Can .222 Rem be reamed out to .223?

[KarbineKrazy]

Hi there,
a buddy of mine has an old Remington 788 in .222
Ain't a bad little rifle, but he would shoot it a lot more if it was a .223. Can it be rechambered to .223? Will the mags still work?

 

[Blue Line]

I have the same gun and did the very same thing. Mags work just fine. I can't remember at the moment what the smith charged so it wasn't too bad. Lots of people tried to talk me out of doing it saying that the 222 was an excellent round. I have another 223 and just wanted to standerdize things. No problems with the change.

 

[KarbineKrazy]

hehe, was it under $100? I'm sure if it was he would go for it.

.222 a great cartridge? MAybe if you handload, but you can get the same performance from a .223.

 

[NMshooter]

Yes you can. Friend of mine did that with his old Remington 700. The 1-14" twist works ok with 55gr. and lighter bullets, but heaver bullets do not stabilize well.

 

[Hutch]

Me'n you, Blue line. I too have just such a conversion.

 

[KarbineKrazy]

45 grain Winchester varmint HPs. $11.20 at walmart for 40... and don't forget Black Hills reloaded .223....

Much cheaper than .222

Any idea on the cost of the conversion?

 

[Navy joe]

Cost should probably be a .223, .223 Wylde, or 5.56 chamber finish reamer and appropriate gauges, I have one I want to DIY on. From what I saw it is a very similar cartridge, the shoulder on .223 is about .060" forward than that of .222. It does seem like a return to the early days of .223 since typical twists are 1in12 to 1in14. I have my eyes on a Tikka 12Ga. / .222 O/U combo gun that will probably get this treatment.

 

[sigma40sw]

.222 reamed to .223

I picked up a Remington model 600 in .222 and had it rechambered to .223 just for the reason of keeping the number of different calibers I load down.

It made and excellent light weight varmit rifle with an 18" barrel. It has worked well on woodchucks out to 200 yds with Hornady 55 gr. SX bullets.

I have a buddy that has a Rem 788 that is .223 from the factory and it is a 1" or less grouper at 100yds. I rather doubt that the rifling twist between Rem 788 222 rifles is any different than their 223 version.

I think the conversion to 223 is worth it.

Sigma40sw

 

[GooseGestapo]

I wouldn't do it!

The m788's in excellent "ORIGINAL" condition are starting to bring in some collector value prices. A 788 in .222 is apt to bring more than any other caliber in the 788 than perhaps in 6mm or .30/30. The .44mags are also bringing some high values.

I would suggest that he sell the gun to a collector if in original condition and buy a .223, or trade for a .223.

If the gun is not in superior condition, I'd get a .223 barrel from GUNPARTS CORP. and just have it rebarreled. This too, could preserve some collector/resale value.

I would just break out the .222 dies and brass, and enjoy it "as is". The .222 has the potential to out shoot the .223, though not by a large margin.

But then, that is just ME!