.20 ppc

[Mike6158]

I'm in the planning stages for my next custom rifle. My first one was a .338 Edge (couldn't be happier with it) so now I'm going to the opposite end of the firepower scale. I've been looking at:

.20 Vartarg or .20 PPC. Right now I'm leaning toward .20 PPC for two reasons:

(1) I can shoot 55gr Bergers (if I can ever get them) in a 1:9 twist barrel and get some pretty nice yardage out of them.
and
(2) I can get the parts, except the bullets.

By parts I mean brass. For some reason it's easier to get 220 Russian brass than it is to get .221 Fireball brass. I didn't say easy and I didn't say cheap but it's at least available.

My questions are:

(A) Why are the 55 gr Bergers so hard to get?
(B) Why is it so hard to find .221 Fireball brass?

I understand why .223/.308 and pistol ammo "parts" are hard to get... the fact that .22 LR is so scarce and expensive boggles my mind... but I really don't understand why .221 Fireball brass and 55gr Berger .204 pills are hard to come by.

 

[Varmtr]

G'Day Mike

Just finished building a 20PPC for my old man. Here in Aus we can get after a bit of search Nosler & Rem 221 Fireball brass also Sako 22 PPC brass.
The reason we went PPC was due the rifle was originally a 7.62x39 so same bolt face as the PPC. Barrel twist is a 1:10 finding Bergers here espicially 55's in 20 cal is hard.
Otherwise a great little cartridge dynamite on vermin over here. Ballistically compared to my 22-250 I would need to run 60gr's + at the same speed to match the 40gr's in 20 cal over extended distance.
The PPC cartridge is very efficient.
Cheer
Rossco

 

[Mike6158]

G'Day Mike

Just finished building a 20PPC for my old man. Here in Aus we can get after a bit of search Nosler & Rem 221 Fireball brass also Sako 22 PPC brass.
The reason we went PPC was due the rifle was originally a 7.62x39 so same bolt face as the PPC. Barrel twist is a 1:10 finding Bergers here espicially 55's in 20 cal is hard.
Otherwise a great little cartridge dynamite on vermin over here. Ballistically compared to my 22-250 I would need to run 60gr's + at the same speed to match the 40gr's in 20 cal over extended distance.
The PPC cartridge is very efficient.
Cheer
Rossco

Shawn Carlock / Defensive Edge built my little "pea shooter" for me and it is a nice little rifle. The 55's were a pain in the neck to find but I'm good to go now. I went with .20 Beggs and Nosler brass.

Heres a pic of my load test target. I load test at 200 yards.

And here's a pic of the final 5 round, 200 yard target. The triangle is 3/4" (19mm-ish)

It'll do

Last but not least here's the pea shooters big brother. It's a .338 Edge (Canyon Rifle package) and it shoots 1/4 moa groups. The .30-.30 Winchester in the pic is there to let the .338 know that it better shoot straight because it's replacement isn't far off gun)

 

[Varmtr]

Nothing wrong with those groups with the 20 and 1/4 MOA with the Edge is bloody good stuff.
The old man has just started load work up with his PPC with AR2208 which is Varget. So far looking very promising I set up his dies so that he has a 0.002" jump.
You wouldn't believe what action I built his PPC on it's nothing that is main stream I'll tell you that. A few smith's said I was crazy but when I showed them the action they where very surprised.

 

[Mike6158]

Now you've got me curious. What action did you use?

 

[jacack]

If you plan to shoot the 55s take a look at the 20 br. Have both and the br is better with bigger bullets.

 

[Varmtr]

If you plan to shoot the 55s take a look at the 20 br. Have both and the br is better with bigger bullets.

Yeh it would be, a bit bigger powder capacity.

 

[Varmtr]

Now you've got me curious. What action did you use?

It was a Norinco EM331 . On closer inspection has a Rem bolt face with a Sako style extractor, trigger is very crisp and at 10oz and no creep. The back of the bolt is very Anchultz looking, front locking mag feed.
The only thing that did let it down was the dovetails at 13mm so some Sport Match rings from the UK sorted that out. The action was very good only 0.004" - 0.005" thou in place's so didn't take me long to true it all up.
Loaded up some dummy rounds into the mag and no feed issues.
Barrel wise running a TSE S/S 1:10 fluted Rem varmint profile, pillar bedded and floated. Looking at makeing a nw stock for it out of Aussie Blackwood has a fantastic grain with nice fiddle back to it. The timber comes up a treat with a bit of True Oil.
Did quite a bit of research on the rifle found a few hits on the web but no much info, even Norinco don't list it as made by them so who know's. The old man seen another for sale so grabbed it for spare's just in case.