22-250 deer bullet

[mousegunner]

A freind has a Browning lever action 22-250 he bought used. Came with primers, fired cases and a can of BL-C (2) powder. Wants to reload and hunt deer but needs a good bullet for the powder he has. He has some 55gr FMJs but the seller said not to use them because of high pressure (?) plus I told him it wasn't a good hunting bullet anyway.

 

[C.E.Smith043]

The 60gr Nosler Partition is a great bullet, as is the 63gr. Sierra SMP. 70gr. Speer, 65gr.and 55gr GameKing, and I believe there are some bonded bullets out that are also excellent choices.

Only thing I can caution is check his twist rate first. Most 22-250s are 1:14.
If that's the case then I don't have much to recommend for a deer bullet.

 

[Clancy]

Sierra 1365, or if you’re in the south like me, pretty much any hunting bullet whether it’s for varmints or not would be fine. Been using 55 varmageddons without any problems, and I’ve used a lot of others.

 

[Gary in MD]

Probably a 14 twist
Can’t think of a worse bullet than that fmj for any animal. I’d try the 55 grain Sierra soft points or the same in Hornady. The Nosler 60 grain partition may shoot good enough to hunt with and would work on deer. Also the 63 grain Sierra.
I’ve used the 77 grain Sierra TMK but his rifle won’t stabilize it unless he had a custom barrel.

 

[Mark M.]

Barns ttsx

 

[mousegunner]

Thanks, I'll let him know so he can look at those bullets mentioned but what about the powder? I haven’t really looked at the load data and he wants to stick with what he has on hand, BC-L (2).

 

[snert]

55 Grain VMAX, 38 grains H380. Hold right behind the point of the leg on the chest broadside. 3 Hops, bang flop. Killed over 30 with that load. Don't try any other angle or shot.

 

[nakneker]

I have seven children, all seven used a 220 swift with 60 grain partitions to fill their first deer tag. Deadly

Your rifle wouldn’t shoot them, the twist isn’t fast enough but I think 70 grain accubonds would be fun too. Blue Collar has them right now, they have been OOS for a long time. Picked some up to try in a fast twist 22-6.5 PRC I take delivery of this month, that and some 70 grain TSXs Would be fun too I think.

 

[C.E.Smith043]

Thanks, I'll let him know so he can look at those bullets mentioned but what about the powder? I haven’t really looked at the load data and he wants to stick with what he has on hand, BC-L (2).

BLC2 is fine but watch temps and pressure signs. Varget, H4895, IMR 4064, Benchmark all also good choices

 

[WV Hitman]

I've taken over 2700 deer with my handguns, mostly on crop damage permits. I've use my .22-250 XP-100 on around 50 where I didn't want total penetration due to proximity of houses. The best 2 bullets I've found are the Nos. 40 gr. BT & Lehigh 45 gr. Chaos. Neither of these bullets penetrate completely, but usually end up in the far lung on broadside shots. I get about 95% DRT- absolutely no movement.
When I started using these 2 bullets I had big reservations like most of you will, but I call them my "magic bullets". Unbelievable that a bullet that small can do so good!
I did use a 45 br. X on a few. It did good, but I was a bullet tester for Lehigh (until it got sold to Wilson Combat) & got a lot of free bullets in different calibers for testing.

 

[Doug Casner]

Ive got a 1 in 14 sako that shoots 60 gr. nosler partitions or 60 ballistic tips real good. Nosler designed that 60 part. to shoot in a 1 in 14 , its a short 60. Thats what I read somewhere. Doug

 

[long40shot]

I can vouch for the Hornady 60grn SP. Frontal neck shot, he went straight down. But, know your rifle and know your limits. By no means would this be a long or even medium range setup. I used Varget.

 

[Coonman300]

I shoot the 60 gr Partitions and the 63 grain Sierra SMP. Excellent performance in deer. My twist is 12. A friend of mine has the 14 twist and the 63 SMP shoots great in it. I can’t get the Barnes 50gr to stabilize.

 

[wboggs]

Ive got a 1 in 14 sako that shoots 60 gr. nosler partitions or 60 ballistic tips real good. Nosler designed that 60 part. to shoot in a 1 in 14 , its a short 60. Thats what I read somewhere. Doug

A second for the Nosler 60gr partition.

 

[603Country]

I could never get the Partition to stabilize in my Swift. My barrel is 20”, so maybe a bit more barrel and velocity would have done the job. That would be the bullet I’d choose.

 

[wboggs]

I could never get the Partition to stabilize in my Swift. My barrel is 20”, so maybe a bit more barrel and velocity would have done the job. That would be the bullet I’d choose.

I've used it in an old R700 22-250 and it did not tumble. Don't get crazy with long range. Closer is better.

 

[Mark W]

I shoot the 60 gr Partitions and the 63 grain Sierra SMP. Excellent performance in deer. My twist is 12. A friend of mine has the 14 twist and the 63 SMP shoots great in it. I can’t get the Barnes 50gr to stabilize.

That Sierra 63 Gr SMP is actually the most accurate bullet that I have found in my 1:14 Twist 22-250. I’ve never shot any critters with it though.

 

[Davidheart]

I killed my first deer using a 22-250 with a 65gr gameking. It was a Savage so my guess was a 12 twist. Shot inside a dime. I don't like Barnes for 22cal bullets. Try the 55gr Hornady SPBT with a cannelure broadside tucked just under the shoulder and you'll have a dead deer.

 

[wb30378]

Nosler’s 64gr BSB is an excellent deer bullet. I load them in my daughter’s 22-250 with BL-C2. Not the fastest load but it will flatten deer. Depending on brass capacity you should top out at 34-36grs.

 

[Kevin1990]

I personally don't own a 22-250 but the hornady 55gr spire points are devastating and ive found them to be very accurate. Then again im sure any softpoint would do just fine.