22's, are they just for plinking cans?
- Thread starter Z400ACDC
- Start date
Limeyfellow
New member
A .22 is going to take care of most smaller animals. Squirrels, rabbits, snakes, pests and such. It could even take down a coyote with a well placed shot or even some deer so I wouldn't underestimate the round. However if you want more power to take down something larger, that shoots well you can't go wrong with .22-250 or possibly even .223 and you should be sorted with varmints and many other critters.
22s are one of the most versatile rounds, but they do have their limitations. For example, I have shot everything from mice to coyotes with a 22LR, but at the top end you won't get the immediate results you see on the smaller critters.
If you want to shoot more than 100 yds, or want to take on bigger animals, go with a centerfire caliber. I love my 22-250, but I love my 223 also. It works well out to 300-350 yds, is accurate, and has plenty of power for chucks and coyotes. Plus, ammo is cheap.
If you want to shoot more than 100 yds, or want to take on bigger animals, go with a centerfire caliber. I love my 22-250, but I love my 223 also. It works well out to 300-350 yds, is accurate, and has plenty of power for chucks and coyotes. Plus, ammo is cheap.
No... you can plink golf balls and bottle caps too... Seriously... the varmints would have to be pretty short range to make humane kills on animals bigger than jack rabbits... Rock chucks are usually a couple hundred yard's and a .22 would give them a horrible death IF it didn't penetrate to a vital organ.
.223 is more useful, more cost effective, and it is more versatile than 22-250 (Reloading?)
Plinking is fun with a Ruger mini-14 or even the 30 but there are nice bolt actions available as well...
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jhgreasemonkey
New member
Very fun to hunt rabbits with a .22
Up until about 1980, after which drug gangs popularized the 9 mm among criminal elements, something like half of all firearm deaths (human) by bullet were by .22. That was back when the anti-gun crowd was telling us with absolute certainty that banning "Saturday Night Specials" would prevent sixty percent of all firearm-related deaths. The .22 may not be a fast stopper, but anythng that pumps blood does poorly with a steady leak, much less with several of them.
Varmints will go down faster and more humanely than people do with the .22 LR cartridge, and survival guns are often based on it because it will kill deer or do most of whatever else needs to be done, eventually. Jeff Cooper has suggested that .22 LR cartridges might become a common and valuable medium of exchange in a post-apocolyptic world for this very reason.
Nick
Varmints will go down faster and more humanely than people do with the .22 LR cartridge, and survival guns are often based on it because it will kill deer or do most of whatever else needs to be done, eventually. Jeff Cooper has suggested that .22 LR cartridges might become a common and valuable medium of exchange in a post-apocolyptic world for this very reason.
Nick
jhgreasemonkey
New member
Great. Now I got to go buy a new .22. Thanks UncleNick! cause you just reminded me of why they are handy. I gave my last one to my cousin because he really liked it.
cause you just reminded me of why they are handy. I gave my last one to my cousin because he really liked it.Varmint Eviscerator
New member
actually with stinger and my favorite, the CCI velocitor (G.D.H.P at 1435fps)
it makes the 22 a 100 yard chuck killer, and efficiently to! These rounds also wrok on yotes-heart or head, out to about 65yrds, then after that a head shot is rpetty much a must.
Dont underestimate it!
Chase
it makes the 22 a 100 yard chuck killer, and efficiently to! These rounds also wrok on yotes-heart or head, out to about 65yrds, then after that a head shot is rpetty much a must.
Dont underestimate it!
Chase
The .22 lr makes a fine survival weapon. It's quieter than most centerfire rounds, accurate in both handgun and long gun, and a bunch stores quite easily in a pack. It's not, however, a long-range weapon. Limit your shots to 100-125 yards, and practice until you can hit where you want without fail, and the caliber will work. If you're hunting out to 175-200 yards, especially in areas with some build-up, the .22 Hornet is a better bet than a .22-250. The Hornet is MUCH quieter.
