Bolt stop issues

[Arian]

Since you mention rabbits, how far can you practically connect with them using you beatiful 222 ?
I presently use a 17hmr for rabbits (quite a lot here too, basically a pest) and 120m is a practical range limit with the ocasional 150m shot. Perhaps it is my lack of skill.
I was thinking of getting a 222 for longer shots but I do not know how far it is practical regarding accuracy
Thx

I am not the one you asked but il chime in anyway, in my club at least 6 people use 222 to tag black grouse from 100-300 meter. I dont know why iam a noob but they seem to like a 150m zero,

 

[Frank Alc]

Thanks Arian,
I am not familiar with black grouse (by the way are they good eating ? They look so), but I think they are at least twice as large as a rabbit so it is an easier target.
Anyhow, 300 metres is a long ways.

 

[Arian]

Thanks Arian,
I am not familiar with black grouse (by the way are they good eating ? They look so), but I think they are at least twice as large as a rabbit so it is an easier target.
Anyhow, 300 metres is a long ways.

the size of a large chicken out here, they can get big but the hitzone is a baseball sized area so the breast doesnt get messed up. They make great eating, almost as good as hazel grouse.

 

[Arian]

a very popular caliber up north in lapland is 22-250, 6.5x55 is also historically a very popular hare/bird caliber (no rabbits up here). in lapland shots out to 500 and even 600m are sometimes taken with those cartridges. But i have been on a few grouse hunts as a shotgunner and 222 serves those guys well out to 300m

 

[bloorooster]

The Triple Duece is effective for rabbits and varmint sized critters to at least 300 m if you can make the shot.

 

[deersako]

a very popular caliber up north in lapland is 22-250, 6.5x55 is also historically a very popular hare/bird caliber (no rabbits up here). in lapland shots out to 500 and even 600m are sometimes taken with those cartridges. But i have been on a few grouse hunts as a shotgunner and 222 serves those guys well out to 300m

I’m assuming that FMJ’s are the projectile used for the birds ?

 

[Arian]

I’m assuming that FMJ’s are the projectile used for the birds ?

yes. People even use 338 lapua magnum on birds with FMJ but i havent seen in person how mutch bird it leaves.

 

[Frank Alc]

The Triple Duece is effective for rabbits and varmint sized critters to at least 300 m if you can make the shot.

I am positive the 222rem is effective on rabbits out to 300m. I bet even at twice that distance or more.
My question was more about the hit ratio you can count on. I know it depends on the shooter but what would it be for the average hunter (I am not a great shot).

I am asking this because the 17hmr kills them out to 200m or more but I find it inconsistent over 120m and almost a poke shot over 150m. As I say I am not a great shot but the small 17 grain bullets get tossed away by a slight breeze at those distances. Not to mention ammo is not very consistent either.

 

[Arian]

I am positive the 222rem is effective on rabbits out to 300m. I bet even at twice that distance or more.
My question was more about the hit ratio you can count on. I know it depends on the shooter but what would it be for the average hunter (I am not a great shot).

I am asking this because the 17hmr kills them out to 200m or more but I find it inconsistent over 120m and almost a poke shot over 150m. As I say I am not a great shot but the small 17 grain bullets get tossed away by a slight breeze at those distances. Not to mention ammo is not very consistent either.

asked around the hunting club, if its calm weather you should have a laserbeam out to 300. But if its its not a calm windless day they bring out the 223, or 308(its Finland, people shoot squirrels and brown bear with 308, its the magic cartridge here). but out to 200m 222 should have no problems unless its a storm or you are shooting up a steep hillside.

However their advice, if you arent bound by permit restrictions and ammo cost (308 is 0.60 here and 222 1,70 for instance) grab the bullet that looks most like a needle, 6.5x55 is the go to for long range small game in bad weather here. Having shot that one myself i can for once say from experience that with 6.5x55 you can almost forget about any drift or drop at ant range where you could spot your target with the naked eye. But most common nowadays i Finland is 223 because its cheaper than 222 by faaaaar (0,30 per shot atm) and doesnt care about wind as mutch.

 

[Arian]

asked around the hunting club, if its calm weather you should have a laserbeam out to 300. But if its its not a calm windless day they bring out the 223, or 308(its Finland, people shoot squirrels and brown bear with 308, its the magic cartridge here). but out to 200m 222 should have no problems unless its a storm or you are shooting up a steep hillside.

