Having some accuracy problems with my 22 hornet and have a couple questions.

[rocko]

I built a youth model 22 hornet for my girls. I havent measured the barrel but its the normal contour short youth model barrels. Well today i loaded a few rounds for it. I loaded some 40 grain Combined Technologies ballistic silvertips for it. I loaded them in some once fired Sellier and Bellot brass. I put 10 grains of H110 behind them with CCI small rifle magnum primers. well i bore sighted it and set up at 30 yards to get it started. Now just a note this gun was brand new and had never been fired. But at 30 yards i could get any better than about 2 inch groups out of it with 3 shots. Its not the scope i dont think. I was shooting off a table with a steady rest. Now i dont have my manual in front of me but if i remember correctly this load was rated for around 2700 fps. I think the load is just a little to fast to stabilize the bullet in that short barrel. it started raining on me so i didnt try and work up any more loads.  I figured one of you handiholics might have an idea of witch way to go. I just dont get enough time in the evenings to work up a bunch of loads. So please give me your opinions.

Thanks
rocko

[billy_56081]

  I have a super light 22 hornet and after after placing a vinyl washer between the forearm screw and forearm The accuracy became alot better. I have gotten slightly over 1/2 inch 3 shot groups at 100 yards. I have been using a 35 grain vmax over a max charge of Lil Gun. I have heard alot of good reports from others here using the same load.

[Roudy]

Rocko,

Once you sort out the mechanical issues, if there are any, check your loads out.

 I've loaded the 22 Hornet in the past and with that small case it is very sensitive to minor variations in powder.  If you don't weigh each charge you may want to consider doing it for this cartridge. 

Load up about ten cartridges with a tenth of a grain difference in powder and try out each load.  Make sure you stay under the maximum load listed in your loading manual though.

Roudy

[quickdtoo]

I loaded them in some once fired Sellier and Bellot brass. I put 10 grains of H110 behind them with CCI small rifle magnum primers.

I have several loading manuals, none call for SR Mag primers, all call for SR and I've seen some data call for SP primers, never magnum primers. Using the correct primer may be a step in the right direction.

There are a bunch of us here that shoot Hodgdon Lil'gun and the 35gr Vmax resulting in superb accuracy, my standard barrel will put 10 inside an inch at 100yds....on my good days, of course!!

Tim

[dw06]

I'd take Tims's advise,mag primers are not a good choice for the hornet.My handi hornet would only shoot well with 2 primers after trying all of them.The rem 6 1/2 and it really liked the fed sr match primers.I shot allot of ww296 at 10grs,which some say that H110 is the same powder but I never tried H110.Like many here I had great luck with Lil'gun powder and 40gr bts or the 45gr hornady hornet bullet.
Had to workup loads much like Roudy suggested as it is a very sensitive case to load.Once you find a good load or two,it sure is fun and cheap to load for.Keep us posted on how it does for you.
One more thing,since it is new if it were mine I would clean it real good and then polish the bore and chamber with flitz or other metal polish.

[ONE HOLE 4570]

little gun & 35vmax is the way to go. The S&B brass primer holes were not the same size as my winchester smaller I believe. Tossed all the s&B brass

[stimpylu32]

Rocko

I started with H110 in my 218 Bee and found that it would work OK but once i switched to IMR 4198 my groups shrunk by 200% , has a lot to do with the fact that the 110 is very picky about powder charge and case fill .

H110 does tend to throw flyers with as much as ,01 grain diffrence in these small cases , while the 4198 is more forgiving with even .02 or .03 grains not making any diffrence in group size .

As for primers , i do not use the mag , just standard Fed and CCI's work very well with these low charges , the Mags may be too hot for these little rounds .

You may also want to try some of the Hornady 35gr V-max , my bee just loves them but is not wanting to shoot the 40gr very well .

stimpy

[mattparliament]

mine loves the 35 grain v-max with some H110, superb accuracy and chrony at just over 3000 fps.  Stabilization shouldn't be an issue, if it were it may keyhole.  I use the winchester small rifle primers.  If you're sure it's not the mounts/scope I would definitely try regular primers.

[aulrich]

Your primers jumped out as a problem to me too, small pistols came up so often in my pre-reading I have not bothered  with anything else.  I have only used li'gun to date so I can't speak to you powder selection. One thing that has also come up is crimping but I have not tried it yet. I had mine converted to k-hornet and I have been concentrating on the 50 gr range The longest bullet I have tried is the 50 gr nosler bt and it has the best accuracy potential of what I have tried so far, the 40's should easily be stabilized.

[billy_56081]

  I guess if we go into the finer points of my reloads. I use win cases, WSR primers, A max dose of Lil gun under a 35 grain Vmax. I use a lee full lenght sizer and factory crimp die. I did notice an increase in accuracy when I started crimping my loads. I think especially with the light bullets and Lil gun you need the crimp to get a good starting pressure.

[Couger]

Hope this conversation isn't too old with me just jumping in now.

Two things i noticed right off the bat .......

Without shooting that barrel enough to "break it in" it's really silly to expect it to shoot well - yet!  Most rifles I've ever seen require a couple hundred rounds down the tube to really see the barrel settle down and show what its capable of.

Also, I've never heard of using magnum primers in a Hornet or K-Hornet.  Just the opposite!  One trick I have heard about is using standard pistol primers with their more delicate ignition than even the recommended standard rifle small primers.

