Relavance of the 22WMRF

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Guv

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So I must confess to having several 22mag rifles and 1 pistol (AMT Automag II). They are both scoped Marlins, one about 17yrs old and the other almost 40yrs old. Although I really like the mild report of a 22mag rifle the price and availability of ammo could make a .223 sporter a very attractive option. I also have an old 110 Savage 223 and basically use it for the same purpose as the magnums. If I didn't already have the 22 magnums I question weather or not I would buy one today?
Any 22 magnum fans out there?:)
 
Some years back I met a hide hunter who swore by the .22 Mag. He called them in very, very close. I hunted with him for a couple of nights. I'm pretty good, but he was seriously exceptionally skilled at calling.
 
I tried and gave up the 22WMR in the late 70's as a coyote round. I think the failure was ammo related-just not accurate enough and bullet performance was lacking. The 22 mag worked better than 22LR but still not acceptable.
Fast forward to current times and the ammo problems may have been fixed but I've already jumped on the 17HMR train. At least it's got the accuracy needed. I'm not sure it's got the killing power after seeing some failures.
 
Poachers like the .22 Magnum almost as much as the .22LR. It's still much quieter than a centerfire, just fill the chest cavity of the deer with as many rounds as you can before the deer takes off, and follow it and wait.
 
I have .22 LRs, a .22 WMR, and multiple .223s, as well.

If I didn't own the .22 WMR today, and was wanting something in that ballpark, I would consider something from this list:
  • .17 HMR - Not a big fan. Probably a no-go, unless the rifle was given to me.
  • .17 WSM - I like the cartridge. A Ruger 77/17 would be the rifle selected, if I bought one. Everything else is crap or too expensive. It would be better as a .20 caliber.
  • .17 Hornet - Hornady's tweaking of the cartridge geometry introduced extra headaches. I'd pass.
  • .17 Fireball - Cool little cartridge. But fiddly little bullets and massive copper fouling would make reloading and cleaning a pain. Likely a pass.
  • .22 WMR - On paper, it's a loser. ...But most of the comparisons use 30+, or even 60+ year-old data. It'd be in the running if I could find ammo.
  • .22 Hornet - Great cartridge. Cheap to reload. Brass lasts forever. The 77/22H is somewhat readily available. Major contender.
  • .221 Fireball - Same as the .17 Fireball, except with less cool factor, less fouling, and better bullet selection. Possible.
  • .25-20 WCF - Great little cartridge. But it's pretty much a (well) used gun, and single-shot or lever-gun affair. Bullet selection is also extremely limited. Cool factor gives it a bump, but it's still ranked low.
  • Wildcats - Everything from .17 caliber to .25 caliber could be considered. Some major contenders would be .22 CCM, .20 Badger, .20 Vartarg, and a handful that I can't think of at the moment.


It would really come down to one question:
"How much noise and muzzle blast am I willing to deal with without hearing protection?"
...Because that's how I use my .22 WMR. Whether or not other people think it's a good idea, that's what mine is for. It's the hottest thing I can comfortably run for a full day of rabbit chasing (6-10 hours), without hearing protection.
.223 Rem is too much.
Even .22 Hornet is really irritating after about 15 rounds. The Fireballs and wildcats would be as bad, or worse.

In the end, if I was able to find ammo (I hear it's unobtainium?), I'd still buy the .22 WMR.
 
I know a farmer who takes deer with his .22 mag, he's permitted to kill as many as it takes to protect his crops.

I have a .17 hmr marlin 917v before Remington buyout, before that I had savage 93R17. The marlin is a bit heavier and at 75-100 yards I can punch the symbols out of playing cards until I'm out of bullets. It might get cleaned every couple hundred rounds, and it'll still be clean. Been impressed with how clean the .17 hmr seems to shoot from a rifle. On a calm day it is a laser beam that will reach out to silly distances for a rimfire and strike rodents down when they are.

