22-250 with a 1 in 14" twist....

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Big Pard

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Hey fellas, I just bought a Remington SPS stainless in 22-250 with a 1 in 14" rate of twist and was wondering if it would/should shoot the Federal Premium 50gr TSX(Barnes). Are there any concerns for stabilizing the bullet?

Thanks
Buddy
 
Thanks for the reply. I looked at the same info and got the same impression. I already bought a box of them so I guess I'll just try them tomorrow.
 
1:14 has long been a standard for .22 centerfires and light bullets. I have a 20" 1:14 upper for my AR. It's easy to get one MOA or a bit better with a K4 on top. That twist will do just fine with bullets of 40 to 55 grains.
 
Well, yes, but...

The usual twist chart is based on lead core bullets.
An all copper bullet is longer for its weight and that is what governs stability.

I think the Barnes will be right on the ragged edge.
You will just have to shoot the gun to tell which side of the edge it lands on.

Federal SHOULD have taken the 14 twist into account; there has not been the bullet and barrel tinkering done with the pure varmint calibers like .22-250 that there has been with .223.
 
I have the same model in the same caliber with the same twist.

It shoots its favorite loads with 40 grain through 55 grain bullets under 0.49 inches on average.

Two of its best loads are with 55 grain Sierra varminter bullets at 0.408 and 0.416 average and Hornady 52 grain match bullets at 0.434 and Sierra Match King 52 grain bullets at 0.485 inches on average.

I have even shot 63 grain loads at 0.610 average.

Your rifle should easily stabilize 55 grain bullets but I would recommend that you experiment to find the velocity and seating depth that your rifle likes.
 
Jim Watson and I appear to be the only people on the same page:

He's talking about the Barnes 50gr TSX. The TSX runs rather long for its weight class, and needs to be considered separately from lead-core bullets.
(Length of the bullet effects stabilization more than weight; though, increasing weight generally increases the length.)

The 50gr TSX should be considered about equivalent to a standard 62 gr bullet for stability concerns.

It should stabilize in the 1:14" twist, but you need to have a good muzzle velocity. There's only one way to find out if it'll work....
 
Frankenmauser,

Got your drift.
If it is any help, I've also had no trouble with 63 grain # 1370 Sierra bullets but they don't break the 0.5 inch accuracy mark that I consider accurate, not that I have spent much time trying to tune a load for them.
They did shoot at 0.61 average at 3400 fps so they appear to be stabilzing.
I haven't loaded for any higher velocities and haven't played much with seating depth with them, so I don't really know what might be achieved if they were pressed a bit.

Of course, every barrel/stock combo is different, but I suspect that the 1:14 should stabilize even the Barnes bullets.
 
barnes manual # 4 was published 2008 and they have no loading data for the Barnes (50gr TSX).

Barnes has been pretty good on twist for the TSX here a clip on the 224 cal TSX
Diameter Weight Description S.D. B.C. CAT#
.224" 45 gr TSX FB .128 .188 22441
.224" 50 gr TSX FB .142 .197 22440

.224″ (223/5.56)
Diameter Weight Description S.D. B.C. CAT#
.224" 53 gr TSX FB .151 .204 22443
.224" 55 gr TSX FB .157 .209 22444
.224" 62 gr TSX BT .177 .287 22460*
.224" 70 gr TSX BT .199 .314 22470*

*Recommended twist rate is 1:9 or faster #22460
*Recommended twist rate is 1:8 or faster #22470

In Barnes manual they do rec a 1/12 twist or faster for the 53gr TSX FB.

Far as I know there hasn't been any new reloading data from Barnes since Remington purchased them. #4 manual does have warning on twist with certain bullets. I called them about their 270 150gr TSX that required a 1/9.5 twist barrel since most 270 made in the US have a 1/10 twist barrel. Answer I got was the 270 150gr was made more for the rifles had have 9 to 9.5 twist barrel and that the 150gr may or may not shoot in my rifle.
 
IIRC, Kraigwy had a post on this. The lower twist will stabilize light weight bullets but not heavier. A faster twist will stabilize both... I'll try to find Kraigwy's post...
 
Thanks guys for all the replies. I shot it yesterday and got about a 2" group. A buddy of mine has a Remington 700 with a heavy barrel and is going to try the ammo to see if it groups poorly since his barrel is also 1 in 14" rate of twist. I started out with the 55gr Federal Classic and she shot good, 5 shot group the size of a nickle.
 
If you care to, feel free to start a new thread with a range report. Sometimes a few tweaks can make for tighter groups...
 
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