.222 Ammo shell casing

[chefhunter34 1]

OK NOOB question. I have never fired this gun, YET, I finally found some ammo, and was searching the internet. I have seen several types of shell casings, all different shapes near the neck. So I do not kill myself when I finally get to fire this, how do I know the shell is the proper fit?

[djg0770 481]

Based on what I read here the 340C you are referring to is a 222 Remington.

 

What you see there are similar cartridges but I would bet you can only chamber the 222 Remington as it seems to be the shortest case. The barrel typically is stamped with the correct caliber. Do not assume that 222 Rem is the same as 222 Magnum or 222 Special.

[Pizza Bob 1,488]

The headstamps tell the tale (although not always - I'll explain in a moment). That is a rather old photograph of some rather old shells. The first on the left is indeed .222 Remingtom. The one next to it is hard to say since I can't see the headstamp. It appears to be a .222 Magnum as the case length (OAL) the neck length and the shoulder angle all look identical to the one to its right which is headstamped .222 Mag. The next one is interesting. I haven't done any research, but I bet when the .223 first came into existence it was called the .222 Special. If you compare it to the remaining three cartridges - all of which appear to be .223 - you can again see that its attributes appear the same as the marked cartridge. The .222 Magnum was the "parent" cartridge for the .223. They shortened the neck of the cartridge and may have changed the shoulder angle (again, without research these old brain cells aren't remembering too well). The last two are military cartridges - which are really 5.56x45, not really .223. The WCC stands for Western Cartridge Company and the RA stands for Remington Arms. The numbers are the last two digits of the year it was manufactured.

 

Since your question is about .222's there's no reason to go into the differences between .223 and 5.56x45, but I will explain my original comment about the headstamps. Reloaders will often form cases for calibers from other cases. For instance, you can form .243 Win from .308 Win cases by simply necking them down from .308" diameter to .243" diameter, in a sizing die. There are many cartridge "families" and the .308 is a large one - neck it up to .358" and you have .358 Win. So if you obtain old ammunition from an unknown source (source being its original source), don't rely on the headstamp - and I'd stay away from shooting someone else's reloads, unless they were a commercial reloader and you purchased directly from them.

 

Making one cartridge from another is part of the fun of the reloading hobby. Some reloaders develop "wildcats" - that is they take a parent cartridge and change it - shorten the neck, increase the shoulder angle, decrease the bullet diameter, etc. etc. Some wildcats go on to become commercial loadings. the .22-250 is one of the best known examples. Someone took a .250 Savage case (now obsolete) and necked it down to .224" giving us one of the best varmint cartridges ever invented. The .25-06 was a wilcat that made the grade - it is a .30-06 necked down to .250".

 

Being a neophyte, make sure that you only use new ammo marked .222 Remington, on the box and on the headstamp. If you are not 100% sure - DON'T USE IT! I gather that it has been a while since this rifle has been used - make sure you check the barrel for obstructions (spiders nests, mud, who knows?) and if you came by it from an unknown source you may want to have the headspace checked by a gunsmith. Probably more than you wanted to know, but I'd bet I'm a good deal older than you, and I'd be glad to show you that I still have both eyes, as well as all my fingers, after a lifetime of shooting - that comes from being careful. Keep the questions coming.

 

Adios,

 

Pizza Bob

[chefhunter34 1]

Pizzabob, Thank you, I am always careful, and I wanted to hear from others. I have picked up this gun from a coworker who's father passed, I cleaned the gun very well, and had the stock refinished. The barrel is super shiney inside and the twist is well defined. I put one shell in the gun and it fit nicely, So I will take your advice, and only use a .222 remington. I have never had a small cal gun like this, and didnt want to just get rid of it, so I want to see how well it shoots, and then see what kind of varmints I can take.

 

Thanks much for your wisdom, and me being 47, I am not sure how much older you are, but in gun years , yes I am a neophyte.

[Malsua 1,422]

Pizzabob, Thank you, I am always careful, and I wanted to hear from others. I have picked up this gun from a coworker who's father passed, I cleaned the gun very well, and had the stock refinished. The barrel is super shiney inside and the twist is well defined. I put one shell in the gun and it fit nicely, So I will take your advice, and only use a .222 remington. I have never had a small cal gun like this, and didnt want to just get rid of it, so I want to see how well it shoots, and then see what kind of varmints I can take.

 

Thanks much for your wisdom, and me being 47, I am not sure how much older you are, but in gun years , yes I am a neophyte.

 

You'll find that round to sound like a canon and very little drop out to 200 yards. It's a great varmit round.

[chefhunter34 1]

Thanks, I didnt think the tiny shell would have a loud bang, but the .223's I have shot at Cherry Ridge, were unbelievably loud. And my own 30-06 didnt seem that loud.

 

Now I just need to get out there and scope it in.

[lunker 274]

Thanks, I didnt think the tiny shell would have a loud bang, but the .223's I have shot at Cherry Ridge, were unbelievably loud. And my own 30-06 didnt seem that loud.

 

Now I just need to get out there and scope it in.

 

Maybe you had a Jersey style rifle with a compensator on the end of the barrel. In this state we can't have flash hiders on pistol gripped rifles like ARs, so everyone either has a compensator or a straight barrel. It is amazing how loud that makes a rifle. I had to put ear muffs on in addition to my ear plugs when Brisco was firing his Colt Match Target. My straight barreled Rock River AR sounds like a 9mm to me.

[Malsua 1,422]

Thanks, I didnt think the tiny shell would have a loud bang, but the .223's I have shot at Cherry Ridge, were unbelievably loud. And my own 30-06 didnt seem that loud.

 

Now I just need to get out there and scope it in.

 

I've always found that high velocity rounds seem to be loud, maybe it's just perception. I know the 22-250 I used to shoot all the time was louder than the 223, the 30.06 and the other rifles we used to shoot back when I lived in Ohio.