How bad is a 25-06 with a 22 inch barrel? Only a few people offer it in a 24 in barrel and I just read it is best with a 24. Thinking of trying a Savage. Is it a mistake to go with a 22 inch? Thanks for any help.

I sure wouldn't let 2" of barrel change which rifle I wanted. What ever you shoot won't notice 50-75fps. I would get the rifle I wanted. If it has a 22" so be it.

The .25-06 is a nice all around rifle in the 22" barrel and just plain wicked with a 26" barrel.

Ramrod340's right. You'll probably lose 60 fps from what a 24" barrel clocks. It's not the end of the world.

LeoM: I have two friends who Hunt Elk on a regular basis here in SW Montana with their 25/06's! One is a Browning and the other is a Ruger. Both my friends have killed numerous Elk with these Rifles! They are both about 24" barrels if I can visualize them in my memory correctly (estimation). Their secret (if you need call it a secret) is the use of good bullets to begin with and then being patient enough to be able to place their shots in the heart/lungs area!
I bought both my sons a really cool Remington 700 BDL-DBM all stainless Rifle in caliber 25/06! They have both killed Deer and Antelope with this Rifle. Their Rifle has a detachable box magazine and shoots very well indeed. I have great admiration for the 25/06 caliber as I have been a long time user myself. My first 25/06 was stolen from me many years ago 1969?). I was heart broke and after some detective work I hired two "guys" to steal it back for me! I used that Rifle for many years after that and wonder why I ever traded that one off?
To your issue of the 22" barrel specifically. You may get a bit more muzzleblast and a bit less bullet velocity but again choose a good bullet for your use and have fun with it!
I would say - yeah, the 24" barrel would be better in a 25/06 but not by much at all!
My friends with Varminters in 25/06 all prefer 26" barrels and that serves them well.
Does someone make a 22" factory barrelled Rifle in 25/06?
What are you going to be Hunting with the 25/06? Or are you gonna Hunt with it at all?
For Varmint Hunting I would choose the 26" barrel to help dampen recoil and get all the velocity (flat trajectory) there is to be got from the 25/06. If you are Hunting Whitetailed Deer in close cover then a 25/06 with a 22" barrel would be about perfect.
Good luck with whichever you choose!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

I bought a 25-06 about a year ago and was wrestling with the same issue. 22" or 24". I was looking at the Savage and I realized that the 24" heavy barrel 110 FP only weighed 1 lb. more than the 22" light barrel. I then purchased the 24" barrel and It's a very accurate rifle.

My Tikka Whitetail Hunter, in .25-06 Rem. has a 22 7/16"
barrel. Being a fairly heavy laminate stocked, stainless
steel rifle, the recoil is very soft. I can't say that I
ever missed the 50 to 100 fps, given in a 24" to 26" barrel.
I do work with faster burning powders, in my load
development. It has been awhile since I worked with
this rifle, but I recall I was able to get to published
maximum velocities, for the bullet weights I was shooting,
without signs of pressure. So maybe this is a fast barrel.
It does have a pretty good muzzle blast , but it hits
like Thor's Hammer, too.

Squeeze

I just went through this debate myself a couple weeks ago. To my knowledge, only Savage and Tikka make 22" bbls on a 25-06. I was all set to get the Tikka T3, as it only weighs ~6.5 lbs with a 1 MOA guarantee - very nice rifle! The only problem is that the distributors can't find them anywhere in the country. So, I ended up buying the Ruger with a 24" bbl. I did end up with CRF as a bonus, though.

Anyway, I debated over bbl length as well. Eventually, I decided that it wasn't that big a deal and was going to buy the rifle I wanted. Losing 2" of barrel can easily be compensated for by using a slightly faster powder when developing your loads, in my experience. To maximize velocity, you will need 26" of barrel anyway, and that's too long to haul around in the woods. Might as well go with a 22" bbl if it is part of the rifle you like. I see no reason why not.

I'm in the process of doing load development with my Remington 700BDL in .25-06. I don't find the recoil objectionable but the bark is horrendously loud. I don't know about a 22" barrel. My rifle has a 24" tube and yet it spits a flame out the front end that must be about 18" long.
Do they all spew flame this badly? It came as quite a surprise. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

Cal: My sons Rifle is a Remington with 24" stainless barrel and it has never been shot under conditions where I observed muzzle flame. I have a nifty picture of my son in a dark canyon (in the shadows) one Novemeber day that was 18 degrees below zero when he shot his 4x4 Mulie. There were four of us there then and none spoke about the flames being present there in the shadowy canyon.
Next time we or I take it to the range I will try a heads up shot or two and pay attention specifically to the muzzle flame or lack there of.
Some years back I was Prairie Dog Hunting and met up with a friend who had a T/C Rifle in caliber 25/06. Our setup was from prone off of mats. My friends 25/06 sucked up so much dust at the shots that we had to make other arrangements so he and I could watch for his hits! Again I do not recall flames from his 25/06 like I do from some other cartridges and loadings. They could have been there I just did not see them through the dust.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

quote:

Originally posted by the_captain:
I just went through this debate myself a couple weeks ago. To my knowledge, only Savage and Tikka make 22" bbls on a 25-06.

My Abolt Stainless Stalker 25/06 has a 22" barrel.

quote:

Originally posted by the_captain:
I just went through this debate myself a couple weeks ago. To my knowledge, only Savage and Tikka make 22" bbls on a 25-06.

My Browning Abolt Stainless Stalker 25/06 has a 22" barrel.