have wanted a 220 swift for awhile now, but haven't found the right one...question? can you take a 223 or 22-250 and rechamber it to 220 swift? my gunsmith says most 223s & 22-250s have too fast a twist and the barrel will shoot out quick...in another article, they say for long range shooting you need a fast twist and long, heavy bullets...would this not apply to the swift?? any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated....larry k
220 swift twist rates
- Thread starter larry k
- Start date
Rustydust
Active member
Hey Larry and welcome to the forum!
If you are talking about using the whole rifle, the best bet to make a Swift out of something else then my vote goes to the 22-250 as it likely would only need rechambering. Depending on the gun, the magazines should work from one gun to another and the bolt head size is the same.
As far as the twist, well here again over the years most 22-250's traditionally had a 1-14" twist. Works just fine from bullet weights from 40 to 55 grain. If this is what you want to use in a .220 Swift (and that's what I use in mine) then you should be all set. Yes, a faster twist will wear a bit quicker but how much I am not certain. Ackleyman here knows more about that than me. Has a lot of information about it.
So unless you plan or just want to shoot longer heavier bullets in your gun then a twist such as a 1-14" will suit you fine. Mine has that and I have no trouble taking prairie dogs out past 500 yards. Should I ever replace this barrel I might go with a 1-12" next time buy hopefully that will be a few years down the road yet.
If you are talking about using the whole rifle, the best bet to make a Swift out of something else then my vote goes to the 22-250 as it likely would only need rechambering. Depending on the gun, the magazines should work from one gun to another and the bolt head size is the same.
As far as the twist, well here again over the years most 22-250's traditionally had a 1-14" twist. Works just fine from bullet weights from 40 to 55 grain. If this is what you want to use in a .220 Swift (and that's what I use in mine) then you should be all set. Yes, a faster twist will wear a bit quicker but how much I am not certain. Ackleyman here knows more about that than me. Has a lot of information about it.
So unless you plan or just want to shoot longer heavier bullets in your gun then a twist such as a 1-14" will suit you fine. Mine has that and I have no trouble taking prairie dogs out past 500 yards. Should I ever replace this barrel I might go with a 1-12" next time buy hopefully that will be a few years down the road yet.
ninehorses
New member
The .223 will have the wrong bolt face. Just about any .473 bolt faced action could be re-barreled to a 220 Swift. A 1-14" twist is standard, and will handle most bullets up to 55 grains. Unless you spend a lot of time shooting past 500 yards, I would stay with the 1-14". Inside 500, a 55 grain bullet started around 3900 fps. is going fast enough that wind drift is rarely a big problem. I would not waste money re-chambering a factory barrel, look at Pac-Nor.
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Rustydust
Active member
Originally Posted By: lhitchcoxI may be wrong, but I don't think a .22-250 chamber will clean up to a .220 Swift. The Swift case has a lot of taper. If I wanted a .220 Swift, I would rechamber a Savage .223 barrel with a 1/9 twist and use heavier bullets.
It would be no biggie for a gunsmith to take about an inch off the chamber end of the barrel and after rethreading it chamber it to Swift and presto chango all done. Got more or less a new barrel too. Be the cheapest thing.
But as was said earlier, a nice new barrel would be good too. ER Shaw makes some fine ones for the money. Might look there.
It would be no biggie for a gunsmith to take about an inch off the chamber end of the barrel and after rethreading it chamber it to Swift and presto chango all done. Got more or less a new barrel too. Be the cheapest thing.
But as was said earlier, a nice new barrel would be good too. ER Shaw makes some fine ones for the money. Might look there.
Jack Roberts
Moderator - Deceased
A fast twist barrel will start blowing up bullets sooner than a slow twist. So, for that reason alone a fast twist won't last as long.
Jack
Jack
Originally Posted By: Jack RobertsA fast twist barrel will start blowing up bullets sooner than a slow twist. So, for that reason alone a fast twist won't last as long.
Jack
Where would a guy find some empirical evidence of this phenomenon. Not saying it wouldn't happen but I'm skeptical. Can you reference some data to support this.
I've seen light jacketed bullets (Hornady SX) blow up prematurely after being fired from a Swift. I've never seen a bullet blow up prematurely because of a fast twist barrel.
Jack
Where would a guy find some empirical evidence of this phenomenon. Not saying it wouldn't happen but I'm skeptical. Can you reference some data to support this.
I've seen light jacketed bullets (Hornady SX) blow up prematurely after being fired from a Swift. I've never seen a bullet blow up prematurely because of a fast twist barrel.
Originally Posted By: martI've never seen a bullet blow up prematurely because of a fast twist barrel.
I have two different Swifts. One is a VS SF Remington with a 14 twist the other is a custom with an eight twist. I took some loads that I have used in my VS SF for years and tried to shoot them in my custom and they all vaporized very soon after leaving the barrel.
