Author Topic: need a caliber close to .22 hornet... (Read 2010 times)

crow_waxer · « **on:** December 25, 2006, 09:30:42 PM »

hey all, i am considering buying a new rifle. i will be useing it for coyote hunting, and just shooting paper. i was wanting to get something that is pretty accurate, but about the size of a .22 hornet. i would get a .223, but that is more than i need. i am under the impression that the .22 hornet ain't very accurate. what do u guies recomend, or am i not makeing any sense here? thanks for any in put.

oso45-70 · « **Reply #1 on:** December 26, 2006, 05:09:06 AM »

Crow_Waxer

I have no idea who might have told you that the 22 Hornet was not very accurate but they must be miss informed, It could be that the particular rifle they was using happened to be inaccurate but, I have a little Ruger bolt action 22 Hornet that shoots
3/4" groups constantly but, If that's too small there's the 221 fireball 222 rem and various other's that might work for you. but to say that the Hornet is not accurate enough to kill a Coyote is not true. If you plan to call Coyotes and can get them in close you will not have a problem. Good luck Sir.........Joe...........

beemanbeme · « **Reply #2 on:** December 26, 2006, 06:32:19 AM »

There is a whole family of cartridges that cluster in the power window beginning with the Hornet and going up to the .223. I've never owned a Hornet but have read that the "K" configuration was the way to go. Kinda like the .257. Others can verify or disclaim this.
If you're thinking of shooting the yotes for fur, a .223 with a middlin' load behind a SX type bullet would work.

mangulator · « **Reply #3 on:** December 26, 2006, 07:25:06 AM »

The 22 Hornet is a very accurate round but I like the 223 for hunting yotes...

billy_56081 · « **Reply #4 on:** December 26, 2006, 07:51:56 AM »

My NEF handi with a superlight barrel shoots .502 3 shot groups at 100 yards. Not accurate? My load is 13 grains of LilGun with a 35 grain vmax. I did put a home made vinyl washer betwwen the forarm screw and barrel to free float but thats it. BTW this is the only load I've tried for accuracy. The hornet is plenty for coyotes out to abot 150 maybe 200 yards as long as you place your shots. Coyoes are tough but when you take out there heart lung region they die quick.

crow_waxer · « **Reply #5 on:** December 26, 2006, 11:11:01 PM »

thanks for the replies guies, i can't remember who told me the .22 hornet wasn't very accurate, i heard it some time ago, but it sounds like they r wrong. i would get something bigger, like a .223, but, the farthes i will be shooting at coyote's is 150 yards, maby 200 if i am lucky, so i figured the .22 hornet would be a good round to get. since i know know that the hornet is, or can be accurate, i might end up getting one anyway. thanks for u'r help guies.

PA-Joe · « **Reply #6 on:** December 27, 2006, 01:38:23 AM »

Go to james calhoon's webpage and read about gopher loads for the 223. You can load it to get anything from 22 mag to 22 hornet to full 223!

oso45-70 · « **Reply #7 on:** December 27, 2006, 04:25:16 AM »

Crow Waxer

The good thing about the Hornet is it dose not make very much noise so you can use it nearer to homes without disturbing the neighbors. You might even consider the 222 Rem which makes a little less noise than the 223 Rem, Any of the smaller 22 calibers will get the job done if you do your part........Joe.........

crow_waxer · « **Reply #8 on:** December 27, 2006, 01:12:25 PM »

well, i started to consider the .223, just for the fact that there is a ton of ammo for them, and every rifle company makes a rifle chambered in it. but, that is almost to much rifle, and i don't handload, i wanna start it, but it might be a while till i do. so i thought about the .221 fireball, and the .222, but, there are few rifles chambered in it. and the ammo is kinda pricy. i kinda like the .221 fireball, but the only rifle i could find chambered in it is a remington, which is fine, but it is kinda expensive. i didn't check NEF yet to see if they have any rifles in that caliber, but i was kinda hoping for a bolt action repeater. i dunno, i might be to picky, but i will look around for a while, i ain't in a big hurry to get one yet. thanks for the help tho.

ol mike · « **Reply #9 on:** December 27, 2006, 04:37:37 PM »

crow_waxer ,

I have a CZ 221 fb they cast around $460-480.They are worth every single penny ! i wouldn't take $750 for mine !
It is a handloader's dream i would "almost" be willing to say 'all' loads are accurate in it -put 20ish gr. of aa1680 w/a 40gr plastic tip bullet and you have a 3/4" gun !
They are quiet yet powerful good for 250yds on coyotes proven by me.That w/a nice 3x9 scope and you'd have as nice of a walking varminter as a man could ask for.
I've killed more pd's ,crows ,etc that you'd believe w/ mine.
I ve read the nef is very accurate in the hornet as stated -the rimmed cartridges do very well in the break open actions.
Either one of those rifles will serve you well on coyotes.--Best of luck to you --Mike

crow_waxer · « **Reply #10 on:** December 28, 2006, 09:42:01 PM »

hey all, thanks for all the help, i will keep looking around for a while till i see something that i like, i ain't in no big hurry to get a new rifle yet, so i have time. i like the idea of a .221 fireball, but am also still considering the hornet, and .223. so i dunno what i am gunna do yet, thanks for the help tho.

