My all time favorite long range varmint zapper. I just finished re-working up a load for mine after having gotten it back from my favorite local gunsmith. I had finally blown the throat right out of it for the third time, so I had him set the barrel back and rechamber it. The barrel itself was still in fine shape, it was just the throat and the first inch or so of rifling. Fortunately, he is the same guy who hung this barrel on it over 20 years ago, and he still had the same chambering reamer. As a result, I was able to work back up to the exact same load I had been using. Just being a little cautious, I began with a charge a few grains lighter, just in case.
This particular barrel, a stainless Lilja with a 12" twist, went about 3,000 rounds before accuracy started to fall off. The original Ruger barrel only went about 2,000 before it was toast, at which point I opted for the Lilja replacement.
The .220 Swift is undeniably hard on barrels. I knew that going in, over 30 years ago, and have been willing to accept that for the performance it has on offer. It's trajectory is astonishingly flat - I keep mine zeroed at 300 yards, which only puts it about 1.25" high at 100, maybe 1.75" high at 200, and only four inches low at 400. When we are after rock chucks or (more often) coyotes, that means I can hold pretty much dead on for about as far away as we can actually make one out. No need to "range" them with a range finder, no need to consider any holdover - just put the crosshairs on 'em and yank that trigger. The importance of this in coyote hunting cannot be overstated - they just don't stand still long enough to allow one to screw around with a rangefinder, turn dials on the scope, and then get on them.
My current favorite load launches a 60 grain Hornady V-Max at just about 3,750 fps. My other favorite is the 52 grain Sierra Match King at just a tick over 3,900 fps. Both are absolutely devastating on coyotes at any range they can be hit.
Anyway, here's the old girl, along with her favorite load. I included a .223 / 5.56 NATO round loaded with a 50 grain V-Max (at a paltry 3,200 fps) for comparison.
