Whatever happened to .222?

[Old TexMex]

I just dug out a basically unused Remington model 600 in .222
What was it that ended this little plinker/ whitetail, coyote, varmint zapper out of biz? GI .223?

 

[1coyote]

Yep... 223 happened.

I had a Rem 700 in 222 that I just about wore out.

 

[fyimo]

If I had to guess it would be the 22-250 and the 223 as both use the same bullets and have much faster velocity for the same bullet weights.

 

[Old TexMex]

Yeah, I burned a lot of powder and drew a lot of blood in the hill country with a model 660 in222rem...

I was kind of surprised, this plain jane was lurking in the back corner of a closet in the old family manse, I'm guessing it was one my old daddy unboxed right before his demise, and nothing ever came of it, or it was one that sat in the box for years afterwards, then got discovered and stashed away... another " this old house" story...

 

[Yorkie Man]

Another fine cartridge was the 222 magnum, I had a Winchester model 770 that was rechambered to 222 magnum and it accounted for a lot of varmints years ago.

 

[Rpg]

The Remington 600 and 660 are extraordinary rifles.

Didn't sell well since they looked odd to the shooting public.

 

[loc n load]

222 mag

Another fine cartridge was the 222 magnum, I had a Winchester model 770 that was rechambered to 222 magnum and it accounted for a lot of varmints years ago.

The .222 is a wonderful cartridge in it's own right and as you mentioned so is the .222 mag.....I have a T/C contender with a custom Lee Jurras manufactured barrel set up with a Burris scope that has been my "go to" coyote rig for years....out to 200 yds it has been "DRT" effective.

 

[varmint243]

I have a 222 Contender w/ Burris 4x that is crazy accurate.
It will embarrass many rifles at 100yds.
I borrowed it from my oldest brother about 20 years ago and refuse to give it back.

 

[W.E.G.]

It used up all the accuracy that there ever was in the Mini-14, so they had to change to .223

 

[Mule Packer]

Yep. A great cartridge. Another one that I like, even though I'm probably out of the norm is the .218 Bee. Would love to have one of those in lever action. The .218, in my opinion, is nestled comfortably somewhere between the .22 Hornet and the .222 Remington. Great little saddle gun, but the .223 put a lot of these great little cartridges "out of business," so to speak.

 

[steelslaver]

I love Mowhawk 600s Great little guns. I would like one in 222.

 

[snowman]

At least one of the area gunshops here stills has .222 ammo on the shelves, so I guess some folks still use them.

Andy

 

[Geno44]

The little Sako Vixen is a fine rifle in that caliber. The caliber is inherently accurate and very effective to 250 yards or slightly more.

 

[armenius]

Yes the Sako in 222 Remington was a great combo.I borrowed one from a retired neighbor who used it on woodchucks when he lived in upper NY.Deer were destroying my quail pea patches and They were new to my area.
Knowing how it "blew up" crows I ordered some FMJ after reading how devastating the M16 was in early reports.Late in the afternoon I parked and walked to the field and there stood a deer looking at me head-on.Crosshairs on throat,squeeze and he went straight down.My first ever shot at a deer!Hugh,for my area,10 point 125 inch 200-215 lb.3 inch wound channel and shattered vertebrae..Impressive.I thought how easy is this deer hunting,until I actually started 12 years later.Blessed are the ignorant.

 

[35Rem]

The 222 is to the 223/556 what the 300 Savage is to the 308 Winchester. All great rounds. Basically twins. Gov contracts killed the first ones

 

[Doubless]

All good thoughts above, but I believe the "younger generation" and black rifles had as much to do with it as anything else. I am almost 60 and there will never be another 22-caliber that is as inherently accurate as a trip deuce, as I see it. I had a full custom Mannlicher built in trip deuce on a LH mini-Mark X a couple of years ago. It could have been built in several different calibers, but the .222 just works... period.

 

[H Richard]

The .222 is still live and well in my vault. A Sako of early vintage that still shoots as well as it did 20 years ago.

 

[ColbyBruce]

The last .222 I owned, a CZ 527 American.

I scoped it, put a half box of ammo through it, then sat it aside. I gave it to my brother a few months later. A fine cartridge in a great little rifle. A few months after I gave the rifle away, I found a mag for it in a junk box at a NC gun shop. Snagged the mag for $20.00, so now my brother has a spare.

 

[eveled]

I thought most of the .222 mini's were made for export to places that don't allow civilians to own rifles that shoot military ammo.

 

[gatchelguy]

In '55 my cuz and I fresh out of the Army swapped for a couple of 'Remington 722's in .222 and a Lyman nutcracker loading tool. It's one of several guns I shoulda kept.