The Amazing .221 Fireball

THE AMAZING .221 FIREBALL

COMING SOON - THE .221 FIREBALL BOOK! CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO AND TO SIGN UP FOR "THE FIREBALL NEWSLETTER"! A LITTLE .221 FIREBALL HISTORY The 221 Remington Fireball cartridge (221 Fireball for short) is an enigma. It was designed as a pistol round but really shines as a rifle cartridge. It was designed in 1963 by Remington for their new XP-100 bolt action pistol, and, although the XP-100 is no longer produced, the .221 Fireball lives on and seems to be gaining momentum. More people each day are discovering how really good it is.. NOTE: The bolt action pistol concept lives on in the form of the T/C Contender, which is available, not ironically, chambered in .221 Fireball. Remington wanted to use their .222 Remington cartridge in the XP-100, but its muzzle flash and report were way too much. So, keeping the design in-house, they shortened the .222 case from 1.70” to 1.40” and a new cartridge was born. Instead of calling it something like the .222 Remington Mini, since Remington already had a couple of “.222” named cartridges (.222 Remington and ..222 Remington Magnum), they named it the .221 Remington Fireball. So what about the name “Fireball”? I think that one's easy. Just watch an XP-100/.221 Fireball being shot and you'll understand. The muzzle flash, even in daylight, provides quite a show. Here's a good YouTube video that shows that to good effect: 221 "Fireball" .221 FIREBALL RIFLES Whoever decided that the .221 Fireball would make a good rifle cartridge probably had no idea how good it would be. From shooters to shooting forums and writers universally agree: the .221 Fireball is a real shooter. The biggest surprise is how “big” it shoots compared to its recoil and noise. It has proven to have a legitimate useful range approaching 400 yards. In that regard it is not quite the equal of its big brother, the .222 Remington, its stable mate, the .22-250 Remington, or the .223 Winchester, but it is well suited for varminting, target shooting, or plinking. It comes into its own as an especially highly desired and admired varmint rifle because of its low recoil, extreme accuracy and shootability. Currently the CZ 527 is the only known regular production rifle offered chambered in .221 Fireball. In 2002 Remington offered the Model 700 in .221 Fireball as a part of their “Classic” series, and new or pristine versions of those command a price typically from $600 to $800. Cooper Rifles of Montana and others offer semi-custom versions. I decided to have a Savage bolt action modifed to .221 Fireball for myself. For many that's the best bet -- modifying an existing rifle. I went that route because I learned that a built or modified rifle doesn't have to be financially intimidating. The .221 Fireball utilizes a short action and a bolt head diameter the same size (.378”/9.6mm) as the .204 Ruger, the .223 Winchester and its sibling .222's. Used short action Remington 700's and Savage 110's are commonly available and relatively inexpensive. Plus, the Savage enjoys replaceable bolt faces if you are rebarrelling, say, a .243 or .308. Big savings there. It uses the same standard .224 bullet as a multitude of .22 caliber rounds, so barrel bore sizes and bullet sizes are no issue. Its mild 1:12 or 1:14 twist is common to the .22-250, so compatible rifle barrel blanks are readily available. .221 FIREBALL AMMO Few off-the-shelf rifles means that available ammunition is a sticky situation. Obviously the demand for ammo is naturally tied to having something with which to shoot it. It's not surprising then that, at present, Remington is the primary producer of .221 Fireball ammo. Nosler and occasionally other small manufacturers sell some. Most of the choices available are limited to 40 grain or 50 grain loads, costing typically well over $1 per round. Don't expect to find these at Wal-Mart or mom and pop sporting goods stores either. I buy an occasional box at Bass Pro Shop, but I prefer handloading my own. Shooters of rarer cartridges like this are usually also handloaders, by choice or necessity. And, as is most often the case, handloading is the only way to reach this little marvel's highest potential. Fortunately most major reloading die manufacturers offer 2-die or 3-die sets for the .221 Fireball and there is an abundance of suitable bullets and powder. Brass is now pretty readily available, but it's all made by Remington and about the same price as better .223 brass. Brass can be formed from .222 or .223 brass, but it's tedious and time-consuming. The most popular and common bullet weights and types are 35, 40, 42, 45, and 50 grain, in hollow point, soft point, ballistic (polymer) tip and the occasional spitzer. 40 and 45 grain seem to be by far the most popular and consistently effective. Only rarely will you see anything larger than 50 grain bullets used in the .221 Fireball. Well suited powders are in abundance. The diminutive case size (though still not as small among centerfires as a .22 Hornet) means that even some pistol powders work – and work well. In fact, two of the most popular and effective .221 Fireball loads, Hodgdon's Lil' Gun and IMR4227/Hodgdon H4227, are themselves pistol powders. Other powders of note include Alliant Reloder 7, Accurate AA1680 and AA2015, IMR 4198, and occasionally Hodgdon H335. The consensus is that many powders shoot very well, with the nod to the accuracy of Reloder 7 and AA1680. A real bonus is the small amount of powder required for really big performance. This is a highly efficient and effective round! My .223's typically like 24-28 grains of my favorite powders, with the .221 Fireball even better velocities than an average .223, well over 3000 feet-per-second, come from as few as 15 grains of powder. SHOOTING THE .221 FIREBALL The proof is in the shooting. The .221 Fireball shoots with a softer recoil and less muzzle blast than a .223 but more than a .22 Hornet or .22LR. If an endorsement is needed, I have it on pretty good authority that the .221 Fireball is a big favorite of the staff at Nosler, the premium bullet and ammunition maker. In the forums are consistent reports of highly repeatable 100 yard sub-MOA results, with .3” to .5” groups being the norm. Worries of short barrel life, as with some big, hot loads, is a non-factor. It's use as a varmint round is almost legendary. I am awaiting my newly chambered and barreled .221 Fireball Stevens/Savage from my gunsmith. I plan to have more details on this build process and some range reports shortly. - Shadoweng
The .221 Fireball \| © 2010 Pale Horse Enterprises

