Newb needs a hand: .223 Rem vs .22 Hornet

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redbonefish

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Hey guys.

I have decided that my next rifle I am going to buy is going to be something in .22 cal and I am going to reload for it. The .223 and .22 Hornet rounds have both caught my eye because they are what I am looking for.

So I have a few questions regarding both rounds:

1. In terms of cost, which one is cheaper to reload?
2. Is the performance gain that the .223 has over .22 Hornet that big of a deal?
3. Should I just skip both and get a .22-250 since I am reloading?
4. What is your favorite varmint carriage?

Edit: Some extra questions.
5. How does .204 Ruger compare to those two rounds?

Also I plan to shoot this gun A LOT, I mean A LOT.


Thank you for all the help.
 
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1. 223 will be cheaper to reload as brass is easy to come by.
2. Performance gain of the 223 is quite a bit.
3. 22-250 is an amazing round but will cost more to load for than the 223.
4. Personally I would go 22-250. Performance wise it is superior. If you want to go to a heavy bullet for reaching out far, the 22-250 has more jam to push the heavy ones. Now I'm not saying 223 can't do it (just ask mystic) but some extra horse power always helps.
 
Shooter ----/ said:
1. 223 will be cheaper to reload as brass is easy to come by.
2. Performance gain of the 223 is quite a bit.
3. 22-250 is an amazing round but will cost more to load for than the 223.
4. Personally I would go 22-250. Performance wise it is superior. If you want to go to a heavy bullet for reaching out far, the 22-250 has more jam to push the heavy ones. Now I'm not saying 223 can't do it (just ask mystic) but some extra horse power always helps.
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Any quotes on price?
 
What are you going to use it for?? What distance will you be shooting?? If you are buying ammo .223 is the cheapest. Reloading then the Hornet would be cheapest.

I have a 22 Hornet and for me it works, but for you we will need more info?
 
The .223 Rem is the easy choice. Very popular. Lots of gun choices. Check out a Savage Model 12 F/TR if you want to reach out with accuracy. Barrel life is excellent, and good brass is available.

The only good reason not to get a .223 Remington is that you already have one.
 
steve62 said:
What are you going to use it for?? What distance will you be shooting?? If you are buying ammo .223 is the cheapest. Reloading then the Hornet would be cheapest.

I have a 22 Hornet and for me it works, but for you we will need more info?
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I plan to do some target + varmint shooting. I plan to shoot between 100-200 meters, 300mm+ if I could find a spot.

Edit: I want this gun to be my "####-around" gun if you catch my drift (and I mean in a safe/non-illegal gun).

I just want something more powerful then the .22s I have without it breaking the bank.
 
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The hornet has some distinct advantages over the 223: it burns half the powder, it's much quieter, and you can shoot it a lot more often before you have to let it cool down. The 223 is much louder and gives a nice bit of extra point blank range, but it heats up quickly. The 22-250 is a poor choice for high volume shooting. Too much recoil to spot your own shots and heats up quickly.

The Hornet should last a bazillion shots before the barrel is worn out, and the 223 is going to be good for several thousand.

The 204 gives you the trajectory of the 22-250 for the recoil, powder consumption, heat, and approximate barrel lifespan of the 223.

I have one of each. Actually, I have two of some
 
If you reload the 22 hornet it will not break the bank. but tailer mades are expensive $38 for 50. .223 are the cheapest to buy $380 for 1000.
 
The hornet has some distinct advantages over the 223: it burns half the powder, it's much quieter, and you can shoot it a lot more often before you have to let it cool down. The 223 is much louder and gives a nice bit of extra point blank range, but it heats up quickly. The 22-250 is a poor choice for high volume shooting. Too much recoil to spot your own shots and heats up quickly.
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That pretty much sums it up.
 
The center-fire .22s are all throwing pretty much the same piece of lead (some a little heavier, true) so really it comes down to how fast and how far you want to go. You stated 100-200 yards, maybe 300. You want to shoot it a lot, which to me doesn't really spell 22-250. I'm working with my bil's now, and while it's a very impressive cartridge and superior for long range varminting, it does heat up quick and burn a lot of powder. In your situation I would not rule out the .222 Remington. Awesome little round in my experience, but I've never had a Hornet, so it may be quite similar.
 
Shooter ----/ said:
4. Personally I would go 22-250. Performance wise it is superior. If you want to go to a heavy bullet for reaching out far, the 22-250 has more jam to push the heavy ones. Now I'm not saying 223 can't do it (just ask mystic) but some extra horse power always helps.
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Except the majority of factory rifles in 22-250 have slow twist rifling that won't stabilize a heavy bullet. Check the twist first, most are 1:12 or 1:14 and will stabilize bullets up to 55 or so grains, maybe a bit more depending on the length of the bullet.

Why the slow twist? So that high velocity light bullets don't self disintegrate because of spinning too fast.
 
So it's down to .204 vs .22 Hornet.

Btw how does a .22 Hornet compare to a .22 WMR?

Thanks again for all the help guys.

leverboy said:
The center-fire .22s are all throwing pretty much the same piece of lead (some a little heavier, true) so really it comes down to how fast and how far you want to go. You stated 100-200 yards, maybe 300. You want to shoot it a lot, which to me doesn't really spell 22-250. I'm working with my bil's now, and while it's a very impressive cartridge and superior for long range varminting, it does heat up quick and burn a lot of powder. In your situation I would not rule out the .222 Remington. Awesome little round in my experience, but I've never had a Hornet, so it may be quite similar.
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Well that could be an option as well. But it kind of seems redundant because of .223.
 
redbonefish said:
So it's down to .204 vs .22 Hornet.

