Upgrading varmint shell worthwhile

I have no idea how many 22.250 Remington heavy barrel varmint rifles are in this area. I am sure that it's a substantial number.
After I served 3 1/2 years in the military, I took up woodchuck shooting. Truth is, I was a dedicated groundhog hunter long before the military called. I served a long apprenticeship, from digging out dens to trapping them. Anything to get rid of those garden pests.

During those years, heavy-barrel varmint rigs were not in vogue. The relatively few varmint hunters who used heavy-barrel outfits had them custom made. As late as 1946, varmint shooters didn't have access to factory heavy-barrel varmint rigs. After Remington's 222 varmint shell won wide acclaim, the picture began to change.

The factory 222 round offered top accuracy even in sporter-type hunting rifles. It was soon learned the 222 offered critical accuracy when fired in heavy barrel rifles. In fact, many benchrest competitors switched to the 222.
By Don Lewis
Outdoors Columnist