The 222

[Border_Bloke]

Back in the 70’s and 80’s every farmer & fox shooter had a .222 rem (or .17 rem. For pro fox shooters)
The .223 was around, although not many bolt actions were available for it (I can’t ever recall anyone I know using a .223 bolt action back then). The most common 223 rifle you’d see was the Ruger mini 14.
Today it’s the opposite with cheap military made ammo & more .223 rifles available.
As others have pointed out, the .222 had a reputation for accuracy and it was the go-to for bench rest shooting back then.

[bigpete]

Back in the 70’s and 80’s every farmer & fox shooter had a .222 rem (or .17 rem. For pro fox shooters)
The .223 was around, although not many bolt actions were available for it (I can’t ever recall anyone I know using a .223 bolt action back then). The most common 223 rifle you’d see was the Ruger mini 14.
Today it’s the opposite with cheap military made ammo & more .223 rifles available.
As others have pointed out, the .222 had a reputation for accuracy and it was the go-to for bench rest shooting back then.

Funny you say that,my old man used a Remington 788 .223 exclusively to pay off his house through fox shooting.

[Jorlcrin]

Back in the 70’s and 80’s every farmer & fox shooter had a .222 rem (or .17 rem. For pro fox shooters)
The .223 was around, although not many bolt actions were available for it (I can’t ever recall anyone I know using a .223 bolt action back then). The most common 223 rifle you’d see was the Ruger mini 14.
Today it’s the opposite with cheap military made ammo & more .223 rifles available.
As others have pointed out, the .222 had a reputation for accuracy and it was the go-to for bench rest shooting back then.

Funny you say that,my old man used a Remington 788 .223 exclusively to pay off his house through fox shooting.

In my area in the 1970's and 1980's, my first recollections of meeting Roo/Fox shooters, BSA rifles were commonplace, and the vast majority I saw were in .222.
From what I recall, they were a preferred option, due to being accurate, basic, reliable, and were common enough to be well understood[Hence straightforward to re-build by a gunsmith].
Another favoured brand/model, was the bog-standard Winchester model 70.


Our first .223 station-rifle was a second-hand Rem 788 my Dad bought back in 1988, and I was profoundly disappointed with it.
Didnt seem to shoot very well with factory ammo, and it seemed a VERY poor cousin to our .243 and .30-30's, as far as effectiveness.
Fast-forward another 15 years, and I had some time to spend messing around with it, as well as giving it a really good clean.
I then worked through installing a better scope, along with some other remedial work, and suddenly, this thing was an absolute cracker to use!
We eventually retired the 788 in 2020, after it was getting too hard to keep operating reliably.
[Likely a different story if we lived in easy distance of a gunsmith..]
But the 788 had shot a LOT of ferals before it was retired, and it lived a hard life.
The Howa 1500 hunter stainless has been a fantastic replacement .223.

Pretty sure one of my neighbours still has a BSA .222 in the gunsafe.

[bigpete]

Dads old one was still capable of shooting ½" groups at 110m before I traded it in. It was probably 40 years old by then and on the original barrel. Just wasn't operating proper and I wanted a 35 whelen lol

[Cape_Yorkee]

Back in the 70’s and 80’s every farmer & fox shooter had a .222 rem (or .17 rem. For pro fox shooters)
The .223 was around, although not many bolt actions were available for it (I can’t ever recall anyone I know using a .223 bolt action back then). The most common 223 rifle you’d see was the Ruger mini 14.
Today it’s the opposite with cheap military made ammo & more .223 rifles available.
As others have pointed out, the .222 had a reputation for accuracy and it was the go-to for bench rest shooting back then.

Funny you say that,my old man used a Remington 788 .223 exclusively to pay off his house through fox shooting.

In my area in the 1970's and 1980's, my first recollections of meeting Roo/Fox shooters, BSA rifles were commonplace, and the vast majority I saw were in .222.
From what I recall, they were a preferred option, due to being accurate, basic, reliable, and were common enough to be well understood[Hence straightforward to re-build by a gunsmith].
Another favoured brand/model, was the bog-standard Winchester model 70.


Our first .223 station-rifle was a second-hand Rem 788 my Dad bought back in 1988, and I was profoundly disappointed with it.
Didnt seem to shoot very well with factory ammo, and it seemed a VERY poor cousin to our .243 and .30-30's, as far as effectiveness.
Fast-forward another 15 years, and I had some time to spend messing around with it, as well as giving it a really good clean.
I then worked through installing a better scope, along with some other remedial work, and suddenly, this thing was an absolute cracker to use!
We eventually retired the 788 in 2020, after it was getting too hard to keep operating reliably.
[Likely a different story if we lived in easy distance of a gunsmith..]
But the 788 had shot a LOT of ferals before it was retired, and it lived a hard life.
The Howa 1500 hunter stainless has been a fantastic replacement .223.

