22-250 how long do the barrels last?

grassmarine762

New member
ive heard alot of differnt answers to this, but the main problem ive heard with the 22-250 rifles, is that the barrels dont last long due to the amount of energy and power in such a small round, im curious to see, im just using it for deer and yotes, so im not goin through 10 20 rounds a hunt, but if i wanna go to the range, i dont know.
 
I can't give you a number but what I can say is DON'T get the barrel hot. At the range wait a couple minutes between shots and maybe 15 - 20 between groups ,depending on the air temps..
 
flyinglizard is correct..I truely believe alot of guys think that a barrel is shot out, when actually its fouled out...copper... not being cleaned correctly...most good gunsmiths will agree with this I believe
 
It also depends on what your standards of accuracy are. I'm pretty easy, and don't mind it taking 10-15 rounds to settle in after cleaning, and I get probably 1200 - 1500rds or so from a "normal" 1:14 barrel, a lot less from a fast twist.
 
I have read and been told, that barrels of old are not the quality of barrels today, thus they last longer. Extreme heat from long strings of shots fire will certainly take a toll on a barrel. Common sence will be a goog guide. It the barrel feels hot, stop shooting for a while. I usually shoot groups of five rounds and then let the barrel cool down a few minutes. Heck, we B.S. enough at the range, our barrels never over-heat. Just an opinion!!
 
ya i understand the concept on weapons and there flaws, i am a ordinance engineer in the marines, so i know my combat rifles and explosives but iv'e never owned or shot a 22 250 and i was told that is the main complait,,,all of you who replied to this are you refering from your 22 250 experience or here say
 
you will get 3000 + if you keep it clean. I own one custom and one factory 22-250 and i clean them will I pd hunt every 50 shots. Both measure out same or within 10 thousands from new.
 
It's my own experience, from having replaced four 22-250 barrels, one of them a 1:8 twist. A couple of them were overheated on pd towns, but that's the exception. I generally pay more attention to the temperature of my 250s just because it's an inherently overbore cartridge.
 
I asked this same thing not long ago, and what i gathered was...if your not heating the barrel, and not shooting alot,like p-dogs, and not a benchrest shooter, it will probly last ya a lifetime.
 
If you get more than about 1500-2000 rounds of really good accuracy from a 22-250, you are going to be the exception IME. Sure it will go longer, if you don't care about the level of acceptable accuracy. Run them hard (hot loads) and 1K will be a milestone. Its hard to expect an over bored round to go for too long compared to say a 223. Speed kills not only predators but barrels too at some point.
 
I've heard all kinds of estimates. Don't let the barrel get hot is a big one. It should be fairly easy to estimate barrel life as it is mostly the amount of powder burned.

My .25-06 went at about 1k, just as I was finishing an 8 lb keg of IMR4350. I replaced it with a Krieger Match barrel and added a .22-250 to the mix to share duty.

So, if a .22-250 burns 39 gr of powder an 8 lb keg would last about 1400 rounds or so. I bet I'm pretty close to correct.

I had no idea the .25 barrel was going. What I noticed was for a 5 shot group there would always be a flyer off by about 1". After taking the gun to a smith, he looked down the barrel and said it was time to replace.

Also good to see others say that fast twist barrels wear out faster. I've said that for years and people think I'm nuts. I'm curious as to how much faster.
 
Anyone think that excessive cleaning may wear it out a little faster? not talking im-proper, just talking about cleaning say...every 50 rounds?
 
ya gotchya, also alot of people dont know how to properly treat a barrel when its brand new and your firing the first 5-6 rounds, that trulely makes a difference.
 
From what I have learned, when the weight of powder is close to the weight of the bullet, thats where the real throat erosion takes place. Heavier bullets, less speed.. longer barrel life. Speed kills in more ways than one..
 
The most rounds I ever got from a 22-250 barrel was 1300 and that was a slow twist. If you can get 1000 from a fast twist you can probably walk on water too.

Jack
 
honestly ive shot multiple firearms that have larger powder to bullet grain ratio and at a semi and fully auto setting,, and have gone well over 3000 rounds, it comes down to the quality of the metal and manufacturing , and the time and effort put in to cleaning the firearms, i clean all my weapons every 3 months whether i shoot them or not and i always do a proper barrel break in to all my new weapons. i have heard of people get 2000-3000 rounds with a 22 250, but like i said u get what u pay for and if you dont know how to maintain a weapon, or lack there of well than your weapon will not perform to its full potential and will not last as long. hey guys thanks for your info, i actually knew the outcomes of my qustion, i was just doing a survey on differnt caliber of guns and there reliability and life of the weapon thank you!
 
just put a new krieger barrel on mine i bought it new in 85 it has had close to 6500 rounds down it the new barrel is night and day but its not a target gun now it could be
 
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