Understand, that I am not saying a .222 magnum is a premier deer caliber. The Trijicon SRO is specifically designed for pistol use. Mag. ), 6x47 (6mm-222 Rem. For the European hunter, however, .222 Remington is a very good choice for all small game up to and including the European roe deer, which rarely exceeds 70 pounds. Hollow Point; Nosler 40-gr. Let’s dive right in. My favorite turkey load is the discontinued Speer 55-grain FMJ over 8.8 grains of SR-4759 for a velocity of 1,768 fps. Joined Nov 24, 2008 Messages 8,324 Location SW Montana. BlitzKing; and Nosler 55-gr. Range testing for accuracy and velocity a box of Prvi Partizan / PPU brand .222 Remington ammo. Interest in the .222 Remington cartridge has revived following Lapua’s decision in 2009 to resume production of .222 Remington Brass.If you’re thinking of chambering a rifle in this very accurate caliber, or if you already have a .222 Rem, we’ve found a useful resource on the web for you. BlitzKing; Nosler 50-gr. However, there are still many good rifles chambered in .222 Rem., and an opportunity to own one should not be shunned. With a 1:14” twist rate, even some of the lighter bullets—if designed with a long, sleek ogive—will give stabilization issues. The .222 Remington was our first rimless .22-caliber cartridge - the case was an entirely new design, although many shooters observed that it looked a lot like a miniature .30-06. Most notably, it was the basis for the U.S. Army’s work in developing the 5.56 NATO/.223 Rem., though the list is much longer than that. Once upon a time, there was a little cartridge that was the epitome of accuracy. V-Max; Speer 52-gr. The history of the .223 Remington really began in 1950, when Remington introduced the .222 Remington in the company’s Model 722 bolt-action rifle. Factory .222 ammunition was loaded with a new 50-grain softpoint bullet that delivered 3,140 fps and demolished 'chucks and other critters out to 250 yards. (I have read that an FMJ bullet can tumble at low velocity, but I have not observed this.) The M700's 24-inch barrel features a 1:14 twist, standard for the .222. Speer's current 55-grain FMJ TMJ Uni-Cor bullet is a good replacement. In 1950, Remington released Mike Walker’s creation— the.222 Rem. Someone give me a good starting point, will be shooting 50gr bullets mostly. Our test rifle is a Remington Model 700 ADL that I bought new in 1979, and a Weaver K8 has provided the sighting since then. However, that was enjoyable. A shot in the wing butts knocks down the big birds and doesn't ruin much meat. By the way, Savage makes a very nice little 222 presently, in American. has stolen the limelight—military adopted cartridges tend to do that after all—we owe a debt of gratitude to Mike Walker and his development; without the .222, there would be no .223. That may be a loaded question, considering the sheer volume of .223 Rem. The following data was developed in a Remington 40XBBR rifle with a 20-inch barrel. to print a 100-yard, five-shot group that was certified at 0.009”—as close to a one-hole group as any of us could ever imagine. But it will cleanly harvest whitetail deer. I used the original RCBS set I purchased when I got the M700. Works real good in the right ranges! and 300 Blackout. Interest in all sorts of hunting and shooting was picking up steam, and returning GIs who were buying a new house and an assembly-line car and had a couple of crumb-crunchers to feed needed a rifle that wouldn't break the bank. ammunition available to the hunter. February 14th, 2014 TripleDeuce.Net Website for .222 Remington Shooters. I’d classify those folks as fools. I have settled into the bench in pursuit of MOA accuracy. The combination of great accuracy, low cost, mild report and absence of recoil made the M722 in .222 very popular. My most accurate load in the short barrel was Hornady’s 50-gr. With the proper bullet the .223 Remington is more than adequate for deer. small to medium game hunting such as roe deer, fox etc. Jun 2, 2010 #7 7. Additionally, the .222 Rem. Speer's current 55-grain FMJ TMJ Uni-Cor bullet is a good replacement. Remington does not currently make a CoreLoct load for the.222 Remington - they make a PSP load and a PowerLoct - both of which have much thinner jackets than CoreLoct bullets. Chambered in the Model 722 Remington, this cartridge was a rimless design, which would feed perfectly from a bolt-action magazine, offer a huge velocity increase over the .22 Hornet, and considerably longer barrel life and less throat erosion than the speedier .220 Swift. In this Guns & Ammo TV segment, Gun Tech Editor Richard Nance and Pro-Shooter Jim Tarr discuss the benefits of airsoft training for uniformed professionals and armed citizens alike. It is unlike any other rifle on the market because it offers features no one else does; those looking for a rifle that fits like a custom-made firearm should look