First Peek at the 22-NXS!!
- Thread starter GLShooter
- Start date
Huckleberry75
Member
I am curious if Ritch ever shot any of the 62gn Bonded Fusion's that I sent him too.
I don't know. PM would be the best way to find out.
There are quite a few guys here that have them. I wish they would chime in as Ritch has had a great deal of positive feedback. I suspect most are pure shooters that love the tools they use but aren't much in to the social media aspects of posting on the forums. Lots of reasons positive and negative to post.
I'm just an old man that likes the interaction. I don't like too much drama but I'll certainly participate if it's a respectfully presented argument. I'll share experience but at times the one way street phenomenon seems to be in operation.
Greg
There are quite a few guys here that have them. I wish they would chime in as Ritch has had a great deal of positive feedback. I suspect most are pure shooters that love the tools they use but aren't much in to the social media aspects of posting on the forums. Lots of reasons positive and negative to post.
I'm just an old man that likes the interaction. I don't like too much drama but I'll certainly participate if it's a respectfully presented argument. I'll share experience but at times the one way street phenomenon seems to be in operation.
Greg
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G Anderson
Member
I will throw my input out there...I have put around 300 rounds or more thru my 22NXS. I wanted something comparable to a 22-250 in a standard AR15 to hunt coyotes. I was skeptical at first and after consulting with Greg and Ritch I went ahead and went for it. Ritch just happened to have a barrel on hand, so I started gathering necessary components and dies. What some say about the brass and forming process...it is not true...they are speculating and further more don't know because they don't have the NXS. It is not complicated!
I am 100% satisfied with the performance of the 22NXS cartridge...it actually exceeded my expectations. Brass can be bought in bulk, so no need to worry about getting caught short handed. Once you set the die properly, running the brass thru the 22 Nosler dies is no different than running any other cartridge thru your FL die...yes, it is as simple as that. You then load the cartridge and shoot it...period! This is nothing different than what you normally do reloading your other cartridges. Simply size, prime, charge, seat bullet and shoot...don't know why some argue that there is some "other" multi step process involved.
If there is a down side to the 22NXS, it is #1) AR magazine COAL limitations(not really the fault of the cartridge) and #2) limited acceptable powders...CFE223 seems to be "the one"...in my testing, others seem to hit pressure too quick, so velocity suffers when it is backed down to acceptable pressure...remember, I was looking for 22-250 performance out of a standard frame AR15, so I had a targeted velocity in mind...this was a "purpose" built rifle.
I tried 60gr Nosler and 60gr Vmax and personally feel that there is too much bullet shoved back into the case to get acceptable clearance to reliably run the cartridge in an AR magazine...as stated, I personally don't like that much bullet seated past the neck/shoulder junction...others don't seem to mind this, but I feel like accuracy suffers to some degree...as well as eating up case capacity...just my opinion.
The 55gr bullets seem to fit the bill real well as far as COAL for the magazine. The 55 Sierra, 55 Nosler, 55 Berger Varmint work real good, are accurate and achieve very good velocity...3650+ range. My most accurate bullets have been the Berger 52gr Target and Berger 52gr Varmint...I ended up going with these two bullets for Thermal night hunting and they absolutely hammer a coyote! Both bullets are built on the J4 jacket and quite honestly perform the same on coyotes...the 52 Varmint may do a little more damage, but not much.
So yes, the 22 NXS is everything that Greg and Ritch say it is, it is simple to load for, it produces right at 22-250 velocities out of a standard AR, feeds reliably(not one issue!), is accurate and does the job on coyotes. When/if this barrel gets shot out I will have another...might just get another barrel from Ritch to put back anyway.
I probably didn't answer much in the way of the heavier/longer bullets, but feel that they just take up too much room in the cartridge for my liking.
There is one thing I would like to try and would not have a problem with investing in the barrel and being the scapegoat to try...I would like to try a slower twist(only offered in 8 twist)...since for me the 55gr bullet seems to be the max for my liking, I would like to at least see this in a 10 twist offering. I see no need to be RPM'ing the [beeep] out of a 50-55gr bullet when you don't need to...just my thoughts. (Hint)
Gene
I am 100% satisfied with the performance of the 22NXS cartridge...it actually exceeded my expectations. Brass can be bought in bulk, so no need to worry about getting caught short handed. Once you set the die properly, running the brass thru the 22 Nosler dies is no different than running any other cartridge thru your FL die...yes, it is as simple as that. You then load the cartridge and shoot it...period! This is nothing different than what you normally do reloading your other cartridges. Simply size, prime, charge, seat bullet and shoot...don't know why some argue that there is some "other" multi step process involved.
