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Fastest Wildcats

Scalloper

Its a lazy man that can't find his wife a 2ed job
Silver $$ Contributor
So just out of curiosity what are some of the fastest wildcats developed that were safe to use? I was thinking someone here made reference to one rolling 5k+.
 
Nearly any of the large case 22's will drive the lightest 224 bullets close to 5K...................but it certainly won't be anything near SAAMI safe pressures. Same with nearly any large case caliber and light for caliber bullets.

I've shot a bunch of wildcat barrel burners through the years, but realized the barrel life and the actual usefulness is negligible after getting much past 3300 fps. Even at those speeds you're only looking at a few hundred rounds of useful accuracy. Fine for a hunting rifle, not so fine for someone that likes to shoot.

One of my favorite hunting rifles is a 6mm SAUM using 80+/- grain Barnes or Hammer copper bullets. 4K is easy but accurate barrel life is less than 500 shots. As a hunting rifle, that's fine. But learning that cost me 2 barrels before settling for just hunting accuracy for this flame thrower.

On the other hand, there's something neat about putting crosshairs on center chest out to 400 yards and sqeezing the trigger.
 
Many years ago I bought a Ruger #1 in 220 swift had it rechambered to 220 weatherby rocket. I shot groundhogs with it, took it out west and shot prairie dogs with it. Downright abused that barrel. Couple years ago it was still shooting pretty good so I decided to shoot a groundhog match with it. Didn't do too bad shot somewhere in the low 130s with it out of 150. During the next summer I realized it wasn't shooting that great anymore so I took it over to the range and lucky to keep them all in a softball-size target at 200 yards. I had kept track of the rounds on that gun over the years and it was 2,380. I was shooting 50 grain nosler ballistic tips at 4150 fps. I was very surprised how long that barrel lasted because it was truly abused but it still got over 2,000 rounds of hunting accuracy before it fell off for the last year.
 
Back when I had more money than smarts, I shot a 22/6mm Rem 40 degree improved with 50 grain Nosler solid base, 4600 FPS, most of them never made it to the target. I finally hit a coyote one morn. It took three shots to knock him down at a hundred yards, he just stood there and took all three shots, unphased. Bewildered by not seeing him go down I started to pump another shot into him when he went down. He looked like he had been through a blender. 400 shots later that barrel was toast! It was fun, I think. LOL!!
 
So just out of curiosity what are some of the fastest wildcats developed that were safe to use? I was thinking someone here made reference to one rolling 5k+.
that loudenboomer mite have it but do a search here for”nuclear coyote rifles”
a guy talks about a 50bmg/375 shooting a 250 grain bullet (ithink) at 3950. imagine what that one would do with a 150 grain?? I shot my box stock 270 Win with 90 grain bullets at 3700 and thats enough for me. I got a bunch of factory barrels ready for that one. i think Roy Weatherby working with the defense dept got something to 5000 but i cant remember what it was—
 
So just out of curiosity what are some of the fastest wildcats developed that were safe to use? I was thinking someone here made reference to one rolling 5k+.
So just out of curiosity what are some of the fastest wildcats developed that were safe to use? I was thinking someone here made reference to one rolling 5k+.
Scalloped -

Howdy !

There was an article in a shooting-related magazine a couple months back, that talked about cartridges and loads some shooters used to achieve one-mile-a-second Mv.

While I do not recall barrel length used or bullet wt selected, I do remember that one rifle was chambered in .220 Weatherby Rocket,,,, and the propellant load was 44gr IMR4064.
That would make for high pressure/high temperature load.

Recently published reloading data for shooting 55gr bullets in .22-250, shows Mv's of just under 3,900 fps can be reached using safe charges of " 6.5 StaBal " powder. I believe the barrel length used was 26".

It's up to the individual to decide how much barrel life they are willing to forego in their quest for hyper velocities, not to mention the level of accuracy they can work with.

Besides calibre chosen, bullet wt, style, construction, and even rifling twist utilized; also contribute to terminal effects realized @ the target. It's not always a matter of velocity for velocity's sake.

Pic below shows my ".22-35 Remington " wildcat w/ a Hornady .224" calibre 55SX seated.
From a 24" barrel, 41.2gr WW760 and FED Large Magnum Rifle Match produced 3,690fps. Not the highest vel load possible, but accuracy was superb, as was lethality when this load was applied to " Soybeanus Digestus ". Barrel went 3,400+ rnd before keyholing, a bullet, despite some poor choices I made... like using an uncoated cleaning rod early on; and a too late in life cryo' performed on the barrel.

For an updated version of this part of an energy delivery system, I'd go w/ a longer barrel to boost rifle " expansion ratio "; and would be keen to try 6.5 StaBal in this application.


With regards,
357Mag
 

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Nearly any of the large case 22's will drive the lightest 224 bullets close to 5K...................but it certainly won't be anything near SAAMI safe pressures. Same with nearly any large case caliber and light for caliber bullets.

I've shot a bunch of wildcat barrel burners through the years, but realized the barrel life and the actual usefulness is negligible after getting much past 3300 fps. Even at those speeds you're only looking at a few hundred rounds of useful accuracy. Fine for a hunting rifle, not so fine for someone that likes to shoot.

One of my favorite hunting rifles is a 6mm SAUM using 80+/- grain Barnes or Hammer copper bullets. 4K is easy but accurate barrel life is less than 500 shots. As a hunting rifle, that's fine. But learning that cost me 2 barrels before settling for just hunting accuracy for this flame thrower.

On the other hand, there's something neat about putting crosshairs on center chest out to 400 yards and sqeezing the trigger.
What powder do you use in your 6 saum?
 

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