22/250ai Verses 220 Swift

murphy said:
To DR4NRA, If you want a good fast load with reasonable pressures try a 40g Sierra and work up to 34g of H4198 and Rem 9 !/2. I get 4275 fps. out of my 26" barreled Ruger and often better than 1/2 moa accuracy. Seating depth of 68mm works best in my rifle and is probably as good a place as any to start, also the 35g Barnes works quite well with this formula but can give on again off again accuracy. Am not 100 % sure why this sort of behaviour occurs but it could be that the barrel is just not clean enough or they might be simply senesitive to a change in conditions. Cheers Murphy.
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Hey Murphy, not really into the ultra fast loads. The one I loaded was just for the fun of it. I was looking at 40 gr loads for a 223, and saw that Accurate had a load for the SWift that was 4415 fps. So being the curious guy that I am, I just happened to have some 2700 and 40 gr Sierras. Well when the stars align like that I just had to try.
At this point my go to loads for my Swift are still 36.5 grs Varget and 52 Sierra, 36 grs RL15 and 52 sierra, and 39 grs 2700 with a 55 gr SBK. They arent the fastest in the world, but they sure are accurate, and I wont have to send it back to Cooper for another barrel anytime soon.
Nothing wrong with the 250 AI, Its just a 40 yr love affair with the Swift.

DR
 
I was the one that told Worker about the 760 with the 55's. I know of a dozen or more hart barrels with 12 & 14 " twists on them that shoot the 55g Sierra's into tiny groups where the bullets all touch...wonder what was different about Worker's gun, twist rate maybe, maybe freebore amount? I don't know. We used Rem and Win brass with Fed 210 Primers and our velocities ran from 4050 fps to 4100 fps depending on the barrel length.

I had two Savage 220 Swifts and two Rugers, after having my first 22/250 AI with a Hart 27" twist, I ordered my own reamer. There is no trimming with the 22/250 AI, accuracy is outstanding with a large range of powders and charges.
 
To DR4NRA, Funny that you should mention it but 36.5g of varget is all that I use these days. Just can't go past it for accuracy and consistency and it blows a big hole through both sides of a crow but there is still some edible meat. My favourite projectile is 52g Hornady boat tail Match.
 
Hello Keith.... W-W 760 worked great with 55gr bullets. I had a Rock 5R 8"twist 26" bbl. But for 75 and 80gr Re#22 worked ok. My rifle had a sporter weight bbl Cooper Mod 22 thin forearm . It was a headache. If I ever go for a 22-250 AI it will be with a heavier bbl and wider forearm. I'm off to the NV desert now with my 6x284 it surpasses the 22-250 AI by far.
 
I have several .22-250 A.I. barrels with different twist rates. A favorite of mine is 43.7 grn. H380 pushing a 50 grn. Nosler BT in a 14" twist at approx. 4150 ft/s. Amazingly the same combo. shoots well out of 8" twist barrel. The 80 grn. Hornady A-Maxes shoot very well with RL22; can't remember the exact charge. Many groundhogs have been taken with either of these combos. You haven't lived until you witness a crow disintegrate into a black puff when the 50 grn. Noslers do their stuff.
 
Worker Ive got a 26 inch Shilen barrel 9 inch twist. I'm shooting 45gr of h1000 with a 77gr AMAX bullet. I don't know what the velocity is. It will yank a prairie dog out of a hole at 600 yards. Good Luck Max
 
max.burgess said:
Worker Ive got a 26 inch Shilen barrel 9 inch twist. I'm shooting 45gr of h1000 with a 77gr AMAX bullet. I don't know what the velocity is. It will yank a prairie dog out of a hole at 600 yards. Good Luck Max
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What kind of glass do you have on your scope ? Do you wear glasses ? Far sighted/near sighted ?
 
Anyone know alot about custom rifles like j.e. Gebby 22-250 ?
 
Worker
Ive got a Burris 8 x 32 black diamond on it. I wont by another one not enough adjustment for long range. Yes I'm far sighted.
Thanks Max
 
I have been a fan of these 2 cartridges for years. I only own 1 220Swift but it is very accurate for a factory rifle (Winchester heavy varmint). The only modification done to this rifle was a Timney trigger. this rifle has a horrible factory chamber with the neck being .017" larger than a loaded round, but it still shoot's 55gr NBT's very well with Norma brass and Win760 powder.
Have many custom 22-250AI's , my newest is a 1-8" Krieger using Lapua brass Berger 80gr VLD's with RL19 powder and custom reamer.....my favorite so far !!
 
