Messages

It's what it sounds like - a .222 Rem case necked down to .17 calibre with no other changes.

It's a wildcat that sits between the .17 Rem and the .17 Rem Fireball/.17 Mach IV.

http://www.saubier.com/smallcaliber/which17.html

I have rifles in four chamberings based on the .222 Rem case:

*17-222
*20-222
*222 Rem
*250 Myra (25-222)

Marcus

Hey Paul, I recently stumbled across an Aussie custom projectile maker who produces (among other things) match grade .25 cal 60gn and 70gn FBHPs. I've picked up a couple of hundred of each and have been testing in the .250 Myra.

Marcus

The .17-222, .20-222 and .22-250 are all dedicated spotlighting (lamping in the UK) rifles - heavy barrels, lightened triggers and good quality Euro glass.

The .17-222 is a beat up old Sako L461 action, Timney trigger with a spring swap, 22" Shilen barrel, Kahles 4.5-18x50 scope all in a factory varmint stock.

The .20-222 is a Sako L461 action, Aussie-made Maddco 3 lever trigger, Pac-Nor 26" barrel, Swarovski 5-15x56 all's in a custom walnut varmint stock

The .22-250 is a bog standard Rem700 BDL varmint, Rifle Basix trigger in a modified factory stock.

Honestly I enjoying using all three, and tend to rotate through them. That being said, I have noticed that I get a few more runners with body shots on adult foxes using the .17-222 during the cooler late Autumn/winter months when there is long grass around. The little .17 is dynamite on the younger foxes at this time of year though.

On the other hand the .22-250 takes no prisoners and hits a lot harder. If there is long grass or a bit of wind around it's always a good choice.

In terms of the ranges, most foxes would be shot between 100 and 200m. Occasionally if the conditions are still, the foxes are sitting nicely, we can stretch out to 250m. Anything over 200m is a long way under a spotlight, but the scopes we use make a big difference.

Marcus

Daughter and I headed out with my mate Troy in late Dec 2024 for the first time in months. She's heading off to uni in early Feb and is keen to do as much fox shooting as she can before then. The .17-222 and .22-250 accounted for 12. The first one came roaring in to the called then stopped and dropped its head and fossicked around in the grass. When we picked it up it we found it had just caught a young hare.

A couple of nights later Troy and I ventured out and got another 10. That means my total tally for 2024 was 146, while daughter's tally was 38.

Marcus

Hello Gabe.

While I am sure the scope could be made to fit I'm not sure whether the cantilever mount would Sakos have a tapered dovetail on top of the receiver.

Marcus

A useful reference thread from a forum in New Zealand

https://www.nzhuntingandshooting.co.nz/f15/bsa-centrefire-variants-75726/

Marcus

So our daughter now has the shooting bug    She looks forward to coming out spotlighting or fox whistling, and so far this year we have made a bit of a dent in the local population- I've shot 63 YTD, and she has shot 24.

She has claimed the Sako L461 HB chambered in .17-222, and I've mostly been using the Sako L461 chambered in .20-222, but the Rem700 in .22-250 annd the Brno 601 in .250 Myra have also been in on the act. Here are some pics.

Marcus

Tried it out with a variety of factory loads and reloads and it is shooting much better and showing potential for more load development.

Marcus

Got the rebarrelled action back, adjusted the trigger, and put it back together - looks good with the heavy barrel.

After stripping the old finish back, steaming dents, a light sanding and two coats of Tru-oil

So rebarrelling would be the only way to resurrect the old girl, but was it worth spending money on? I asked if he had any take off barrels that might suit. 

The key constraint is the shank diameter on these BSAs - at 1.235" outer diameter, 1.115" outer thread diameter there are not many candidates. 

After some head scratching and searching he did manage to dredge up an ex-F-class .224 cal barrel on a SMLE No.4 action which had enough meat and length. For the princely sum of $100 fitted it was too good an opportunity to pass up.

It took a few weeks for the work to get done, primarily because I hadn't taken the bolt down with the barrelled action. In the meantime I stripped the stock.

The crown looked a bit sad so took the barrelled action down to a clever fella to get an inch or so lopped off the end.

He took a look through it with the borescope and it was a waste of time, the barrel was completely stuffed.

Later he sectioned the barrel which tended to confirm his diagnosis

I haven't played with one of these before.

The bore was pretty ragged. Brad can't remember ever cleaning it, and apparently his dad wasn't big on gun maintenance. We ran quite a few patches through it a got some beautiful blue patches.

Shot some groups which were terrible.

Marcus

My friend Brad inherited his dad's BSA .222 when his dad died 5 years ago. He's been using it for foxes and four legged crop raiders under the spotlight but results have been inconsistent. 

I suggested that unless completely shot out .222s are usually accurate enough for his intended use so something is probably amiss. I said bring it around and I'll have a look.

Sooooo....... it's an CF2, and is a typical cockies rifle that hasn't been coddled.

Yeah the Guns and Game magazine was the best of the bunch, but sadly no longer published. Always had some good practical no frills articles.

Marcus