The .22-250 Remington cartridge gaining popularity?

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Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow

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In the gunshop today. With very limited space (given the many many different brand/model offerings), and guns arranged by caliber, it is pretty obvious to me that the popularity of the .22-250 has gone from 'strong but niche' to 'very strong and mainstream'. There was an entire display case of .22-250s, more than any other single caliber *among turnbolt rifles*. Interesting....

http://www.google.com/search?q=.22-...ls=com.google:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

One new development was that both Howa and Wby Vanguard have a "combo" rifle in .22-250, that comes with two full (but synthetic) stocks - a youth and a full-sized. Dunno if this combo is available in other calibers.
 
Haven't really thought of the .22/250 as a sideliner but maybe it has been. Having taught Hunter Safety in three states over 30 years I've met lots of folks who have a .22/250.
Most consider them a varmint gun which, maybe, makes it a "niche" gun. Or maybe not. Most varmint hunters shoot many. many more shots at varmints than deer hunters or elk hunters shoot at their quarry. For most people it would seem more logical to refer to their deer rifle as the "niche" gun.
But that's a ramble.

One thing I've noticed - and this is a subjective observation - it seems like many, many people who buy a .22/250 seldom find any reason to get rid of it.
They may trade deer rifles off every couple years but somehow it seems they hang on to their .22/250s.

Sure can't blame 'em because the .22/250 is a bona fide Gem. I even know several people who use them to hunt deer (under legal conditions) and wouldn't even think of using anything else. One of my current farm neighbors shoots about 25 deer per year on crop damage permits - all with his Savage .22/250, and has been doing so for years.

The .22/250 may not be the most glamourous girl in town but the she's still great to dance with.


:D
 
.22/250 caliber rifles have never gone away.
I don't know what part of the country you are from but here in Illinois the caliber ebbs and flows depending on the weather and the price of furbearing critter pelts.

Five popular centerfires that can be used for game animals in this state are .22 Hornet, .22/250, and .243 Winchester, .222 Remington, and .223 Remington.

.25s and up are really overkill in the game fields because we can't legally shoot deer with centerfire rifles here.
Shotgun and Blackpowder only.

You can shoot anything else with a centerfire rifle, including squirrels and rabbits, anywhere but state land with permission.
 
Funny you mention that , I just bought a VTR in .22-250, put a Burris 3x9 Tacticool (green) on it.
Wow this is cool! Shot 10 rounds 2 days ago, Tomorrow Im taking a trip to see a colony of targets! :)
 
Great cartridge, fine rifles, but, boring. If you can see it you can shoot it. I prefer something I have to plan a little bit, I.E., 22 Hornet. 250 yd. shot is an accomplishment, but you must know you rifle and cartridge. Yes I do have a 22-250 and yes I do shoot it and yes it is great. But----Boring.
 
I definitely like the 22-250 and it holds it's own on more then varmints. I have taken Antelope in MMCSRET neighborhood out by the INEL at 250 yards with a 55 gr PSP behind 34 grs of 3031. I wouldn't hesitate to take a deer with it either at 100 yards or less if it was all I had at the time.
 
.22-250 is my favorite caliber to load.
I guess I like it due to it's intrinsic accuracy and speed.
.224 bullets are still a good value so it is relatively inexpensive to reload.
I have yet to see a good quality .22-250 that didn't shoot well.

I have a heavy barrel Savage BVSS I use to lure on the fence
shooters in. With a set of sandbags I can usually get a novice to
shoot 1-2 MOA at 100 yards. I love the look on their face as they
hear the loud thump and then hit a quarter sized target. More than one
person has wanted to start rifle shooting or reloading.
 
Get a 22-250 and you have a great rifle plus if you reload you don't need a 22 lr, 22 magnum, 22 hornet , 222, or a 223 because a 22-250 can be reduced loaded to do it all.

True, you'll need a good scope that is capable of repeatable settings, and good note taking.
 
My .22-250 was inherited from my Grandfather (along 2/3 of the rest of my guns). The dies that came with it are labeled .22 Varminter, and the brass Grandad had is marked .250 Savage. This rifle (surplus Mauser action w/ Timney trigger and Leupold Vari-X II) still easily hold under 1 MOA with the Winchester white box 40gr loads, despite being as old as the round it's chambered for.

It's always been a great round, it's funny that it takes a while for some people to suddenly 'discover' it.
 
Hmm, so now I'm convinced - which .22-250 should I get - maybe the Vanguard SUB-MOA Varmint?

http://www.weatherby.com/products/guns.asp?prd=Rifles&prd_sub_type=3&prod_code=VSR204RG2O

Or a Savage or a Howa? My goal is something not too heavy to take into the varmint fields, but doesn't have to be super-light either.

