Anyone shooting a 20” barrel 22-250? I just picked up a Savage 110 with a 20” 1:12 barrel. Wondering what kind of velocities to expect. I keep reading that a 20” 22-250 is a waste over a .223. Anyone have some real firsthand experience? I will be handloading for it. If anyone has a good powder to start with that will give me as much velocity as I can squeeze out of a 20” barrel, lemme know! Thanks
20” 22-250
- Thread starter CI_Hillbilly
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adcoch1
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No personal experience with that short of barrel in 22-250, but swapping barrels is easy in a savage. Shoot yours for a while and then swap out for a longer one. Record the difference in your rifle and consider it research or long term load development...
25-20 WCF
Member
The powders which give the highest velocities in a long barrel will almost always give the highest velocities in short barrels.
Bob Milek ran a test published in Guns & Ammo in 1989, where he cut off the barrel of a .22-250 Ruger 77V in 1” increments. The ammunition used was 55-grain PMC, the results are below.
24” - 3617 fps
23” - 3629 fps
22” - 3569 fps
21” - 3514 fps
20” - 3491 fps
19” - 3422 fps
18.5” - 3426 fps
.
Bob Milek ran a test published in Guns & Ammo in 1989, where he cut off the barrel of a .22-250 Ruger 77V in 1” increments. The ammunition used was 55-grain PMC, the results are below.
24” - 3617 fps
23” - 3629 fps
22” - 3569 fps
21” - 3514 fps
20” - 3491 fps
19” - 3422 fps
18.5” - 3426 fps
.
I have had a 20" M77 since 1971 and shoot 4895 over 55 gr bullets in a ragged hole with 33.5 gr all day long.
The difference a couple of inches makes just isn't nearly as much as a lot of folks think. In fact there can be more difference between 2 barrels of the same length than 2" of barrel makes. I've seen 100-130 fps difference between rifles with the same length barrel. I've seen individual 20" 308 and 30-06 barrels shoot faster than some 22" 308 and 30-06 barrels. You need 4-6" difference in barrel length to guarantee any significant change.
While I've never fooled with a 22-250 the speeds listed above are pretty similar to what I've seen with other cartridges.
While I've never fooled with a 22-250 the speeds listed above are pretty similar to what I've seen with other cartridges.
Riomouse911
Member
Is the blast pretty fierce? I know my 16” and 14.5” pinned AR’s make the .223/5.56 abusive... I kind of figured the larger .22-250 case would be a killer in a shorter tube like a 20” one. (Though as a walkabout varmint Gun it’s probably more comfy to tote than a 24” or 26” heavy barreled rifle
) Stay safe.
Recently, a guy at a bench next to me was shooting a Model 7 in .22-250. I don't think the blast was any worse than longer barrelled rifles.
climbnjump
Member
You might give Alliant AR-Comp a try. As the name implies, it was developed for AR style rifles. What those rifles have in common with your rifle is a shorter barrel. This powder was developed to give good velocities in said shorter barrels. However, I also use it in my .223 Rem bolt gun which has a 22" barrel. But the reason for using it there is it burns completely and there are no hot powder particles hitting the baffles in my suppressor. This is a take-it-apart-and-clean-it suppressor and it stays much cleaner with AR-Comp than the other powders I've used.
I have to ask since you didn't include the information in your post, at what distance?
Offfhand
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Be sure to be using industrial strength ear protection when you shoot it. Plugs plus good muffs.
They are only slightly more blasting than a 22 inch.
Velocity is still better than my 223 by enough to make it a dedicated step up.
It's about halfway between a 223 and 22-250 claimed velocities.
Velocity is still better than my 223 by enough to make it a dedicated step up.
It's about halfway between a 223 and 22-250 claimed velocities.
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