Pretty sure one of my neighbours still has a BSA .222 in the gunsafe.

Thanks for posting mate, some great info there. The 222 sure seems like the epitome of a rural owners gunsafe. Great to hear that BSA's may be more common than some of us think too

[AZZA'S HJ47]

Definitely worth a look the 17 remington i have 2. 222 best all rounder i think i still prefer it to a 223 any day of the week though

[Oldbloke]

I just spotted this. Remington 788 in 243.

https://www.allguns.com.au/listings/rem ... 8-243-win/

[JGR1949]

I'm 75 and shot for skins during the 70's did a lot around Ivanhoe area and high country Victoria 99% of farm rifles were 22 rem & 22 lr actually can't recall a 223 on those places. The 222 rem was a main cull rifle in NZ for deer, yes deer saw so many BSA 222's they were popular. My son has my 222 sako I fitted it with a match grade pac nor stainless barrel its a deadly accurate rifle but you would have to be a reloader now or not shoot a lot when you compare ammo prices the 223 wins hands down

[Cape_Yorkee]

I'm 75 and shot for skins during the 70's did a lot around Ivanhoe area and high country Victoria 99% of farm rifles were 22 rem & 22 lr actually can't recall a 223 on those places. The 222 rem was a main cull rifle in NZ for deer, yes deer saw so many BSA 222's they were popular. My son has my 222 sako I fitted it with a match grade pac nor stainless barrel its a deadly accurate rifle but you would have to be a reloader now or not shoot a lot when you compare ammo prices the 223 wins hands down

Picked up a few boxes of 50gr PPU soft points in Cairns yesterday at $33 a box. Surprised they even had 222 ammo to start with. I'll give it a shot and see how it performs. I don't shoot enough to warrant reloading yet but it's definitely coming.

[bigrich]

I'm 75 and shot for skins during the 70's did a lot around Ivanhoe area and high country Victoria 99% of farm rifles were 22 rem & 22 lr actually can't recall a 223 on those places. The 222 rem was a main cull rifle in NZ for deer, yes deer saw so many BSA 222's they were popular. My son has my 222 sako I fitted it with a match grade pac nor stainless barrel its a deadly accurate rifle but you would have to be a reloader now or not shoot a lot when you compare ammo prices the 223 wins hands down

Picked up a few boxes of 50gr PPU soft points in Cairns yesterday at $33 a box. Surprised they even had 222 ammo to start with. I'll give it a shot and see how it performs. I don't shoot enough to warrant reloading yet but it's definitely coming.

PPU is coal powered ammo . it leaves lots of soot and sludge in barrels from my experience . a near max load with 2207 and a 50 vmax is a good place to start with reloading . i have so many loads worked up for my 222 that shoot 1/4" or better with a variety of powder and projectiles it's confusing as which one to use . true i'm currently using BM1 as it burns cleaner than 2207 , i've also had great results with BM2 , 2207 , 2219 .

looking through ADI data the other day and mild 2206H loads can get down to 2400-2500fps mark with 40's and 50's for 22 hornet velocity's . what's not to like about 222. if your 222 is a decent shooter get into reloading i think you'll be surprised how easy it is to get great accuracy out of it

[Cape_Yorkee]

I'm 75 and shot for skins during the 70's did a lot around Ivanhoe area and high country Victoria 99% of farm rifles were 22 rem & 22 lr actually can't recall a 223 on those places. The 222 rem was a main cull rifle in NZ for deer, yes deer saw so many BSA 222's they were popular. My son has my 222 sako I fitted it with a match grade pac nor stainless barrel its a deadly accurate rifle but you would have to be a reloader now or not shoot a lot when you compare ammo prices the 223 wins hands down

Picked up a few boxes of 50gr PPU soft points in Cairns yesterday at $33 a box. Surprised they even had 222 ammo to start with. I'll give it a shot and see how it performs. I don't shoot enough to warrant reloading yet but it's definitely coming.

PPU is coal powered ammo . it leaves lots of soot and sludge in barrels from my experience . a near max load with 2207 and a 50 vmax is a good place to start with reloading . i have so many loads worked up for my 222 that shoot 1/4" or better with a variety of powder and projectiles it's confusing as which one to use . true i'm currently using BM1 as it burns cleaner than 2207 , i've also had great results with BM2 , 2207 , 2219 .

looking through ADI data the other day and mild 2206H loads can get down to 2400-2500fps mark with 40's and 50's for 22 hornet velocity's . what's not to like about 222. if your 222 is a decent shooter get into reloading i think you'll be surprised how easy it is to get great accuracy out of it

Yes, the PPU is dirty but it's good brass. Seems there is plentiful PPU in 222 here in Cairns, may as well stock up - save the brass - reload down the track.

