.22 Hornet - A couple of questions

[ElvisThePelvis]

Hi Guys

 

Just a couple of questions on the above. Firstly is it too much gun for all round small game?( Am I going to mash bunnies at 70 yards?) Secondly is it possible to effectively moderate?

 

This will be an 'everything except deer' rifle

 

Thanks

Edited April 25, 2016 by ElvisThePelvis

[kyska]

Good choice imo.

[ElvisThePelvis]

Good choice imo.

Thanks, this is becoming a minefield and to a point the more that I read the more confused I get, real world views are agreat help. Keen to buy as few rifles as scopes as possible...

[kyska]

You'll make mess of a rabbits head whatever calibre, but I don't tend to eat rabbits heads.

 

Any of the small centrefires if you can afford to feed them are ideal imo.

 

Other options are the magnum rimfire.

[ElvisThePelvis]

Brilliant, thanks! I don't eat every rabbit as it stands (using shotgun) so the odd couple removed but not eaten doesn't matter. I guess I can afford a lot of rounds by not buying another rifle, scope etc that crosses over.

 

Is it possible to moderate? The echo on parts of my permission is tremendous, even with just 12 bore.

[kent]

My hornet has wasted one rabbit in the time I have had it. Actually wasted more with hmr

Had it four years as a guess

Moderates quieter than any other centrefire because they only use half what a 223 does. My family don't hear the hornet shot off the driveway while in the kitchen but they could hear the hmr. Main difference is the bigger better moderator. Fired directly into a soft object there is nothing but the thud of the bullet as no sonic crack has space to develop and you cannot silence that full stop

You definitely need to download some of the hotter 22 centrefires on rabbits for the pot

Many say you don't but honestly every time I have done the same head shots send fragments of scull and liquid through the body breaking the diaphragm and even the back legs

[ElvisThePelvis]

My hornet has wasted one rabbit in the time I have had it. Actually wasted more with hmr

Had it four years as a guess

Moderates quieter than any other centrefire because they only use half what a 223 does. My family don't hear the hornet shot off the driveway while in the kitchen but they could hear the hmr. Main difference is the bigger better moderator. Fired directly into a soft object there is nothing but the thud of the bullet as no sonic crack has space to develop and you cannot silence that full stop

You definitely need to download some of the hotter 22 centrefires on rabbits for the pot

Many say you don't but honestly every time I have done the same head shots send fragments of scull and liquid through the body breaking the diaphragm and even the back legs

Brilliant, thanks, don't mind switching and changing rounds to suit, still better for me than having a few guns!

[snow white]

17 hornet all the time much quieter than 17 hmr and 223.

[steve_b_wales]

Thanks, this is becoming a minefield and to a point the more that I read the more confused I get, real world views are agreat help. Keen to buy as few rifles as scopes as possible...

 

 

Brilliant, thanks! I don't eat every rabbit as it stands (using shotgun) so the odd couple removed but not eaten doesn't matter. I guess I can afford a lot of rounds by not buying another rifle, scope etc that crosses over.

 

Is it possible to moderate? The echo on parts of my permission is tremendous, even with just 12 bore.

I have fitted a Phantom moderator. It's rated for centre fire and cost approx. £130 from Sportsman Guncentre. It's light in weight and works well. As it's a centre fire, it won't completely eliminate the sound, but it does cut it down.

[nicholiath]

I have a DM80 moderator on my .22 hornet and it is quieter than .17 hmr. Head/shoulder shots still leave a perfectly eatable rabbit especially if you use the hornet specific soft points as opposed to the ballistic tip bullets.

[ElvisThePelvis]

17 hornet all the time much quieter than 17 hmr and 223.

I don't think FAO will pass for fox...

[kyska]

I don't think FAO will pass for fox...

All my rimfire are Fox cleared

[mick miller]

My 17H is cleared for Fox.

[kent]

My hornet has an mae scout moderator on it like I say it's silent as regards the blast sonic crack cannot silenced though on any gun without subsonic ammo

 

Here are some interesting facts on the ballistics

 

135 yard zero gives me point and shoot on a range the size of a rabbits head to 160 yards

At 200 it requires 2 moa correction

 

Wind at 10 mph full value is 5.6 moa at 200

 

This is with 45 grain Sierra hornet bullets homemade and running at 2850 fps

 

Factory 45 grain ammo don't run that fast 2550- 2700 depending

 

Using little gun powder I run at lower pressure with my faster home loads than those factory

 

35 grain Hornady bullets in factory will run 3000 fps but due to the far worse bc all advantage is lost at around 100- 120 yards over other factory offerings ( rws are really good and the brass is top notch for later re- loads) rws clock 2550 fps from my rifle so muzzle speed is not the be all and end all.

