Thread: Who still makes 0.223" diameter projectiles?

Originally Posted by Oldbloke

Sell it.
Buy a 222 or 223.
Sleep well.
Save lots of money.
Save lots of time.

Where's the fun in that!

I enjoy a challenge, I reload about 20 different cartridges, many of them well and truly obsolete.

From the smallest - 297/230 Morris through to 577/500 No2 Express and 577 Snider.

Shooting is fun!

Originally Posted by Crusty

Jeez Goose!

you have really sent me down a rabbit hole!

Checked the case necks - fired up my lathe and turned up and threaded a mandrel for my neck Turner (didn't have a .22)
Shortened 50 cases in my RCBS case length lathe/tool then turned all the necks

Loaded up about 30 rounds, 4 different loads using the Sierra 45gr Hornet (this looks like a perfect bullet, Nice and short)

a couple of other .221" loads.

Dismantled the rifle and adjusted the trigger.

Mounted a scope

Fitted some QD swivel sockets for the sling.

Going to the range in the morning.

Will report back with results.....

Its certainly good to find someone else with the same rifle, until now felt a bit like fumbling in the dark, its been raining quite a lot here so haven't had a chance to get out as most of the property was underwater yesterday.
12.7x44r is my other odd caliber, I probably would of accumulated more if it wasn't for the register, although its saved me a fair bit of money on guns I would of bought

Originally Posted by Oldbloke

Sell it.
Buy a 222 or 223.
Sleep well.
Save lots of money.
Save lots of time.

Haha, thats always an option but im avoiding the register for now so I'll keep playing with it, bugger all to shoot at the moment so I don't mind doing something else to still be shooting, probably will be a 223 as I would like to be able to shoot something heavier than 45gr, In saying the the 220 is turning out to be a 22 hornet on steroids looks like I should get a solid 1000fps extra compared to a hornet.

Right, got out shooting again, this time off soft bags and shooting prone, groups still not very good and one shot that I cant find,
was shooting in the rain but I doubt that made much difference to accuracy, Did the test Micky recommended shutting my eyes for 20 seconds and confirming that I was still on target, it does indeed seem that the soft bags are a more steady rest, I couldn't tell if the reticle had moved off target or not so I'd say much better than before,
I had to add my slip on recoil pad to get enough length to shoot prone, dunno if thats a technique issue or just a short stock for me.

"7" shot group


same with the shots circled, still no clue where the 7th shot went

So next step is eliminate thenutbehi d the but...someone else who is known to shoot well needs to have a go.i take it that was still with first suspect scope??? If so repeat with the 4x just to again eliminate the scope from equation.

Yeah thats with the suspect scope,
Already browsing for a new scope but I suppose I should retest the 4x to double check,
Don't really know anyone else local that shoots, let alone well,
I'll stick the 4x back on and test some more.

Ok, some results at 25m, 3 shot groups

.224" Sierra 45gr Hornet

23gr 2207. .357" group. 3363 fps

23.5 gr. 2207 .376" group 3400 fps

23.7gr 2207. .552" group 3423 fps

.221" Sierra 40 gr hollow point

24gr 2207 .24" group 3462 fps

conclusion?

I think the Sierra #1385 40gr hp is the go. I think it will be worth trying without resizing down to .221"

If I can get a .24" group @25m to translate through to 1" at 100m, I'd be happy.

The soft point 45gr hornet #1210 was very good, but might be better with a lighter load as Hornets ain't really going 3400 fps! probably 100fps slower!

Best group at very right at 3 o'clock

Originally Posted by Crusty

conclusion?

I think the Sierra #1385 40gr hp is the go. I think it will be worth trying without resizing down to .221"

If I can get a .24" group @25m to translate through to 1" at 100m, I'd be happy.

The soft point 45gr hornet #1210 was very good, but might be better with a lighter load as Hornets ain't really going 3400 fps! probably 100fps slower!

the hottest hornet load data I could see for 40gr was 2800fps so we're a fair bit ahead of that,
When you say .221" Sierra 40gr, did you size these down? if you did how did that go, if the .223" do shoot better it would probably be better to resize the .224 projectiles seeing as .223 seem to be harder to find.

I've got to clean and deprime all my brass today so will load up some more to test once they're all dry,
I'll test my loads at 25m to get a closer comparison to your numbers, also easier to see with the 4x scope
I'm going to retest the scope theory before I go and drop a bunch of money to buy a new one, so more results should coming soon.

Originally Posted by NAKED_GOOSE

the hottest hornet load data I could see for 40gr was 2800fps so we're a fair bit ahead of that,
When you say .221" Sierra 40gr, did you size these down? if you did how did that go, if the .223" do shoot better it would probably be better to resize the .224 projectiles seeing as .223 seem to be harder to find.

I've got to clean and deprime all my brass today so will load up some more to test once they're all dry,
I'll test my loads at 25m to get a closer comparison to your numbers, also easier to see with the 4x scope
I'm going to retest the scope theory before I go and drop a bunch of money to buy a new one, so more results should coming soon.

I meant 't 1,000 fps slower, not 100 - typo.

The .221 were sized down from .224 using a push through die from CH Tool and Die in the USA.

I'll see if I can get some more of the .224" Sierra 40gr hp and try them unsized. I think the reason these were shooting well at .221 is the length - they are reasonably short.
I'll check all my brass for pressure signs and let you know if anything is a worry. The higher loads make the brass flow and the cases get longer and the necks thicker.

Parallax could be an issue for your scope - have you checked?

It'll be interesting to see what happens with the .224 projectiles in your rifle, I just finished cleaning out my suppressor after slipping and packing it with mud :/
Aside from the mud it was surprisingly dirty so I'm wondering if I might gain some accuracy from that, brass is all drying below the fireplace at the moment but should have some loaded up by tomorrow for testing,

Honestly don't know much about parallax, don't think my current scope is adjustable for it either, I'll do some googling and see what I can find on the topic.

IMO avoid parallex adj scopes. Just one more thing to go wrong.
Just get fixed parallex at abt 150 yards for centre fire rifle.

Originally Posted by NAKED_GOOSE

It'll be interesting to see what happens with the .224 projectiles in your rifle, I just finished cleaning out my suppressor after slipping and packing it with mud :/
Aside from the mud it was surprisingly dirty so I'm wondering if I might gain some accuracy from that, brass is all drying below the fireplace at the moment but should have some loaded up by tomorrow for testing,

Honestly don't know much about parallax, don't think my current scope is adjustable for it either, I'll do some googling and see what I can find on the topic.

Hey Goose, I'm not suggesting you get a parallax adjustable scope.

Check your scope for parallax error - on some scopes, especially some cheaper ones, they can have significant parallax errors which will add to your issue.

Line your scope up with a target and then move your eye around to see if the crosshair moves in relation to the target - it shouldn't.

If you need glasses but adjust the eyepiece focus without your glasses on, this can cause a parallax error.
Discovered this myself, was about to throw a scope out. Readjusted for my glasses and the error went away.

I'll check against a target next time I'm out, I pretty much set the scope to 9x for anything over 40m so that could be the issue, the nikko being a fixed 4x would likely eliminate that?

If you are going to continue shooting below fifty yards go and buy an air rifle scope. Parralex set for closer range and they are built tough so should last for years,a much cheaper option for now.