robmiller Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 Ok. I have my 22 rimfire which is fine. Serves its purpose and is great for lamping, relatively close range etc. However, i believe sometimes, on some of my permissions, the openness of the fields wants for something with a bit more range. I have read posts and see there is a massive .17HMR following and then Baldrick pushing for the .22 Hornet. Can you please help me with some basic advice on both ie Typical effective ranges, Cost of ammunition, effectiveness of round effectiveness of silencer on the rifle (Obviously the .22 cant be beaten on sound, but what are the others like? I havent fired either) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baldrick Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 Ok. I have my 22 rimfire which is fine. Serves its purpose and is great for lamping, relatively close range etc. However, i believe sometimes, on some of my permissions, the openness of the fields wants for something with a bit more range. I have read posts and see there is a massive .17HMR following and then Baldrick pushing for the .22 Hornet. Can you please help me with some basic advice on both ie Typical effective ranges, Cost of ammunition, effectiveness of round effectiveness of silencer on the rifle (Obviously the .22 cant be beaten on sound, but what are the others like? I havent fired either) I'm not pushing just for the .22 Hornet. I just think that the .17 HMR is over-rated and lacking in versatility, although it is an excellent calibre for a few specific uses. However, on the basis that a .22H really requires you to reload for it in order to , you might as well buy a .222 or .223, both of which give you much more range and wallop. But in answer to your questions: .22 Hornet It will drop a fox dead at 150 yards, and is easily good for 200 yard rabbits. Less than £1 per round if you reload, which you should. It's the quietest of all production centrefires, although you can't mitigate the supersonic crack. A looping trajectory, but 40gr is much better at bucking wind than a piddling 17gr V-Max. .17 HMR Only a fool would point a .17 HMR at a fox in excess of 75 yards, if at all. About £0.20-£0.25 per shot. Beware of batch inconsistency with ammunition. Lots of noise for relatively little performance. A moderately flat trajectory, but sensitive to wind. If you want to kill foxes, consistently and humanely, where your skill rather than your rifle being the principal limiting factor, buy a .20 or .22 centrefire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmiller Posted September 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 Got a .243 for anything from a fox upwards. More a long distance small calibre am lookng for Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baldrick Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 Are you reloading for the .243? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmiller Posted September 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 Not yet. A friend has been helping me and are due to sit down for a day and do some playing with it. I am looking for something I can buy ammo for reasonably, descent range and kill effectivelyl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 get the HMR then or try one, you can't compare it to a centrefire but people do and thats because they're quite good rather than anything. They do the job on foxes but its not what they excel at, they're a small varmint round that packs a lot of punch and in reality you can only compare rimfire with rimfire. So compared to a .22lr they put vermin down far better, your effective range is doubled and cost is very close to using a shotgun. Accuracy is excellent and the negatives you'll hear is wind, noise and cost. Wind wise yes it will be affected but within 100 yards you need a pretty strong wind to make much difference so all you do is limit range in windy conditions whichever way you'll be afected less than with the .22lr. Noise wise yes they are noisier as to be expected with the speed of the bullet but with it being the sonic crack you hear rabbits can't locate the source of the noise so tend to sit up nicely! Cost wise isn't much off shotgun cartridge cost and you'll not get the kill ratio with a shotgun that you will with the HMR so evens out. If you're after small critters try one as they love magpies, rooks and rabbits at 150 yards more if you do your bit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmiller Posted September 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 thats the type of info i am after. My initial question was to compare a .17 and a .22 magnum which is also a rimfire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docholiday Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 The only downside that I find with the .17 compared to the .22 is that I can usually get one or two, rarley 3 of a group of rabbits but with the .22 I can get five or six, just the noise of the .17 v the .22 .However just dont get the injured rabbits with the .17 if you hit them they are dead, with the .22 had a few who made it back to there holes winged to die at a later date, not the best outcome, there fore I pretty much always use the .17 now, also as we shoot over ground with flint in the soil we dont get the bullets flying all over the place as you do with the .22. DOC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmiller Posted September 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 I am steering towards a .17. My ground is handy for the .22 however there are pockets