no further than the Benelli Lupo. Get the American Hunter Insider newsletter for at-a-glance access to industry news, gear, gun reviews, videos and more—delivered directly to your Inbox. Winchester brass and Federal 205M primers were used in all the following loads. The .222's twist won't stabilize the sleek 45-grain Barnes Banded Solid. The .222 will give the best accuracy will the lower B.C. V-Max; Sierra 50-gr. In my rifle the TSX bullets like RL7, the Speer bullets don’t seem to care what powder is behind it. Though the .223 Rem. My favorite turkey load is the discontinued Speer 55-grain FMJ over 8.8 grains of SR-4759 for a velocity of 1,768 fps. Both of these bullets can be cranked up to over 3,500 fps and are explosive powerhouses. Beginning in 1950 the .222 Remington was the varmint and small game cartridge by which all others to come later would be judged. It was a happy cartridge, perfectly content to be the king of the woodchuck fields and the prairie dog towns. Some guns are easier to work with than others, but the Ruger American Rifle doesn't require an... "Assault weapon." Not shown are the 222 Rem. Hodgdon states that H-322 "has won more benchrest matches than all other propellants combined," and I can believe it. Some hunters think the .223 Remington is too small of a caliber, without enough bullet weight, for deer. Trijicon RMRcc Reflex Sight Review – Perfect for Concealed Carry, Trijicon's New Specialized Reflex Optics (SRO), Red vs. Green Lasers: Visibility in Bright Light. Some folks say a 16" AR firing .223 is inadequate for deer, while others say with the right bullets and loads, it can be done. A box of "bullets." The .222 is also terrific on turkeys. I have used the flyweight Barnes 36-grain Varmint Grenade lead-free on PDs, and it lives up to its name. The reliable 45-grain Speer SP does well with 23.1 grains of IMR 8208 XBR. But the .222's utility doesn't stop there. TS-X; Sierra 55-gr. I’m forever a fan of the Triple Deuce. The .22-250 was more powerful but much noisier and harder on barrels. was an immediate hit among the varmint and predator hunters, it also came into its own in a new type of shooting competition: Benchrest. Based on experience and ballistic data analysis, I judge this to be roughly 175 yards for the traditional .30-30 cartridge loaded with a 150 grain flat-point bullet. most of the time i use my 7mm rem mag . While the .222 Rem. I would wager that over 90% of the .223 rounds fired in America are fired for recreational use, in low-stress pursuits. Looking for previous installments of Behind the Bullet? This record would stand for 40 years, until it was dethroned by a group measuring 0.0077”, with the wildcat .30 Stewart. With proper loads it is very versatile and non-destructive on the game whether the target is a fox on the ground or a Black Cock in the top of a birch tree at 200 meters. In the event the rifle were called on for real, well, I a… Mag. Therefore, in good conscience I cannot recommend any.222 loading for deer. A.222 Remington is not appropriate for use on deer unless one is in a survival situation. The.222 is also terrific on turkeys. of muzzle energy (ME). And at only $74.95, the M722 was inexpensive. I helped dress a hog shot in the nose with a promotional load of sixes out of a 16 gauge. All Rights Reserved. My efforts sped over the screens at 3,146 fps, suggesting that Reming-ton has maintained a consistent control over .222 Remington perfor- mance. A top accuracy load with 50-grain bullets is 26.6 grains of W-748 or the same charge of AA-2460. Yeah, buddy. In the past 30 years I have hunted extensively with it in many states and used it as the test bed to wring out countless new bullets and powders. The most readily available off the shelf load is Remington’s 50 grain soft point. While any good bullet will shoot well in the .222, the standard 1:14 twist will seldom stabilize bullets heavier than 55 grains at .222 velocities, so that is the heaviest weight used in our test loads. Almost any small rifle primer will work, but the CCI-BR4, Remington 7½ or Federal GM205M are top picks. Hollow Point Flat Base; Barnes 53-gr. Remington factory loads include the 50 grain Accutip, a 50 grain hollow point, a 50 grain soft point and the 50 grain Hornady V-Max, all at 3140fps for a realistic 3070fps. The smallest CoreLoct bullet listed on Remington's web site a 100g loading for the.243 Winchester. The .222 Rem. With the excellent selection of super-frangible high-tech bullets available these days, putting together high-performance varmint loads is effortless. Started shooting a 222 in ’75. However, I must confess that Hornady’s factory loads shoot so well that the reloader is hard-pressed to better them. Other than the big.220 Swift, the only serious competition for the Triple Deuce was the.22 Hornet,.218 Bee, and the.219 Zipper. It was based on a new rimless case and filled