Number of shots to drop an attacker? (.22lr rifle)

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The danger of being shot by a .22 isn't the velocity it's resulting wound channel. It's true danger is that it's easy to deflect by bone, and it effectively richochet's around inside soft tissue, turning it into swiss cheese. The problem with the round is that a doesn't really have any knock-down power.
 
Biggest hog I ever killed was with a .22 LR. Not my first choice, but the one I had at hand. Pig weighed later at over 350 lbs, shot him out of my garden. One shot to the forehead, he didn't even twitch, fell over like someone had thrown a switch. I had to take down part of a fence to get him out and I did more damage to the garden removing him than he did getting in.

Don't let anyone tell you that a .22LR isn't deadly. Shot placement is the key, and the .22LR is very, very easy to shoot accurately.
 
I personally like a .22 for home defense. I prefer not to kill if I don't have to, and, while it certainly can be lethal, it is less likely to kill than a lot of other options. It will, however, make an invader think twice about whether they ought to be in my house.
I have seen arguments that a .22 will not stop someone with one shot, that it has no real stopping power, and that trained personel will keep coming unless you hit them with someone bigger. Most likely, though, the guy breaking in is a small time thief just looking to make a quick buck, not a trained pro. As soon as ANY resistance is encountered, he is likely to try to get out, and I am happy to let him. And if he does so with one of my .22 rounds in his arse, it will be that much easier for the cops to find him afterward.
As far as how many rounds - how ever many it takes to either make him leave or drop him.
 
How many licks does it take to get to the tootsie roll center of a tootsie pop?
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Everyone knows it's 3. The real question is: how many times would I have to hit an attacker with a Tootsie Pop to drop him? :D
 
imho one shot from a 22lr anywhere on the human body is enough to discourage and stop 99 percent of the human population. Lets face it, the hypothetical PCP induced super criminal is an extremely rare occurance unless you're a police officer in L.A. maybe.
 
I've never been shot, so I wouldn't know about that... BUT I have been blown up, and they dug a postage stamp sized piece of 60mm mortar shrapnel out of my knee. Never knew I'd been hit there. I was mostly in a stupor for 10-20 seconds as I waundered around and didn't even know I'd been hit at all (I was also bleeding from the mouth, side of the head and arm) until the medic sat me down and began checking me. So the BG might not run away, he might not even know he's been hit. His fight or flight instinct may tell him that attacking you is a better option than him running away. What if upon entering he goes left and you come from right and you're in the path he traveled to get there? Now his only way out is through you. Its not like he's going to politely knock and wait for you to answer the door. Nor is he going to sit patiently at the doorway waiting for you to wake him up.

If my personal experience isn't enough. Google the soldier who was shot AT POINT BLANK RANGE, IN THE FACE by a 9mm. Who not only did not die, but captured the guy who shot him and only thought the iraqi had hit him in the face.

Don't shoot to wound, shoot to kill, and don't stop trying to kill them until you are positive there is no threat left. I'd rather be tried by 12 than carried by 6.
 
imho one shot from a 22lr anywhere on the human body is enough to discourage and stop 99 percent of the human population. Lets face it, the hypothetical PCP induced super criminal is an extremely rare occurance unless you're a police officer in L.A. maybe.
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I have seen data that support this. Basically, most people don't like to be shot, even by a lowly 22 LR. And when shot once, most (does not mean all) will retreat.
 
Isn't the correct answer none?

I thought if you racked the bolt on your .22 a bad guy would immediately load his britches and flee in terror...


Or is that a 12 gauge?

:D
 
Its deffinately a 12 guage. Every time I rack mine I crap my pants and run. But I can charge and even shoot my .22 without a flinch. Well...a noticable one...
 
Google the soldier who was shot AT POINT BLANK RANGE, IN THE FACE by a 9mm. Who not only did not die, but captured the guy who shot him and only thought the iraqi had hit him in the face.
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This, as well as your personal experience with a shrapnel wound, is an example of a battle trained person in active combat. Adrenaline, possible shock, training and high levels of conviction are all factors in these amazing feats.
A break in at home is a different animal. Most people breaking in are hoping to do so without detection, let alone conflict. Their motivation is quick and EASY loot. Resistance from the home owner eliminates the EASY part, which makes the whole thing less atractive to them. The majority of them will run if you inflict a non-fatal gunshot wound, and they will not stop to ask what the caliber was. Your TV is not worth their life, and they know it.
As for the theory that they probably wouldn't notice being shot with a .22, I find that doubtful, unless they were already in a state of extremely heightened adrenaline production, in shock, or high out of their minds - all of which are rare exceptions rather than the rule.
 
The .22 LR will always stop an attacker unless it doesn't.

If you shoot it out of a rifle, it will also stop an attacker unless it doesn't.

Kind of like the 9mm, .40 S&W, .45 ACP, .50 BMG, and every other cartridge.
 
The danger of being shot by a .22 isn't the velocity it's resulting wound channel. It's true danger is that it's easy to deflect by bone, and it effectively richochet's around inside soft tissue, turning it into swiss cheese. The problem with the round is that a doesn't really have any knock-down power.
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Well you were doing alright till you got to the knockdown part. You aren't going to knock anybody down with a 44 magnum either but you hit him in the CNS and the 44 mag won;t kill any deader than the 22 will. Forget that knock down stuff, it only works in Hollyweird land where they make TV shows and movies where the script calls for the receiver of the round to be knocked down. :D
 
"The scumbag survived the 3 hit to the chest from the 40."

That should tell anybody all they need to know about relying on a .22 rimfire.

If 3 rounds of .40 didn't discourage the guy (much less stop him), why would anyone think a .22 would be better? Wound channel? A .22 LR out of a rifle is slower than 9mm out of one of my pistols.

I love .22s, but they're skinny, light and slow. Can they work? Sure. Can you win the lottery? Sure. But it's not a good bet.

John
 
Shot placement is everything. The largest animal I ever killed was a 1000 pound steer that we butchered. Killed it with one shot from a .22 pistol with a normal lead .22 LR round. One shot between and slightly above the eyes from 6" away. Has to hit perpendicular to the skull so it will not glance off, but once it entered the brain...lights out. Dead before it hit the ground. Just saying.

I am not suggesting that you use a .22 to defend yourself, there are much better tools for that.... just saying that with the right shot placement even a .22 can result in an instant stop or kill.
 
"...with the right shot placement even a .22 can result in an instant stop or kill."

Good enough closing statement...
 
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