when 100yrd plus shots would clean some areas up nice. You cant get approach without being seen and the rabbits can be v skitty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 I don't think you'll regret it, if you use your .22 much then odds are this will just come out instead unless noise is an issue. We lamp from a vehicle so the range helps and as Doc says they don't get up when hit which is one of the downsides with the .22lr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docholiday Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 supose I should add that meat damage is much greater with the .17 than the .22, I know if I have an order from the butcher or zoo I have to use the .22, It can be quite sobbering to see the damage from a little .17 DOC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 PM me about a HMR if you're considering buying a used one. I'm thinking of passing mine on shortly as I rarely use it these days. I shoot a Hornet and really like it, but then I like to have Fox busting capability when out bunny bashing. The HMR will kill a Fox, but it's far from ideal. As a longer than .22 range rabbit gun though they are wonderful little things. I rate mine very highly for small game Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baldrick Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 thats the type of info i am after.My initial question was to compare a .17 and a .22 magnum which is also a rimfire. Don't discount the .22 Magnum until you've tried one (I had a semi-auto .22 WMR until recently). When I can track down a more reliable rifle in that calibre, I will buy it immediately, as it's a cracking little round. It was much better than the .17 HMR for fox shooting, as it packs much more punch, and gave me an immediate follow-up shot. It's also great fun and very ammo-unfussy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glensman Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 I think you've framed this the wrong way. If you are going to use it on foxes then you should Really be lookin at the .22 WMR. Its much more powerful than the HMR and it's a cheaper round to buy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmiller Posted September 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 Foxes were never mentioned. This would be purely for small ground vermin and corvids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glensman Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 Apologies! Then the 17 is probably your man as that's basically what it's made for and it'll give you a wee bit more range than the WMR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr_Logic Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 I've had both. hmr = rabbit gun, easy to shoot to about 120-150. Easy enough beyond that on bunnies. Not suitable for mainstream fox shooting. Hornet = everything an Hmr does but with foxing. Noise is comparable, and with reloading so is cost. You really need to reload it though as decent affordable Hornet ammo is rare. If you want a top drawer long range bunny gun though, then 204 Ruger, flat for bloody ages, not bad in the wind, devastating on rabbits and vermin. ok on fox with 39 or 40 grain bullet but don't buy just for foxes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 I looked at the title and immediately thought you were comparing centrefires (17 Rem Vs 22 Hornet) Now there's a ting. I have to say I really wish I'd got a decent heavy sound moderator with mine as it would do all you want with a splendid point and shoot success ratio with bells on - including fox should you wish. However until I can arrange to swap a carry friendly T4 with a big bullet hole for a heavy mod for a sub calibre I'm almost stuffed on where I can use it having lost my best permission due to noise disturbance. So if someone here wants a swappsie... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George1990 Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 I love using my HMR. If you haven't got reloading gear for the hornet then it'll cost you to buy all that anyway! WMR is supposed to be an inaccurate round, which is why it went out of fashion. (though I've heard they're doing a V-max WMR soon which is better?) I'd vote HMR, due to availabilty of ammo and guns, good accuracy and good effect on small vermin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glensman Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 (edited) WMR is supposed to be an inaccurate round, which is why it went out of fashion. (though I've heard they're doing a V-max WMR soon which is better?) It's not one bit inaccurate! http://www.chuckhawks.com/compared_17HMR_22WMR.htm Edited September 14, 2009 by Glensman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr_Logic Posted September 15, 2009 Report Share Posted September 15, 2009 My mate's WMR shoots very nicely and that is with normal 40gr maxi mag ammo. Regarding reloading gear, once it's bought it also does the 243, so you save there too. Definitely worth doing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derek.snr Posted September 15, 2009 Report Share Posted September 15, 2009 vermin and odd ,within range, fox .hmr plenty about ,cheap to run , ammo off the shelf .no brainer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr_Logic Posted September 15, 2009 Report Share Posted September 15, 2009 Assuming you can get the fox part on your ticket, of course. Otherwise it might have to be WMR... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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