222 rem fabled legend, or not vs. 223 rem

[82boy]

have heard so much about the duce, but wonder why it disappeared. The duce had its popularity before my time, but I was wondering why it is not the sought after cartridge it once was. I understand that the ppc and br cartridges came around and lack of good brass killed this giant. If my understanding is right the 222 still holds a bench rest record.

My questions are: what does the 223 have over the 222, Everyone chambers rifles in 223 rem, is it because of the military influence that more 223’s are out there over the 222’s ? Does the 223 have an advantage over the 222?

Will there be a rebirth of the 222, or is it dead? I thought about having a barrel chambered in 222 rem, but how much if any advantages would I have over a 223? I have a gun built in 22br that I love, but is it a stupid thought to also have a 222? I have a 204 and 223 barrel for a savage and they both shoot in the low .3’s, but I thought on chambering this rifle in a Douglas XX or Pac Nor 222 rem barrel.

What are your experiences with the duce, and what is its advantages?

[Silverfox]

I'll just chime in on my SAD experience with a Remington 700 ADL in .222 Remington. This rifle was manufactured in 1975 and "supposedly" had very few rounds down the tube. I bought it for only $250 and figured if it didn't shoot it would wind up as a donor action for another .17 Remington.

Well, I cleaned the barrel and the action thoroughly. I inspected the bore with my bore scope and it looked like it had been well taken care of. I measured the distance to the lands with my Stoney Point tool and comparator, purchased 100 Lapua casings and 100 Remington casings and started testing loads. I tried 40 gr. Noslers and 40 gr. Sierra, 50 gr. Noslers and 50 gr. Sierras, and 52 gr. Sierras. I must have tried a half dozen different powders, three different primers, various seating depths, and different powder charges. I made sure my scope bases were solid and the scope was mounted solidly too. I could not get the rifle to shoot!!!

The barrel was taken off and sold and the action is now sporting a new 24" super match grade SS Pac-Nor .17 Remington barrel with a 1 in 9" twist and 3 grooves. The stock is an H-S Precision Varminter stock that I camo painted myself. It shoots nice tight groups.

[acloco]

There is two different triple dueces...

222

222 Magnum

[82boy]

There is two different triple dueces...

222

222 Magnum

Yes, there is, but only concerned with the 222, and not the 222 mag.

[jaytee]

New guy here and this is my first post and I find it somewhat fitting. While I've never owned or shot a 223, I have had the extreme pleasure of owning a Rem.700 ADL chambered in .222 and I've owned it since new back in the late 70's. What a shooter this little gun is. No bedding, no extra bells and whistles, just a factory gun with a cheap bushnell scope that has shot its best group of under a half inch at a hundred yards. Prolly the biggest advantage that the 223 has would be case capacity which would let you shoot a little faster and the cheap ammo due to its military pedigree. Other then that, I'd say there bout even. Long live the triple duece!!!

[glenn asher]

Good quality military brass is the most important reason for the popularity of the .223. If not for that, the .222 would still be king, I suspect. That's a huge advantage, though, surplus military cases for cheap.
The only commercial rifles left in .222 are probably the CZ and the Cooper, and that's a shame. I don't think the minor velocity advantage of the .223 is worth worrying about, as a practical matter.
Then again, I REALLY, REALLY like my .221 Fireball rifle, so I might be a bit prejudiced about it all.

[joea]

in about a month dad is giving me a Remington 722 chambered in .222 which we inherited from the death of our neighbor. Not a fancy gun but I am happy to get it. I'll probably do some work to it, drop in a nice trigger, etc.... I am also building an AR-15 chambered in .204. I'm sure the .204 will be more fun, but the .222 is a bolt gun, no worries about people panicking about seeing an "evil black gun". I have reloading dies for both. I'll post my comparisons and experiences with both rifles in a few months.