MOGLEY · « **Reply #11 on:** December 31, 2006, 09:58:53 AM »

I have a CZ 222 and really really like it it has an adjustable set trigger, very accurate and compared to a buddy's mini 14 223, is a LOT quieter. Ammo is cheaper for the 223 but the 222 reined supreme for accuracy in it's day. I have not shot a 22 hornet but they say it is not an easy cartridge to reload. I reload all my stuff so that is a factor for me. Good luck.

iiranger · « **Reply #12 on:** January 11, 2007, 08:48:26 AM »

The step up from the hornet was the .218 Bee. Necked down .25/20 repeater (there is a .25/20 single shot case, long and straight and no shoulder). These were from black powder, low pressure days and cases are a bit flimsy. The accuracy talk has been that rims in US cases are not as uniform as rims in foreign brass and this makes any rimmed cartidge more accurate. Consistency is always helpful in seeking accuracy. At the same time, in the single shot/shotgun action rifles... not the finest platform to start....

Mr. Calhoon has some remarkable developements on these grounds. Mr. Ackely did the .17 Bee on the .218. Thought it was about the most efficient .17. Long way (down) from the .17 Rem capacity.

Stouter cases center around the .222/.223 family. .221 is mainstay. Mr. Donaldson reduced the .219 Wasp from the .30/30 case. Top accuracy and you could load down. .222 duplicated its capacity in a rimless case. From there it is how much you want to spend. The .218 was improved. Mashburn got alot of credit for this one. .25/20 Single shot got necked down to .22 (and higher pressure) for the .22 Lovel (by Mr. Lovel). Winchester did the .219 Zipper on the .30/30 case. Savage had a similar .22 Hi power. Lower pressures kept the noise down. Mr. Stark necked the .44 Mag to .224 (with considerable work). There was a run of .30/30 cases with small primer pocket (by Federal) to permit making .219 Wasps with capacity/preformance of the .22 PPC when Russian cases were scarce. (Mr. Masker?) "go for it." Enjoy. happy trails.

Dwayne TX · « **Reply #13 on:** January 11, 2007, 10:09:11 AM »

There is really not a big practical difference in the 221 FB, 222, 222 magnum, or 223. They all use the same .224 bullet and range of bullet weights. 223 loaded ammo and brass are more readily available. 223 FMJ rounds are cheaper, but rounds loaded with hunting bullets are basically the same price as 222 factory ammo. The 218 Bee and 22 Jet are a couple that are more in the Hornet category, along with some of the ones iiranger listed. Hornady offers a Hornet loaded with 35 grain VMaxes that is supposed to be very accurate and effective. If you consider the cost of Hornet brass and the smaller amount of powder, it's really pretty cheap to reload for. I read on RimfireCentral that some people even say the Remington 22 magnum loaded with the Vmax bullet is right below the Hornet in power, but I've not done a comparision.

mag-check · « **Reply #14 on:** January 11, 2007, 02:22:40 PM »

Yes the Remington 33gr. V-max is very close to the Hornet in killing power! I say get the 22 magnum you will not find a better close range varmint rifle thats quite its cheap to shoot and wonderfully accurate! anthing bigger than a Hornet and they start getting to loud and to much power for around homes and livestock. the thing thats great about the 22 magnum is all the dufferent types of ammo you can shoot from 30gr. to 50gr. hollowpoints, FMJs, PSP, TNTs

Supremes!

aulrich · « **Reply #15 on:** January 12, 2007, 05:23:04 AM »

I would not call 22 mag close to the 22 hornet. The hornet has twice the energy and 900 fps advantage, and pretty much the same noise profile.

Though it is miles cheaper to shoot 22mag than 22 hornet factory.

mag-check · « **Reply #16 on:** January 14, 2007, 09:47:54 AM »

Yes, but remember dead is dead! Your not going to make it any deader with a Hornet I know I have both and the 22 mag is alot closer to the hornet than the 22LR is to the mag! Trust me Ive killed a lot of varmints with both, and like I said dead is dead! And now with the new 22 magnum rounds even more so. And the mag is alot cheaper to shoot if you don't reload, and evn if you do your own loading you have to spend alot of your hunting time behind the loading bench. For a cheap 150yd. varmint round the 22 mag is it!!!

aulrich · « **Reply #17 on:** January 14, 2007, 06:04:22 PM »

As long as we are not talking coyotes @ 150 I would take my HMR over 22 mag but thats another well beated dead horse.

CatSlayer · « **Reply #18 on:** January 15, 2007, 09:48:57 AM »

In my opinion, the best bocat,fox, and yotie gun has to be the .204. I prefer to close-up head shot since it tends to make quite a entrance hole, not quite a hole but like a big slice. But is also flat-shooting enough for headshots up to 150 yards with the right optics.

Kills this Season (since Nov.15)

Yotes:2
Bobcats:3
Grey Fox:1
Red Fox:2

ironglow · « **Reply #19 on:** January 27, 2007, 03:21:53 AM »

Crow Waxer,

Don't know where someone got the idea that the Hornet was not accurate..Of course there is a correlation between the new factory rounds that are lighter and faster since some rifling rates may handle the regular 45 grainers at 2690 fps better than the new 35 grain Hornadys at 3100 fps.

I have both Hornet and .223 and would steer you toward the .223 since ammo is much more available and less expensive.

I used to reload much more often than I do now, and back then Hornet cases were IMHO..pretty fragile and inclined toward bending and crimping while reloading.

Besides you have some experience now with the .223 and should be able to easily convert to shooting 4 legged varmints..

BTW: Thanks for your service with the USMC !

oso45-70 · « **Reply #20 on:** January 27, 2007, 09:02:17 AM »

Crow waxer

I don't think you would go wrong with any of the center fire 22 rifles. BTW, From an old Swab, Thanks for your service in the USMC...........Joe........