.221 Remington Fireball

History

In the early 1960s Remington was working on an experimental bolt-action pistol based on their Model 600 action. The goal was a highly accurate pistol that would be well suited for competition. After working with the .222 Remington they determined that it contained more powder capacity than was necessary to work efficiently in the shorter barrels of pistols. While rifle barrels commonly range in length from 14.5 to, pistol barrels are typically much shorter, ranging from 2 to although occasionally up to 16 in for some competition barrels. As a result, Remington decided to develop a shorter version of the .222 Remington cartridge, optimized for use in the XP-100.

While production of XP-100 pistols chambered in .221 Fireball was eventually canceled after 1985, Thompson Center Arms produced various single-shot pistols chambered for the .221 Fireball as part of their Contender and Encore models. Rifles chambered for the .221 Fireball include the Remington 700 and the Ceska zbrojovka CZ 527.

Performance

Despite its smaller size, the .221 Fireball is capable of velocities nearly equal to that of the .222 Remington largely due to its higher SAAMI pressure. The maximum SAAMI pressure level for the .221 Fireball is 52,000 C.U.P. as compared to 46,000 C.U.P. for the .222 Remington. The purpose of the increased pressure was to allow it to perform more effectively in the shorter barrel of the XP-100.

This round was used by James Files(one of 2 assassins) to assassinate JFK on November 22, 1963 from the grassy knoll. His shot hit JFK in-the left temple only 1/100th of a second after the other shot hit the back of his head. Which explains why brain matter went in both directions.

The .221 Fireball produces the highest velocity of any commercial pistol cartridge.

Offshoots

The .221 Fireball has been used by wildcatters to create a small efficient .17 caliber cartridge. The most common is the .17 Mach IV which is essentially the .221 necked down to the smaller caliber. This cartridge is reported to have a very flat trajectory and to be relatively quiet with low recoil. It has been so popular as a wildcat that in 2007 Remington legitimized it by introducing their version only slightly different from the Mach IV and calling it the .17 Remington Fireball. A .20 caliber version is also gaining popularity called the .20 VarTarg (VT), "vartarg" being the combination of the words "varmint" and "target". The .221 Fireball has also been used as the base for the .300 Whisper, sometimes referred to as the .300/.221 or .300 Fireball. It is also the basis for other cartridges in J.D. Jones' Whisper family including the 6 mm Whisper, which has been adopted by Knight's Armament Corporation for their Knight's Armament Company PDW as the 6×35mm PDW.

Gallery

File:221 Remington Fireball.PNG|L-R: 40 gr Hornady V-Max, 55 gr Sierra BlitzKing, .221 Remington Fireball, .22 LR Remington Golden Bullet File:17fireballand221fireball.png|.17 Remington Fireball next to its parent case, the .221 Remington Fireball.

References

References

1. [https://web.archive.org/web/20081120154743/http://www.accuratepowder.com/data/PerCaliber2Guide/Handgun/Standarddata/22Cal(5.56mm)/221%20Remington%20Fireball%20T-C%20data%20page%2048.pdf Pistol reload data at Accurate Powder]
2. [http://www.chuckhawks.com/subscribers/rifle_cartridge_page/221fireball.htm The .221 Remington Fireball (subscription req)]
3. Remington Arms [http://www.remington.com/products/archived/centerfire/long-range-pistol/model-xp-100.aspx "Remington Model XP-100"] {{Webarchive. link. (2012-10-16 .)
4. "The .221 Fireball by Chuck Hawks". Chuckhawks.com.
5. (2000-06-30). "17 Mach IV at Accurate Reloading". Accuratereloading.com.