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.224 15 twist. What caliber?

so I bought a Shilen .224 15 twist barrel but don’t know what caliber I should be looking at with being a odd twist in my opinion. What y’all think?
 
You're stuck with .224 caliber.

.223AI or 22-250 with 40 vmax or 40 Nosler BT's is where I'd be as far as cartridges go.
 
What kind of shooting do you want to do with this build and what size bolt is the action you'll be using?

You can shoot light bullets really really fast with something like a 22-250 or 22 Creedmoor, OR, you can slow it down and make a 222 or 223. If I were building something on a small bolt face action and had a 15tw barrel, I'd probably lean hard toward building a 222 and if I was building this on a standard size bolt face it would likely be a 22-250 or 22 CM
 
Yea I know I’m stuck with 224 I guess I should say what caliber with the heaviest bullet do y’all think would stabilize in a 15 twist without going to something crazy hotrod. I love the 222 rem but wasn’t sure that a 15 twist would stabilize 40 grained in the 222. Don’t have anything planned as far as shooting wise. Bought the barrel because it was priced right.
 
Berger says their 40gr needs a 15tw or faster but when you crunch the numbers through their twist calculator is says you need a 13tw so it would probably be best to give them a call. If the 40gr Berger won't stabilize in a 15tw then there is probably no way a 40gr Vmax will.
 
so I bought a Shilen .224 15 twist barrel but don’t know what caliber I should be looking at with being a odd twist in my opinion.

.224 is the caliber. What you're asking (I assume), is what cartridge to have it chambered for, correct?

The info you need to know is what bullet length (not weight) will stabilize in a .224 caliber barrel twisted 1:15 at the velocities that various cases will achieve at normal operating pressures.

Assuming the same Sg (stabilization) for each scenario, a slower twist barrel will need a shorter length bullet to achieve the same stabilization.

There are several good programs out there to calculate this as well as references for bullet lengths of many commonly available bullets.

Just as a guideline, assuming 3,500 fps with a barrel twisted 1:15, a bullet length of .625 will produce a stabilization number (Sg) of 1.069. A Sg of 1.0 is considered the minimum needed. Real world results will drift a bit from this, but not much. As you work with this, you'll see that muzzle velocity is a very small component of Sg. In the above example, changing the muzzle velocity to 4,000 fps only changes the Sg to 1.117.

In this example, a 13.5% velocity increase yields only a 5% increase in stabilization.

Good shootin'. -Al
 
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There were some Sako and Higgins rifles in 222 rem and 222 mag that had 1/15.5 and 1/16 twist. I think 70's and earlier, never had either not sure how they shot. I think lead free bullets would be off the list of possible loadings.
 
When i had my CZ 527 22 Fox Squirrel cartridge it would shoot 40 Sierra blitzkings and 40 Vmax at about 2750-2800 fps. 40 bergers would keyhole out of a 16 twist barrel. The 40 sbk and 40 vmax shot a many of a group well under 1/2 inch and most around 3/8 of an inch
 
You have the makings of a varmint rifle! Unless you're dying to have a short barrel life, the 22-250 is off the list. The popular cartridge selections are .221 Fireball, .222 Rem, .223 Rem, .223AI, .222 Rem Magnum (parent case that 204 Ruger is based off). If you want to max velocity while staying in the smaller case size then either the .223AI or .222 Rem Mag., both have near same powder capacity. The .223AI is easier to make/obtain brass for reloading, and in a pinch you can buy standard .223 ammo off the shelf to shoot in the rifle.

If you already have a couple of .223 Rems and looking to try something different then give the .222 Remington a try. It is a sweetheart. I have a couple of vintage Sakos that love 40gr bullets.
 
Like B23 asked I’m curious about your bolt face diameter and your main use for this rifle.Would assume target shooting mostly to see what kind of accuracy you can squeeze out of a 224.The 222 is a favorite of mine but thinking a 22ppc might be fun for accuracy too.If you are thinking varmints
maybe make this a switch barrel and build a fast twist barrel as well.
Matt
 
That barrel should be used for 22 PPC. the normal twist for that caliber is 1/14, but some do shoot 1/15. It is a benchrest barrel, most likely very heavy. Most shoot 40 gr bullets.
 
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That barrel should be used for 22 PPC. the normal twist for that caliber is 1/14, but some do shoot 1/15. It is a benchrest barrel, most likely very heavy. Most shoot 65 or 68 gr bullets.


Might want to clarify this??
Idt they are shooting 65 or 68 gr in a 22 ppc with a 14 or a 15 twist.
Prolly thinking a 6?.
 
Depending on your bolt face
I would do a 222, 22 ppc, or a 22br.
And shoot nosler 40gr ballistic tips.

I did a br w a 14 twist and 40 gr ballistic tips.
The chucks and crows would explode when hit.
Also very accurate.
 
Sounds to me like he wants a 22 Cheetah MK I .22/243 15 twist would be perfect for the 52-55gr bullets. I send 52gr bergers down range with the Cheetah in a 15 twist.
 

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