If there is a down side to the 22NXS, it is #1) AR magazine COAL limitations(not really the fault of the cartridge) and #2) limited acceptable powders...CFE223 seems to be "the one"...in my testing, others seem to hit pressure too quick, so velocity suffers when it is backed down to acceptable pressure...remember, I was looking for 22-250 performance out of a standard frame AR15, so I had a targeted velocity in mind...this was a "purpose" built rifle.
I tried 60gr Nosler and 60gr Vmax and personally feel that there is too much bullet shoved back into the case to get acceptable clearance to reliably run the cartridge in an AR magazine...as stated, I personally don't like that much bullet seated past the neck/shoulder junction...others don't seem to mind this, but I feel like accuracy suffers to some degree...as well as eating up case capacity...just my opinion.
The 55gr bullets seem to fit the bill real well as far as COAL for the magazine. The 55 Sierra, 55 Nosler, 55 Berger Varmint work real good, are accurate and achieve very good velocity...3650+ range. My most accurate bullets have been the Berger 52gr Target and Berger 52gr Varmint...I ended up going with these two bullets for Thermal night hunting and they absolutely hammer a coyote! Both bullets are built on the J4 jacket and quite honestly perform the same on coyotes...the 52 Varmint may do a little more damage, but not much.
So yes, the 22 NXS is everything that Greg and Ritch say it is, it is simple to load for, it produces right at 22-250 velocities out of a standard AR, feeds reliably(not one issue!), is accurate and does the job on coyotes. When/if this barrel gets shot out I will have another...might just get another barrel from Ritch to put back anyway.
I probably didn't answer much in the way of the heavier/longer bullets, but feel that they just take up too much room in the cartridge for my liking.
There is one thing I would like to try and would not have a problem with investing in the barrel and being the scapegoat to try...I would like to try a slower twist(only offered in 8 twist)...since for me the 55gr bullet seems to be the max for my liking, I would like to at least see this in a 10 twist offering. I see no need to be RPM'ing the [beeep] out of a 50-55gr bullet when you don't need to...just my thoughts. (Hint)
Gene
varminter .223
Well-known member
The 8 twist is why I wont bite. 12 would be perfect. How many grains of cfe223 are you shooting with 55s?
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spotstalkshoot
Well-known member
Have you loaded any of your brass 5+ times?
Originally Posted By: spotstalkshootHave you loaded any of your brass 5+ times?
Yes I have. So has Ritch. No problems if you're sane.
We both took five pieces and tracked them. I lost one at seven firings but it was pretty hot...lol. Ritch hadn't lost one at seven.
Greg
Yes I have. So has Ritch. No problems if you're sane.
We both took five pieces and tracked them. I lost one at seven firings but it was pretty hot...lol. Ritch hadn't lost one at seven.
Greg
G Anderson
Member
Originally Posted By: varminter .223The 8 twist is why I wont bite. 12 would be perfect. How many grains of cfe223 are you shooting with 55s?
34.6gr CFE 223
34.6gr CFE 223
G Anderson
Member
Originally Posted By: spotstalkshootHave you loaded any of your brass 5+ times?
Yes and some at least a dozen or more times...used a marker on the case head to keep track of number of times fired on about a dozen pieces of brass...eventually ran out of space and could not mark it any more. Quit worrying about brass after the results on these dozen or so "test" pieces.
A couple of pieces did get loose primer pockets and I did toast some primer pockets on first firings when I tested some other powders...didn't take much to get pressure up with some other powders. CFE223 gives the best results as far as accuracy and brass life.
Yes and some at least a dozen or more times...used a marker on the case head to keep track of number of times fired on about a dozen pieces of brass...eventually ran out of space and could not mark it any more. Quit worrying about brass after the results on these dozen or so "test" pieces.
A couple of pieces did get loose primer pockets and I did toast some primer pockets on first firings when I tested some other powders...didn't take much to get pressure up with some other powders. CFE223 gives the best results as far as accuracy and brass life.
