Is this 22-250 load too much?

[Danco411]

First post for new member so go easy on me.

I have recently been bitten by the Coyote bug and finally assembled a dedicated rifle for it. I had been using my 1:8t AR 15 but decided to build something for a bit longer range. My donor was a Savage Weather Warrior in .308 I picked up used. I fitted it with a Boyds VT thumbhole laminate stock, 6-24 scope, DNZ mounts and a McGowen 26" 1:8 twist SS bull barrel chambed in 22-250. The barrel is huge so I sent it off to get fluted by Kampfield Custom. Before I shipped it off I worked up loads with the 50g Vmax over 38g of RE15 the clocked at 3830FPS with excellent accuracy. I also worked up an 80g Hornady Amax load that has me a bit bewildered.

I decided to use Alliant Power Pro 2000MR because I get superb results with the heavies in .308 and .223. Usually 100 FPS minimum faster than others like Varget, RE15, XBR8208 and TAC. The Alliant site lists the max as 33.7g for a speed of 3076FPS. I worked up from 31g in .5 increments with max at 34. This is only 85% case fill with the uber long 80g Amax seated to 2.60. I got some amazing results on my Magnetospeed Chrono at the 34g load.

No pressure signs at all. Round primers, no ejector marks, easy ejection. So 200 FPS faster than Alliant. Alliant does not say what barrel length they use but who knows. Here is the group.

.73 MOA as read by my Ballistic AE app on the Iphone. Here is the ballistic table.

You have to love a High BC bullet and speed! So according to this my drop will 100" less than my 175 .308 load and still hit with 1400 FPS velocity and a tad under 400 Ft lbs of energy at over 1/2 mile! Normal Michigan Coyote distances are under 400 yards. So is 2400 FPS and 1092 Ft Lbs of energy at 400 too much for Coyotes? The A-max's can be explosive. Will I ruin any fur? Will I be better off leaving this "hammer" round for long range steel targets and stick with the 50 V-max?

Opinions desired!

 

[Catbird]

The V-Max is intended to come apart and do extreme damage. It seems to me that the A-max would not be so explosive.I have not used the 80 A-Max,so this is just a guess on my part.

Have Fun!!!

Gotta love the Magnetospeed. Did you have it on when the pic was taken?

 

[Gone Ballistic]

I have been shooting varmints for over fifty years with the 22-250 Remington. My favorite load is with 37.2 grains of H-380 with a 50 grain V-MAX. After shooting litterly thousands of prarie dogs and hundreds of coyotes (some out to 768 yds,) I find that my best load for the 22-250 is made keeping the speed under 3400fps. Why I say this is that this number seems to be the most forgiving on barrel burn, which is quite prevelent in the 22-250 at higher speeds.
I totally inahiliated a new barrel in less than 1200 rounds at a prarie dog shoot years ago. At that time I figured "Why have a rifle capable of shooting 4000 plus fps without loading it to do so?" A $500 barrell job changed my mind plus three days left to shoot with over 4000 rounds of ammo and a rifle that wouldn't group 15" MOA groups at 100 yards. Keep your speed below 3400fps and your rifle will give a long life with pleasant shooting!
I have never had the V-Max ruin a pelt, as it separates after entry.

 

[blksno]

6mm 105 Amax with a MV of 3100 DESTROYS pelts.
I would expect your 80s, going faster, to cause similar damage...but you won't know till you try them.

 

[tt35]

My advice would be to avoid the shoulder with the 50 gr Vmax and put it on the shoulder with the 80 gr Amax. The Amax is still a very fragile bullet compared to most target bullets. At 3400fps the 50 will be more forgiving of splashes than if you push it. I'd suggest trying the 60 gr Vmax. (It will hold together slightly better than the 50 so you can push it a little faster.) We have had good results on the few coyotes we took with it out of the .22-250.

You might find this article interesting: Fur Loads

Good luck.

 

[window licker]

I ran a 22x47 lapua last year with an 80 grain vld at 3400 fps, this did less damage than a 55 grain bullet nearing 4000 fps out of the 22-243 middlested I used the year before. I would use the heavies to take advantage of the longer shots on windy days. jmo.