 

Now it's an unfair comparison but compare the ballistics with a hmr lol. Yet the hornet can do all the tasks it can in the field

 

222 223 and 22-250 can all be down loaded to replicate the hornet performance. Why? Because most of what we do don't require more than a 40 grain or45 grain bullet at 3000 fps

In fact it can be counter productive on edible game. Barrel life and noise. But your doing even the downloads with more powder and you can't buy factory downloads.

Be aware that fast twist rates don't suit hornet bullets though if you select the downloaded route

My choice here would be a slow twist 22 - 250 but burning more powder means more cost and more blast and bigger moderators etc

[walshie]

I'm looking for a CZ527 22 hornet at the moment. There's a 12 week wait for them.

[bicykillgaz]

I had a .22 hornet for vermin and fox, perfect choice if you want the best of both worlds, quiet when moderated, packs a real punch and barely any recoil, still regret selling it!

[Houseplant]

Interesting thread. Love my CZ452, but getting a little frustrated with the ballistics of .22LR. Funny thing is that I started out with the intention of buying a small bore centrefire, but got talked out of it by numerous people.

[kent]

A few years back I had a lot of rifles

Now I use 4

 

12 ft lb Airgun round buildings

 

.22 lr fed exclusively subs - rabbits and such

 

. 22 hornet anything but deer or boar ( if I was allowed I should happily shoot roe with it) in fact I hope to travel some place it's legal and do just that one day

 

. 243 win deer of all types. Fox and any vermin / crows as need or range dictates ( I don't have boar - I do have shotguns though)

 

If I am going out lamping fox I take the hornet every time. If I am out daylight on the Moor I take the 243 because I have much longer range ability with it and enough experience to take the shot or know when it isn't on

 

Home loaded hornet in 22 is 200 yards capable on fox in competent hands in anything approaching decent weather

[Bewsher500]

you can get bulk lead bullets as well which would make a very cheap bunny basher

 

I used to use a WMR for all my urban fox work, works very well on rabbits too and extends the .22lr range to an easy 150yds

But, ammo is getting more expensive and probably not much in it compared to hornet reloading if you are frugal!

[CharlieT]

I don't think FAO will pass for fox...

 

What makes you think that. You should try one!

[scobydog]

22 hornet is a great round, I've shot quite a few foxes and a lot of rabbits with it, if you want to keep the rabbits best to head shoot but it will leave a mess like most head shots do. I use a 223 mod on mine and noise level is ok . Got a new perm with lots of rabbits but owner said air rifle only due to it backing on to a housing estate so going to sell the Hornet and get a decent air rifle.

 

S

[ElvisThePelvis]

What makes you think that. You should try one!

Discussion with gun shop... I'm going to try to speak with FAO and see.

[neil w]

This old calibre,Is certainly making a come back. Cheap to feed with ppu 45 grain ammunition.But the 35 grain work best like s&b.

Small amount of powder - but still really noisy un-moderated.Fantastic little round though.

[alendil]

Just look for my old poste about hornet

There is my concerns and pics wth accuracy at 125m ant cost to reload.

long time since then and about 1800 rounds

best small centerfire ever.

[Graham M]

Great little gun and even if you don't moderate it, it's a nice quiet round to shoot compared to other .22CF rifles.

45grn bullet over 13grns of Lil'Gun makes for a great fox load and with reduced pressures (down from the normal 42,000psi to @ 28,000psi if I remember correctly)

 

My old BSA is @ 60 years old and the barrel is now shot out with a capital "F", but it is still a joy to shoot a few rounds through it now and then.

 

2"-3" groups at 100yds.......but I don't try to take anything with it. Just wish I could find another barrel somewhere for it, but they just don't make them any more, and the action is so big you would need to buy a 34mm barrel and then turn it down to fit the profile...............be cheaper to buy another rifle.

 

Buy it and enjoy.

 

 

G