[thebigcheese109]

I have been loading for a little over a year for three different guns, mostly my .22-250. I have been using H380 with 50 grain vmax and 55 grain hornady soft points. My 5 shot groups at 100 yards are usually between 1" and 1.5". I think that it could be better and was wondering if I should buy a different box of bullets or a different powder to try. I would prefer to buy one or the other for the simple reason of the cost and was wondering which might be more effective.

Thanks

 

[Cheezywan]

I'd try a different bullet first if it were me.
Change only one or the other. Keep notes.

Cheezywan

 

[mjyeagle]

get some imr 4064 i agree with notes you cant be too anal about your notes

 

[thebigcheese109]

Thanks for the help. Forgot to mention I use winchester large rifle primers. I also keep fairly detailed notes, as well as save my notes.

Any other suggestions or opinions would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[mjyeagle]

i sent you a pm big cheese

 

[BKeith]

Varget Powder
Nosler 50gr Ballistic Tips
Start with bullets seated .025" off the lands, then move it in .005" steps. Just be very careful with pressure signs when you start getting .010" and closer. Do not jam the lands.
Keep barrel clean and copper free. I've not found a small caliber bullet that can handle a dirty/fouled barrel.
Brass prep is critical.

52 grain Sierra, HPBT's also provide very good accuracy, but I get better groups at 400 yards with the Noslers.

55 grain VMax's give me the worst accuracy. Short and long range

A number of things that's normally not considered worth the effort in hunting/sporter rifles add up to make a very noticable reduction in group size.

 

[mjyeagle]

Start with bullets seated .025" off the lands, then move it in .005" steps. Just be very careful with pressure signs when you start getting .010" and closer. Do not jam the lands.
Keep barrel clean and copper free. I've not found a small caliber bullet that can handle a dirty/fouled barrel.
Brass prep is critical.

i like it well said i have never tried varget but have heard good things from a bunch of people about it i use 4064 for my 30-0-6 and 375 rum so i keep a bunch of it around

 

[OTTER]

I second the 4064 motion, and the keep your barrel clean motion, and the one at a time,keep notes, and the sierra 52gr matchkings. I would like to add Varget and 3031 to the powders to try list. I would suggest going no more than twenty rounds between cleanings until you find a load the rifle likes, and then let the rifle determine when its dirty. Hope this helps, Ron.

 

[MontyF]

Guess if it was me I'd try different bullets first. One of the most accurate .224 diameter bullets is the 53 grain Sierra Matchking, expecially at 300 yards or less. I know H-380 isn't a high profile fashionable powder but it always seemed to work well in every 22-250 I've loaded for. Play with charge weights and seating depth, I'd bet you'll find something you like.

 

[BKeith]

One other note, you're talking about trying different bullets. BE CAREFUL. You can get big swings in velocity and pressures just from swapping bullets.

A little test I did on doing nothing but trying different bullets, seating each of the bullets .005" off the lands and keeping everything else the same.
Loading 50 grain Nosler Ballastic Tips velocity is 3,800 fps and some pressure signs. 52 grain Sierra MK HPBT's are 3,600 fps and show no pressure signs at all. 55 grain Hornady V-Max's are 3,750 fps and so far over pressure they blow the primers out of the case and ruin the brass.

 

[GMFWoodchuck]

Absolutely try different bullets first. In my experience the bullets are most of the "issue" when it comes to gun accuracy as far as reloading goes.

You didn't mention anything about your shooting rest and shooting patience, but those are also areas that have a huge impact.

But being that you asked about bullets and powder, start with the bullets. Keep one very important thing in mind. Your gun has no idea how much the bullets cost. So don't be afraid of "cheap" bullets.

 

[oneoldsap]

You might try Neck Sizing and tinkering with your OAL before you try different Components . You want to wring all the accuracy out of what you have . H-380 is hard to beat in the 22-250 . Bruce Hogdon named it H-380 because it gave stellar performance in the 22-250 with a 38 Gr. charge . The components you're using should do better than 1.5 MOA in a properly tuned bolt Action rifle of any make .

 

[sniper1958]

I'll vote for a bullet change as well. My .30-06 won't group ANY Nosler bullet worth a hoot (I've tried different powders, primers, brass, OAL - it didn't matter). Hornady, OTOH, groups very well in my rifle. I kept all other components the same and noticed huge improvements.

