Varmit Caliber?

Mykey · 02-21-2003, 12:58 PM

I have several questions. In your opinion what would be the best caliber between these three for punching paper and shooting varmits out to 400yds (.220/.223/22-250). I like Remington so thats the rifle i' ll buy but i' ve never had a varmit rifle and i' m unsure about what caliber to buy. Also i' ll be handloading for this gun and i want a caliber that isn' t to hard to find supplies for. One last thing, what advantage if any would the 26" barrel have over the 24" in these calibers. Thanks!

Nomercy · 02-21-2003, 01:10 PM

I' m going to recommend the .220 swift or .22-250, the .223 is a favorite just because it is a military surplus round, it' s not in the same class as the other two at all!! My vote then would go for the .22-250, because the case and barrel life is longer, and velocities are practically the same, while the .22-250 is more capable of handling heavier bullets much better than the .220swift, which makes it quite a bit better in my opinion as a varmint rifle, since I still qualify yotes as varmints.

DBL00BK · 02-21-2003, 02:57 PM

I would tell you to use the 22-250 but the best cal would be the 223 becuase the gun is a long range rifle the gun is used by police.

Ridge Runner · 02-21-2003, 03:03 PM

once you learn to dope the windage and trajectories, there isn' t alot of difference in the three as far as practicle hunting ranges. 223 holdover is minimal to 350-375 yds. 22-250 is 375-400 yds. after that its how well you know your rifle. I took 2 woodchucks last summer at 550 yds. with my 223, got a varmint 22-250 but I have more confidance in my 223.
RR

TREEDOG · 02-21-2003, 04:02 PM

i would never have a shot that far here but for punching paper. it would be a 223 or a 22-250, in a savage varmint rifle with the new accu trigger. the .223 is very cheap to shoot, the 22-250 is a great round however, i think it has less drop than a 223. But at the price of the 223 ammo i would be shooting it alot more and be more comfortable with it. these links are for winchester ammo and show drop at difrent yardage. it might be helpful.

http://www.winchester.com/ammunition...grange=on&pg=1

http://www.winchester.com/ammunition...n&longrange=on

James B · 02-21-2003, 09:04 PM

I have shot a lot of Varmit rifles and I have finally settled on the 22-250. It really is in a class by its self. The Swift is a little faster at the cost of much shorter barrel life unless downloaded to 22-250 levels. It will offer a good honest 100-150 yards advantage over the 223. I just got a new 700 ADL Remington for 397.00. It has a 24 inch barrel. A 26 inch might gain you 50-80 fps. Not a worth while gain as the 22-250 will reach 4000 fps with real light bullets. SAVE the barrel Load to about 33-3400 fps.

TREEDOG · 02-21-2003, 09:48 PM

Ok, here is comparing the 223 and the 22-250 with the same gr bullet. 50 gr v-max i think. Go to the remington site u can compare up to 3 calibers side by side at a time.

http://www.remington.com/ammo/ballis...cs_results.asp

halcon · 02-21-2003, 11:01 PM

Mykey I have owned all three of them and they all were good shooters . The 22-250 and the 220 swift have a bit more range than the 223Rem but I can' t say they are any more accurate . Unless you handload it is not always convenient to get a good ammo for the 220 swift or at least it wasn' t where I used to live . The 22-250 and the 223 rem are much easier to find .

PaJack · 02-22-2003, 12:06 PM

I have hunted woodchucks for over 25 years and of the 3 accuracy wise, I would have to go with the .220 Swift if you reload...

woodseye · 02-22-2003, 12:39 PM

22-250 is my choice,not an eye lash worth of difference between the 220 and 22-250 but ammo is cheaper and easier to find for the 22-250 and there are a lot more different factory guns chambered for the 22-250.I' ve got a Remington 700 BDL Varminter from 1967 and a Savage 12FV from 2001 and they are both fun to shoot and very accurate.

woods