reason you can't buy a really fast twist 22-250 as it is just about perfect for what it was expected to do with 50-55gr. There are so many 22-250s that are working just fine for 90+% of there owners with 50-55gr bullets. That's why we have Gunsmiths and barrel makers to build something that just a small percentage of shooters are interested in.
 
Originally Posted By: willy1947Originally Posted By: ScalloperI have always somewhat liked the 22-250. But I have never understood why we can buy a factory rifle with a faster twist to shoot the longer heavies bullets offered today. So, have any of you built a 22-250 with a fast twist to shoot 90-100 gr pills? If so were you happy with the results?
I have a Tikka T3 Light in 22-250 and I am about to send her in for a face lift.

If you want to shoot 90-100 grain bullets buy a 6mm.
22-250 was made to take business away from the 220 Swift.
1-12 or 1-14 is the twist rate just like the 220 Swift.
I have been shooting the Swift for 55 years "It is what it is, 4000+ fps 45 gr bullets".
I do not know where all the fast twist rate started but it is stupid.
Just plain "BS" I shoot 90 grain bullets in my 4, 243 win.


This is the camp that I find myself in also.

About a year ago I bought an 8" twist Tikka in 22-250, thinking it would be the cat's meow for heavier bullets from everything that I was reading on the internet. It worked OK for that application with the real world down side being significantly reduced velocity as one moves up in bullet weight. A 243 Winchester, a 6MM Remington, or a 22-6MM Remington custom that I own do the same things far better by burning just a bit more powder, which has never been a concern for me. In addition, I live in a state that allows 22 caliber rifles to be used for deer, but I've never once considered using one on deer simply because I have other far better choices for that application, IMO. (Yes, I know a 22 caliber will kill deer, but its far from being my first choice. Others may feel differently, and I'm OK with that.)

Maybe if I owned just one 22-250 and no 6MM cartridges or a larger cased 22 caliber cartridge, it might offer a bit more versatility, but for my needs I can see my 8" twist barreled Tikka 22-250 spending a lot of time in a gun safe at my hacienda.

If I'm going to shoot a 22-250 for its intended purpose, I've never been hampered one time in a lot of years by the 1-14" twist rate as I have yet to find a 22-250 that won't shoot 55 grain spitzer bullets extremely well. BTW, a 55 grain spitzer works extremely well on coyotes with no worries about bullet splash which the longer "better BC" plastic tip bullets provide on a rather regular basis on the rib cage or shoulder of a coyote. I suppose if I worried about hitting the top half of a strand of hair rather than the bottom half of the same strand of hair on a coyote at 250 yards by shooting longer bullets with a "better BC", I might opt for something else, but so far I've not found a burning need, nor have I found any significant advantage in doing so at normal hunting ranges.

Once again, JMO.
 
Scalloper, I don't know How far the 88 and 90g bullets will expand, Ventac has used the 88's to around 600 yards in a 22 Creed.

Also, barrel life will be short with the heavies.
 
Originally Posted By: ScalloperMy son has a 224 Valkyrie and so far its been quite impressive. Thats where I thought a 22-250 AI with 1-6.5 or 1-7 would be a valuable tool for me.

A 22-250 or 22-250AI is a pretty healthy step up in velocity over the 224 Valkyrie.

Something you may want to research, or at least talk to the bullet smiths at Sierra, before you order up one of those super fast twist barrels is bullet RPM. I bought some of those new 95gr SMK's when Sierra first released them and I talked to their tech guys multiple times about using those 95's in something that is capable of some pretty decent velocities and their concern with the combination was bullet RPM and whether or not those 95's could handle the launch speeds without throwing themselves apart. You're potentially looking at bullet RPM well in excess of 360,000 and when you start getting much over 300,000, bullets, particularly the heavy for caliber ones, tend to sometimes self destruct.

I think if you run the numbers through a ballistic program you'll find that one of the high BC 75 grainers at 22-250 speeds in an 8tw will run right with the slower higher BC of the 95's.

When you order a barrel with a twist that fast, especially if it's chambered in something that'll shoot pretty fast, it can limit your options in a hurry.
 
Originally Posted By: pyscodogWhy buy a race horse to pull a plow?

"AMEN"

I can load a 5,56mm Lake City case to do what a 224 Valkyrie does.
In the American Rifleman magazine on 224 Valkyrie. It even tell you this.
Ask any F-Class shooter he will tell you the same thing.

You move any bullets to fast in fast twist barrels, the bores will suffer.
Ackleyman is totally right.

People read what salesmen write to sell you something you do not need.
 


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