What .22 caliber would be a good choice for match shooting

[jonbearman]

I have a 1 in 9 twist blank I want to use for local matches and was wondering if .223 would be a good choice for barrel longevity etc. I am open to suggestions from you fellas and would appreciate your comments and the reason you chose the caliber(cartridge ) over other choices. Thanks in advance. The blank is a medium varmint barrel and will finish at 24" 's!

 

[cmillard]

if it is a bolt gun, go with the .222 remington

 

[Eddie Harren]

What kind of "Match"?

 

[gmorganal]

If you are going to be shooting 100-200 BR, go with the 222 or 220 PPC short. If you are going to 300 or farther try the 223 or 22BR.

 

[fdshuster]

22 BR's when competing in our local score/varmint match's are giving a very good accounting of their capabilities. One recently took a third place win at distances of 2,3,4 & 500 yds., competing against 6.5 x 47 Lapua's, 6 BR's, Dasher's, etc. Fast twist barrels with the heavier weight bullets. Not too many 22 calibers used overall though, 6 mm seems to be the favored caliber.

 

[Tozguy]

Just a thought but since you are starting with a medium varmint profile the 222R or 223 might offer the best potential for accuracy. The 9'' twist would allow you to shoot some match quality bullets very well at moderate speeds. The 223 might offer a bit more potential for longer distances with heavier bullets than the 222. Good luck and have lots of fun.

 

[WyleWD]

There are some awful tough to beat 22br's at the matches that I shoot in (100-400yds). There seems to be a growing number of high bc bullets to choose from for the faster twist barrels they use.

One thing I've noticed is that the fellas that use these 22's have VERY GOOD ($$$$) scopes on their rilfes in order to see bullet holes at distance etc. WD

 

[Tozguy]

WD,
Are the 22BR match winners you are referring to using a barrel like the one Jon (the OP) wants to use? How would a 22BR compare to a 223 for barrel longevity?

 

[Eddie Harren]

Since you never said what kind of match shooting you plan to do, I would advise against a 224 cal with a 9 twist for any type of 100, 200 & 300 yard BR shooting, regardless of cartridge choice.

 

[FroggyOne2]

With the 22BR, it is very possible that you may be able to use the 75gr AMax, which is a great bullet in .22 caliber.

 

[jonbearman]

It will be used for local matches out to 200 yds. I just wanted to know what you guys like and why. It will be used for some light ground hog shooting as well. It will be mounted on a remington short action. I have a 6 br already,just want to shoot something light and enjoyable.

 

[fdshuster]

jon: Since you defined the maximum distance at 200 yds., then I would have to say the 222 Remington. Excellent ctg. and even better with the Lapua brass, have two chamberings and they just continue to shoot without any hassle. Forget about barrel life: it's just not an issue. I honestly cannot remember anyone telling me they burned out their 222 Rem. barrel. Dozens of load combinations out there that have a proven 60 year track record.

 

[WyleWD]

WD,
Are the 22BR match winners you are referring to using a barrel like the one Jon (the OP) wants to use? How would a 22BR compare to a 223 for barrel longevity?

The ones I've shot against are anything from straight tapers down to approx. a factory heavy barrel type taper. These fellas are some real good shooters, so that in itself makes a lot of difference.

As far as barrel life I'd be the wrong person to ask about that, as I've never asked any of them ..... and my opinion is that barrel life and lack thereof is more a result of how the rifle is shot, reloaded for, and cared for over its intended lifetime. If really long barrel life is a top consideration..... get into air rifles. ;D I'd suspect that the 223 would have longer barrel life all other things considered equal, but have no data to back that up.

Now that you mention it regarding barrel life, there's a few of those fellows that I shoot against that I wish their barrel life was LOT less than it is. lol They make life rough on an old guy. WD

 

[Tozguy]

To second what Frank said, Lapua Match brass in either 222R or 223 is a cut above the rest IMO. Difference in quality of brass will show up on the target (going by my experience only). Considering the 9'' twist rate of your barrel, my preference would be 223 over 222R.
Also seconding WD's comment about results often being more of a reflection of shooter ability than choice of caliber (witness Laurie Holland's success with a 223 at 1000yds this year at Blair Atholl).
My 223 with 8.5'' twist (28'') shoots great at 100 and 200 yds. with 24 grs of Varget behind a 69gr. SMK. Gun weighs 13.5 lbs with a Night Force.

