Sub Sonic 218 Bee plinker

[Kylongrifle32]

Almost got the funds raised for my next project (TOY). I have a 22 cal suppressor and sub Sonic 22LRs are fun but I want to be more hands on and want a heavier projectile for plinking steel plates on the back yard range.

My idea is a Contender 10" barrel chambered in .218 Bee with a 1-8 twist rate for shooting cast 70-80 grain boolits.

Anyone here gone down this path with a similar project? Just looking for likes and dislikes for anyone before I commit the money to this type on project.

[richhodg66]

I have not started loading or casting for the .218 Bee yet, but have done so with the .22 Hornet. I shoot a plain based 45 grain WFN with two grains of Bullseye for a squirrel load. Never chronographed it, but I'm pretty sure it's above sonic level. However, I have gone as low as 1.5 grains of Bullseye and that is very quiet and accuracy is still very good at realistic small game ranges.

A barrel like you describe would almost certainly have to be a custom job and expensive. Lots of .223s out there now with fast twists cheap. That also solves the problem of brass that is rather unusual. You may want to consider that.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

While I own a Marlin 1894 in 218 Bee, I would not recommend the caliber due to problems with finding cases. Hornady has them, but pricey, sometimes Winchester are available. The 221 Fireball, 222 Rem or some other easier to find case would be my suggestion if you are avoiding the 223.

[Kylongrifle32]

The rimless base cartridges have always given me problems on my Contender frames. I currently have a 6mm TCU and a 7 mm TCU and just sold a 1-12 twist 223 Rem barrel. I shoot sub Sonic 223s with a 80 grain cast Boolit in a 10" AR Pistol 1-7 twist. Just a lot of case volume there for only 3.4 grains of powder. I figured a smaller case would give me more consistent ignition. Toss up between the Hornet and the Bee but the Bee looks so cool with a long 70 grain Boolit sticking out of that small bottle neck case. looks like a miniature 7.62 x 54 R. And since I'm also shooting a 17 Ackley Bee and a 32-20 win I have amassed enough brass that availability is not an issue.

Rich. I don't mind spending $350-$400 dollars on a custom barrel. It's when you to put another $400 in custom dies and case forming dies that you have to have just to shoot it.

[TCFAN]

I had a barrel made for my T/C Encore chambered in 218 Bee. It was made by MGM in stainless steel 22 inch long with a 1-14 twist.My all around load is the NOE 45 grain boolit with gas check using 11.5 grains of IMR4198.This load has proven to be a good load for yard varmints.
My small game load is the NOE version of Lyman's 225107 boolit. I use 2.5 grains of Bullseye and that make a very quite load that kills Squirrels very well.For some reason both loads shoot to the same point of impact at 50 yards.
I have not had any problem finding 218 brass and if I ever run out I can make all I need from 32-20 brass.
I really like the 218 Bee............

[richhodg66]

You may want to consider the Hornet. Brass is generally pretty easy to find and with loads like you're talking about, case life won't be the issue it is for many shooters. In my experience, it downloads very easily, nice long neck and it is rimmed. I haven't done it, but it is commonly reamed to the K Hornet variant for better case life.

[richhodg66]

I had a barrel made for my T/C Encore chambered in 218 Bee. It was made by MGM in stainless steel 22 inch long with a 1-14 twist.My all around load is the NOE 45 grain boolit with gas check using 11.5 grains of IMR4198.This load has proven to be a good load for yard varmints.
My small game load is the NOE version of Lyman's 225107 boolit. I use 2.5 grains of Bullseye and that make a very quite load that kills Squirrels very well.For some reason both loads shoot to the same point of impact at 50 yards.
I have not had any problem finding 218 brass and if I ever run out I can make all I need from 32-20 brass.
I really like the 218 Bee............

I have a .218 Bee built on a Martini Cadet action, this is good to know. Sounds like you have done with the Bee what I've done with the Hornet and planned to do with the Bee when I get to it.

I have quite a bit of .218 Bee brass and doubt I'll ever have to, but how hard is it to form cases from .32-20?

[TCFAN]

I have a .218 Bee built on a Martini Cadet action, this is good to know. Sounds like you have done with the Bee what I've done with the Hornet and planned to do with the Bee when I get to it.

I have quite a bit of .218 Bee brass and doubt I'll ever have to, but how hard is it to form cases from .32-20?

