22-250ai

skeetlee

Active member
Just curious if anyone around here shoots a 22-250AI? I have wanted this chambering for about as long as i have been rifle shooting, but i really cant find a valued excuse to chamber up a barrel in this chambering. I see no real need for one, but i cant help but want one something terrible. I really dont even know why i want one so dam bad but i do!! Do any of you fellas shoot one in any type of competition? I guess i always figured i would have one for coyote hunting, but even there i am not sure i want to part with the cash to have a barrel chambered and to buy the dies and brass?? I think they look cool, and i am starting to think this is the only reason i want one. LOL!!! If i could convince myself i would shoot a 22-250AI in some type of competition i think i would go ahead and get one. Just curious if there are any 22-250 Ackley fans out here anywhere?? Lee
 
About 20 years ago I bought a 22-250 reamer and a set of dies at a gun show. I just bought it becase it was a good deal, since then I have built or chambered about 10 - 15 rifles for it. Its a nice little cartridge that mirrors the Swift, matter of fact that is the loading data you use to start working up loads. The nice thing is that the cases dont stretch as much as the Swift. I seem to sell off the ones I have built for myself, as soon as someone sees how they shoot. Right now I am shooting a fast twist 22 that I used that reamer only deeper to use a full 243 case kind of like a 224 Durham or 22 Cheeta. I am shooting 80 and 90 grain pills in it for those days that its windy at the PD town. I know that the folks that I have chambered them for love them.

Bob
 
Skeet,
I shoot a 22-250ai for critters and clay and ballon shoots. Its the cats behind. Mine is a remington accurized action krieger 7 twist for the 82-90 grain bergers will also keep up with the ppcs in the wind if I do my part.
Lew
 
Skeet,
I have had and loaded for a few AI rounds fast and slow twist. If I were to have another one built in any of the 22 to 6 chamberings I would only used a fast twist from now on to shoot the longer heavier bullets. Seems to me in the light bullets the few fps ya gain from the AI is almost useless. But in the longer heavier bullets like the 70 and 80 22's and the 95 to 108 6mms the added speed is devastating on varmints and deer. Just My Opinion.
Brandon
 
SKeets -

Howdy, again !!

Same song..... second verse......

I STILL recommend my wildcat .22-35Rem.

For an idea of capabilites in a .224" calibre wildcat case of the .22-.35Rem to .22-250AI range, let me say this about that:

If you are fond of .224" cal, even a .22-35Rem sized case can put enough KE on on a groundhog, for a clean-kill @ 1,000 ( assuming a good hit ).
Sensible use of 55's would go away @ around 500yd, so for 1,000; you'd be talkin 75's or heavier.

With 75's launched from my 28" 1-8 SS 5-groove .22-35Rem, I could put up to 3,500fps on a 75 "A"-Max.
That was heavy enough a ( "target " bullet ) and fast enought vel to produce the occasional shoot-through @ 200.
I'm not convinced the potential higher vel of a notional .22-250AI would prevent any shoot throughs, and in fact.... it could give quite the opposite result.

.22-35Rem was good for over 3,400rnds before it keyholed its first bullet, from a 24" 1-14 SS 5-groove that barrel was miscleaned and otherwise abused ( in ignorance ) for its first few years of use. I mention this because, the original .22-35 wildcat has a mild 26* shoulder angle ( easy to form ).
I'm not convinced a notional ( decently treated ) 28-30" SS .224" cal custom barrel would/could last any longer chambered in .22-250AI than it would chambered in .22-35. IMHO.

So perhaps as you metioned, the appeal of .22-250AI is in the visual realm.
Will it perform ?...... NO question !
What does it offer over other well designed .224" cal wildcats..... well.....

You could always get a Savage chambered up in .22-250AI; and use it as a switch barrel.

With greatest regard,
357Mag
 
Umm over bore

I shot a 220 swift for a while. Figured I might as well go the whole hog as opposed to the 22/250 I soon got over the hot over bore calibres. I shot out the first shillen swift barrel in 1000 rounds. It went from grouping in the high point two's to barely under the inch in that number of rounds. The second barrel did the same thing. It was more trouble than it was worth. IMHO most of the over bore calibres are.
Andy.
 
They sure are fun while they last though lol
"Speed Kills" Critters and barrels lol
 
Lee,
I know a guy that shot a 22-250AI for his 11 pound 1K rifle and did well with it as long as it wasn't to windy. I have one with a 1:9 twist that really likes the 69 grainers I never fine tuned it for competition but it will shoot under 1/2 minute by quite a bit, ground hogs are toast out to 500 yards and 400 real easy, I have shot it to 600 but it doesn't take much wind to throw it off minute of ground hog, cases last forever.
Wayne.
 