COMING SOON - THE .221 FIREBALL BOOK!
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO AND TO SIGN UP FOR
"THE FIREBALL NEWSLETTER"!

A LITTLE .221 FIREBALL HISTORY

The 221 Remington Fireball cartridge (221 Fireball for short) is an enigma. It was designed as a pistol round but really shines as a rifle cartridge. It was designed in 1963 by Remington for their new XP-100 bolt action pistol, and, although the XP-100 is no longer produced, the .221 Fireball lives on and seems to be gaining momentum. More people each day are discovering how really good it is..

NOTE: The bolt action pistol concept lives on in the form of the T/C Contender, which is available, not ironically, chambered in .221 Fireball.

Remington wanted to use their .222 Remington cartridge in the XP-100, but its muzzle flash and report were way too much. So, keeping the design in-house, they shortened the .222 case from 1.70” to 1.40” and a new cartridge was born. Instead of calling it something like the .222 Remington Mini, since Remington already had a couple of “.222” named cartridges (.222 Remington and ..222 Remington Magnum), they named it the .221 Remington Fireball.

So what about the name “Fireball”? I think that one's easy. Just watch an XP-100/.221 Fireball being shot and you'll understand. The muzzle flash, even in daylight, provides quite a show. Here's a good YouTube video that shows that to good effect: 221 "Fireball"

.221 FIREBALL RIFLES

Whoever decided that the .221 Fireball would make a good rifle cartridge probably had no idea how good it would be. From shooters to shooting forums and writers universally agree: the .221 Fireball is a real shooter.

The biggest surprise is how “big” it shoots compared to its recoil and noise. It has proven to have a legitimate useful range approaching 400 yards. In that regard it is not quite the equal of its big brother, the .222 Remington, its stable mate, the .22-250 Remington, or the .223 Winchester, but it is well suited for varminting, target shooting, or plinking. It comes into its own as an especially highly desired and admired varmint rifle because of its low recoil, extreme accuracy and shootability.