G Anderson
Member
Originally Posted By: varminter .223The 8 twist is why I wont bite. 12 would be perfect. How many grains of cfe223 are you shooting with 55s?
The 8 twist had me riding the fence as well...I eventually went ahead with the project when I was assured that I would get 22-250 performance out of the cartridge. I was willing to give it a shot and am pleased with the results...I especially like the 52gr Bergers now. I feel like I could get the same performance in a 10 twist(maybe even 12T) without imparting so much extra RPM on the bullet.
The 8 twist had me riding the fence as well...I eventually went ahead with the project when I was assured that I would get 22-250 performance out of the cartridge. I was willing to give it a shot and am pleased with the results...I especially like the 52gr Bergers now. I feel like I could get the same performance in a 10 twist(maybe even 12T) without imparting so much extra RPM on the bullet.
varminter .223
Well-known member
What kind of accuracy?
G Anderson
Member
Originally Posted By: varminter .223What kind of accuracy?
Initially I was having difficulty getting a "group"...always getting the 1 shot that destroyed the group. Didn't matter if it was 3 or 5 shot groups...always had one that spoiled the group. Maybe the barrel finally "came in", but I also started playing with bench technique. An AR just handles different in the bags than a bolt gun and for me I have to watch things more so than with a bolt gun.
Having said all this and now having a good bench technique with the AR, the 55gr Sierra and Nosler are giving 5/8" to 3/4" at 100yds consistently ...the Berger 52gr Target and Varmint are giving 1/2" and smaller...a few groups in the .3xx range but consistently 1/2".
Initially I was having difficulty getting a "group"...always getting the 1 shot that destroyed the group. Didn't matter if it was 3 or 5 shot groups...always had one that spoiled the group. Maybe the barrel finally "came in", but I also started playing with bench technique. An AR just handles different in the bags than a bolt gun and for me I have to watch things more so than with a bolt gun.
Having said all this and now having a good bench technique with the AR, the 55gr Sierra and Nosler are giving 5/8" to 3/4" at 100yds consistently ...the Berger 52gr Target and Varmint are giving 1/2" and smaller...a few groups in the .3xx range but consistently 1/2".
varminter .223
Well-known member
5 shot groups or 3?
Center to center measurement?
Center to center measurement?
G Anderson
Member
Originally Posted By: varminter .2235 shot groups or 3?
Center to center measurement?
Mostly 3 shot groups...my take on this is that 3 tests the load and 5 tests the shooter...but have done some 5 shot groups with same results. I tested 40, 50, 52, 53, 55 and 60gr bullets of different manufacturers fairly extensively, so from an economic standpoint, 3 shots were the norm...but it wasn't just one 3 shot group and call it good...verified the load at least twice more to confirm consistency. Yes, groups were measured center to center.
I will also add that some of the testing was performed with the Thermal scope and getting these groups.
Center to center measurement?
Mostly 3 shot groups...my take on this is that 3 tests the load and 5 tests the shooter...but have done some 5 shot groups with same results. I tested 40, 50, 52, 53, 55 and 60gr bullets of different manufacturers fairly extensively, so from an economic standpoint, 3 shots were the norm...but it wasn't just one 3 shot group and call it good...verified the load at least twice more to confirm consistency. Yes, groups were measured center to center.
I will also add that some of the testing was performed with the Thermal scope and getting these groups.
Just a quick note on my last 22-NXS foray. I shot some Nosler 60's last week in the 105 degree heat and mirage after a long morning over H4350, Staball and RL15. . Groupings were around 3/4 with velocities between 3418 and 3644. The StaBall 6.5 was the speed demon and I believe I managed to wring everything out of it at that level and need to come down on it a bit. Not an ideal day for testing but I wanted to see where the 60's would play in this tube and took it along on a whim as I was really there to see how the 243 LBC RUGAGE would do. Hopefully I'll get it back out in the future again along with my 17-223 that is causing me to chew my nails.
Greg
Greg
I have not shot Varget in my 22-NXS. That being said if you want to use it pull up the 22 Nosler data form Nosler and Hodgdon and use the loads there for Varget . Take the MAX load for the Nosler and move up. You will find that a MAX load in the NXS between 1 and 2 grains higher.
Greg
Greg