Custom .22-250?

When it comes to a choice on a coyote rifle cartridge, speed will be your friend.

This was my thought when I originally posted the thread. I look at my 18" AR and just imagine how many shots I won't take due to the lack of velocity. I have looked at the numbers, and it's just not that impressive.
 
Erik,

Since you saved from not purchasing a Meater, go with the AI. :cool:šŸ˜šŸ¤£

Ed
Ever start a project and it takes you to another universe?

It looks as though I have entered the worm hole.

star wars lightspeed GIF


AI it is!
 
Ever start a project and it takes you to another universe?

It looks as though I have entered the worm hole.

View attachment 556301

AI it is!
Making an Ackley isn't as hard as it seems. Most new project can seem overwhelming, once you get into it it's not that bad. Another option is to do a 22XC, it's based off the 22-250 case. Just get 6 XC brass and size in the 22 XC dies. You might be able to fire form your existing 22-250 brass to 22 XC also. I'd anneal and then fire form. Just another option to really confuse you lol.
 
Ever start a project and it takes you to another universe?

It looks as though I have entered the worm hole.

View attachment 556301

AI it is!
LOL, yes! From .25-06/AI to .257 WBY, 280 AI to .270 AI, .30-06 AI to .30 Gibbs, .300 RUM to .30 LARA, and .338 RUM to .338 Thor.
 
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I love the .22-250 cartridge. The SAMMI spec is lame compared to modern standards and projectiles though. Soā€¦contemplating a .22-250 custom with a 6" or 7" twist barrel. Now we're talking old cartridge with some legs.

Before you start throwing 22 CM or others at me because this or thatā€¦I have lots of .22-250 brass laying aroundā€¦like a lot. I also have a metric crap ton of 77 grn SMKs laying around.

What action size would be adequate? Should I throat the barrel for the specific bullet I will be using?

Intended purpose: Coyote gun. That's itā€¦.just a yote gun. I'd run it suppressed. Long barrel okā€¦even with a suppressor.

How would you build this rifle?
If you are only going to use 77 SMK, I wouldn't go faster than 8 twist. I have a 9 twist 22cm and shot a ton of 77 SMK and TMK and it stabilized them just fine.
 
Two very good advantages. 1) Your brass will never stretch and need trimming. 2) The resultant increase in capacity will gain you as much as 150fps.
Your sizing will also be more consistent and precise due to less body taper.

Cheers.
Another advantage is feeding. From an AICS style DBM, the 22-250 has a tendency to nosedive and bind in the magazine due to its taper.

Once you fireform the AI and remove the case taper, they feed like butter, 100%.
 
Last fall I bought a Rem M700 SPS .243, it was cheap. Came home, removed the barrel, stock and trigger, threw them away and kept the bottom metal. Ordered a Bartlein 3B (bull sporter) 1:7 twist barrel. Called up Manson Reamers and ordered a .22-250 AI reamer and go gauge. I also ordered a Magpul Hunter II stock. When it all arrived I chambered the barrel, and assembled my "cheap build" using an old Remington (Walker) trigger that was adjustable. I finally topped all this off with a Leupold 20 MOA Pic rail, Warne rings and a "cheap" Vortex Venom scope. Fireformed 100 brass with cartridges my neighbor had that were topped with Nosler 60 g bullets loaded over 20 years ago (with a hefty load of IMR 4064). Fireforming went flawlessly and it shot small groups during this exercise. I had a bunch of old Hornady 50 g V max bullets left over so I started experimenting with these and found that most would not make it to a 100 yd target when velocities exceeded 3800 fps. According to my Lab Radar they would disintegrate between 40 and 50 yards in most cases. Worked up some loads with the Berger 73 g. BT Target bullets. This is where this rifle shines. So far I've shot steel targets out to 800+ yards, in strong cross winds. With the help of my Kestrel I can consistently whack steel in these conditions. Which IMO is very cool for a .22 centerfire!! I also worked up some loads for 60 g V max which shoot very well too. So, in conclusion, I'm very happy with my "Budget" .22-250 AI build. It's a fun cartridge. If I had it to do over again, I'd probably stick with the 1:8 twist as I don't intend to shoot any bullets over 80 grains.
 
I had several guys wanting me to do 22-250AI bbls for them about 10 years ago, so ordered in several Bartlein & Krieger sendero contour blanks, all with 1-9tw, knowing that these guys were going to load as many or more lighter bullets as any of the heavies. I talked it over with each of them, suggesting that the Hornady 75 AMax was likely going to be the limit on the upper end, and they all agreed that would suit their purposes just fine. To date, only one of them has shot-out their AI bbl, and the guy who did so was looking for an excuse to have me re-barrel that rifle in 6XC anyway. He'd shot far more 75s than anything else, and was using RL22 to push them to 3400fps. He started to experience blow-ups, and was telling me about that. I suggested he try RL17, as the pressure curve is flatter, no where near as steep as RL22's. That worked for him, and he got several hundred more rounds out of that bbl before we finally agreed it was time to re-barrel.

There's still one of those 1-9tw sendero blanks out in the shop, and I've thought about using it for myself, just never seem to get fired-up enough to do so. Same goes for the 243AI reamer I bought because a couple of younger coyote callers were wanting rifles in that chambering, knowing that with the right bullets, it would work well on antelope & deer. I already have a couple of 6XCs, two 6x47 Lapuas, three 6 Dashers, and a couple of 6 RAT rifles, and just don't see the need for a 243AI. But I have done several 223AIs, a 250 Savage AI, three 6.5x55AIs, and a 280AI for myself, and really like all of them. Even though the 223AI probably gives the smallest gain in velocity of any of the AIs I've tried, in a 7-tw bbl, it works really well with Berger or JLK 90VLDs, out to 1000yds - which really surprises shooters who've never really worked with heavy-for-caliber bullets before.
 
My coyote calling does not give time to dial in S. Ca., Arizona, Nevada, Sonora Mexico, and Baja North.

Wide open Plains states where a 10 MPH wind is calm is a very different set up. I killed quite a few in S. Dakota, and N. Wyoming prior to starting to shoot P. dogs with a 22/250 AI with 55g Nosler ballistic tips at 4100. I was able to coax them in to 325 yds as a rule. We were on a dog town heavily infested. I was working on a party of dogs around 325-350 with the AI. A coyote ran out of the bushes and grabbed a dog that was shot in half as soon as it hit the ground. He was chomping away on the dog, and I whistled. He stopped chomping, dog still in mouth, and I shot him just above the right eye. The 50g ballistic tip did not exit the skull, I took a picture of him.

A Texas gunsmith friend of mine, Harold Broughton said he had killed over 5000 between him and his wife who both shot a 220 Swift with 52g Sierra's. As the dogs started hanging up around 500, Harold went to a 257 Roberts AI shooting 100g Ballistic tips, and he loved that caliber.

There is a lot of fun and satisfaction in building a coyote gun collection. In our Predator Calling Club, we hunted 4 men in a truck. Club meetings were great with all kinds of stories.

The coyote has a will to live like no other animal I have ever hunted, and I have a lot of respect for them.

Hornady has come out with a new 62g vld type of bullet, and this would be a great bullet for the AI.
 
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