 

[unclenick]

Nosler bullets, if you pinch them sideways in a caliper just above the pressure ring at the corner of the bearing surface and BT or heel, depending on whether it is BT or FB, and look at the crack of light coming through, all have a slight taper. It's probably just to make it easier to eject them from the forming die, but some guns hate that taper and some love it above and beyond anything else.

I agree with the suggestions to try the flat base 53 grain Sierra MatchKing bullet. Flat bases in general require less care and effort to get shooting accurately. These work well with a number of powders.

Bryan Litz says Hornady soft points tend to slump in the barrel more than others, spoiling their ballistic coefficient. He says the Sierra softpoints slump least. Nonetheless, with an ancient box of Hornady soft points, my .222 Rem will drill 1/4-3/8" cloverleaves all day long. So you're not yet at the 100 yard potential for these bullets at over an moa.

I saw something written by a fellow who co-purchased a Manson crowning tool and ultimately got to recrown almost all the rifles for his club's members. Fully 50% shot better afterward. I mention this just to point out the best load in the world won't shoot if the platform isn't right. You should check your crown carefully and bedding and other accuracy factors if you get stuck for load workup steps. I also recommend you look through Dan Newberry's method of finding a best load. You may choose some personal variations later, but it's a good starting point. The round robin can also be applied to finding a best seating depth before using it to find the best powder charge.

 

[dmsbandit]

I have been loading for a little over a year for three different guns, mostly my .22-250. I have been using H380 with 50 grain vmax and 55 grain hornady soft points. My 5 shot groups at 100 yards are usually between 1" and 1.5". I think that it could be better and was wondering if I should buy a different box of bullets or a different powder to try. I would prefer to buy one or the other for the simple reason of the cost and was wondering which might be more effective.

Thanks

Get some Speer 52Gr HP bullets. Not the TNT version, but to older style. They are one of those magic bullets. They are often the most accurate bullet in many 22 caliber centerfires. My 22-250 when sitting over a max charge of H380 and Fed210M primers shoots itty bitty groups. The bullet is also death on any critter you ever hit with it.

 

[unclenick]

Hey! You forgot to count that hole up at the top of the page.

 

[BigBob3006]

There are a lot of things that you could do, all of which would have some effect on your accuracy. My .22-250 will put five shots into a single ragged hole that measures .174" c/c.
I've found that the CCI BR2 PRIMER is the most accurateprimer on the market.
Your question about powder and bullets and I think both can be improved. I suggest the 55gr Nosler BT is a top performer in high velocity .224 barrels. H-Varget is about as good as can be had in cases with a capacity similar to the .308 Winchester. This includes the .22-250. Good luck.

 

[thebigcheese109]

Thanks for the help. I think i will buy a new bullet next and if that does not work I will get a new powder. I use this gun for fox hunting. Anyone know if one of the 52 gr hp bullets will be really bad on the pelt or is there something else that would be accurate and not to hard on the pelts?

Thanks

 

[Shawn Crea]

Maybe give a try to seating your bullets to different depths in .03" increments, or half that, before giving up on the bullets you have. If that doesn't help, I agree with most others; try different bullets first.

 

[Kev7griz]

Thanks for the help. I think i will buy a new bullet next and if that does not work I will get a new powder. I use this gun for fox hunting. Anyone know if one of the 52 gr hp bullets will be really bad on the pelt or is there something else that would be accurate and not to hard on the pelts?

Thanks

I am not the expert at target accuracy but changing powders is the method I use since I use my loads are for hunting. So I pick the bullet for the task. I do think you need to know the bullet for the job. If you can borrow a chronograph you can test the velocity variation and see if the powder is the main problem or not. It is nice to have accuracy but hunting is NOT target completion and bullet performance and functioning of the cartridge are the key. I have had loads that I had to change seating depth to work better in a magazine, which was more important than sub MOA groups. 1 in groups is good enough up to 400 yards or so. Judging Wind drift and bullet drop is more important than sub 1 in (MOA) groups. So determine the task and pick the bullet for that task and then consider other things. If you are target shooting in a competition that is the only time that accuracy is the top of the list.