Do all come with 1 in 14"? Or are there some 1 in 12 or 1 in 9s out there. I think that Savage is or was *supposed* to make a 1 in 9" .22-250...

http://www.savagearms.com/12PrecVarm.htm

The 12 Precision Varminter is heavier than what I'm looking for however.....
 
What about the Savage 11F or the Savage "Predator" series (model 10) ?

Just for the record, I'd bet several rupees you could pick up a used Remington 700 ADL sporter and if you are any good at reloading your would have a sub-MOA rifle.

If someone told me that more rifles as they come from the factory in .22/250 shoot MOA or better than any other caliber I would believe them without any hesitation. It's sort of a surprise when a .22/250 doesn't shoot MOA.

:cool:
 
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mine's a savage model 112 - pre fancy trigger and laminated stock. so it now has a sharp shooter supply trigger and perhaps one day a new stock. The groundhogs (55 grain sierra sp going about 3000 fps) and feral cats ( 55 cast bullets going about 900 fps) have noticed the nice trigger but the plain jane black plastic stock was of no consequence to them. Hopefully soon a coyote will get to experince the nice trigger.

You'll not likely regret buying a savage.
 
I had to bring this thread up again in order to correct a mistake in the original premise...

Back in the same gunstore...... I said above that .22-250 was more popular in terms of selection than any other single caliber around here, among turnbolts. I was wrong. It is 2nd most popular. There is one other caliber that is by far the most popular in terms of offerings, with almost 2 full display cases (as opposed to the 1 full case of .22-250s). And that is the

.243 Winchester

taking the cake. An important point, considering that these two calibers are to a certain extent subsitutes, and since these two being one and two, it tells me that either (a) varminting is more popular than ever, or (b) magnumitis doesn't have a complete stranglehold on America - a lot of us hunters like our light-kicking guns that do the job*, or (c) both a and b.

(*.243 is arguably my favorite caliber - have two rifles in .243.)
 
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I'm with you 200% on the .243 being The Primo American centerfire rifle caliber - bar none. It is the most user-friendly and most useful, most capable, most versatile for most of the hunting that most American hunters do than any other centerfire caliber - no exceptions.
And the .22/250 is would be in 2nd. place.


:cool:
 
Yes I do have a 22-250 and yes I do shoot it and yes it is great. But----Boring.
Click to expand...

Why don't you get a slingshot or a trebuchet?
Click to expand...

Exactly - or an atlatl - what's the goal here - to get crappy inaccurate rifles with basketball trajectories so that it's "challenging" (extremely hard) to make hits with? It's not *boring* - it's called *funner than hell* when you make a simple point-n-click dead-on hit! :p :)

I'm with you 200% on the .243 being The Primo American centerfire rifle caliber - bar none. It is the most user-friendly and most useful, most capable, most versatile for most of the hunting that most American hunters do than any other centerfire caliber - no exceptions.
Click to expand...

Sing it, brutha, sing it loud! I'm with ya....

The 6mm IS pretty sweet too...I would have been happy had it won the beta/vhs war with .243. But sadly, it didn't.
 
AHHH, Shawnee and the wonders of the .243! Considered a "starter" rifle up here in 280lb. buck country...unfortunately, as many young hunters have their first hunt ruined by lost game or having to apply a coup de grace at close range. I know, I know - shot placement and bullet selection (if always perfect, a .17 would be sufficient). I think the .243 certainly has its place, and can do much in capable hands, but is NOT "primo" across the spectrum of NA game.
 
My Tikka 595 .22-250 is my favorite rifle. Hell, it's my favorite gun period.

It's true they are boringly accurate out to 300 yds, but you just need to move beyond that.;)
 
LOL ! :D

Hi "Jst1mr"...

Bring a couple of your bucks on over and one of our corn&bean-fed Buckeye bucks will have 'em for breakfast. LOLOL ! :D:D

Not talking about "... the spectrum of NA game" - game doesn't use rifles, hunters do, and, as mentioned - "...for most of the hunting that most American hunters do"

But you're right - shot placement and projectile performance is everything - Ya can't kill 'em with just noise, recoil and Grampaw's opinion. Bet any of your local bowhunters would vouch for that. ;)

Namaste :cool:
 
Too predictable!

Hey Shawnee -
Knew I could draw you out with that post:D

Deer don't grow very big where they never see a true winter:evil:

Of course, by now you realize I'm an afficionado of that most "truly versatile"
round of all time;) Lucky we don't all want the same thing!!!!

Namaste X2
 
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