220 swift
- Thread starter smokingunn
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a 55g BT @ 3825 FPS makes a mess of a dirt pig out well past 400 yards. My VS SF has been nothing but a joy to shoot loaded with handloads and 55's. I had a timney trigger installed and a new bolt shroud / firing pin & spring to reduce lock time and improve trigger response. If your handloading for the Swift be sure to watch the trim length as the cases do like to stretch. Buy a neck sizing die ...trust me. Flash hole de-burring is a big step for Rem brass. Norma makes 220 Swift brass which would be very nice to work with if you can find it or order from somewhere. The Swift still lets you watch the explosions through the scope and really make for a entertaining day on the alphalpha fields.
I have owned several Swifts over the past 35 years, and am totally convinced that it is the ultimate 22 Centerfire varmint cartridge. While I have owned (and do own) other 22 centerfires, nothing is as dramatic as the Swift with a 50-55 grain rapid expanding bullet. A crow shot will turn to a puff of black feather-dust. I have shot Columbian ground squirrels when they were sitting on a snow patch in the spring, and it turns a large area of snow red, with little else to see. I get 4050 with a 50 Ballistic Tip, and 3975 with the 55. These bullets are "bombs" when they hit a varmint. I have had the 50 BT stay in a coyote many times (No exit) Great if you want to save the hides. Long live the Swift! Eagleye.
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- big sky country
I owned a 22-250 remington varminter. It destroyed gophers. You will be happy with the swift.
A lot of guys are struggling for accuracy with the varmint gernades, but there are so many good choices it doesn't matter. I've got my 22 Middlested idling along at 4300 fps with various 52 grain bullets. What that does to a crow or rodent is something to see. The impact on a crow sounds like someone snapped off a frozen power pole.
The throat issue is basically terrible. This rifle is a 2 barrel project with the original barrel rechambered and fitted back to the blue printed action. I have another barrel, this one a Lilja 1-8 twist that has already been fitted, chambered with the same reamer and removed again. This way I can fireform brass with the throw-away barrel and swap them when I want to shoot the heavy bullet loads I built it for. All great plans can get cross-threaded and the throw-away 1-14 barrel shoots too good to take off and I still haven't swapped the barrels. The shooter that I consulted with before building it gets 1000 rounds, no problem. Since swapping the barrels is a ten minute, while you (I) wait job I can keep it around after it's smoked soley as a fire-forming barrel, in the mean-time I get to play speed demon with 52s.
I was kicking around the same plan of attack. I figured going with minimum 55g CT's or even longer VLD's in the 60g+ area and using some slower powders in a 27" 1:12 ROT barrel or even 1:10 if need be. A project that will cost some coin for sure! I've been bit by the 6.5mm bug and am going to focus on load developement this summer for my Rem 260's. I want to use them this fall for the whitetail season. Are you having any case stretch issues with yours? Are you finding that neck turning is critical?
Hi Harold , Do you still have .220 swift Norma brass for sale ? Jim
Chilly; No problem!! I will issue the usual caution first!
Start low and work up carefully, please. Case: Winchester
Primer: CCI BR2
Bullet: Nosler 55 Grain Ballistic Tip
Powder: 44.2 grains of H380
Seating: .015" off the lands
This is a working max load in my Ruger 77V Tang safety.
My Remington 40X would take about another .5 grains at similar pressures, and with the extra inch+ of barrel would make just over 4000 with the 55. Do NOT seat a different 55 grain bullet on your working max without backing off and working up again, it can be trouble! Enjoy that Swift. Regards, Eagleye
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Chilly; These loads have been over a Chrony Beta and an Oehler 33Chronograph, and believe me, this is not guesswork in my rifles. I had one Swift that was pretty close to bang on with Hodgdon info (55 @ 3839 with 43grains of H380) The only way you will know what it makes in YOUR rifles is to work up and then try it. I have seen variances of almost 200 FPS from one rifle to another, even with the same length barrels. Throat length has a lot to do with velocity as well, and rifles with a long throat will not give as high readings as shorter ones do, unless you add more powder (safely, of course)
FWIW, I also got some pretty decent velocities with H414, but I believe it was around 46/47 grains. Regards, Eagleye.
With the .254 neck reamer I'm using neck-turning is manditory, or I can't chamber them at all. Neck stretch with the custom RCBS Competition bushing dies is nil, plus I chambered the insert of the competition seating die with the same reamer as the barrel. My plan is to use 75 ish grain bullets, which particular one will depend on the barrel. I had a 22/250 barreled up with a 1-10 Gaillard that used to love 75 gr Hornady HPBTM bullets. Despite not having quite enough case, being marginal on twist rates for the heavy bullets that thing hammered coyotes. It was almost like the wind couldn't touch those bullets. After the barrel died, and being sold on the heavy bullet, high BC thing I wanted to do it right this time with lots of twist and lots of case. Nothing exceeds like excess.
Put it together on a XR100 with a 6.5-20 VX111 LR. I'm still playing with the light bullets in the 1-14 barrel, but am having fun with it. Even the fireforming loads are good enough for hunting and gophers, the real loads sound like internet groups. I doubt that the Lilja will shoot any better, really how could it? How would I know?
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