[Dave1210]

I have a Mini 14 in 223. I have read a little online about it being okay to shoot a 222 round in a 223 rifle but never vice versa. Reaching out to those of you in the know for an opinion.

 

[mnh2obuff]

Why? The .223's, in normal times, should be more available and cheaper the .222. What it could do to the rifle I could only guess, stuck cases, mis-fires, jams, etrc. If it was my rifle, I'd would experiment.

 

[CtYankee]

Don't believe everything you read on line! Although the rim and the body diametr of the cartridges are the same, like most rimless, bottleneck cartridges, they both headspace on the shoulder. The shoulder length (from rim) of the .222 is 1.265" with a shoulder angle of 40º; the shoulder length of the .223 is 1.438 with an angle of 46º. All of that doesn't add up. You can use military .556 cases in a .223, but. for reasons that you can read about elsewhere, you shouldn't shoot .556 military ammunition out of a barrel marked .223.

 

[Mark204]

You are correct in saying you can’t shoot in a ..223 in a .222. Granted the parent case of the .223 is the .222 and they share a lot of the same numbers in regards to case specs, but the .223 is longer overall, specifically from the case head to shoulder, so it’s a no-go.......in other words it won’t chamber.

As far as will a .222 chamber in a .223......it will. Will it fire? Maybe, maybe not. More than likely it will be pushed to far into the chamber in an AR style type weapon and the firing pin will not be able to strike the primer due to excessive headspace. If you are fortunate enough to get the round to fire you will, more than likely back out the primer, (headspace) and split necks. Some may fire form to the chamber but I wouldn’t expect them to last long on further loads.....

 

[Sr40ken]

Exactly per the previous posts. Short answer, no you can't.

 

[Mark204]

The shoulder length (from rim) of the .222 is 1.265" with a shoulder angle of 40º; the shoulder length of the .223 is 1.438 with an angle of 46º.

Are you sure about the shoulder angle? I’ve got them both at 23*........I don’t know of any .22 caliber that carries a shoulder angle heavier than 35*, (K-Hornet)..........

 

[Meacham Bearcat]

I've seen the result of firing a .308 out of a .25-06 so I won't say you can't, BUT... I won't recommend it either.

 

[jarhead127]

You sure that wasn't .223 and 5.56?

 

[Mark204]

I once saw a 45-70 loaded in a .223.......it involved a hydraulic press though............

 

[Dave1210]

Why? The .223's, in normal times, should be more available and cheaper the .222. What it could do to the rifle I could only guess, stuck cases, mis-fires, jams, etrc. If it was my rifle, I'd would experiment.

Really just curious about it more than anything. A couple of suppliers near me never have 223 in stock but do have 222. I haven't purchased any as I have plenty of 223.

You sure that wasn't .223 and 5.56?

Yes. I was familiar with .223/5.56 but read about .222/.223 and was curious what folks thought.

 

[Sr40ken]

I once saw a 45-70 loaded in a .223.......it involved a hydraulic press though............

Where's a LOL button when you need it!!!!!! Lmao!

 

[Dave1210]

I once saw a 45-70 loaded in a .223.......it involved a hydraulic press though............

I'd like to watch that go down!

 

[sandog]

Like CTyankee said, they both headspace on the shoulder, not the rim.
.222 being a shorter case, the shoulder won't even be close to touching the chamber.

It's not like you are shooting a straight wall rim case, like .22 short in a long rifle chamber, 38 Special in a .357, or shooting a .45-70 in a .45-90 single shot.
Don't do it.

 

[Con 43]

I've seen the result of firing a .308 out of a .25-06 so I won't say you can't, BUT... I won't recommend it either.

What exactly was the result you saw.

 

[Phish]

You can actually damage your Mini if you do fire it. Something I would not want to do for sure.

 

[gwpercle]

Not in my world ... the shoulder of the 222 is in the wrong place , too short ...
Firing a 222 in 223 chamber would result in the 222 moving forward ... it headspaces on the shoulder...and the primer not igniting (light strike syndrone) or if the extractor held the case for the firing pin to stike ... extreme excess headspace .
Not a great idea ... Don't Do It !
Gary

 

[Meacham Bearcat]

What exactly was the result you saw.

I arrived in time to watch my FIL drive the bolt handle up with a ballpeen hammer.
Then it took a rod down the barrel to get it to retract. (more hammer work)
A close look showed a clear bore much to my surprise since only about 2/3 of the case was still there.
The real shocker to me was Remington repairing and returning his 700.

The lesson here is fewer calibers (and beers) on the bench at any one time.

 

[gwpercle]

I arrived in time to watch my FIL drive the bolt handle up with a ballpeen hammer.
Then it took a rod down the barrel to get it to retract. (more hammer work)
A close look showed a clear bore much to my surprise since only about 2/3 of the case was still there.
The real shocker to me was Remington repairing and returning his 700.

The lesson here is fewer calibers (and beers) on the bench at any one time.

I had no idea the 700 Remington action was that strong ... a 308 round fired in a 25-06 rifle must have generated some hellacious pressure ... I'm impressed ... with the Remington 700 not the act of shooting the wrong ammo in the rifle .

How about the lesson being ... Be smart and pay attention when shooting ... this activity should not be undertaken by idiots , fools and "The Clueless" !
Gary

 

[Rangerdeepv]

I would not try that...........each cartridge is tiny bits different than others. No way would that go for me as we are not playing with air soft here.

 

[slohunter]

No!!!