22 BR vs 22-250 vs 22-250AI

[bsekf]

Virgil King says that at <300 yards the 22 BR is king. How does it compare to the 22-250 or 22-250AI? Barrel life, ease of loading, etc?

 

[lpreddick]

don't get me started on the 22 br! i absoutely love this thing! started with the .22-.250 and really enjoyed the power...3700+ fps and that 52 gr bullet really "harvested" the ghogs! my buddy did the same but to excess and his barrel was toast in no time...borescope of the first 12 in looked like your driveway. my gsmith suggested the 22 br as it was at one time a benchrest favorite. he rebarreled an 8 twist and after load workup, i got 77 gr smks to print one hole and i was hooked. had the next one with a 12 twist and sure enough, it shoots 63 and 64 gr bullets into a very small hole and velocity can be 3450 fps...killed 26 ghogs in a row before missing...wind got me. next one was a 14 twist and planned on shooting 52 fowlers but found the 60 bergers are the chosen ones...3600 fps and that bullet drops the pigs instantly. powder requirements can be 5-7 gr less than the .22-.250, not much but the powders it likes are faster burning...saw once that slower powders, esp double based burn barrels faster than faster single based...contraversity here, yes. the ackley .22-.250 will get you 4k speeds but REALLY eats the barrel and some varmint bullets will come apart. necking down 6 br lapua is a snap now since the blue box brass is thinner so no neck turning needed. much more but i'm sure the other 22 br addicts will respond.

 

[bheadboy]

i would not trade my 22-250 for anything, as i use it out to 500+


however, i agree with the above post that th 22br is accurate to be sure, easier on bbl, and less powder. if you are shooting <400 forget the 22-250 and use the 55bk in a 12 twist in the 22br

also if you should want to go further out then the faster twist, the heavier bullets in the 22-250 are right on.

the 22-250ai is something else but the bbl will go much sooner.
Bob

 

[K22]

Virgil King says that at <300 yards the 22 BR is king. How does it compare to the 22-250 or 22-250AI? Barrel life, ease of loading, etc?

What's your definition of "King"?

For long range varmint / predator hunting I would take the 22 250. Mine groups sub 1/2 moa and I really like the idea of having a standard caliber for reloading. So what if the barrel wears out, just replace it. No special accommodations needed for reloading and no need for extensive load development.

For less than 300 yards I would take the 223 remington. Again a standard caliber. All mine group in the 1/2 to sub 1/2 moa range. Long barrel life. The misses I've had with this caliber were not due to the rifle or caliber - they were due to shooter error.

Not bashing the 22BR but if a standard caliber is more than capable of doing the job why would you want to go to a wildcat?

I think too many guys get hung up on a which caliber is the "best" searching for the "silver bullet" when most standard calibers are more than adequate in the hands of a skilled rifleman. Learning to be a better marksman in the field will paid bigger dividends than searching for the ultimate caliber.

 

[searcher]

I agree with everybody! Ha
I have both calibers and love both dearly. It comes down to what is most important to you as there are big trade-offs here. If you shoot alone with no spotter, the milder recoil of the .22Br can help you keep your sight picture after recoiling without having to go to a muzzle brake. The barrel will last CONSIDERABLY longer. If your 22-250 goes south after 2,500 rounds, that's .20 cents per shot barrel life. The 22BR may go 4,500 at .11 cents per round. Based on a $300.00 barrel and $200.00 chambering/gunsmith fee. I would also expect longer case life and burning less powder to boot. While individual rifles vary for sure - the BR is king in the accuracy department. I shoot ground squirrels and a hunt is typically measured in hundreds of rounds fired daily. If I hunted ground hogs I wouldn't be too concerned about burning out the barrel so quickly and I like the extra punch it provides. I'd just be sure to get a HEAVY barrel if you are not planning on using it as a walking varmint. Then again, for 300 - 400 yards and under, a .223, as K22 noted - is an excellent number and the most economical of all, burning 1/2 the powder and Lapua brass for around $55.00 per hundred at Powder Valley, as opposed to around $85.00 for the BR. I used to always want a "standard" caliber and now don't care. If I'm reloading it, it doesn't matter to me if I could buy ammo for it - because I won't. Or at least I haven't in the past 40 years.