However their advice, if you arent bound by permit restrictions and ammo cost (308 is 0.60 here and 222 1,70 for instance) grab the bullet that looks most like a needle, 6.5x55 is the go to for long range small game in bad weather here. Having shot that one myself i can for once say from experience that with 6.5x55 you can almost forget about any drift or drop at ant range where you could spot your target with the naked eye. But most common nowadays i Finland is 223 because its cheaper than 222 by faaaaar (0,30 per shot atm) and doesnt care about wind as mutch.

in general, had i had more choise (availability is a bitch in my part of Finland) i would have taken a 6.5x55 as my one and only do it all rifle, but youe question was 222 so unless you plan to take 300+m shots on a windy frozen lake you should be fine.

 

[Frank Alc]

in general, had i had more choise (availability is a bitch in my part of Finland) i would have taken a 6.5x55 as my one and only do it all rifle, but youe question was 222 so unless you plan to take 300+m shots on a windy frozen lake you should be fine.

Thanks Arian,
I am just trying to make my.mind up for a caliber with more reach than the 17hmr for small animals at distance.
Ammo cost is a factor too. The cheapest here is either 222 or 308. You can get them for slightly over or around 1 euro per round.
223 is forbidden for being a military cartridge. 308 is a mitary round too but for whatever reason it is allowed in bolt action rifles (no semiautos).

The good old swede is very nice but ammo is scarce and expensive. No less than 1.8 eur/rnd.
I have thought also of the 243 at about the same cost as the Swede. More ammo choices than the 6.5x55.
Also 6.5 Creedmore costs about the same but there is a lot of options thanks to its surge in popularity. If I could choose I like better the classic Swede.
I'll keep thinking it.

 

[Arian]

Thanks Arian,
I am just trying to make my.mind up for a caliber with more reach than the 17hmr for small animals at distance.
Ammo cost is a factor too. The cheapest here is either 222 or 308. You can get them for slightly over or around 1 euro per round.
223 is forbidden for being a military cartridge. 308 is a mitary round too but for whatever reason it is allowed in bolt action rifles (no semiautos).

The good old swede is very nice but ammo is scarce and expensive. No less than 1.8 eur/rnd.
I have thought also of the 243 at about the same cost as the Swede. More ammo choices than the 6.5x55.
Also 6.5 Creedmore costs about the same but there is a lot of options thanks to its surge in popularity. If I could choose I like better the classic Swede.
I'll keep thinking it.

222 will do fine if all you are after is small game. in my birth country Holland the 22-250 is popular for shooting birds on the fields, its described to me as a supermagnum size 222,never used one tho. 243 will work fine, its also popular here. An oddball to our america friends but very popular in parts of europe is the 7x57 mauser, bit big if you are only after small game.

if al you need is killing stuff smaller than a roe deer at up to 300m 222 should be reliable

i asked my uncle about 22-250 tho and you may like thar one if you can get the ammo.

Dutch goose hunters use them because of the high winds on the coast, its essentially the same bullet but going alot faster,faster means less time for wind and gravity to change the trajectory.

For allround, I have seen quite a few switch from 6.5x55 to 6.5creedmore, on factory ammo you arent loosing anything because the 6.5x55 is loaded to be safe in 100+ year old rifles.

223 doesnt give you mutch over 222 really but in finland we are conscripted and after service we get acces to military gun permits to participate in voluntary military training. So 308 and 223 are incredibly cheap as the state throws its weight behind its production. Unfortunately this means other calibers are very expensive because our domestic factories devote their capacity to the army

 

[Frank Alc]

Very nice explanation. You have covered all my questions. Thanks. I still heva to make up my mind so I will keep reading more posts abiut this topic.
The 6.5mm cartridges are very appealing. I had over looked them. Light bullets (100-120 gr) going fast good for varmints and small game (Roe). 130-140 grainers for medium game, perhaps even good for boar. And long, heavy 160 gr for the big stuff. Only we do not have really big stuff in Spain. Well there are brown bears but they are under protection by law.

As I said if I could choose I'd go with the Swede but the Creedmore is more practical because of ammo variety and availability. I would also love to have a 264 win magnum. I have spotted a nice L61r in that caliber. I do not know its precise condition but it looks good on the pictures. However that round is dead in my country unless you reload (I don't for the moment). Only 140 gr Remington Corelokt is (sometimes) available at 120 eur a box. No kidding, that is 6 eur per round.