I would buy another .17 hmr I think, at least until the v.17 wsm ammo becomes more available and consistent velocity.
 
I love the 22mag...but this ammo situation made me go the 22 Hornet a couple of years ago and I probably won't spend much time with the mag, in the future. Hornet does a great job.
 
I like my 22 WMR, but it costs as much to shoot as a 223, so it doesn't see the range very often. As far as ammo, I have plenty. I originally bought it because my shooting buddy and I used to pick and choose what to bring along for ground squirrels, and the 22WMR filled the gap between 150 yds where the 22LR left off and 200 yds where the 223 started to make sense.
 
I'm with FrankenMauser on the noise issue. I'm already deaf and the step up to my 223 is quite a bit for a farm/ranch gun, it's got to be a little more serious!;)
The magnum did serve as a step between my sons 22lr and his eventual shooting of our 223.
Ammoseek has American Eagle 223 FMJ for I think about .36 cents a round.
22 magnum runs about .42 cents.
The 17's are so much cheaper, HMR & WSM.:confused:
I would think if you reload 223 you could cut that price in about half.
Lots of good input here, I wonder if it's (22mag) on the way to being obsolete?
 
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"just fill the chest cavity of the deer with as many rounds as you can before the deer takes off, and follow it and wait."

Actually, one is all it takes. I did some depredation shooting in soybean fields. One shot in the lungs per deer gets more deer down quicker. Under 100 yards, the old Winchester HP went in, expanded, and they just stood in place until falling over dead.
 
I have one 22 mag. A Winchester 9422. My grandfather gave it to me and I'll always keep it. But if I was buying one I would just buy the 22lr. I can shoot a 38 special lever gun cheaper I think.
 
For my purposes, the 22wmr never served any purpose. Once the 17HMR came out, it served even less. What IS less than zero purpose, anyway? I don't know. All I know is if I were given a rifle in 22mag, I'd sell it for something I considered useful. If 17HMR isn't enough, 22mag isn't either. .204 is the next step up and works from 0 to 400+ yards. Hearing protection is the only downside.
 
For my purposes, the 22wmr never served any purpose. Once the 17HMR came out, it served even less.
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My biggest problem with the 17 HMR vs 22 Mag is living in Kansas there's always a gusty cross wind, unless I riding my motorcycle then there's a head wind.
I had a 17 Hornet for a short time @ 100 yards it shot a nice 1/2" tall 3 1/2" wide groups most days unless I shot indoors.
 
Sometimes as a kid the playground discussion would turn from who had the biggest dog to firearms. There was this one boy who had a 22 Magnum, damn it! The rest of us losers could just talk about our assorted 22's and pellet rifles. I do know that back in the day the old Winchester JHP looked pretty purposeful with it's semi cooper jacket and bullet cannelure.
 
mav said:
My biggest problem with the 17 HMR vs 22 Mag is living in Kansas there's always a gusty cross wind, unless I riding my motorcycle then there's a head wind.
I had a 17 Hornet for a short time @ 100 yards it shot a nice 1/2" tall 3 1/2" wide groups most days unless I shot indoors.
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A 17HMR with typical bullets (20gr@2400) drifts less than a .22WMR with typical bullets (40gr@1900).

A 40gr .22WMT in a 10mph crosswind will drift about 4.75 inches at 100, while the 17 goes only 3.25. At 200, the 22 is at 20.5 while the 17 is at 14.5.

No matter if the winds are constant or "gusting", on any given shot the 17 will drift less than the 22.

I couldn't find a single combination of bullets where the .22Mag had less drift than the 17 in this direct comparison calculator.
 
A 40gr .22WMT in a 10mph crosswind will drift about 4.75 inches at 100, while the 17 goes only 3.25. At 200, the 22 is at 20.5 while the 17 is at 14.5.
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I know what the charts say problem is the targets don't show it, dad's new Savage 17 has yet to show any accuracy or wind bucking advantage over my old Marlin 22 Mag.
 
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