Well that could be an option as well. But it kind of seems redundant with .223.
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204 over 22 Hornet if you are going to be shooting a lot.

The 22 Hornet is one of my favourite little cartridges. HOWEVER, the cases are thin and tend to stretch unless you make your rifle into a K-Hornet, they are rimmed so they don't feed as well from a magazine as a rimless cartridge and because of the thin cases, are generally a lower pressure round.

You could also look at the 221 Fireball. It is basically a shortened 223 and uses standard 22 bullets (.224"). Less powder, and less heat buildup, and if you are using light bullets, still get very high velocities, well above the Hornet if you want. Brass can be purchased, or easily formed from cut down 223 cases.

A 221 Fireball is going to be my next varmint rifle. However there are few factory rifles in this caliber, but you can use a 223 and have a gunsmith set the barrel back and rechamber.
 
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I usually suggest the .223. Brass everywhere, reloads cost as much or as little as you choose to stuff it with for a powder charge.
The 'new school' .223's are coming out with faster twist rates to deal with the heavier bullets. Not gonna get that in the 22-250, without a custom barrel.

Twice as much powder into a 22-250 gives you a wee bit more range. Do you shoot that far, regularly? Do you want to shoot one or two shots, or steady all day (gopher whacking)?

Hornet brass is a little more expensive, and can be fragile. Chamber size matters, as does reloading dies and technique used. Probably less of a 'sure thing' for a casual reloader or a guy wanting inexpensive off the shelf ammo. But it runs on low, low qty's of powder, cast is an option too, Small pistol primers are supposed to be worth checking out as well.

Then there's the .17 Ackley Hornet...:D Because frustration is just another word for having fun! I want one!

Buy the .223. Best balance, IMO, between price/performance/availability. If you want to shoot lots, that's probably the best bet.

Cheers
Trev
 
SandRoad said:
You could also look at the 211 Fireball. It is basically a shortened 223 and uses standard 22 bullets (.224"). Less powder, and less heat buildup, and if you are using light bullets, still get very high velocities, well above the Hornet if you want. Brass can be purchased, or easily formed from cut down 223 cases.

A 211 Fireball is going to be my next varmint rifle. However there are few factory rifles in this caliber, but you can use a 223 and have a gunsmith set the barrel back and rechamber.
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Not to nitpick, but I do believe you meant .221 Fireball, not .211 Fireball. :)

I also agree that it is a phenomenal round for the tasks mentioned by the OP.

-M
 
choices

Well with your final cut of 204 or 22 Hornet. 223 is where most of us start with and I have a few of them but seldom use them when the gopher season gets going here in Alberta.

There are some well respected varmint hunters in the USA that can do some fine longer range shooting with the hornet and 40gr bullets, which turns most rifles into single shots.

Loading for the hornet is fairly simple as the most popular powder is called LilGun and loads are right around 12gr , depending on which Hornady bullet you choose to load. I like the 35gr as a short range gopher medicater, up to 125 yards. A single pound of powder will give you almost 600 loads. Brass life is usually very good. Many guys get better groups at the range when they load small pistol primers instead of sm rifle primers

Only real problem with Hornet is going to be finding a rifle. Ruger ,Savage, and CZ make rifles in the hornet chamber, but damn few shops have a hornet in stock.

In 204 everybody makes one. Basic bullet choices are 32,35,39,40 gr bullets. A nice load of 28gr of Varget will work with most any bullet, as well as several other powders.

You said you planned on shooting this rifle a lot, at what?

Out west here we have a number of opportunities at gophers in the spring and summer.

I am fortunate to have a rifle in all of the well know varmint cartridges and hornet is my favorite, then 19Calhoon,K-hornet, then 222,then 204
 
Fassteel said:
Well with your final cut of 204 or 22 Hornet. 223 is where most of us start with and I have a few of them but seldom use them when the gopher season gets going here in Alberta.

There are some well respected varmint hunters in the USA that can do some fine longer range shooting with the hornet and 40gr bullets, which turns most rifles into single shots.

Loading for the hornet is fairly simple as the most popular powder is called LilGun and loads are right around 12gr , depending on which Hornady bullet you choose to load. I like the 35gr as a short range gopher medicater, up to 125 yards. A single pound of powder will give you almost 600 loads. Brass life is usually very good. Many guys get better groups at the range when they load small pistol primers instead of sm rifle primers

Only real problem with Hornet is going to be finding a rifle. Ruger ,Savage, and CZ make rifles in the hornet chamber, but damn few shops have a hornet in stock.

In 204 everybody makes one. Basic bullet choices are 32,35,39,40 gr bullets. A nice load of 28gr of Varget will work with most any bullet, as well as several other powders.

You said you planned on shooting this rifle a lot, at what?

Out west here we have a number of opportunities at gophers in the spring and summer.

I am fortunate to have a rifle in all of the well know varmint cartridges and hornet is my favorite, then 19Calhoon,K-hornet, then 222,then 204
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Well I plan to use it for some hunting (rabbit) and I enjoy shooting metal gongs all day long :p.

Edit: Just got another idea. How good is 7.62x39mm for my needs? I can shoot the cheap surplus when I messing around and use proper ammo when I am hunting; I can also go after big game as well. Or is that round in another league?
 
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