22 Nosler — More Details, Load Data — And a Bit of History
At SHOT Show 2017, Nosler showcased a new .22-caliber cartridge designed for AR-platform rifles. Called the 22 Nosler, the new cartridge resembles a 6.8 SPC necked down to .22 caliber. Comparing Nosler’s ammo specs with Hodgdon load data, it looks like the 22 Nosler can deliver about 250-300 fps more velocity than the standard .223 Rem cartridge. That’s significant for varminters looking for higher performance from an AR15-type rifle. With a 55-grain bullet, highest possible velocity is 3500+ fps with a max load of Hodgdon CFE 223 powder, based on this Nosler Load Chart:
MORE LOAD DATA for 22 Nosler (Click tabs after jump)
22 Nosler LOAD PDFs:
https://load-data.nosler.com/nosler-load-data/pdf/22-nosler/22-nosler-55gr.pdf
https://load-data.nosler.com/nosler-load-data/pdf/22-nosler/22-nosler-64gr.pdf
https://load-data.nosler.com/nosler-load-data/pdf/22-nosler/22-nosler-69gr-70gr.pdf
https://load-data.nosler.com/nosler-load-data/pdf/22-nosler/22-nosler-77gr.pdf
Nosler will produce 22 Nosler ammunition in various bullet weights, starting with 55 grain and 77 grain. To run the 22 Nosler, an AR owner will need a new upper and 6.8 SPC type magazines. This video explains how to convert your AR-platform rifle to run the 22 Nosler.
“Everything Old Is New Again…”
Examining the 22 Nosler cartridge, our friend Grant Ubl had a case of “deja vu”. He thinks the new 22 Nosler bears a striking resemblance to a wildcat from the 1960s: “The .22 Nosler looks like a throwback to the 1963-vintage .224 Winchester E5 experimental cartridge, right down to the rebated rim.” Here is an old Winchester print:
Another poster said this cartridge resembles the “.220 Thunderbolt” a wildcat devised by John Scandale in 2004. Posting on Facebook, Mr. Scandale said the designs were very similar. According to Keystone Accuracy, the .220 Thunderbolt’s “design origin came from the now largely popular 6mm Hagar in its infancy stage back in 2003.” While it looks very similar to a 6.8 SPC necked to .224, the .220 Thunderbolt is different because the 6mm Hagar brass is 0.100″ longer than 6.8 SPC. Read History of .220 Thunderbolt.
Neck-up the 22 Nosler to .25 Caliber?
Dan Z. has inspected in the 22 Nosler ammunition and he’d like to see a .25 Caliber version. On Facebook, Dan posted: “I got my hands on some of the ammo a couple weeks ago. It does look like a .223 that has its body diameter expanded to that of a 6.8. Consequently, it is longer than the 6.8 overall and in the body. I necked a piece of fired brass to 6.8 and it looked like it would provide some improvement in velocity. A more interesting idea might be to neck it to .25 as a .250 Savage performance clone in an AR-15 platform.”
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Tags: .220 Thunderbolt, 22 Nosler, 22-250, 6mm Hagar, AR platform, bullet, Grant Ubl, Nosler, Varminter
In my opinion it’s a shame they didn’t move the case shoulder and mouth back by about .2 in order to accommodate the 75+ VLDs. As it stands this cartridge suffers from the same mag constraints that 223 Rem does, intended as it was for the 55 class. For the folks who long load 80 SMKs or we’re looking forward to trying the new 75 ELDs in something this is a bit of a whiff. Looks like a great varmint cartridge for an AR but for long range the 22PPC/224AR class will still be the best option.
Does Nosler have any load data using their 69 grain or 77 grain match bullets. That’s where I think this round will shine.
Editor: Here is the link to the load page. There are tabs for other bullet weights: 64 grain, 69-70 grain, and 77 grain.
NOTE the tabs may not work with Chrome browser. Also click on the tabs BELOW the number
https://load-data.nosler.com/load-data/22-nosler/
PDFs:
https://load-data.nosler.com/nosler-load-data/pdf/22-nosler/22-nosler-55gr.pdf
https://load-data.nosler.com/nosler-load-data/pdf/22-nosler/22-nosler-64gr.pdf
https://load-data.nosler.com/nosler-load-data/pdf/22-nosler/22-nosler-69gr-70gr.pdf
https://load-data.nosler.com/nosler-load-data/pdf/22-nosler/22-nosler-77gr.pdf
On Mosler’s main 22 Nosler page:
https://www.nosler.com/22-nosler/
… they state:
“22 Nosler case holds 34.2gr H2O at overflow”
But on the load data for 55-grain bullet:
https://load-data.nosler.com/load-data/22-nosler/
…they state:
“CASE HOLDS: 34.7 Gr. WATER”
How can the case hold more water with a bullet seated than the empty case?
I seek the true H2O capacity (to overflow) of the 22 Nosler case.
It seems clear to me that Nosler was looking to create something in the 22-250 class that would work in AR rifles for varmint hunting, and this looks like a good approach. There is only so much you can do inside of 2.26″ and AR bolt diameter.
I noticed the barrel length in the load data was 24″. Why would you do that for something that is marketed towards the ar-15? I suspect to make the numbers look better. I wonder what one would really gain by having a 16″ barrel?
A shortened .225 Winchester more than a .224 Win E5, I would say…
According to Nosler’s data the 6.8 SPC case is 1.686″ long and the 22 Nosler is 1.760″. The 6mm Hagar being only 0.100″ longer than the 6.8 SPC, looks suspect to me. I’m just saying…
Immediately I wonder would it work in a Mossberg MVP ? And what about necking up to 6mm ?