I don't yet shoot a 'K-Hornet,' (its one of my summer projects coming up) - but I have heard many times that a standard CCI 500 or standard Remington pistol primer helps a great deal with Hornet accuracy.

"Hornet veterans" also claim that quality brass - usually Winchester (is best) makes a big difference, along with Lil'Gun powder.  A proven quality 'Hornet bullet' might really help too.

This cartridge is extremely finicky and often very frustrating with someone who isn't very patient.  It might easily test your ability to precision handload and turn out good ammo.  However folks that like it REALLY like it and love it!

[rocko]

I never even considered the primers. Ive loaded alot for hornets and have never had any problems with the magnum primers. And i realize the barrel not being broke in could be an issue. But i have had a bunch of new handis and never had this problem with a new barrel. Its possible but i aint figuring on it. I usually load all 55 grainers for my hornets and just had some 40s so i thought i would give them a try. And the accuracy of the powder charge was not an issue. I weighed in every charge at 10 grains. And i have never had a problem with the h110 in my hornets. But im gonna totally re-vamp my work ups. And new brass is scarce here.So im using the s and b once fired because its about the only factory ammo around here. But im gonna try some lil gun and some 296 and some sr primers and sp primers. Thanks for getting me pointed in the right direction guys.

Thanks
rocko

[greg916]

My Hornet shot terrible also. The chamber was maximum. I neck sized only and groups shrunk right up. It now shoots about an inch at 100 yards. I use 40 gr speer bullets, IMR4198, Winchester cases and CCI small rifle primers.

[Couger]

Wow Rocko,

Didn't know you were a veteran 'Hornet reloader.'  If I had known that I would have said try everything that's been a success for you, but then "here are the tips I've consistently heard about ......"

As for the standard primers, they're a lot more "delicate" than magnum primers, and the pistol caps have even softer 'battery cups' than small rifle primers do.  Tweaking the primers has been something I read even the best gun writers recommend, but reloading entails much experimenting of course.

I'm surprised Lapua and Norma don't offer brass.  Best brass available is usually Winchester - but decide for yourself.  As for breaking in a barrel, if you've had success with Handi-barrels shooting right from the box - just remember that isn't always the case.  Maybe your Hornet you're trying to get to shoot wants more TLC before it settles down.

Also the suggestions to only neck-size is good, as is crimping the bullet however needed.

I'm going to shoot the K-Hornet to try to eliminate many problems associated with the standard Hornet, alond with providing a better shoulder to headspace with.

You mentioned that you use H110 with much success.  I'd recommend also taking a careful long look at Li'Gun.  Oddly enough I remember reading that 13.0 grains of that stuff is magic in some Hornets/K-Hornets.

Good luck!  Please continue to share your findings and successes.   

[rocko]

I think i was just messing up from the get go. I had some load data for w296 but nothing on a 40 grainer. I should have just stuck with my 55s. And you learn something new every day, i had no idea that primers would make a difference. Ive had a little trouble with the cci standard small rifle primers not going off. But ive never been much for experimenting. I usually find a load i like for a caliber and if it doesnt work just perfect i fine tune it just a little for that gun. But i think this is one of them deals where i need to really cover all the asspects. I just wish i could get new brass locally. I use new winchester headstamp brass for about everything. But they dont stock it here. Ill get some 55s worked up with some 296 later and let ya know how it shoots.

[Couger]

Winchester brass?

Order some through the mail!  As for bullets, if you like 55's then by all means use them, but I almost never hear of Hornet / K-Hornet afficianados using bullets that heavy - for high velocities and flat trajectories.  Just noticed on Sierra Bullet's web site they still oiffer several "Hornet-class" butllets, including the two they have had for years and years and years that are .223 caliber instead of the standard .224 caliber.  Hornady used to offer a 46grain bullet expressly for the Hornets and .218 Bee.  And now you can even find bullets as light as 35grains from Hornady.

Check out Cabelas.com of course, but I like MidwayUSA.com even better.  There's also CheaperThanDirt.com but MidwayUSA.com frequently advertises better prices.

Keep in mind that some flavors of Winchester brass are available seasonally - they only make it once a year and when its gone, you have to wait until the next run.

[quickdtoo]

The 22 Hornet Handi has a 1:12" twist which gives it an advantage shooting the heavier than normal Hornet bullets, several folks here shoot 50gr Vmax with no problems, although I prefer the 35gr myself.

Midsouth will usually beat Midway's prices and shipping is less, plus they're a GBO sponsor!! The only time I use Midway is if Midsouth/Grafs/Cabelas doesn't have what I need/want, Midway's shipping charge can be shockingly high in comparison!!

If I want something fast, Cabelas is usually the place to go, they ship just about everything priority mail, if I place an order on the weekend, they always ship Monday and I have it Wednesday.

Tim

[rocko]

Couger,

        Im not trying to shoot long range so the 55s work great. And they stabilize great out of every new england hornet ive seen.







 And for a progress report. I wish i would have took before and after pictures of the groups. I couldnt find any 35 v-maxs around here. But luckily my neighbor had some. I loaded some in front of some lil gun with the small rifle primers. I have only shot it at 30 yards so far but my groups shrunk from 2 inches to right at a half inch . I cant wait to see what it does. Hopefully i can shoot it some this weekend. Thanksfor the advice guys. Im sold on the 35 v-maxs now.


thanks
rocko