.223 vs .22-250

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bigmike22

New member
I know this has probably been beaten to death also. But couldnt find any good info. I am going to buy a new gun next week. I am looking at a .223 and .22-250. I do alot of other hunting besides coyotes and this rifle may be used for that also. (Mid size game) I was just wondering the pros and cons off both and what your opinions are.
thanks again guys.
 
bigmike22,
I know this topic has probably been beaten to death but I have had both and I choose the .223 and here is why.

1. I don't reload and can find relatively cheap and very accurate ammo almost anywhere.

2. The effective range gained by the 22-250 is really only 50-65 more yds

3. .223 barrels come in more twist combinations for differant wieght bullets

4. for bolt action, the acton in a 223 is shorter and allows me to cycle another round without losing cheekweld or taking my eye away from the scope.

both are excellant calibers, I just find the 223 a bit more versitile...probably 6 of one and half dozen of the other.

I also like a shorter barrel and it seems that 24" is pretty standard on 22-250 but I could be way wrong about that.

just my .02
 
.223 ammo is cheaper

.22-250 is higher velocity and is a flatter shooting round.

The things to ask yourself is how much range are you shooting and will you be shooting anything else other than yotes?
 
The 22-250 is a 223 on steroids. It will shoot faster and hit harder using the same bullet weights. I have never seen a coyote not fall because it was hit with too much energy, I have seen them not fall because they were hit with not enough energy. The 22-250 will do everything a 223 will do and will do it better.

It is also more expensive to shoot.

If you plan to use it on colony varmints, you will get more trigger time with the 223. If you plan to go after coyotes with an occassional mid size game, the 22-250 would be the way to go.
 
Like stated above the .223 is cheaper to shoot and anything small to midsize game you shoot with a .22-250 or a .223 will go down. Both pack plenty of hitting power to take a variety of varmints with it. But ammo for the .223 is easy to come by and cheap to shoot. I own both but personally I find myself picking up the .223 a lot more. Plus the Bushmaster Varminter is one hard gun to put down anyway /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Quote:
Plus the Bushmaster Varminter is one hard gun to put down anyway /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif



Those are def fun guns to shoot. A friend of mine has one and it was a blast.
 
If I am not mistaken, with the faster twist rates in .223 of the Savage, Tikka, ARs, and some other rifles, the .223 can handle heavier, longer bullets than the 22-250. I would think that this would lead to better energy retention at long ranges. I dunno, but I have found the .223 adequate on deer size game and smaller using 60g Vmax bullets.
 
I would very seldomly use this rifle for deer. Only if my wife comes hunting and we go up north. Most of my whitetail hunting is done either with a bow or shotgun. Where i live it is shotgun only. But if we go up north we can use rifles.
I have a.243 but it is fitted to my wife. I have taken several deer with my .22-250 ruger but i never take that one out anymore because of the weight of it. So i am kind of torn deciding if the .223 is adequate for deer size game. I guess that really should have been my question. I know lots of you will prefer neither but i have to chose one.I cannot have every gun i want at the moment so this will have to serve two purposes.
 
Check your state laws. Some have a minimum caliber that can be used for deer, most of the states that do, in fact, have the law, are .24 caliber and above.

The .243 is a great white tail deer rifle. When heading out West for those bigger mule deer, I would prefer something closer to a .270 though. They shoot flat for those long range shots, are accurate and is just a good round.
 
I will eventually get a .280 but not now. Our state we can use any centerfire over .220 caliber.I love the .243 for deer. It is perfect for around where we go up north. But i need to get another rifle for coyotes and was trying to have it serve to purposes for now.
 
Quote:
something elese to consider if your going to do alot of shooting 22-250 will burn out the barrel alot faster



I have heard this too, but, the arguement is that even if the barrel has less life than a .223, I have yet to hear of anyone actually wearing the barrel out. It still takes ALOT of rounds to do it. Maqny guys have 2k rounds through their .22-250 and still not worn out.
 
the large powder charge and small caliber lead to higher and hotter presures wich produce more throat erosion faster. Like most anything else everything has a price.
 
Anyone that would say a 22-250 has only a 50-60 yard advantage over a 223 hasn't shot one much.

Jack, How many 223's have you gone through at 7000 rounds?

WOW.....and I thought I shot a lot.
 
OK, I'll bite,
I'm sure that if all shots are to the head then you could use a 22LR for most game, BUT they aren't. So moving on from there, with a moderate/heavy load:

The effective range of a 22-250 is at least 100yds more than a 223.

Many factory 22-250s shoot 60gr pills fine. Mine does! Most Savage 22-250 shoot even heavier than 60gr.

For the joy of flatter shooting and harder hitting I don't expect to get as many rounds down the tube in my 22-250 as I would in a 223.

I bought mine because I wanted the option of hitting something at 400yds and knowing it will very quietly wait there for me to come get it. Drop at that range is sort of 15" to 16". I can nearly handle that. I forget what it was for a 223, but "too big for me" comes to mind.

If you don't have a need for that then buy a 223. Its cheaper, you get to keep the barrel for longer and they're quieter.
 
.22-250 Rem., 40 gr. V-MAX 8335
Velocity (fps) / Energy (ft-lbs)
Muzzle 100 yd 200 yd 300 yd 400 yd 500 yd
4150/1529 3553/1121 3032/816 2568/585 2148/410 1771/278

Trajectory (inches)
Muzzle 100 yd 200 yd 300 yd 400 yd 500 yd
-1.50 0.60 0.00 -4.50 -14.20 -31.70

.223 Rem., 40 gr. V-MAX 8325
Velocity (fps) / Energy (ft-lbs)
Muzzle 100 yd 200 yd 300 yd 400 yd 500 yd
3800/1282 3249/937 2762/677 2324/479 1928/330 1578/221

Trajectory (inches)
Muzzle 100 yd 200 yd 300 yd 400 yd 500 yd
-1.5 0.9 0.0 -5.5 -17.6 -39.1

If you compare the two there is very little difference till 500 yards at 400 yards there is only a 3 inch difference between the two calibers and less than 8 at 500 yards. The .223 is still a very capable gun at that range. And look at the velocity and energy at 500 yards. There is only around 50ft/lb difference between the two. The energy at that range is very little for both guns.
 
OK, I'll bite again, but no more.

Some say (manufacturers included) that the ideal weight for a 22-250 is 55gr (3670fps MV). The 1:14" promotes that. For the 223 some say it is 52gr (3383fps MV). I don't know if I'd want to use a 40gr pill in a 22-250. Yes, some do it with great success, but the twist promotes 55gr pills. If I did use a 40gr pill I'd be more inclined to be in the market for a 204.
 


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