I have two different Swifts. One is a VS SF Remington with a 14 twist the other is a custom with an eight twist. I took some loads that I have used in my VS SF for years and tried to shoot them in my custom and they all vaporized very soon after leaving the barrel.
220,
That's interesting. I've not seen that before. I've seen the Swift 1/14 take apart the Hornady SX and some 22rf jacketed home swaged bullets. What bullets were you loading? It sounds like perhaps the jackets are strong enough to withstand the 1/14 twist at Swift velocities but not the 1/8 twist. You'd think in forty years of shooting I would have seen it all. Interesting.
From a logical standpoint, I don't see that this phenomenon would cause a fast twist barrel to "shoot out" sooner than a slow twist.
Surely a wise reloader would switch to a stronger bullet if the bullet was coming apart right out of the barrel. So once a better bullet is being used it would seem the "blowing up" issue would be mitigated and the fast twist barrel would last as long as a slow twist barrel.
I mean, I'm certainly not going to spend time and money on bullets that won't make it to their intended target. So looking at it logically, if we are not going to shoot blow up bullets in our fast twist Swift how is it somehow going to "shoot out" sooner than a slow twist Swift.
That's interesting. I've not seen that before. I've seen the Swift 1/14 take apart the Hornady SX and some 22rf jacketed home swaged bullets. What bullets were you loading? It sounds like perhaps the jackets are strong enough to withstand the 1/14 twist at Swift velocities but not the 1/8 twist. You'd think in forty years of shooting I would have seen it all. Interesting.
From a logical standpoint, I don't see that this phenomenon would cause a fast twist barrel to "shoot out" sooner than a slow twist.
Surely a wise reloader would switch to a stronger bullet if the bullet was coming apart right out of the barrel. So once a better bullet is being used it would seem the "blowing up" issue would be mitigated and the fast twist barrel would last as long as a slow twist barrel.
I mean, I'm certainly not going to spend time and money on bullets that won't make it to their intended target. So looking at it logically, if we are not going to shoot blow up bullets in our fast twist Swift how is it somehow going to "shoot out" sooner than a slow twist Swift.
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Roadrunner
New member
Fast twist = more resistance. I switched from a 1-9 to a 1-8 on a 22 CHeetah and had to reduce the load I was using in the 1-9. Lost some velocity to gain stability. The 1-9 would vaporize 60 gr JLKs at 20 yrds. Just a gray puff. I see no reason for fast twist in a swift unless you are going to shoot heavier high BC bullets. My $.02
RR
Rustydust
Active member
Originally Posted By: Roadrunner I see no reason for fast twist in a swift unless you are going to shoot heavier high BC bullets. My $.02
RR
You are absolutely right on the money. Barrel makers have been telling us that for many decades. Use the twist best suited for the bullet weights that you will be shooting.
You are absolutely right on the money. Barrel makers have been telling us that for many decades. Use the twist best suited for the bullet weights that you will be shooting.
JTPinTX
Custom Call Maker
I would say that to go out of your way to get a fast twist in a Swift, you should have a specific reason for doing so. It is your money so suit yourself, but I like to get return on investment.
I shot a normal twist Swift for years, and as long as you are shooting 55 grain and under bullets, there is no reason to go faster. Last year I re-barreled, and did go with a faster twist, but it was because I wanted to shoot different bullets. I shoot in the wind a lot and wanted to shoot bullets like the 69 SMK, 75 Berger, 75 AMAX, things like that. So I took my Dad's old Savage 110 in 22-250 that was shot out, and put a Shilen Stainless Select Match barrel with a 1-8" twist on it, chambered in 220 Swift. That is probably the easiest, and cheapest, way to get a fast twist Swift.
It does exactly what I wanted it to do, shoot heavy bullets. Honestly I am just now getting around to testing the 75's, because initially I shot a few 69 SMK's I had laying around just for kicks, and it shot them so well I just kept loading them. Been killing the snot out of coyotes with them too, so figured I might as well use them up before I start in on the 75 Bergers.
But really, if you are just going to shoot lighter bullets, stay with the std. twist.
I shot a normal twist Swift for years, and as long as you are shooting 55 grain and under bullets, there is no reason to go faster. Last year I re-barreled, and did go with a faster twist, but it was because I wanted to shoot different bullets. I shoot in the wind a lot and wanted to shoot bullets like the 69 SMK, 75 Berger, 75 AMAX, things like that. So I took my Dad's old Savage 110 in 22-250 that was shot out, and put a Shilen Stainless Select Match barrel with a 1-8" twist on it, chambered in 220 Swift. That is probably the easiest, and cheapest, way to get a fast twist Swift.
It does exactly what I wanted it to do, shoot heavy bullets. Honestly I am just now getting around to testing the 75's, because initially I shot a few 69 SMK's I had laying around just for kicks, and it shot them so well I just kept loading them. Been killing the snot out of coyotes with them too, so figured I might as well use them up before I start in on the 75 Bergers.
But really, if you are just going to shoot lighter bullets, stay with the std. twist.
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