If i ever talk myself into doing this it will be a fast twist "8" so i can shoot 75-80gr bullets. With my budget and my young family i can only have so many rifles. Most of the time when i want to try something else, i have to sell something first. I currently have 6 rifles and i just dont see any room for a seventh. All my current rifles have a so called purpose so building another rifle just for a 22-250AI will be a stretch, if even possible. I thought about just putting a barrel on something i already have, and i may? I think i just need to come up with a so called purpose. LOL!!!
One of my very first custom rifles was a 243AI and that thing was a lazzer. Only problem was the barrel didnt last very long, and i have the same concerns with the 250AI. 500 -600 dollars is serious cash for 700-900 rounds. Now, if i can be patient and resourceful, i think i may be able to pull off a hunting rifle chambered for this chambering that i think is so visually appealing. I dont hunt like i used to, and i have attempted this hunting build several times in the past, but i always back out. I guess the ppc flu gets the best of me, as i keep buying ppc barrels with the spare cash.
I do have a lathe now, so truth be told this is what has re kindled my 250AI interest. I do plan to attend some groundhog this coming year, so we will see! thanks for sharing. Lee
 
Skeets:
I have a .22-250 A.I. in a switch barrel Remington 700. I have two Kreiger 1 in 8" barrels and a Hart 1 in 14" barrel. I shoot 80 grn. A-Maxes with RL 22 in the 1 in 8s and 50 grn. Nosler BTs with H380 in the 1 in 14". The rifle is used for varmints and performs, in that role, very well. The 80 grn. A-Maxes are accurate and capable of reaching out beyond 400 yds. with varmint killing accuracy. I wouldn't attempt to shoot this in a match as I have other rifle chamberings that are more accurate but in it's role as a critter gitter, it shines.
 
Although I have never owned a .22-250 AI, my PD shooting partner had one with a fast twist. It was not as good as the 6mm Dasher for long shots and it was not as good as the Swift that I shot with 14 twist for prairie dogs. His 8 twist was very hard on the light jacketed 50-55 grain bullets that we liked to use for PD. Another disadvantage was that the round count got very high in just fire-forming brass. The .22-250 will shoot the same velocity as the swift, but it must be fire-formed before it does. These are simply personal opinions based on one rifle (Remington 700 w/ Krieger barrel). Good shooting....James
 
Extra speed not worth it

During the time I was offering barrels to the swift gods my friend who was shooting a 22/250 was propelling the same 55gn sierras at 200fps slower than my swift both from 26" shillens. He burned out his tube in 1200 rounds mine was in trouble at 800 to 900. At 400 yds the difference in the POI was just over an inch. That extra speed just wasn't worth it. I dropped shooting hot 22's altogether while he went back to a 243.
Andy.
 
Skeetlee
If you go to the IBS web site long range results Bridgeville 10/23/11 comp #311. I shot a 22-250 AI 3rd match every shot at 600yds 3rd different gun,
shot a 4.76 then a 5.20 group once i payed attention to the wind flags I shot a 2.77 and a 2.39 group and finished 3rd LG score
not to bad for a short range score shooter so give it a try i think you'll like it.
 
I have a 28" 1:8 twist PacNor barrel in a 22-250AI use for a coyote gun. It works really well with the 75 AMax, 77 and 80 SMKs. However, running a 69 SMK at 3600 fps works really well to. Once I got my first 6BR, I took the barrel off and haven't had it back on in +3 years. I want to ask Santa for a box of Laupa 22-250 brass so I can make AI brass out of it and put the 22-250AI barrel back on. The case capacity worked well with several powders. But the 69 SMK and IMR4007SSC were my favorite combo. I have no great expectations for barrel like. When the throat is gone I will rechamber as another 22-250AI. Crows go "poof"... Luck, tim
 
Skeetlee
Ive got a couple A I and I like them. Ive got a 6mm A I that I want to use for some long range shooting. I thank I'm going to have the recoil lug pined and have a 6.5 barrel chambered for it and switch back and forth. How you liking that new lathe ?
Good Luck Max
 
skeetlee,
Another option-
A 1:8" twist cut rifled 28" Bbl chambered in 22-250 Rem.
Push 80-90gr VLD's @3200+fps.
No fire forming.
Add a couple EL clicks of DOPE & punch small bug holes in the wind!!
 
tiny68:
I know what you mean when you say crows go 'poof'. I've shot crows in a set-up at 200 yds. with my .22-250 A.I. with 50 grn. Nosler Ballistic Tips travelling at 4150 ft/s. When they connect with a crow, all you see is a puff of black of feathers raining down. Inspection of the kill site only yields a few vestiges of tissue, a claw and little else. It always is a sight to behold.
 
We do have a little 300 yard F-class match here monthly that i attend. A 22-250Ai would probably shoot pretty darn good at 300 yards with a 75 or 80 grain bullet. Only problem is that the targets we shoot are black centers and its darn hard to see a 6mm hole let alone a 22cal hole. We do set some orange backers up behind the targets about 10 feet back and if you set them up just right you can see the orange through the bullet hole. I won the matches that i attended last year during those matches with a 6ppc. Actually i shot perfect scores with a 6ppc at 300 yards. A 6ppc is something special and i judge all other chambers by it, so it makes me hesitate quite often.
One thing i do want to do with on the next 2 years is to build my own rifle. We have the tools now to do it and once i get comfortable enough to do so i think i would like to have a big old prairie dog zapper. Maybe something like a stiller predator action sitting in a tooley MBR stock with a big old 1.250 barrel. A 22-250Ai would be a good candidate for this project. Maybe i just need to be patient. LOL!!! Good read guys! I appreciate it!! Lee
 
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