What do you use your .22 mag. for ???????

[Wyo. Coyote Hunter]

Today while looking over a yard sale, I found a CZ 452 in .22 mag...I have been thinking of a little rifle for several mths...this one was almost new and priced right...so it came home..stuck a 3-9 Tasco on it and shot it in a 50 yards...popped a couple prairie dogs with it...I have owned several over the years, but only was seemed real accurate...this one has good to excellent accuracy, the little I have used it...What is the primary use you folks have for your .22 mag?...I felt when I visit my friends on the east coast it would be a great little rifle for the close country found there...what do you guys use yours for??

[Keith L]

This will be good.  You will get everything from tree rats to dangerous game.  I use mine for chucks up close and rabbits out to about 100 yards.  It has taken a coon or two over the years also.

[DDelle338]

  Feral Cats! They seem to be hard to drop with just a 22lr but my 22mag drops them.

[tuck2]

For years I used a Kimber Mdl 82 22WMR for shooting prairie dogs out to about 125 yards using Winchester 40 Gr HP ammo. Its a fine round but I have not used the Kimber  much for prairie dogs since getting a Cooper 57 M LVT 17 HMR rifle. I need to try some of the lighter grain 22 WMR bullet rounds to see what they will do out to 150 yards.

[Glanceblamm]

The WMR was my main Fox rifle for years and doubled as a nice G hog piece. Ever take one Squirrel hunting? it will knock that animal clear of the tree for you while in some cases, the standard lr round will let them live just long enough to scramble to a place where they will hang up. Ammo is kind of expensive for Squirrels and I head shoot most anyway with a Lr out of a handgun.

Need cheering up? If you shoot one of the troublesome Grackles with the 40gr HP, there is hardly a long feather left! They also work great for the feral cat (as said already) that will spray your porch railings and scratch your car hood. Mine also see's a lot of use on the ground squirrels in the lot's just beyond the main farm yard with the advantage of it being more noise friendly (to the residences) than my Centerfires. I took my first Coyote with the WMR back in the 70's but it was a 40yd broadside with the standing yote having no idea that I was there. It worked well but I do not recommend it or a .17 if you want to recover the animal.

I shoot the 40gr HP exclusively and usually not farther than 120-130yds.

[Bigeasy]

Mine is an old Winchester 9422M.  While I have used it on chucks, it is my primary fall turkey gun.  In PA, fall turkey is open to rifles, handguns, or shotguns.  I like the 22 mag with the 50 grain bullet.  Aimed at the base of the wing on broadside shots, its stops them quick with little meat damage.  The 22 LR hits with noticeably less force, and the 223, too much.

Larry

[ironglow]

If you have an accurate one..rejoice.. I like the round and have used it on woodchucks, where it performs very well. I would use it for everything from woodchucks to coyotes in range. A bit heavy for squirrels, unless you don't intend to eat them. Even then it is costly when a .22LR subsonic does a fine job with squirrels.

[Range Rider]

I don't know  but I have owned one or more .22 Mags. for 40  years. Living in the big open spaces of Wyoming you might wonder why. I have a fine old Bruno Rifle and a S&W K 4" .22 Mag. 6 gun.  All jokes aside.  The .22 Mag. is a good cap for small game so I use the .22 {.224} Winchester Spec. ammo and for other things the Mag. ammo.  The big draw back is the ammo is too high.  I have an 1895 Marlin in 25-20 that I cast and load for.  This one is really a better choice for the hand loader.

[DANNY-L]

Around here on the farms that do there own butchering it works good for beef and hogs,alot of poachers around here that do get caught seem to favor them also,I think mainly because of the noise level.When caught they loose them instead of the $500+ rifle at home (to bad they didnt loose there trigger finger also) They would be nice for turkey if legal here in NY.

[SHOOTALL]

limb rats with solids , ground hogs , fox, racoon, and such with hollow points . And target shoot for fun at 150 yards .

[Lt Smoke]

Marlin 783, tube fed, bolt gun, 6x24 Tasco, trigger job..........fox, coon, coyote, feral cats, whistle pigs, rock chucks.........it loves Winchester 40g hp's. Out to 150 yards it never lets me down. I bought it new for $100 in 1980. Money well spent. Living out here in Idaho I have the space and  opportunity to shoot my .223's, .22-250's .243's all year long. It is the .22 mag that I grab first. It is my go to gun. Wow, I think I need to go out on the porch and take a look at what may be in my back pasture...........see ya later.