an obvious void between the .22 Hornet and .220 Swift. I don't intend to HUNT deer and piggies with the 222, just have it with me. The .222's rimless, bottlenecked case has a relatively long neck of about 1.4 calibers, providing plenty of bearing surface for good bullet alignment, a critical component of accuracy. In fact, if you make a dimensional comparison of the two cases, the .222 is almost a ¾-scale version of the '06. The main reason for using the 222 is because it is hanging below the 12 ga shotgun barrel. Oct 16, 2008 Thread starter #8 Mag., the .17 Rem., .221 Fireball, .17 Fireball and .300 Blackout can all trace their lineage back to Mike Walker’s design, and that’s quite an impressive legacy. I soon learned that load requirements for the .222 were simple. comes factory loaded with three different bullets: Full Metal Jacket – read more about the FMJ bullet here Soft … L. to R. are 17 Fireball, 17 Remington, 204 Ruger, 221 Fireball, 222 Remington, 223 Remington. The various 6mm cartridges have been based on a multitude of case sizes, including (from left) 6mm-221 Fireball, 6mm-222 Rem., 6x45 (6mm-223 Rem. It is often said the 222 Remington is so nicely balanced because its a scaled down 30-06 Springfield, but that isn’t accurate. Let me point out that there is a big difference in a .222 and a .222 magnum, the .222 magnum blows away the .223 Remington. SP over 21.5 grains of H322 (2,400 fps) that put three shots well under 1″. I know of one savage 340 in 222 that has killed over 100 whitetails, most with 50gr SP factory ammo. Zero that factory load at 200 yards and the bullet will hit 1.9" high at 100 yards, 1.7" high at 150 yards, 0 at 200 yards, 3.6" low at … In the ensuing decades, the .222 spawned an entire family of cartridges based on its case, such as the .221 and .17 Fireballs, .17 and .223 Remingtons, and the .222 Remington Magnum, not to mention many esoteric wildcats. Subscriber Services. The Accutip is the stoutest of these projectiles, adequate for meat saver shots on light medium game. Friday, July 14, 2017. I have fired my old alarm and excursion Colt HBAR for fun, at varmints and at distant targets often over the past 20 years. Loads” on the .222 Remington in 1968, he chronographed factory 50-grain loads at 3,159 fps; in his 1977 revisit of the cartridge, factory 50-grain ammunition clocked 3,121 fps. Mr. Walker was among the founding fathers of the modern era of this competition, and the .222 dominated the scene for more than two decades. Using a case length of 1.700”, with a 23˚ shoulder, this short-action gem drove a 50-grain bullet at just over 3100 fps, making a lethal combination for the small-bore aficionado. The.222 Rem. Accuracy, increased range, flatter trajectory, less wind drift and devastating terminal results are all realized with Superformance ® Varmint ammunition.. Find a Retailer Sixteen-round "clip." Contrary to popular belief, the .223 is a legal big-game cartridge in most states. • .45 ACP• .404 Jeffery• .44 Remington Magnum• .243 Winchester• .338 Winchester Magnum• .357 S&W Magnum• 6.5-284 Norma• 8x57 Mauser• .38 Smith & Wesson Special• 7x57mm Mauser• 9 mm Luger• .35 Whelen• .454 Casull• .375 H&H Magnum• .45 Colt• .22-250 Remington• 10mm Auto• .308 Winchester, E-mail your comments/questions about this site to: EmediaHunter@nrahq.org, For questions/comments about American Hunter magazine, please e-mail:Publications@nrahq.org, You can contact the NRA via phone at: NRA Member Programs1-800-672-3888, To advertise on American Hunter, visit nramediakit.com for more information. That is certainly true at my house. Trijicon has dominated the Carry Optic landscape on hard-use handguns for years. In this segment of “At The Range,” Handgunning Editor Jeremy Stafford and contributor Patrick Sweeney compare the visibility of red and green lasers in outdoor, sunny conditions. The .222 also spawned three other cartridges … by Philip Massaro - What we can do is provide a framework to understand what average conditions might look like, and whether those are reasonably viable for a shot from the average shooter to harvest a whitetail deer in the fewest number of shots possible, i.e., ethically. Andy Cross says: February 10, 2017 at 8:38 pm. All Guns and Ammo subscribers now have digital access to their magazine content. Combine that availability with the velocity advantage of the younger cartridge, and the knee-jerk answer would be no. The .257 Roberts and .300 Savage versions had 24-inch barrels. suffers from slow-twist-syndrome; like the .22-250 Rem., it won’t stabilize bullets any longer than 50 or 55-grains. Later would be no Walker ’ s creation—the.222 Rem to become the head of large. Velocity increases of 100 to 200 feet per second from EVERY gun conscience can! On a new rimless case and filled an obvious void between the.22 Hornet.220... 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