Currently the CZ 527 is the only known regular production rifle offered chambered in .221 Fireball. In 2002 Remington offered the Model 700 in .221 Fireball as a part of their “Classic” series, and new or pristine versions of those command a price typically from $600 to $800. Cooper Rifles of Montana and others offer semi-custom versions. I decided to have a Savage bolt action modifed to .221 Fireball for myself. For many that's the best bet -- modifying an existing rifle.

I went that route because I learned that a built or modified rifle doesn't have to be financially intimidating. The .221 Fireball utilizes a short action and a bolt head diameter the same size (.378”/9.6mm) as the .204 Ruger, the .223 Winchester and its sibling .222's. Used short action Remington 700's and Savage 110's are commonly available and relatively inexpensive. Plus, the Savage enjoys replaceable bolt faces if you are rebarrelling, say, a .243 or .308. Big savings there.

It uses the same standard .224 bullet as a multitude of .22 caliber rounds, so barrel bore sizes and bullet sizes are no issue. Its mild 1:12 or 1:14 twist is common to the .22-250, so compatible rifle barrel blanks are readily available.

.221 FIREBALL AMMO

Few off-the-shelf rifles means that available ammunition is a sticky situation. Obviously the demand for ammo is naturally tied to having something with which to shoot it. It's not surprising then that, at present, Remington is the primary producer of .221 Fireball ammo. Nosler and occasionally other small manufacturers sell some. Most of the choices available are limited to 40 grain or 50 grain loads, costing typically well over $1 per round. Don't expect to find these at Wal-Mart or mom and pop sporting goods stores either. I buy an occasional box at Bass Pro Shop, but I prefer handloading my own.

Shooters of rarer cartridges like this are usually also handloaders, by choice or necessity. And, as is most often the case, handloading is the only way to reach this little marvel's highest potential.

Fortunately most major reloading die manufacturers offer 2-die or 3-die sets for the .221 Fireball and there is an abundance of suitable bullets and powder. Brass is now pretty readily available, but it's all made by Remington and about the same price as better .223 brass. Brass can be formed from .222 or .223 brass, but it's tedious and time-consuming.

The most popular and common bullet weights and types are 35, 40, 42, 45, and 50 grain, in hollow point, soft point, ballistic (polymer) tip and the occasional spitzer. 40 and 45 grain seem to be by far the most popular and consistently effective. Only rarely will you see anything larger than 50 grain bullets used in the .221 Fireball.

Well suited powders are in abundance. The diminutive case size (though still not as small among centerfires as a .22 Hornet) means that even some pistol powders work – and work well. In fact, two of the most popular and effective .221 Fireball loads, Hodgdon's Lil' Gun and IMR4227/Hodgdon H4227, are themselves pistol powders. Other powders of note include Alliant Reloder 7, Accurate AA1680 and AA2015, IMR 4198, and occasionally Hodgdon H335. The consensus is that many powders shoot very well, with the nod to the accuracy of Reloder 7 and AA1680.

A real bonus is the small amount of powder required for really big performance. This is a highly efficient and effective round! My .223's typically like 24-28 grains of my favorite powders, with the .221 Fireball even better velocities than an average .223, well over 3000 feet-per-second, come from as few as 15 grains of powder.

SHOOTING THE .221 FIREBALL

The proof is in the shooting. The .221 Fireball shoots with a softer recoil and less muzzle blast than a .223 but more than a .22 Hornet or .22LR. If an endorsement is needed, I have it on pretty good authority that the .221 Fireball is a big favorite of the staff at Nosler, the premium bullet and ammunition maker. In the forums are consistent reports of highly repeatable 100 yard sub-MOA results, with .3” to .5” groups being the norm. Worries of short barrel life, as with some big, hot loads, is a non-factor. It's use as a varmint round is almost legendary.

I am awaiting my newly chambered and barreled .221 Fireball Stevens/Savage from my gunsmith. I plan to have more details on this build process and some range reports shortly.

- Shadoweng