Smoke












4

[Foggy]

I use mine for anything under Deer size game and pests Love it

[Flynmoose]

I used my Stevens Favorite 22 mag on crows, bluejays and feral cats when I lived on the farm.
I heard of a man in Alaska that got his moose every year with a Marlin 22 mag.

[Range Rider]

I have seen too many big game animals die from poor hunting habits.  Its like the fellow who brags that he never has to sight his rifle in to kill a deer. Or the nut case that uses a rimfire to kill a moose, elk or any other big game animal.  Yes, most of us know it can be done, but most of us know better than to do it. Respect the animal you take.

[Wyo. Coyote Hunter]

  Range Rider, Very well said, and very true....

[Keith L]

I gave up on Rimfire Central after the thread where a member was bragging about killing a bear with his 17HMR.  Another guy was upset when I did not congratulate him for using his HMR on deer sized game at 100 yards plus.

The world is full of slob hunters.  Some of them compare rimfire big game hunting to ultralite fishing.  I happen to disagree.  For what its worth I also don't think any rimfire is adequate for personal defense if there is any alternative.

[Drilling Man]

  I shot a muskrat with mine, as few days ago...

  DM

[351 power]

i've taken 2 elk and 3 middle sized grizzlies with mine. not scared to try long shots on caribou but usually just bite them little critters and drag them into the deep water. ha ha just teasing you serious guys. i like the .22mag for a walking rifle. love to walk in the woods and sneak up on beasts. racoon was my last find

[schoolmaster]

I have a Savage 93 I bought because it was cheap and wanted more punch than a 22 LR. The 22 mag works well for any kind of pest/vermin shooting at reasonable ranges and is my truck gun when driving around on the farm. I liked the 22 mag so well I also bought a Stevens Favorite in 22 mag and it is a light handy walking around gun.

[Rolandedwinjohnson]

Foggy has it right, I use mine for hunting everything smaller that deer (even small pigs).  For butchering I am reliable told that it kills cattle, goats, and pigs quite well.

Solids work well on squirrels and rabbits

[dpastordan]

My grandfather had one for years that was primarily used to protect his chickens on his farm from foxes, raccoons, and the occasional possum.  He also used it during butchering time for hogs.  I consider it a general purpose medium game cartridge (groundhogs, foxes - basically bigger than a squirrel but smaller than a deer).  I have owned three - two were combinations guns (.22 WMR over 20 Gauge).  I have a Savage bolt action with the accutrigger.  In combo guns, the .22 WMR makes a lot of sense as a go to gun/survival gun.  I have shot squirrel with the .22 WMR but it has to be headshots - even solids in the body tear up too much meat.  It is a good, quiet chuck gun compared to the centerfire .22's and some areas that is needed.  I remember reading an article by a fellow who used the .22 WMR as his light rifle in Africa with good success on the smaller antelope - those that run about the size of a coyote and smaller.   

[myarmor]

I have shot mine- a Marlin bolt ever sence I was a kid and with the right ammo and range works well for many a app. Mine usually was only Squrills, Rabbits, and Turkeys.
Awesome find by the way on a CZ at a Yard Sale



-Aaron

[Rangr44]

My .22 Mags have never failed me (since my 1st one in 1962) for taking various pests & game up to about 40lbs.

I never tried it on anything larger than yote's/feral dogs - like hogs or deer.

.

[Rex in OTZ]

I use the .22 mag for anything up to fox in size, inside 100 yds. anything bigger or farther need to use a centerfire caliber.

If I could return to my youth, I'd use a pump .22mag for anchoring raccon and beaver.

[samh]

I too found a used CZ 452 in .22 mag, in great shape with a Simmons 3 x 9 scope on it for $350 in 2008. It really surprised me how accurate it is. Likes CCI 40 gr.. Armadillos, crows, coyotes, bobcats and fox have all been targets with it, more armadillos than anything else.. Used it last fall for squirrels, accurate enough for head shots. It's such a good looking gun I tried to keep it in the safe, but I like shooting it so well it's turned into my favorite truck gun here on the farm, I did get a good gun case for it to ride in. This is my first CZ, but won't be the last. I'm really impressed with it, just wish they'd reverse the safety, but I can live with that.

[jedman]

   Mostly feral cats, possums, and other pests,  I usually allways have a rifle ready to go by the back door.  Scoped pellet rifle also gets alot of use.

[emsemt911]

Coyotes and smaller out to 100 yds.