New 22 Hornet what ammo?

[jrbb00]

Just picked up a new hornet from my local gun broker. My question is what ammo are you all using in the new hornets. If it was a 14" twist I would be ok but it is a 10" twist so I am looking for a starting point. Factory or reload able. I do have H-110 and Sierra 45 grain hornet bullets Barnes txs 53 grain bullets, and hornady 45 grain bee bullets. These are just what I have now I am looking for some factory ammo to break the barrel in with. If I find a factory that does good then I may hold off reloading till I have a stock pile of brass. Sorry for the long winded ness but just need a little help. 
Thanks

[quickdtoo]

See Best Factory Ammo in the FAQs, modern H&R Hornets are 1:9" or 1:12", those made 2007 and later are 1:9".

Tim

[SEK_22Hornet]

I'd start with factory to get a baseline.  Most Hornet ammo these days is still loaded for the older slow 1 in 16 twist with short stubby 45 grain bullets - the exception is Hornady which has some light weight ballistic tip style loads.  I've seen the Hornady, Remington, S&B, and PPU loads on the shelf at Cabelas.  As always, I'd suggest picking up a couple different types (if you have that luxury in your area) and see which one your gun likes best.  The 1 in 10 should stabilize heavier bullets a little better, so you may get better results working up a handload using heavier bullets.  Be careful - some heavier bullets won't expand at hornet velocities, so keep your int4ended use in mind.  I'm assuming your new rifle is an H&R - so seating depth will be something you can play with to see what works best accuracy wise. There is still mail order as a way to get some different loads to try as well (unless that is restricted in your area).  I handload but still buy a box of factory now and then for comparison.  I just reamed my new H&R out to a K Hornet, so I am just getting started seeing what it likes as well..... by the way, I never liked H110 in the hornet - it seemed to be hard on cases.  I liked Win 680 best but since it is gone, I'm getting ready to try some Lil' Gun loads - I've also used AA1680 as well with reasonable results.

[jrbb00]

Yes you are correct it is a H&R and 1 in 9 sorry. I have a couple of Remington shells left from my last hornet. May order some from the net just to try thanks.

[OSOK]

I picked up a box of S&B's when I got my Hornet last month. Seems to be good brass, I didn't have any problems with tight flash holes, as had been reported in other articles I had read.
I am loading a Nosler 40 gr. HP in mine with Lil' Gun. I have also loaded the same bullet with H110. Haven't chronographed the H110 loads, but the Lil' Gun's are going 2845 fps. out of my rifle.

[cwlongshot]

New factory ammo is quite pricey.... So is brass for that matter.

Personally on only reload, both the 45g hornet bullet as well as the 40g Speer and 35g Hornady. 2400 is a long time favorite. Lil gun is a new favorite!

This little 35g bullet and a full case of lil gun is a one hole shooter in many guns. Lil gun is nice as I doubt you could get too much powder in this little case to be dangerous.

I say bite the bullet, find some brass and start loading. It's just too expensive to go factory IMHO..

CW

[LaOtto222]

I know I am in the minority on this, but I like W296/H110 better than Lil'Gun. I also want to use a small pistol primer with mine. I also like light bullets in the Hornet, even if it is a 1 - 9" twist. I want explosive expansion when I hit a varmint and that only happens if you get the velocity up. Try 9.5 grains of H110 and a CCI 500 (small pistol) primer in a Winchester case. You should get around 2500 fps or so. If you substitute Lil'Gun for the H110, try 12.5 grains. You should get around 2800 fps or so. Those are both middle of the road loads taken straight out of the Speer 14th edition. The Lil'Gun looks very inviting and many people get excellent results with it. For some reason, I got very erratic pressures, some so high that I got blown primers and sticky cases. I also was getting as much as 400 fps range with the same loads. I found that H110/W296 gave me much more even velocities with no signs of high pressure. Just make sure you stick with small pistol primers, other wise you will need to back off the powder. If you use real light bullets, you can actually get higher velocity with the H110 than with Lil'Gun. With a 33 grain bullet you can get 3200 fps with a starting load of H110.

Good Luck and Good Shooting
 

[SEK_22Hornet]

I've used pistol primers for years - based on a few articles several years ago that indicated small rifle primers tended to push powder down the bore before igniting it, causing erratic ignition.  Had great results with the small pistol primers. 

[jrbb00]

Thanks for the info.