22-250 or 223.... For the gun folk amongst us.

[achjimmy]

Looking at a rifle for my son. He is keen on .223 but on specs I think 22-250 is a better round?  Only advantage of .223 I can see is its a few dollars cheaper and maybe a bit quieter?  Will be used for general target work, shooting foxes and some pigs (hopefully) i don't shoot Roos. Looking at getting a savage or howa package so it will be an entry level rifle.

Keen on thoughts from shooters, please if you don't shoot don't comment on shooting in general.

[Tim - Stratford]

G'day Jim,

I had a .223 (Ruger) quite a few years ago. Never had any dramas with it but mostly reloaded fairly hot loads with light projectiles.

I'm now using a .22-250 Ackley Improved. When I need some brass I buy the Winchester White box ammo (the cheapest of the decent brass) and use them which fire forms them at the same time.

The .22-250 in standard form has a bit more reach. Having said that some of the slower twist .224's shoot much better with 60gr+ projectile weight.

The bonus of the .223 is generally it may hold more rounds in the magazine, has less blast/noise and factory rounds are cheaper.

My 2c

Tim

[AJC]

Hi Jim, definitely a more comfortable calibre,the 223, harder hitting for the pigs, the 250. A well placed shot from a 223 will eradicate any varmint, i use a 223 for roo culling and also have dispatched fallow deer with it. My advice would be to spend the dollars on a quality scope which will improve your accuracy and confidence to hunt any species.

Cheers Al.

[Mace]

^^^^^^

About to say something similar!

If I were going to do a lot of pig shooting I'd be looking for something with a 80grn or greater projectile.   I used to use a 243, which was nice, but now only have a 270 which can also be used for deer.

Lower weights fine for general small game mentioned.

[doc evil]

I have a savage .223. Fantastic rifle. She's had around 2000 rounds thru her and the barrel is still very good.
The 22-250 being a hotter round tends to wear the barrel fairly quickly and thus become less accurate.
Spend more on the scope as it can be transfered between rifles.

[Teabag]

Shooting pigs and foxes.....hmmmmm. If it was me, 270 for pigs and 22 hornet for Foxes....Of the two you mentioned I'm not a fan of 223 and would have 22 250 if I had to choose from only those two. 270 is a fav all round hunting round for pigs and deer.....:-)

Good luck....

[D4D]

Now if we were in the US we'd be discussing something slightly bigger

[britts]

Had 22-250 and hated it way to loud, went to a 22 hornet and about to look at a 223, have shot everything up to goats with the hornet and my 12 yr old lives shooting it.

[Mrs smith]

Neither, check out a 220 swift.

[achjimmy]

Thanks Guys

I realise no one rifle does it all. He has mostly shot .22 and I dont want to go to big yet.

[Teabag]

Thanks Guys

I realise no one rifle does it all. He has mostly shot .22 and I dont want to go to big yet.

Go .22 Hornet then......:-)

[GanG]

Pigs are big game for any .22 cal

Have you thought about a .243? If pigs are a serious possibility the heavier bullet will give you more options, and a .243 makes a fine fox rifle as long as you don't want skins

.223 quiet and a good honest 200 yard round
.22-250 loud!! and a good honest 300 yard round in the right hands
.220 swift loud and hard on barrels, dont offer alot over a .22-250
.243  a capable 300 yard round in the right hands, bigger hole and more projectile weight then any of the above in standard factory ammo, with not much more recoil than a .22-250

FWIW I currently own or have owned a .222, .22-250, .243, .308, and several others, and I would not be taking a .22 cal anything to a pig unless it was all I had in my hand at the time, if hunting them specifically there are way better tools for the job.

Pop over to www.australianhunting.net - it is to shooting what myswag is to camping I will warn you though, we don't have any swear word filters

[weso]

Personally prefer .223 but in saying that never had a .22-250 just very comfy with my .223


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[Spartan]

What about a 204 just to throw another one into the mix?

[GanG]

What about a 204 just to throw another one into the mix?

doesnt do anything a 22-250 cant and still too light for piggies 

[Smoko]

AK47 that will stop them

[Spurio]

A 223 is not as loud as the 250, 223 ammo is much cheaper and also available in bulk.

As long as he's not taking texas heart shots, a well placed 223 will drop most pigs.

We run 7-10K rounds through the howa 1500 before turning them over, makes them very cost effective tools.

