.222 Remington question

[BAGTIC]

First rifle I ever owned was a SAKO L46 .222. Still my favorite gun. It is a lightweight easy to carry gun. My slightly small hands wrap completely around the action. It was the first gun I ever loaded for. 19.7 gr IMR 4198 and a Sierra 50 gr. 'Blitz'. These were for ground squirrels, crows, etc. Took it to the local police range on 'public day' and fired three shots at 100 yards using the little nonadjustable 2 position peep if came with. All three touched. That was 1955. I still use same load. With 19.1 gr IMR 4198 and the 63 gr. Sierra semi-spritzer it killed black tailed deer easily with one shot.

[white eagle]

I have a pristine Remington Classic in 222 Rem.
bought it on gun broker for more than I should have paid
but what the heck
its a great cartridge and one my father had high praise for
I see why now...enjoy

[KCSO]

Had one and it was the BEST varmint gun I ever owned! Trading up to a 223 was the worst mistake I ever made. And as to 722 extractors I have replaced ONE in this shop in the last 30 years.

[Houndog]

I've got a 222 built on a accurized 700 action with a Shilen select match barrel, chambered with a Hendricson .250 neck match reamer,Jewel trigger and set in a straight grained BDL stock. It will be the absolute last gun I would sell! Groups in the sub .250 range are very common with 52 match bullets and 4198. For varminting I use a 50 grain Sierra blitz bullet and 21 gr IMR 4198. It has a longer than normal throat that allows the stiffer powder charge.

[barney67]

I have a Vixen in 222 Mag, what a sweet little rifle.

[Four Fingers of Death]

I have a 788 in 222 and it is a treat to shoot, very accurate. Don't lose the bolt or the mag! I also have a Ruger American Compact in 223 and apart from the 1 in 8" twist is a brilliant rifle and it cost me about the same as a decent 788 would. Mags are easily available as well. Just a thought.

I also have a 222/20 Ga Deluxe Savage Combo. It is pretty acccurate, but the trigger is awful and not really fixable, so it doesn't get much use.

I have two 338WM Ruger No1s and am tempted to rebarrel the 1B to 222. That would be a machine with the 26" barrel.

I had a couple of 222s as a young bloke and the 223s wern't as available and all I wanted in life was a 223. Now 223s are like bums, everyone has one. I didn't really appreciate the 222s until they were gone.

[atr]

The rifle arrived and I mounted a Leupold 12 power scope on it. I loaded up some 40 and 50 grain J's (alas no casting blocks for this caliber yet) and took the rifle out to the range yesterday. What a fun caliber to shoot ! I had it zeroed after 6 rounds and at 100 yds it was shooting MOA.
You guys were recommending IMR4198, so that's the powder I'm using. 20 grains seems to be a comfortable load for both weights of bullets.
Next, I need to get some casting blocks for this caliber.

[376Steyr]

I suggest you break out your favorite copper-remover solvent and work on the barrel. My experience with guns of that era is their owners religiously cleaned the bores, just like they were taught in WWII, but they never used any solvent stronger than Hoppes #9.

[oger]

50 gr bullet 19.5-20 gr 4198 will shoot as good as anything in a 222. Once you own a good one you will wonder why they ever made the 223.