Effective .22-250 round for deer and hogs

Zack Beam

New member
Im shooting a Remington 700 .22-250 with a 1:14 twist barrel. Im looking for an effective deer and hog round that will stabilize out of my gun. I talked to Barnes about their 45 grain TSX and they said its a great round for deer and hogs with a well placed shot. Now my problem is I dont reload my own ammo. Im not sure what the laws are here regarding haveing someone make some custom loads for me, and I dont even know of anyone that will. I was thinking about trying the Federal V-Shock 50 grain TSX, but im not sure if my gun will shoot them or not and at $36.00 a box plus shipping its and exspensive experiment.
 
The Remington ammo in the Green and yellow box loaded with the 55gr Core-lokt bullet would do pretty good if it shoots good from your rifle.
 
So you have tried the Rem bullet... I think Federal or maybe Hornady loads the Sierra 55gr HPBT gameking bullet which is a bullet I have loaded and seen used on lots of pigs and deer from at least 5 different 22-250's. Actually the Hornady loaded with their 55gr SP bullet is hard to beat for all around use too.
 
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for the animals you wanna hunt your gonna have to move up to a heavier bullet. problem is with your twist they won't stabilize. i have a 1:12 in my 22-250 and don't think they'll even stabilize 62gr. when i rebarrel i'm gonna go 1:9 or even 1:8 to stabilize bullets in the 72-75 gr bullets. people will tell you you can kill with 55gr but why not be certain with a humane kill. just my 2cents.
 
Originally Posted By: venaticThe Remington ammo in the Green and yellow box loaded with the 55gr Core-lokt bullet would do pretty good if it shoots good from your rifle.

This is one of my favorite bullets for my .22-250. Small entry hole, and no exit hole on whitetails. Shot placement is key, broadside, double lung. We don't have hogs up here, but I don't believe it would be a good hog round.
 
My Remington 700 VLS has a 1:14 twist and I've killed deer with the 55-grain green and yellow box ammo (and reloads with 55-grain Sierra GameKings). Not an ideal round, but I guarantee I'd never want to go any smaller than 55 grains.

In Oklahoma it's not even legal to hunt deer with anything below 55. Never shot a hog, so no help there either way.
 
If the 55 PSPs and HPBTs won't shoot, Federal makes a load with the 50 grain Barnes Triple Vital Shok. Some 1-14 guns will not stabilize any bullet over 52 grains. I'd explain to the Mrs. how you need that new 243 or 25-06
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I dont have one so that wont be a problem lol. Im trying to sell my bow now to get a new FoxPro and hopefully a nice .243 or somthing along thos lines.
 
Contact your local shooting or hunting club. Chances are someone will help you put together a custom load, or even show you how really easy it is to reload the 22-250.

Or if you're wanting to move up to shooting something bigger, why not go to the parent cartridge of the 243, the 308. A 308 certainly has the power for hogs and deer, and is a good long range cartridge. Keep the 22-250 for varmints and have the 30 caliber for longer and bigger shots. Besides the 308 is fairly readily available with a good selection of factory loaded bullets
 
Ive got a .270 that I use during deer season, but ive had hogs come to my calls before. I guess ill just have to hit em in the head from now on.
 
Had a friend who shot several pigs with a 250 and swore by it until a year ago when he had a big boar come in. He shot it with a good broadside hit and it ran off. Not sure what bullet he was using but on a big boar the 250 isn't enough. They have a tough thick hide on their sides. He said he won't be using the 250 anymore for pigs. My opinion (wich isn't worth much) is if you have to use your 250, use Barnes or a Speer Trophy Bonded bullet. Even then probably would be best if you could take a quartering away shot to try to slip it it behind the shoulder plate.
What is the bow you are trying to sell?
 
Originally Posted By: 22250impHad a friend who shot several pigs with a 250 and swore by it until a year ago when he had a big boar come in. He shot it with a good broadside hit and it ran off. Not sure what bullet he was using but on a big boar the 250 isn't enough. They have a tough thick hide on their sides. He said he won't be using the 250 anymore for pigs. My opinion (wich isn't worth much) is if you have to use your 250, use Barnes or a Speer Trophy Bonded bullet. Even then probably would be best if you could take a quartering away shot to try to slip it it behind the shoulder plate.
What is the bow you are trying to sell?


If I were hunting hogs specifically then the 22-250 would not be my first choice(I would chose a bow)
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But around here they are just targets of opportunity while doing other things and most of the folks I personally know are whacking lots and lots of pigs with .223's but as mentioned we are not trophy hunting just trying to control the numbers. But the pork is pretty tasty too.
 
I know you said you do not reload but if you can find someone willing to load you some I have killed lots of deer with a 52 gr. Seirra MKHPs. They are a little harder and stay together enough to really get inside the kill zone on whitetails. It is like you turn off a switch when you pull the trigger. Good Luck!
 
I think this would be the cats meow. Designed for your
dilemma.

http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/63639-1.html


If you buy a box of unloaded bullets, I would load some ammo for you...

The problem is, by the time you buy bullets (http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?productnumber=679738), mail them to me and I mail them back, plus a little powder, you would have spent $40 anyway.

While the .223 has a little difficulty stabilizing bullets at 1:14, the 22-250 has a little more leeway due the the speed it is spitting them out. So the 53 grain Barnes should work. Call Barnes to verify (or Federal) as they know more than I do...
 
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I've read on here in the past that the 50 count boxs of the Win plain wrap 22-250 loads topped with a 45 grain HP is very accurate and performs well on large vermin likes coyotes and such, Grizz.
 
I'll toss my 2 cents in for what it is worth.

Try the Sierra 63 Gr SMP bullet. My old Ruger 22-250 with a 1 in 14 twist stabilizes it real well if you call 5 shots under a dime at 100 yds. OK.

I killed one deer with it and it did the job. The only reason only one deer is that I just wanted to be able to say I killed a deer with my 22-250.

DAB
 
I would shoot a deer with my 22-250 but not a pig. I roll my own so my recipe wont help you. The best factory ammo that worked for me was Winchester 55gr. I too have a 1:14 in my Rem 700 22-250 SPS and use a 55gr Nosler BT. I have worked up a load for a 60gr VMAX and am still experimenting. Even if I get the 60gr pill to work, I still wouldnt hunt pig with it. But, my rifles are like golf clubs. I have a different one for every occasion so my big game is a Rem 700 BDL 30.06 or my T/C .50 Omega.....its not hard to learn how to load your own but it does take patients and dedication, they wont load themselves so if you dont load, you cant shoot. Happy Hunting.
 
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The 243 would be good for hogs and deer. You can get rounds cheaper for the 243 than you can for the 22-250. I don't know why the 22-250 wouldn't work for hogs. I own both the 22-250 and the 243. I don't know if I would deer hunt with my 22-250 I would take a antelope just because they are smaller than a deer but I wouldn't go any bigger as far as big game goes. For a hog I would try it but I would also have a back up gun just in cause it doesn't doesn't do the job.
 
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