220 swift or 22-250

[vsd79]

Hows it going? I am just getting into varmint hunting and i wanted to know what caliber you suggest 220 swift or 22-250.I was also wondering what gun you would suggest. I have seen a couple made by savage,remington,winchester and have no clue who makes the most accurate varmint rifles. I am a deer hunter browning a-bolt ,rem model seven type of guy, first time buying a a heavy barrel varmint rifle.Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

[KN]

If money is a big concern I would look at the savage rifles in 22/250.  consider Savage and the 700rem to be about even up in the accuracy department. Both are excellent choices. I prefere the 22/250 just because its more common to find and cheaper than the swift.  KN

[Feez]

Want a second opinion?

I agree with KN 100% on everything.

The Swift is a tiny bit faster but not worth the grief.  People who get a swift just must have THE fastest.
I would lean toward the Remington 700 if money isn't a big issue.

[jhm]

vsd79:   I believe if you look at the manu. of the particular riflews you are looking into buying you will find more of them with a 22-250 in their chambering over the 220 swift, that should tell you which is the most popular, I have owned both and at present own and shoot a 22-250 which is my choice between the two however my favorite in the 22 centerfire is the 223 but thats another issue, good luck both are excellent calibers      JIM

[Glanceblamm]

Agreed with KN & Feez
Also if you are shooting bullets in the 55gr class, the velocitys will be very
Close.

[PeterF.]

Don't know what you were thinking of shooting, varmint-wise, but both of what you're looking at are what you'd use for small-to-medium (i.e., prairie dog thru coyote) varmints ... WAY out there.   As some have noted, the 22-250 is more commonly used these days; plus it's cheaper to load up.  Folks who do alot of prairie dog shooting tend to go through alot of ammo; in that case, a .223 might be preferable.  General concensus seems to be that the Savage, though not quite as "pretty" as some of the others, is the most consistently accurate out-of-the-boxand the most value for the money.  As with everything else, gun-wise, you can spend alot of $$ fiddling your gun toward "perfection"; virtually every piece of any gun can be tweaked or replaced to make it either work or look better ... then there's scopes and other add-on do-dads.

[Lawdog]

vsd79,

I have seen a couple made by savage,remington,winchester and have no clue who makes the most accurate varmint rifles.

If you want the MOST ACCURATE out of the box rifle being made today then buy Savage, PERIOD.  They are proving more accurate than Ruger, Winchester, Sako/Tikka and way ahead of Remington.  The biggest plus to a Savage is the money you will save will allow you to get a really good quality scope(Leupold, Burris, etc.) to go with your new rifle.  Let me say this on caliber choice; while the .220 Swift is a great cartridge and is the second fastest factory loaded cartridge you can buy and the .22-250(third fastest) is right up there with it on top of being a more popular cartridge, I would go with the .223 Remington in the Savage rifle.  You can get cheap military ammo for practice that is cheaper than reloaded ammo, it is somewhat easier to reload and is just as accurate.  Lawdog
 

[Mike in Ct]

I'm in the 22-250 camp ...As for which brand is going to be a tack driver out of the box...Humm ...My ruger was .5 or less moa with a crummy trigger...bills old savage has had two barrels now (savage is very good when you want a new barrel) his gun shoots .5 moa all day long..for more than 15 years..I just ordered a rem.700 adl syn. stock..so we will see ...If I had found other than that one old ruger at 3 diff. gun shops I might have went back to the ruger..Oh I forgot the only winchester I ever used for varmint hunting was the swift..It was ok at the range I did not make the ammo for it...Another friend had the swift from ruger at the same time I had the 22 -250 ..They both shot well ..my gun turned in the best groups Even when we swicthed shooters..the swift was a bit touchy about the ammo..Ralph had a longer learning curve with his swift & a few operator errors making the best loads...I recall him tearing off one case head..NOT COOL !! If you find a solid, used but  not shot out heavy barrel of any of the big four go for it..But with the 300 dollar starting asking price on good used bolt guns these days...I snapped up the new rem adl 700 for four hundred dollars..I was going to order the savage The local gunsmith thought this gun would be a better choice...For reasons he did not explain..Overs the years I've found most gunsmiths seem to prefer Rem Or Win..strongly one way or the other..& I don't know why..So I took his advice & I will report back as soon as I shoot it..mike in ct..

[vsd79]

Thanks for the help guys. I bought the Rem 700 in 22-250 with a bushnell Banner 6-18 powered scope and if i must say I love the damn thing.

[cfmpilot]

I use both in the field. The 22-250 seems to be the better of the two. It's like trying to pick between two beautiful women. They are both awesome. I use the .223 Rem. more than any caliber for varminting. I would suggest the 700 Remington ADL with composite stock and dull finish. They cost about $390 and have an adjustable trigger. They are very accurate and a great buy. A 55 gn bullet at 3200 fps is the ticket for varmints. No recoil and cheap to load.

[oso45-70]

These are all great posts, But we left out the most important part of( the gun to buy.) for you to get the most out of your Gun,, it must look good to you. then it must fit you and feel good in your hands. then it needs to do the job you ask it to do, I think you made a good choice and you will have many good days with it.  Good Luck.   Joe

[Dogshooter]

I don't reccommend a heavy barrel for varmint hunting unless you are gonna go out and do  LOT of shooting and need the mass to maintain accuracy from a hot barrel. I have shed all the weight over the last several years and now the heaviest thing I have is my Bushmaster varminter, and I use it for prarie dogs and do shoot 10 and 15 round strings before cooling it off. (Even that one is not that heavy). I use a Sako Forrester in 220 Swift, a Browning Low Wall in 223, and a Model Seven in 17 Rem, all because they are light. How many of you guys shoot 4 or 5 rounds at a called coyote? You get one shot usually and it normally not all that far out. Even when they are out there, any of my lightweights shoot sub-moa. I say it's more important to get a rifle that fits in a caliber that will work in your area.

[varmit_master]

Hi i would have to go with the 22 250 i have one in the Rem ADL Syn. black stock top with a Nikon scope and it loves the 55gr Nosler BT good luck VM

[papajohn428]

Since you have the 22-250, here's the next trick.....get yourself some H-414 or some Varget, both are excellent.  Load up some 50-55 grain slugs to around 3400 fps, and go shooting.  My old Rem M788 in 22-250 just loved H-414, and would put 3 shots into center spreads of UNDER .2 inches, if the wind was light.  How I love guns that make me look good!   :wink:   I think I paid $225.00 for it, with a 3X9 Weaver on it!

PJ

[Greg Zeilinger]

Hi.I do believe the22-250 is more versatile and easier to come by.I shoot about 70 to 100 coyotes every winter and i must say the 22-250 is hard to beat.i am using 55gr V-Max bullets and it seems they are working best when shot at a longer range.Every time i shoot a Coyote at less than 80 yds,the damage on the belt is quite excessive.That's when i wish i would have a 223,but still i'm very content with my 22-250.Right now i'm in progress of building a 260 with medium barrel for my long range Varmint-hunting.I just can't wait for the snow to fall.
Happy Hunting. :grin: