Fast Twist 22-250 vs AR15

Hi Guys,

I've had both standard tist 22-250's and AR's in 223 and have been dissatisfied with the 223's trajectory. I prefer the short and light (16" carbine types) AR though in terms of handling and fit. I live in WY where we need to take shots to 400+ yards regularly so I have been pondering trading in an AR ($700-$800 trade value) for a fast twist 22-250. I'm thinking of a 9 twist running 75 grn bullets as a truck/coyote gun.

So I guess the question is this, would you go fast twist 22-250 in a bolt gun or 223 in an AR for long and open country shooting in the wind?

Would swapping out make any sense?

Thanks for the input all and God bless,

Adam

A standard 22-250 or 243 would be my choice in your area. I have a 22-250 Improved with an 8 twist for shooting the 75gr a-max but the barrel is really too long for your preference. Learn to read the wind, I shot tons of prairie dogs over 300 yds out to 420 with my .223. I will admit these would be anemic on a coyote at this distance. 75gr out of a .243 stevens would be my first choice.

I have considered the 243 but am already set up for 223 and 22-250 reloading and was wanting to stick with 22 caliber. . .

I guess what I meant is to get the fast twist you are going to have to use a longer barrel unless you get a take-off .223 and rechamber it. The standard 22-250 will hold its own unless it is real windy. I would not recommend the 75gr a-max for coyotes, not sure what is available in heavy for caliber bullets for hunting.

I'm confused, how is barrel length a factor here?

In order to get the velocity you need for 400 yards,you'll need to burn alot of slow powder to keep pressure in the fast twist/heavy bullet gun safe.Slow powder means long barrel.
I have a tricked out 700 remington with a 28 inch Kreiger 8 twist in 22-250AI.I don't think I would do that again.Shoot a 243 or a 260 or a 6mm.

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Originally Posted by kslefty

I guess what I meant is to get the fast twist you are going to have to use a longer barrel unless you get a take-off .223 and rechamber it. The standard 22-250 will hold its own unless it is real windy. I would not recommend the 75gr a-max for coyotes, not sure what is available in heavy for caliber bullets for hunting.

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You don't need a longer barrel and the way to get a faster twist barrel in the length that you want is to order one. The 75gn AMax will work just fine on coyotes, they're not especially tough and the AMax will yaw and fragment on impact. The 75gn Hornady BTHP is another good choice. The Berger VLDs are also worth considering.

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Originally Posted by digger11

In order to get the velocity you need for 400 yards,you'll need to burn alot of slow powder to keep pressure in the fast twist/heavy bullet gun safe.Slow powder means long barrel.
I have a tricked out 700 remington with a 28 inch Kreiger 8 twist in 22-250AI.I don't think I would do that again.Shoot a 243 or a 260 or a 6mm.

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You'll lose some velocity going with a shorter barrel, and the .22-250 is a little more sensitive to barrel length with regard to velocity than the .223 but the .22-250 will be the faster round out of every barrel length you try (within reason).

The .243 is roughly the same proportions as the .22-250 as far as the ratio of case capacity to bore size and uses powders even slower than the .22-250. Why would you think that the .243 is OK in a shorter barrel while the .22-250 is not? The .243 is the superior shooter in the wind but only when you factor in the use of 100gn+ bullets. I personally wouldn't hesitate to add the .243 to the reloading stable (it's one of my favorite rounds to reload actually), but if the OP wants to stick with the .22-250, a 20" rifle with a faster twist shooting the 70gn+ match bullets would be handy and will work about as well as you can hope for out to 400yds.

Thanks for all the info guys.

This will probably muddy the waters some, but what about a 204 Ruger or a 22/6.8SPC (22PDK or 224DTI) in an AR?

I would stay away from your last list of calibers. If you want to stay with the .224's I'd go with a 22-250 in a 9 twist and shoot 65gr Sierras SBT with a BC of .303 or 75gr amax. Both of these should do well out to the 400yd mark and should do it fairly easily.

Will the 65gr bullets stabilize in a 12 twist? Then could use a factory barrel. . .

The .204 Ruger has one serious limitation in the AR platform and that is that the bullets that you really want to use for your purposes are not able to be loaded to a length that will fit in the magazine. The .20 Tactical or Practical make more sense in the AR.

The 6.8 based wildcats are pretty cool but the .22-250 will still stomp them pretty good. They do fit in an AR15 length action, though, which the .22-250 does not. The 6.8 wildcats need a longer barrel than the .223 to perform optimally but just like the .22-250 will still outperform the .223 in a given barrel length.

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Originally Posted by cowboyarcher

Will the 65gr bullets stabilize in a 12 twist? Then could use a factory barrel. . .

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Maybe, but that BC isn't all that good and at that point I'd just use the 53gn Vmax and use the additional velocity to make up for the tiny decrease in BC. The new little Vmax is a great little bullet for intermediate range work. The BC is really high for its weight and the light weight means that you can really scream it out there.

You can get some factory Savage rifles in 22-250 with a 9 twist. The options are the VLP DBM and LRPV.I just got a VLP DBM myself haven't had a chance to shoot it yet.

1ShotKing

I like my ARs light and handy but not much of a threat to a prairie dog past 350. The 8 twist 22-250 I had built many years ago is a whole different critter in the wind or past 350yards than the 14 twist it replaced. The fast twist shootin 75Amaxes will not outdo the 243 shooting 105s but comes dang close.
If I where to do it again one of the 223 9 twist 24" barrels laying around here would be rechambered to 22-250....Thats in fact why I have held onto them.

Since you like the AR so much why not go with an AR10 in 22-250? Get a 9 twist and have at it.

Not sure the 65gr will stablize in the 12 twist 22-250. Sierra can tell you. The BC is .303 which is good. The 69gr Matchking is only rated at .301 so I think the 65gr would hold its own. Personally, I'm skeptical of the listed BC of the 53gr Vmax.

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Originally Posted by Predator1

The 69gr Matchking is only rated at .301 so I think the 65gr would hold its own.

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It's .331 as tested by Bryan Litz.

I don't find the BC of the 53gn Vmax difficult to believe at all. It's a much better form factor than any bullet of similar weight. It's .021" longer than the 55gn Vmax and shares it's design with the heavyweight Amax bullets.

The .22-250 is the only rifle you will ever need to own. The .223 is better suited for an AR platform so you can spray and pray. Just get an 8 twist .22-250 and go do what you want to do.