With the Redding form and trim die in 25/20 #83218 series C and the 218 Bee form and trim die #83200 series B it is no trouble at all. With out the form and trim die it gets a lot harder.

[reed1911]

I have a 1:7 twist I made into a .22 Hornet SS shooter. Works just fine. It was a side project for me, just happened to have a stub left over and nothing else to do with it.

Fast pistol powders do much better accuracy wise light with a SP primer. Obviously the soft points don't expand well, but the 62g FMJ are cheap and shoot well. I use it for a critter getter at 50yds. Pop a squirrel or rabbit in the head or heart and they stick with an obvious no damage to meat.

[richhodg66]

I have a 1:7 twist I made into a .22 Hornet SS shooter. Works just fine. It was a side project for me, just happened to have a stub left over and nothing else to do with it.

Fast pistol powders do much better accuracy wise light with a SP primer. Obviously the soft points don't expand well, but the 62g FMJ are cheap and shoot well. I use it for a critter getter at 50yds. Pop a squirrel or rabbit in the head or heart and they stick with an obvious no damage to meat.

Cast with a WFN design kills small game quite well at even subsonic velocities. That NOE 45 grain bullet has become my favorite squirrel getter and it kills at least as decisively as a .22 LR hollow point even loaded slow.

I'd be worried about sticking a jacketed bullet in the bore at the velocities he's talking about.

[reed1911]

Actually I shoot tons of the NOE 45g PB in .22 Hornet at .22LR velocities using 3.5g HP-38/W231 and it does wonderfully. However lead through a suppressor is a pain to clean up after all the time, and you have to have one you can take apart to do so, so subsonic jacketed bullets make a lot more sense for a lot of folks.

Sticking a bullet is pretty hard to do using an inverse load practice. That is you still use starting data and work down until you achieve the velocity and accuracy desired.

Using fast pistol powders, you are a bit in the dark side of loading no matter what you do, but the same practice you use for cast bullets stands for jacketed. With that, I've never stuck a bullet

I've stuck a bullet every now and then, but only when I was testing for our own bullets doing specific speed testing at short distance where I needed to have the bullet down at 600FPS or lower and did not want to run the gel all the way down range and then shoot it allowing for nature to shed the velocity.
Getting it out is no problem, just a rear pilot centered end mill on an extension properly set for the bore size (I'd opt for a .215 in this case).
For those without access to tooling, there are lots of ways on the internet with plenty of instructions.

[richhodg66]

"Using fast pistol powders, you are a bit in the dark side of loading no matter what you do, but the same practice you use for cast bullets stands for jacketed. With that, I've never stuck a bullet"

Yep. Amazing how many guys just think Trail Boss is the end all for this kind of thing, can't understand why you'd use five times as much powder to likely perform worse than long established loads.

Guess I didn't think about the suppressor thing. Never really looked into them.

[reed1911]

<sigh> Trail Boss, well it does what it is advertised to do, but good night it is dirty. And yes, you use WAY more than necessary. HP-38/W231, Tightgroup, Unique, and Bullseye are so good for cast. There are are others as well (Nitro and AA#2 among some) those are just the ones I tend to gravitate to.

[MT Chambers]

Because of the poor case design, I would convert any bee into a Mashburn Bee, mine is deadly and can get the speed/power of the 221 Fireball and is made by 1 fireforming.

[richhodg66]

For what he's looking to do with it, speed and power isn't a consideration.

[Kylongrifle32]

Yes I don't intend to go above 1,000 fps and this will be used primary for plinking but should the need arises I feel a 70 grain cast Boolit will dispatch a ground hog or nuisance raccoon with in 50 yards with proper shot placement.

[richhodg66]

Yes I don't intend to go above 1,000 fps and this will be used primary for plinking but should the need arises I feel a 70 grain cast Boolit will dispatch a ground hog or nuisance raccoon with in 50 yards with proper shot placement.

I think you are absolutely correct, and I think you'll be better served with a Hornet rather than a Bee.

[Fast Asleep]

I built a 7” twist Contender barrel up in 22 hornet with hopes to shoot heavy cast bullets (70 to 80 grains) and experimented with perhaps a dozen different bullet designs with little success. The barrel shot sub MOA groups with full-throttle 35-grain jacketed bullet loads, but the best cast loads were 4-5 times that spread. I have since rechambered the barrel to 222 Remington and will try the heavy cast bullets again.
I have had excellent cast results in a 22hornet 12” twist Contender pistol barrel with 45 to 62 grain cast bullets.