 

[searcher]

I just realized you didn't note whether for hunting or target shooting. If target shooting - forget everything I said and just get the .22BR - unless of course, I could talk you into a 6BR instead (or 6 dasher), a better 'King" in my humble opinion. I have one 6br that I use in F-class 600-yard shooting 107 (or 105?)Scenars and it does double-duty shooting lightweight Barnes Varmint Grenades with incredible accuracy. If Obama took all of my guns away except this one - I'd be as happy as a one-gun owner could be.

 

[savagedasher]

22 BR it will do every thing that a 22-250 but with barrel life. Good Shooting Larry

 

[gotcha]

As you can see, lots of opinions. Are you shooting 300yds. or less? Or 300yds plus? A 22/250 easily got me into the VHA 500yd. club w/ 55gr Noslers about 20 years ago. 1,800rds & the bbl was toast over PD towns. For eastern chucks, where you're not committing mass murder, it may be just the ticket. However bbl. life & powder cost favor the 22BR. Besides its novel & cute I agree w/ K22's last paragraph. And a standard .223 Rem. is all you need to 300/325 yds. I don't see a lot of difference in reloadability between any of the cartridges mentioned. All my .223 & 22/250 go through a Dillon. My .223's are the king of kill as far as varmints reaped per cartridge is concerned. NOTHING exceeds the ease of reloading of the .223 Just my .02 cents.

 

[22BRGUY]

Oh fellas.....great post for sure. I've hunted now for 50 years, reloaded for 35 and have enjoyed all of it. The caliber of my youth was .22 long rifle, then Oh my gosh, 22 250 for fox, coyotes, crows, woodchucks etc. and what an awesome and fun time that all was. In about the last 5 years, I've discovered the 22BR and the .222. Its like falling in love all over again. Although there will always be a special place in me for the 22 250, these 2 new (to me) cals. are some fun. I have joined a club with a range that goes out to 600 yards and now enjoy going out there as often as I can to shoot paper...and that game for me is all about small groups; Not to be misunderstood, I have gotten some awesome tight groups out of the 22 250's, but the consistency and ease of tuning of the .222 and 22BRS has got me hooked for now. Perhaps if I went back to the 22 250 with say an 8 twist, it might reignite my fire but a few of the drawbacks of the 22 250 have soured me a little; namely, case growth, donuts, and large rifle primers. The mild taper of the 22 250 seems to invite case growth in my experience. The AI version may well eliminate that problem, but the amount of powder necessary just seems inefficient for the gain in velocity to me. Anyway, this is not to disparage anyone's choice of caliber and if someone likes what they shoot for any of many reasons, that's what its really all about isn't it?
So for me, its .222 out to 250 yards; 22BR out to 500 yards' and then there's the 6 Dasher!!!

 

[bsekf]

Thanks guys!!

Virgil King said the 22 cal was more accurate than 6mm in their indoor testing, both 22 PPC and 22 BR. I already have a 6.5x47L and use a switch barrel T&T'd Savage action, don't want to change bolt heads, so need a .473. AND the 22Br is so darn cute! Wondered about barrel life and ease of reloading/resizing. You guys answered those questions. I also mess with TC stuff and only hand load so wildcats and custom headspace don't scare me.

I am getting too darn old to hunt, just limp across the road to my 300 yard range. Plus the coyotes have thinned our woodchuck population

Thanks again.

Bill

 

[K22]

To my way of thinking, the 22 250 is a long range varmint caliber suited for low volume shooting like groundhogs. This is where it excels and barrel life is really not a significant issue.

For target shooting or high volume varmint hunting such as P-dogs, where barrel life is a factor there are better options.

The 22 250 is capable of sub 1/2 moa accuracy but in my experience it cannot compete accuracy wise with the BR's for target shooting. I don't have the opportunity for high volume varmint hunting as I live in PA so I will defer to the western hunters but I would think the 223 would be idea for this purpose.

The question comes down what is your intended purpose and at what ranges / volumes of fire do you anticipate. Once you answer these questions the decision is quite simple.