.22-250 Ackley question

H

hoosierjoel

Inactive
Hi all. I shoot but don't reload yet and was looking at an old rifle in .22-250 Ackley Improved 28 degree. Is this different from conventional 22-250?

If I understand it right, conventional 22-250 has a 28 degree neck.

I've tried searching this forum for the answer, but haven't found it.

Thanks for any help.
 
If it's an Ackley Improved chamber, it is different than a standard 22-250. To me, that makes it better. I'd think you could shoot the standard 22-250 rounds in your rifle, and would then have fireformed cases for reloading. If, however, you don't reload, then you lose the potential benefit of the AI round.

Do not take my word that you can shoot the standard 22-250 cartridge in your specific AI rifle however. I believe it to be true, but hopefully others will comment on that.
 
Thanks 603.

I have found on the net copy of the text in ackley's book where he discusses the 40 and 28 degree 250 cartridges but I didn't find drawings of the 2 improved cartridges.

Another way of asking my question might be, could the 28* ai have the same neck angle as normal 22-250 and still have more case capacity?
 
Reloaders fire standard .22-250 ammo in AI chambers, thus creating fire-formed cases for use as the AI round.

Don't quote me, but I vaguely recall about 5 to 8 grains more powder for a 5% to 7% gain in velocity. (?)
 
Having the AI version of the 22-250 brings that cartridge pretty much up to the level of performance of the 220 Swift. If I didn't have a Swift, I'd go for the 22-250 AI. That's why I said in the earlier note that the AI was "better" than the standard cartridge, though it's only a teensy bit better.

I think that maybe this is a good reason for you to get into reloading. RCBS or others will have the Dies. You need a pound or two of IMR 4064 or Reloader 15 and the other bits and pieces (primers, press, scales, etc.) and you are good to go. Then you'll be as hooked on it as the rest of us.
 
As I understand it, the AI version doesn't stretch cases as much as the original. If you handload, it makes a big difference, since some brands of cases (I used Norma) should be trimmed after a couple firings. That means the neck metal gets thicker and just forward of the head, it thins out and after several firings can separate. I never had a separation, but didn't shoot Norma cases more than about 6 times.
 
Back when I didn't know you couldn't reload cases forever, I reloaded Norma 220 cases almost forever and was Partial Resizing. Shoot, trim, shoot, trim, and on and on. Who knows how many times I used those cases. Had to be 25 times or more. Then one day I decided to neck size. So I did the first case and went to seat the bullet and the bullet fell into the case. The neck didn't get thick. It got thin. Never had the first case head separation. Had a couple of neck splits. Never annealed. That's good brass.
 
To answer the actual question...

Ackley improved the casings by giving them less body taper, usually with a sharper shoulder angle. As far as I know, most of the Ackley Improved casings use a 40 degree shoulder angle. This "pushes" the shoulder further forward on the casing, hence increasing volume.

I have never heard of a 28 degree shoulder angle on an Ackley Improved casing.

You may want to get a gunsmith to make a casting of the chamber.
 
The 25/270 Ackley Mag has 28 degree shoulders and some of Ackley's improved chambers had 30 degree shoulder.

The Handloader's Manual of Cartridge Conversions page 195 list 244 Rem Imp (Ackley) has 26 degree shoulder same body length as standard case but increased shoulder dia from .429 to .468 so you get very little body taper.

If you have a case compare it to 22-250 and if it been AI etc shoulder dia be different.
 
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