I have shot quite a bit of PPU in 150gn for 30-30 and found it to be quite a good performer.

[AZZA'S HJ47]

Not too long ago picked up a heap of 222 brass from cleavers cheap too easy enough to part with if i lost it on a trip. I have a fair bit of 222 lapua brass that I cherish.

[Cape_Yorkee]

Well just for sh!ts and giggles I purchased another BSA CF2 in 222. Too cheap to pass up, either make a good parts gun (trigger and bolts now hard to come by) but the stock looks like it's in great nic. Might be a good basis for a resto. Barrel... well... that might be another story. Unphased though!

End of the day the plan is to keep these 222 for my young boys. Great tools to learn on and simple to work on too. As long as parts can be found

No more purchasing firearms. Promise.

[Oldbloke]

I'm 75 and shot for skins during the 70's did a lot around Ivanhoe area and high country Victoria 99% of farm rifles were 22 rem & 22 lr actually can't recall a 223 on those places. The 222 rem was a main cull rifle in NZ for deer, yes deer saw so many BSA 222's they were popular. My son has my 222 sako I fitted it with a match grade pac nor stainless barrel its a deadly accurate rifle but you would have to be a reloader now or not shoot a lot when you compare ammo prices the 223 wins hands down

Picked up a few boxes of 50gr PPU soft points in Cairns yesterday at $33 a box. Surprised they even had 222 ammo to start with. I'll give it a shot and see how it performs. I don't shoot enough to warrant reloading yet but it's definitely coming.

Once you have the gear, not counting your time, you should load them for about 0.80c a round. And those prices are pretty current.
Retain all empty brass.

You won't regret it.

IMG_20250130_135048.jpg (73.6 KiB) Viewed 606 times

[Cape_Yorkee]

This one finally showed up today. Dealers appraisal of 'good' condition was spot on I'd say. Ran a heap of cleaner and patches through it and the bore seems pretty good, but proof is in the pudding - a few rounds through it will tell us everything we need to know. Action is nice and smooth as described by those with BSA's. Only difficulty I had was removing the bolt few descriptions suggest with the CF2 that you push forwards slightly on the trigger as you pull the bolt out, few others suggest you do this with the bolt halfway out, and there's a few other suggestions getting around. After a lot of buggering around I stumbled on an idea of check rifle is clear, dry fire, release trigger, hold trigger back down fairly firmly whilst lifting bolt up and pulling back still with firm pressure on the trigger and Walla... bolt wiggles out. Trigger quite decent too... Not light and not firm, probably where it needs to be.

[Oldbloke]

Looks quiet nice. Enjoy

[ruger 375]

I have been using a .222 for pro shooting for 25 years. Mostly with 50gr bullets but sometimes 55gr. Don't do much paper punching with it except load development.

The .223 has a bit more speed and a little more reach, but can also be loaded with heavier bullets for out past 300 in tighter twist barrels.

The .222 is an inherently accurate calibre, meaning I can just throw stuff together and it shoots good enough for my needs

agree with most of that except inherently accurate, riflrs shoot tight groups due to a bunch of reasons. Those reasons all need to be in sinc if you will to create decent groups due to barrel node timing. Its pretty much impossible to say one cartridge is more accurate than another. This is my thoughts anyway, not trying to start any arguments

[bigrich]

hey , cape yorkee, any updates on your bsa 222 ?

[Cape_Yorkee]

hey , cape yorkee, any updates on your bsa 222 ?

Hey bigrich, bit of a blurb above.

Actually put a brand new 4-12x40 Outback Optics Matilda scope on it yesterday, matches it really well. Took it to the local GS in Mareeba for a bit of an appraisal at the same time. Bore does have some light pitting but it's only 1/3 of the way down, but overall GS owner rated the bore 7 or 8/10 so I'm bloody happy with that for a gun of its age and also having sat for so long. Was a gamble buying a 'character' gun of its age when I could have purchased a better cond 788 or 700 but I think I've found a goody here. Action is very slick too, everything feels nice.

Adjusted the trigger on it this morning as well. Trigger was OK but bit of a lighten up and it breaks nicely. Tiny bit of creep but nothing significant. Very keen to test it our, hopefully at the range in a week or so. The 2nd BSA arrives sometime this week - don't hold alot of hope for the barrel on it but the stock looks alot nicer (photo of it above). May swap the actions over and away we go!

[JGR1949]

That's a nice pick up mate

I to have just grabbed one a bit of nostalgia a rem 600 Mohawk in 222 looking forward to dusting off the gear and putting some loads together

JGR