 

[Winsak]

I am not the one you asked but il chime in anyway, in my club at least 6 people use 222 to tag black grouse from 100-300 meter. I dont know why iam a noob but they seem to like a 150m zero,

The 22-250 approaches the 220 Swift in velocity. I have one of each. Americans use them for Coyote and smaller. Texas is one of the only states I know of where the deer are smaller and people can take a deer with a heavier bullet. I also have a Sako 222 and a Sako 264. The 264 has a three digit serial number (204). Shot a rabit here in Ohio with my 270 and a 100 grain bullet and pretty much quartered it. I use my 22-250 to kill ground hogs mostly.

 

[Arian]

Very nice explanation. You have covered all my questions. Thanks. I still heva to make up my mind so I will keep reading more posts abiut this topic.
The 6.5mm cartridges are very appealing. I had over looked them. Light bullets (100-120 gr) going fast good for varmints and small game (Roe). 130-140 grainers for medium game, perhaps even good for boar. And long, heavy 160 gr for the big stuff. Only we do not have really big stuff in Spain. Well there are brown bears but they are under protection by law.

As I said if I could choose I'd go with the Swede but the Creedmore is more practical because of ammo variety and availability. I would also love to have a 264 win magnum. I have spotted a nice L61r in that caliber. I do not know its precise condition but it looks good on the pictures. However that round is dead in my country unless you reload (I don't for the moment). Only 140 gr Remington Corelokt is (sometimes) available at 120 eur a box. No kidding, that is 6 eur per round.

i feel ya, lots of good cartridges are dead or dying in Finland. To my knowledge there is no advantage to 6.5x55 over creedmoor unless you use modern loads. Only a few companies make the 6.5x55 to modern pressures (norma for instance). Really any of the 6.5 cartridges i know off will work well for you in Spain. But as we say here in my hunting club "the greatest round is the one you can afford to shoot all year" 6.5mm have brought down elephants and 338 has harvested grouse. being able to make that shot is the deciding factor. There was actually a poacher in my area who killed moose with a 22wmr with spine shots right behind the skull

 

[icebear]

It's worth mentioning here that in Finland, hunters are more likely going after Arctic hare than rabbit. The Arctic hare is a much larger animal than a rabbit; it can reach two feet long and 15 pounds. I was once out hiking on a snow-covered trail near my home in Helsinki when I was startled by a hare that broke cover and ran across the trail a few feet in front of me. The thing was bloody enormous!

My Finnish girlfriend at the time had a pet rabbit and made me promise I would not shoot rabbits or hares. The rabbit liked to eat the dandelions in her yard.

 

[Arian]

It's worth mentioning here that in Finland, hunters are more likely going after Arctic hare than rabbit. The Arctic hare is a much larger animal than a rabbit; it can reach two feet long and 15 pounds. I was once out hiking on a snow-covered trail near my home in Helsinki when I was startled by a hare that broke cover and ran across the trail a few feet in front of me. The thing was bloody enormous!

My Finnish girlfriend at the time had a pet rabbit and made me promise I would not shoot rabbits or hares. The rabbit liked to eat the dandelions in her yard.

thats the jänis they are now a rarity in the south unfortunately. They are pushed north by the competition from the invasive rusakko(jackrabbit for Americans) and by global warming.

Snow is falling late and later and the hare now develop their white coat too early making them sitting ducks for predators.

We really need that huning section on the forum So mutch to discuss that isnt directly sako related

 

[Winsak]

thats the jänis they are now a rarity in the south unfortunately. They are pushed north by the competition from the invasive rusakko(jackrabbit for Americans) and by global warming.

Snow is falling late and later and the hare now develop their white coat too early making them sitting ducks for predators.

We really need that huning section on the forum So mutch to discuss that isnt directly sako related

Sounds like the western jack rabbit. I have only seen one in pictures, but they are similar in size.

 

[Arian]

Sounds like the western jack rabbit. I have only seen one in pictures, but they are similar in size.

the arctic hare is not closely related to other hare and pretty big. Brown hare is invasive here and are called something like lepus europaeus, i caught them weighing about 9 pounds

 

[Winsak]

the arctic hare is not closely related to other hare and pretty big. Brown hare is invasive here and are called something like lepus europaeus, i caught them weighing about 9 pounds

Let's hope they don't fight back