U.S.SFC_RET
New member
You can develop a little bit of long range with a 22 magnum, 150 plus. It's shot placement that really counts. 22lrs are great for honing in those shooting skills that you want to work on. 22 magnum are a bit more expensive to achieve the same result but it's still a rifle and rifles keep the BGs off of your back in case the SHTF. No one want's to take on a marksman defending his property. You can get some pretty hot loads for the 22 magnum from what I hear.
check this out as well probaly over kill if you are keeping it at 100 yards
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4665642 My frind has on at it will shoot 3/4 inch groups at 100 yard (300 ft) ammo is a lot more than 22 long rifle but on par with 22 mag With this availble i would not buy a 22 mag they dont as flat but if you will only be shooting at 100 yards and less stick with 22lr you can shoot five times as much for the same money
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4665642 My frind has on at it will shoot 3/4 inch groups at 100 yard (300 ft) ammo is a lot more than 22 long rifle but on par with 22 mag With this availble i would not buy a 22 mag they dont as flat but if you will only be shooting at 100 yards and less stick with 22lr you can shoot five times as much for the same money
Anthony Terry
New member
if you already have a 22lr, you wont need a mag. just get a 22-250 and youll have alot more fun. though it will cost more to shoot. worth every penny long as its fun.
FirstFreedom
Moderator
More dinner has been put on the table, and more vermin eliminated, and more people murdered (and accidentally killed) in the U.S., with a .22 than any other caliber out there over the decades since it was invented, except maybe the 12 ga shotgun. Rabbits, squirrels, turkeys, raccoons, groundhogs, beaver, coyote, possum, ducks, geese, weasals, badgers, wolverines, otters, nutria, and even deer, elk, caribou, moose, with head & neck shots. Yes, I said ducks & geese too (and quail/chukkar/pheasant for that matter), because when people are subsistence hunting, they don't care about morals/ethic/laws - they 'pot shoot' them. Of course, much less of this subsistence hunting has gone on in the last 40 or 50 years, than in the 50 years prior to that.
So I'd say yes, it's for more than plinking.
I've heard the story here on TFL, that some guy who lived in Alaska happened to overhear a gunstore conversation between the clerk or owner, and an eskimo/inuit who was there for a once-in-a-blue-moon excursion into town, and conversation went something like this:
inuit: "I want something more powerful than what I've been using to shoot these caribou with - I want to upgrade to a *magnum* like some of my other relatives have."
clerk: "OK, here's some rifles in 7mm remmag, .308 norma mag, .300 winmag, .375 H&H mag", etc.
inuit: "No that's too big - I don't need anything like that"
clerk: "hmmm, well I don't understand, can you show me what shells you've been using in your rifle for the game?"
inuit: Pulls a .22lr shell out from his pocket: "This".
The Inuit guy wanted a magnum, alright - a .22 magnum!!
Do NOT underestimate the power of a .22lr - especially today's high-vel and hyper-vel - it is quite deadly at shortish ranges (out to 75 yards or so) on small game, and also on larger stuff with CNS shots. Which is why you must pay just as much attention to gun safety rules when shooting rimfires as you would with shooting a .50 BMG.
So I'd say yes, it's for more than plinking.
I've heard the story here on TFL, that some guy who lived in Alaska happened to overhear a gunstore conversation between the clerk or owner, and an eskimo/inuit who was there for a once-in-a-blue-moon excursion into town, and conversation went something like this:
inuit: "I want something more powerful than what I've been using to shoot these caribou with - I want to upgrade to a *magnum* like some of my other relatives have."
clerk: "OK, here's some rifles in 7mm remmag, .308 norma mag, .300 winmag, .375 H&H mag", etc.
inuit: "No that's too big - I don't need anything like that"
clerk: "hmmm, well I don't understand, can you show me what shells you've been using in your rifle for the game?"
inuit: Pulls a .22lr shell out from his pocket: "This".
The Inuit guy wanted a magnum, alright - a .22 magnum!!
Do NOT underestimate the power of a .22lr - especially today's high-vel and hyper-vel - it is quite deadly at shortish ranges (out to 75 yards or so) on small game, and also on larger stuff with CNS shots. Which is why you must pay just as much attention to gun safety rules when shooting rimfires as you would with shooting a .50 BMG.
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Limeyfellow
New member
That is a tad high. I usually see them sell in the $400 range. He might go down on the price though.
jhgreasemonkey
New member
FF great story!
Anthony Terry
New member
z400acdc
what type of 700 model was it? if it was a vs or vssf it would be well worth it. they are awesome rifles. a little high for a plain bdl though.
what type of 700 model was it? if it was a vs or vssf it would be well worth it. they are awesome rifles. a little high for a plain bdl though.