What makes a good all-around .22 cal cast boolit?

[Leatherhead Bullets]

Looking for advice from all of you on what makes a versatile boolit for the .22 cal center fire rifles. I know their are many variables to consider, and I have been doing some research. What are some of your experiences, success and failures, with these critters. I am using the Hi-tek coating. I have access to several .223, .22-250's etc. would like to find a design that works in most as a general plinker/target bullet.
Thank you for your thoughts.

[goblism]

Really need to base your bullet design on weight of the bullet and barrel twist, get something too light or too heavy for your barrel and no matter what you do you will be out of luck.

Nose shape will be a huge factor if planning to use in a semi-auto gun. NOE makes several good molds and that is where I would start. I also have an MP mold that I have yet to try but having other molds from him I expect nothing but high quality as well.

[telebasher]

The twist rate of your rifle will have a lot to do with your choice of moulds. Search the stickies for more imformation as this topic has been cussed and discussed forever it seems. My choice for 22 rifles will be for the older, slower 12 or 14 twist barrels even 16 twist will work with a lot of the older classic boolit designs. With that being said , the custom mould makers are producing suitable moulds for the new fast twist guns that are capable of astounding accuracy and performance. You need to invest some time reading all that has been written and figure what your wants and needs are. Benchrest, hunting, paper punching ,plinking, its all fun! What do you want to do?

[dtknowles]

You also need to consider what velocity you are shooting at. Higher velocity might need a gas check even with coated bullets.

Tim

[runfiverun]

rcbs 22-055-s
or something super similar, size to 226, and weight sort them to exact weights.

[Moonie]

I like the NOE 221 clone, just over 60gr and shaped right to feed well even in autoloaders.

[Larry Gibson]

In over 40 years of shooting .22 cal cast bullets in Hornets, .222s, .223s a .222 Mag, several 22-250s and a couple 220 swifts plus assisting others with some of the old .22 cal wildcats I have found the Lyman 225462 to be the most versatile cast bullet with 14" or faster twist barrels. In 16" twist barrels the Lyman 225438 has always been the best performer and is also very good in faster twists. Both are Loverin designs and have proven better than any bore rider I have tried, especially at the higher velocities the 14 and 16" twist barrels afford with cast bullets.

Larry Gibson

[runfiverun]

my 12 twist doesn't really shoot any faster than my 9 twist does.
the longer barrel does give me a extra little bit of velocity.
maybe the fact that one is a bolt action varmint rifle and one is a standard AR makes the accuracy difference.
oddly my 1-8 twist out shoots the 1-9 [with the same loads]
I wonder if it has something to do with the quality of the barrel and fit of that particular rifle too?
they are the same barrel length, but the 8 twist is a little faster and more accurate.
I'm not sure what's going on here? musta got a couple of freaks of nature or sumthin.

[StrawHat]

In over 40 years of shooting .22 cal cast bullets in Hornets, .222s, .223s a .222 Mag, several 22-250s and a couple 220 swifts plus assisting others with some of the old .22 cal wildcats I have found the Lyman 225462 to be the most versatile cast bullet with 14" or faster twist barrels. In 16" twist barrels the Lyman 225438 has always been the best performer and is also very good in faster twists. Both are Loverin designs and have proven better than any bore rider I have tried, especially at the higher velocities the 14 and 16" twist barrels afford with cast bullets.

Larry Gibson

Good advice.

[Leatherhead Bullets]

Thank you for the feedback everyone. I will keep my eye out for a 225462. Doing a little searching leads me to believe that it no longer being produced. I appreciate all the shared knowledge.

[telebasher]

The 225462 is a great mould if you can find one. I got lucky and found a single cavity and a double cavity both new for cheap cheap. All told I have eleven 22 moulds , some are hollowpointed versions of regular stock items. One of the things I've found is moulds with long bearing surfaces and short ogives are easier to get to shoot well for me in my guns. Maybe Larry or someone else with more experience can explain or shed some light on this. My experiences come from normal/standard hunting rifles with 12-14-16 twists. The faster twist AR style guns are not my cup of tea LOL!

[Slow Elk 45/70]

You could check with the custom mold makers , go to the Vendor Sponsor section, I bet someone can help you out. Good Luck:cbpour: