22-250 or 243?

shakeyjake

shakeyjake

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A friend of mine is looking to pick up a Tikka varmint rifle for a gopher trip but he's stuck between 243 or 22-250. He's got a deer rifle already and he loads his own rounds.
Anyone got any advise or pros & cons?
 
I just bought it in 22-250, if he already has a deer rifle than he might as well get a true varmint rifle. I don't have mine yet, but everyone I've talked to since says to just get the synthetic SS as none of them are huge fans of the HB.
 
shakeyjake said:
A friend of mine is looking to pick up a Tikka varmint rifle for a gopher trip but he's stuck between 243 or 22-250. He's got a deer rifle already and he loads his own rounds.
Anyone got any advise or pros & cons?
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.243 can be used for deer, but if he already has a deer rifle, then no bother getting the .243 if he don't want another deer rifle.

.22-250 is good for gophers, but it is a barrel burner. Why not consider a .223 for gophers and it's not a barrel burner.
 
kevguy said:
.243 can be used for deer, but if he already has a deer rifle, then no bother getting the .243 if he don't want another deer rifle.

.22-250 is good for gophers, but it is a barrel burner. Why not consider a .223 for gophers and it's not a barrel burner.
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Good point. I told him that I've got a 223 WSSM that after three consecutive shots the tube is pretty warm. In a target rich enviroment it wouldn't take too long to burn it out.
 
Both are barrel burners so one is not significantly better than the other, but the 22-250 uses cheaper bullets and less powder. With a slow twist and light bullets, it will break 4000 fps and speed is what it's all about for varmints.

For that reason, I am a fan of the 204 Ruger, and it is no better for barrel life.

223 and light bullets, slow twist would last 3 or 4 times as longer than any of these suggestions.
 
barrel burners??

yeah right I was told 22-250 was a barrel burner 20 years ago when I bought my first one. If you load 40 grain bulllets to exceed 4000 fps they will burn like a 220 swift but many of us shoot 55 grains at 3400 and still have that original 22-250 thousands of rounds later and it is still doing fine.
Like urban legends there are alot of things repeated on the gun forums that have no basis in fact. "heard it from a guy" is not an example of a proven case.
 
wwbirds said:
yeah right I was told 22-250 was a barrel burner 20 years ago when I bought my first one. If you load 40 grain bulllets to exceed 4000 fps they will burn like a 220 swift but many of us shoot 55 grains at 3400 and still have that original 22-250 thousands of rounds later and it is still doing fine.
Like urban legends there are alot of things repeated on the gun forums that have no basis in fact. "heard it from a guy" is not an example of a proven case.
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I here ya. I mentioned to him a 223 so a guy can fire off a bunch of rounds and not have to worry about anything. I think he likes speed..... he's got a supercharged Harley!
 
Personally I think for a serious gopher shooter, a 243 is a bad choice because of recoil. The recoil isn't bad of course, but over a hundred or two shots? It might get to a guy's shooting ability. Also, a milder cartridge like a 223 allows you to see your impacts for sight corrections, usually even the recoil from a 22-250 won't allow for that.
 
If he's a reloader I would recommend looking at the 17 Rem Fireball for varmints. No recoil and cheap to shoot. Dropping a coyote at 300+ yards with something that's like a loud pellet gun is pretty cool.
 
Get the 243 Win if you shoot in high winds: it can drive a 0.400BC 87gr V-Max at 3100-3200 fps and recoil is never an issue with a 243.
By the way, the 243 is also a barrel burner if loaded hot.

Alex
 
I would go 8" twist .223AI and have the choice of slinging 50gr VMax at gophers out to 400-500, and something like the 75gr A-Max or a heavy VLD if I wanted to shoot farther out ;)
 
The Tikka Varmint comes in 9" .223, IIRC. I would go that route over a 12" twist .22-250. I wouldn't even be thinking in .22-250 or .243 mode unless coyotes are a heavy part of the agenda...
 
Shooter ----/ said:
22-250 for speed. Hits are spectacular!
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+1

With cals like .22, .17, .223 your shooting gophers. With a 22-250 your litterly blowing them up! Tons of fun. I was shooting them with 40gn nozlers and all we could find was the odd limb.
I've sence sold my 22-250 but it was one he'll of a good time.
 
Yup the 22-250 is great for varmints. Don`t own one at present but intend to soon. I have had 4 over the years and 5 is just down the road. You can burn barrels quickly if you get`m to hot but that applies to any rifle. Great for sniping gophers at 3 to 400 yards, lots of carnage. Used a 222 rem for closer shots gives the barrel time to cool, 55 gr. bullets and H380 was my favorite combo in the 22-250.
 
I have a browning A-bolt 22-250 with a regular barrel and after 10 consecutive shots on a hot day my barrel will start to flex and throw my shot off in the cooler weather it is fine. A heavy varmint barrel won't flex with the heat as easily and you probly wont get enough shots on critters to worry about getting it too hot anyway. 22-250 is a good fast level shooting round for varmints and there are many different grain bullets for all varmint applications. plus the explosive power is awsome. I have shot 2400 rds of the american brand winchester 45 gr. JHP that you can buy at wal-mart and it still shoots 1/2'' or less groups at 100 yds when it doesn't overheat. I started handloading and its much cheaper.
 
I am going to have to agree with the 22-250 crowd, I have one of each calibre and the 22-250 Ruger (M77 MkII) gets alot more use for gophers and varmints. Once you get it dialed in it is a lot of fun. 220 swift is also out there if you are so inclined and it is even faster.

All of this being said, if I had to do it again I would have went with .223 for barrel life and ammo costs.
 
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