220 Swift Still King

zeke mccune said:
Do you have any hard evidence that the Swift does all of these bad things. Ever do any valid testing? If so, kindly publish your test methods and results for all to see.

I have been shooting Swifts for nearly 50 years and I have never found it to be any different to load and shoot than any other cartridge!

I have grown tired of people making claims about the Swift that just plain and simple untrue. Show us your research!

Enough for now,

Zeke
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As Zeke says, there is a lot of misinformation floating around about the 220 Swift. The 220 Swift has greater long range accuracy and hits harder at any range, as compared to the 22-250. With different powders and bullets I have successfully loaded my 220 Swift with speeds ranging between 2,000 fps and 4,100 fps at costs between $0.22 and $0.43 per cartridge. I am not as experienced as many others, still I can put 5 bullets in a half inch at 100 yards with my Ruger No. 1 220 Swift. I have recently managed to begin achieving an inch at 200 yards with a 55 grain Berger Varmint bullet at 3,800 fps. shooting off a Hart Varmint rest. When it comes to long range .224 varmint cartridges, the 220 Swift is still King. Every attempt to unseat it, including the 22-250 has failed.

I would not waste my cartridges on Crows (a protected species, if you care*) but I am quite ready to blow up ground hogs at 200 yards and knock down coyotes at 300 yards with my Swifty, if given the chance.

*http://www.crowbusters.com/facts.htm

RugerNo1A.jpg
 
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Hits harder ? Techniclly that is true. But in the real world just how much difference does it really make compared to the 22-250 ? How much flatter at 300yds ? If your shooting at varmints/predators you still have to be no less acurate at range/windage estimation. If you want a significant advantage go with a larger caliber and heavier bullet. But hey its all good. We love our shooting irons........
 
I wish some one wood start cambering a swift with a 8 twist barrel. A 220 swift would shoot with the 6mm then.
 
This is a most enjoyable thread! I discovered the Swift in the late 1960s when my brother bought a lovely pre-64 Model 70 Swift (complete with scope and cartridges) for $80. He wanted to hunt chucks with me — I was using my Winchester heavy barrel 30-06. Neither of us knew anything about the Swift — but, wow, learned quickly what a dazzling cartridge it is. Since then, I've purchased my own Winchester Swift and used it with great effectiveness. All the while, I presumed that few others shared my fascination with the Swift, having succumbed to the barrel burning mythology. But then this thread — showing that interest in the Swift is alive and well! IMHO, when compared to the 22-250, the relevant question is what advantage the 22-250 gives over the swifter Swift (Winchester once labeled the Swift cartridge boxes "Super Speed"). Once the barrel burning stuff is corrected, I personally don't see why one wouldn't select the Swift.
 
Enahs said:
This is a most enjoyable thread! I discovered the Swift in the late 1960s when my brother bought a lovely pre-64 Model 70 Swift (complete with scope and cartridges) for $80. He wanted to hunt chucks with me — I was using my Winchester heavy barrel 30-06. Neither of us knew anything about the Swift — but, wow, learned quickly what a dazzling cartridge it is. Since then, I've purchased my own Winchester Swift and used it with great effectiveness. All the while, I presumed that few others shared my fascination with the Swift, having succumbed to the barrel burning mythology. But then this thread — showing that interest in the Swift is alive and well! IMHO, when compared to the 22-250, the relevant question is what advantage the 22-250 gives over the swifter Swift (Winchester once labeled the Swift cartridge boxes "Super Speed"). Once the barrel burning stuff is corrected, I personally don't see why one wouldn't select the Swift.
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Granted the swift has a slight technical advantage over the 22-250.(100-150fps) But the swift has nothing in common with a laser beam. You still have to read the conditions just as accurately as with a 22-250 . But hey its all good. Some like Fords others like Dodges.
 
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max.burgess said:
I wish some one wood start cambering a swift with a 8 twist barrel. A 220 swift would shoot with the 6mm then.
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You can get one with a 9tw from Savage. I did it several years ago, ordered it from the custom shop. Mine shot 69 gr SMK's & Berger 70 gr VLD's very well, it shot like a 243 with a heavy bullet and seamed to have as much knock down power to, all with a flatter trajectory.
 
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