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Foxing rifle


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I’ve never been a massive fan of howa, but I suppose it’s personal choice, have you looked at the tikka T3X varmint, new they are about £1100, I was thinking of putting 22-250 on my ticket and if I do this will be the rifle I buy, I have the T3X lite in .243 and it’s a superb rifle ?

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Hi;

I have a 22.250 for Fox, mine is a Ruger #1 single shot with a Leupold VX-3 on it and a Hardy Gen2 Moderator, I load my own ammo, and have settled on 55 grain Sierra hollow points!

Anyway that's me, but I have looked and handled the Howa range of rifles at my local shop (Gunroom near Ivybridge Devon), I have to say they look and feel very solid, there is a good choice of barrel weights & stocks

etc If I was in the market that would certainly be where I would go, NEVER buy a used 22.250 unless you know it's history they can be burned out very easily especially by not cleaning and crappy ammo.

As above as Stavross comments actually the .243 is probably a better bet, especially a used one, and it's deer legal, so if you want to keep your cabinet 'slim' probably better to go that way.

I also have a .270 and a 7x57 and more than a few 'Basils' have been smoked by both, maybe surprisingly the bigger calibres are not always efficient killers, I've had runners from both especially at close range

big 'horse power' just passes straight through then blows a divot out of the grass two feet past, the 22.250 explodes inside even a fragile frame like a Fox and nails them in a flash.

Good luck with your purchase

AndyF

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2 hours ago, andyf said:

Hi;

I have a 22.250 for Fox, mine is a Ruger #1 single shot with a Leupold VX-3 on it and a Hardy Gen2 Moderator, I load my own ammo, and have settled on 55 grain Sierra hollow points!

Anyway that's me, but I have looked and handled the Howa range of rifles at my local shop (Gunroom near Ivybridge Devon), I have to say they look and feel very solid, there is a good choice of barrel weights & stocks

etc If I was in the market that would certainly be where I would go, NEVER buy a used 22.250 unless you know it's history they can be burned out very easily especially by not cleaning and crappy ammo.

As above as Stavross comments actually the .243 is probably a better bet, especially a used one, and it's deer legal, so if you want to keep your cabinet 'slim' probably better to go that way.

I also have a .270 and a 7x57 and more than a few 'Basils' have been smoked by both, maybe surprisingly the bigger calibres are not always efficient killers, I've had runners from both especially at close range

big 'horse power' just passes straight through then blows a divot out of the grass two feet past, the 22.250 explodes inside even a fragile frame like a Fox and nails them in a flash.

Good luck with your purchase

AndyF

That's interesting.....what constitutes "crappy" 22-250 ammo please?

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Ok

Sausagedog : OK you are right!

Yes I concede by 'Crappy Ammo' I really didn't mean 'Crappy Ammo'?

Sorry, what I meant and implied was that harsh over the top reloads and probably far too many shots too quickly and between cleaning generally means (to me) that a centrefire .22 is more likely to be worn out and way worse under these circumstances than a larger calibre rifle.

So best of luck to anyone out there, but I would NEVER buy a 'USED' .22 centrefire (except a .223) under any circumstances, but hey that's me?? Sausagedog want a well worn Ruger??

AndyF

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Always fancied a #1 Ruger but not now.

The nice thing about 22-250 from a barrel Ife thing is in the UK field where usually single shots are all that is required it generates enough heat which helps to keep not only the bore free of condensation but any moderator too.

The only other thing apart from throat erosion if not new I would look for is bedding and barrel clearance in the stock channel. It is an intense round, any of the 22 CF above hornet are but the 250 especially so and anything other than a bull barrel need some room to flex and whip. The slightest contact and bang goes tiny groups and you get ammo sensitivity!

Atb.

Edited by Sausagedog
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4 hours ago, Baldcoot said:

It,s a .50 cal Barrett M85 ,just put in for the shock value ,i guess your FEO might have a splutter or two in his tea if you put it on your variation.2nd hand about £4000 and £20 a pop if you reload atb

Off at a slight tangent off subject, the ironic aspect of this is they banned all 50 cals in California, just as was recently proposed and defeated here.  The situation was the same over there in that hardly anyone had them or could afford them and there wasn't a single incidence of 1 ever being used in a crime. Over here of course they already restricted to gun ranges only. As a result of the ban, the gun industry designed the .416 Barret instead to provide an alternative to the banned .50, which has more range and is a arguably a more dangerous gun than the original .50 cal if you measure it by the criteria law makers did. (we all know it's the person not the calibre that makes it dangerous of course). Just goes to prove the worthlessness of bans especially when based on calibre arguments.

As for fox, plenty or calibres and gun brands to choose from. Regarding .243, there are arguments for and against having a deer legal fox calibre, namely it making proving you have good reason for a larger deer calibre more difficult if your .243 is adequate for the land you shoot over plus increased ammo costs for fox. The flip side is, one gun is cheaper to buy and maintain than two.

If you're considering a .22-250 which is an excellent calibre and I presume you are choosing for increased range / terminal effect, also consider .204 Ruger with bullet weights of over 35gr. Both are very devastating explosive rounds. The less terminally explosive choices in .22 are well known.
 

Edited by Alsone
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14 hours ago, andyf said:

Ok

Sausagedog : OK you are right!

Yes I concede by 'Crappy Ammo' I really didn't mean 'Crappy Ammo'?

Sorry, what I meant and implied was that harsh over the top reloads and probably far too many shots too quickly and between cleaning generally means (to me) that a centrefire .22 is more likely to be worn out and way worse under these circumstances than a larger calibre rifle.

So best of luck to anyone out there, but I would NEVER buy a 'USED' .22 centrefire (except a .223) under any circumstances, but hey that's me?? Sausagedog want a well worn Ruger??

AndyF

I would like to add to that  if i may. I would NEVER buy a 223 under any circumstances. I would only ever buy 22.250, 220 swift or 243 brand new and none of them would say Howa on it.

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On the subject of buying a second hand rifle , there are bargains to be had . A competent rifle smith with a bore scope will be able to look at the barrel and tell you if it’s seen a lot of use . There maybe “heat crackle “ but that is common and does not mean it’s  going to be ruined, they will be able to look at the striations and crown and tell you if it has been looked after,  or if it’s shot out . The .243 is a versatile round and loaded with a light bullet is capable of performing in a similar way to a 22-250 or some of the other foxing calibers . It can also then be used on deer with a heavier bullet should you so wish . 

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Personally I am not a fan of 243!

I know I know, it's good but in the 6mm class I would of preferred the 6mm Remington to of done better.

Based on a Mauser case and with an instant 200fps+ over the Winchester it was better but with little extra demands on powder.

Get the Remington Acley improved and it gets very interesting!

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