It’s a SEAL situation

Morgayne

Morgayne

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It’s a SEAL situation

Oh I haven’t been on here in forever. Feels good to be back!

Quick question. Here’s the scenario .....
Hubby is signed up to do the seal hunting course he needs to legally hunt seal. I know what’s coming.... then we need a seal rifle. So instead of waiting for that, I’m going to go and buy him one ahead of time. This way I get the brownie points AND can find a budgetier (word?) friendly purchase. It’s almost Valentines too so perfect timing.

Would you go .223 or 22-250?

Or same difference in the end ?
 
222 was very popular in Labrador, same as in the Scandanavian nations. The 22 Hornet is kind of adequate but could leave you guessing hold over beyond 150 yards, plus it's harder to find this factory ammo for sale. I believe myself the fine 223 with regular 1:14 twist for lighter more traditional varmint bullets would be very sufficient for this task. I do believe some get by with 17 HMR but I have zero experience with this little cartridge.
My 2 bits only.
 
All the seal hunting I have done was with either a 222 or 22-250. As head shots are required for an instant kill or the seal will drop through it's hole and be lost. Are there other hunters around him? Lots to think about out on the ice or does he hunt from a boat? And again range will determine how much power is needed,seal skulls are fragile so 22-250 my be overkill but is very effective.
 
Brutus said:
222 was very popular in Labrador, same as in the Scandanavian nations. The 22 Hornet is kind of adequate but could leave you guessing hold over beyond 150 yards, plus it's harder to find this factory ammo for sale. I believe myself the fine 223 with regular 1:14 twist for lighter more traditional varmint bullets would be very sufficient for this task. I do believe some get by with 17 HMR but I have zero experience with this little cartridge.
My 2 bits only.
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I had the possible opportunity for a .222 but had never heard of anyone using it. Ammo was my biggest concern as we are rural and ordering it in is too big of a nuisance to deal with. Thank you for your reply ��. Appreciate the info
 
pounder said:
All the seal hunting I have done was with either a 222 or 22-250. As head shots are required for an instant kill or the seal will drop through it's hole and be lost. Are there other hunters around him? Lots to think about out on the ice or does he hunt from a boat? And again range will determine how much power is needed,seal skulls are fragile so 22-250 my be overkill but is very effective.
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This is brilliant info! Thank you. He will be with his cousin, who is a very experienced hunter just not with seals. Otherwise, they won’t be worrying about people around close by. New adventure for the both of them. Another mention of .222. Maybe I should shop locally for that ammo before I rule it out. Thanks so much!
 
For your intended purposes I would look to the .223 as I assume ammunition costs are a consideration. Accuracy will be the most important, perhaps corrosion resistance as a factor too. Not sure what you're looking to spend but stainless savage axis are popular boat guns among friends.
 
Where does the popularity of the .222 come from?

People just didn't switch to .223 because they live in remote areas or a large amount of heirloom firearms?
 
conor_90 said:
Where does the popularity of the .222 come from?

People just didn't switch to .223 because they live in remote areas or a large amount of heirloom firearms?
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I do believe the fine 222 still holds an international benchrest accuracy record. After all the 223 was morphed from the 222 in the first place. It was only the military requirement for more velocity that led to the 222 Remington Special/223 Remington. As far as civilian use, the regular 222 Remington was just fine as it was.
Didn't Remington's Mike Walker first design it in 1950 as the first post war varmint/target cartridge??
 
A .223 is likely to be easier to to get these days than a .222, and is slightly ballistically superior, and there is no practical difference between these two cartridges in rifles of similar quality.

Around here the wind can be an issue on the sea ice, so I used my .30/06, and the kills were spectacular, head shot were still required. If wind is a concern out your way, a .243 might be a better choice, but it won't be as cheap to shoot as a .223, so if this is for commercial hunting, you'll have to weigh up the pros and cons of each.



 
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Boomer said:
A .223 is likely to be easier to to get these days than a .222, and is slightly ballistically superior, and there is no practical difference between these two cartridges in rifles of similar quality.

Around here the wind can be an issue on the sea ice, so I used my .30/06, and the kills were spectacular, head shot were still required. If wind is a concern out your way, a .243 might be a better choice, but it won't be as cheap to shoot as a .223, so if this is for commercial hunting, you'll have to weigh up the pros and cons of each.
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Thank you for this! It won’t be commercial. It’ll be my husband and his cousin enjoying some fresh air freedom a few times per season. Very helpful information. I’m feeling better prepared now. Thanks - appreciate it.
 
Jim870 said:
For your intended purposes I would look to the .223 as I assume ammunition costs are a consideration. Accuracy will be the most important, perhaps corrosion resistance as a factor too. Not sure what you're looking to spend but stainless savage axis are popular boat guns among friends.
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Stainless savage axis. Ok got it thank you !
 
I would say get a 223(cheaper ammo),, Stainless barrel(less rust to worry about), Heavier barrel if possible(takes longer to heat up and possibly more accurate),, Detachable magazine(he can have extra mags on hand and not such a hassle to reload with cold fingers).
 
45CAT said:
Stupid question. Are there regulations in the area that list minimum caliber
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Depends on jurisdiction. Places like NS can be picky about rimfire off season versus centrefire. PEI banned use of 22-250 on fox maybe coyote, and had a heavy lean towards the 17 HRM or similar 17s. NWT has minimum 222 for wolf and wolverine IIRC.
Probably more outright control of these 22 centrefire in shotgun-muzxleloader-bow zones in some western provinces during big game open season. If I omit something folks please correct me.
 
0 experience hunting seals but .223 makes a lot of sense. Especially based on your location. Google Lee Classic Loader Product #: 420765. This would set him up for reloading .223.

Cheers,
 
45CAT said:
Stupid question. Are there regulations in the area that list minimum caliber
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Why would it be a stupid question? The decision for a .22 centerfire had pretty much been made and the question of a minimum caliber never came up. It was more a question to seek out people's personal preferences between the .223 and the .22-250.
 
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