If it is for recreation I would probably go for a Ruger M77 if you can get your hands on one at the moment.

[Homer_Jay]

For a young bloke go the 223 for the step up from a 22lr
As said the 250 has plenty of muzzle blast. You don't want him getting a flinch!
But it will shoot flatter and reach further if he can handle it.

Ammo cheap as and available anywhere for 223 (helps if you don't reload)

Probably getting on the light side for pigs though. I use my 243 or 270 for pigs. Both nice to shoot but a bit more weight

My advice would be 223 and then his next rifle something with a bit more weight.

Like I tell my mrs, you don't go to play golf with one club in the bag!

[paulo]

I reckon the .223 would be a good fit. As mentioned in the right hands a .223 will drop a pig, but the 22/250 won't hit pigs a whole lot harder (compared to a larger calibre). Same bullet, just going faster. Also, if you are shooting mostly foxes and the odd pig, .223 will be well suited, and it will be a bit more comfortable on the targets(noise, recoil,$$$). I've got a howa .223, and would buy another. Not sure if you are thinking along these lines, but don't buy a varmint barrelled gun. Good for what they're designed for and shooting out of cars, but a real chore to walk around with. And as mentioned, try and buy the best scope you can afford, as it can just go from rifle to rifle, but a nice .223 should be with him for a long time.

All the best.

[1HDT]

archjimmy,

I would tend to look at the bigger picture in turns of the overall calibre spread your son will have in the future.

The 2 calibres are not that dissimilar to each other in what they will shoot (vermin) in Australia. The 22-250 is more expensive to load, louder, and has bigger recoil. I don't think you have mentioned the age of your son, but if you/he plans to acquire more rifles in the future, you may wish to take this in to account. For instance if he has a .22, than a .223 is a nice in between step to a .243 than maybe a .270 and so on. If you go .22 to .22-250 than you leave a larger gap on the lower calibre side as the 22-250 is not that much different to a .243.

The .223 is a nice step up for a young bloke. He will become confident with it in time than look forward to a larger calibre. By what you've said, pigs may only be few and far between and for those hunts maybe a borrowed rifle is the go to ensure when that 100kg boar jumps up from his bedding... you've got enough poke to encourage him to lay down again. 

Which ever you choose, have fun.

The most important part is the fact your out there with your son. 

[achjimmy]

Thanks all.

The boy is solid and strong. Yes he will aquire other firearms, he really wanted 308 originally and I talked him down. He is keen on military calibres, which gives you an inkling of what he wants to do for a crust  .  I suggested he look at the bigger calibres when he can afford a better class of rifle, Rem 700 up.

I have looked at the Savage Axis package ($625 camo), Savage trophy hunter package (mod 11 blue $780 mod/16 SS $870) and the Howa both in and out of a package. Tbh they are all good guns, I think long term the Axis is a bit light on. The trophy hunter has the accutrigger (any good?) and steel breech and one piece stock also comes with a weaver optic which seems nice. The howa package was badged "Wetherby" and the rifle is nice but not the scope. I can get the bare Howa for about $600 and add scope and rings. The howa also has a lot of stock options available for upgrade.

Preference at first look is the trophy hunter but I was told by SWMBO that $600 was  the budget.

What should I allow for a good starter scope? Remember his vision is perfect and I thought the weaver on the package was very clear?

[Sledge]

The trophy hunter has the accutrigger (any good?)

To me its a little bit of a gimmick although I have heard pros and cons. I ended up going a .243 Stevens with a decent scope. Got it for the right price and wouldn't go back. As far as I know it is the savage without the accutrigger. I am a novice shooter and can get 2inch groupings at 200yards.

[britts]

A tasco will get him started with no worries or a good 2nd hand one,

[MIC78C]

We used to shoot roos for a living thru the drought of the 90's. Our weapon of choice was the .223 We did have the 22-250 behind the seat in case we ever had any problems with the .223 but never did.
I found the .223 was a far more accurate rifle than the 250, and the barrel never got as hot. .223 and 22-250 use the same projectile, the 250 just has a biggert case and more powder.
Never had a problem with the .223 on pigs. Wouldn't go bigger than a .22 Hornet for foxes though.

[GanG]

why not go to a range and try a few different cals out? if he is solid enough build and has had plenty of time on a rimfire why not get him started on something bigger? a .308 is hardly a canon and it certainly f^&*s a fox and goes alright on hog!