 

[expiper]

I would go with a 22 BR no turn (.254 nk) with .040 FB....with your twist the Berger 73 BT match would shine at long range ,up to 600...and the usual 52-65gr stuff for 100-300 yds....Roger
PS...listend to ole' WD...he actually gets out amonst em and shoots.....he sees what is winning and doing well...and he does pretty well himself!!!!!!and I agree about bbl life...some guys can wear one out in a cupla days hard shooting and others (old titewads like ME) can get wayyyy more than the usual round count.

 

[fdshuster]

WyleWD: Barrel life is directly related to the amount of powder burned versus bore diameter. Talk to Kevin Thomas, now with Lapua about that. I have. I've burned out a number of 223 barrels at documented 4500 to 4800 rounds to the point they would no longer meet my accuracy requirements. One of my 222 Rem. barrels ( a Hart 14 twist) is at 3600 rds. fired since I bought it new, no sign of firecracking as verified with my borescope, and bullet seating depth's have not lengthened more than .010" to .020". It continues to produce 1/2 moa or less 5 shot groups at 200 yds. The typical 222 powder charge is around 20 to 21 grs. vs. 25 to 27 with the 223. More powder = greater distance capabilities = less barrel life. Continue up the powder ladder & the 22-250 at 35 to 38 grs is another example of shorter barel life, and I have, several times/ good for 2350 to 2500. Taken to the extreme, try a 22 CHeeta that will be done at 750, if you're lucky. It's all about powder vs. bore diameter.

 

[Tozguy]

Frank, do you have a 222R with 9'' twist ? If not would you want one? If so what barrel length?
WD, would you want a 9'' twist 24'' medium taper varmint barrel in 22BR for your level of competition? How much twist in your best 22BR bench gun?

 

[fdshuster]

Walt: My 222 Remington's are both 1-14's, and I limit them both to 53 gr. ( 53 gr. SMK) bullet weights, although 50 gr. seems to be optimum. Never considered using anything heavier in the 222, since I've always thought of it as being distance challanged at anything much over 200 yds., maybe 250 under ideal conditions: no wind, solid shooting position, well defined tgt. etc. Tried some serious benchrest attempts at 300 yds., and the fall-off in accuracy was very evident. 24" barrel lengths are pretty much my standard except for the 8 twist 6 BR's and the 6 BRX that are used to 500 meters maximum.

 

[Tozguy]

Jon, if none of this is helping please don't hesitate to $hut me up.

Frank, my 222R is a 14 twist 24'' barrel also. As I understand it, with the limited powder capacity of the 222R it shoots best with lighter bullets (52gr Opel FB bullets in my case) and slower twist so that the bullet can get up to a stable flight speed in a reasonable length of barrel. My concern here with a 9 twist barrel compared to a 14 twist would be the effect on velocity which might further reduce its limited range of accuracy. The extra bullet spin would be to no advantage and might even be too much for certain types of bullets. BTW I won the 10.5 lb. 100 yd.class with my 222R at our last shoot.
From shooting a 6BR in the 13.5 lb. class it is hard for me to imagine necking it down to 22 caliber for any of my purposes especially if its for a lighter short range gun like Jon is contemplating.
I can identify with Jon who already shoots a 6BR but still wants something light and fun to shoot which includes some field work . Between my 222R, 223 and 6BR guns, the 6BR is the most capable of winning a match but my 223 is the most fun to shoot.
Lawrence, hadn't read your post before composing this one. You said it better than I did.

 

[WyleWD]

WyleWD: Barrel life is directly related to the amount of powder burned versus bore diameter. Talk to Kevin Thomas, now with Lapua about that. It's all about powder vs. bore diameter.

I've had 3 220 Swifts, a 22-243, several 243's, and a couple 6-284's. I'm thinking that Kevin and I could have quite a conversation. ;D ;D ;D

Tozguy, you have a PM. WD