[mountaindrew]

I have heard that .22 magnum has more power than a .32acp but have no numbers to back it up. Does anyone have info on .22 magnum out of a short barrel?

[cslinger]

I have heard that same thing and from a rifle barrel the .22 magnum is really no joke but again I have no hard numbers to back this up.

If you are thinking about this as a defensive option the balllistics might be better but the reliability of a rimfire will never be as good as a centerfire.

Chris

[mountaindrew]

I hadn't even considered rimfire reliability! is that really a problem? I have never owned a .22 magnum. I have had a couple of misfires with cheap .22 lr in my ruger, but I just figure that was becaue it was cheap and several years old. hmmm.....

[Glock19Fan]

A .22WMR from a 2 inch barrel-

http://www.naaminis.com/bwmvel.html

A .32 from NAA Guardian-

http://www.naaminis.com/vel32new.html

Energy of average .22WMR, 130 FPE
Energy of average .32ACP, 120 FPE

The difference isnt that big, but if I had the choice between a .32 pocket pistol or a .22 magnum snub, I would probably go with the .32 just becuase of the larger bullet (in either caliber I would prefer FMJ).

[LynnKCircle]

The problem with rimfire reliability seems to be the alleged claim that rimfire primers are more liable to oil contamination than centerfire primers. That said, the only round I ever had truly get messed up from penetrating oil was a centerfire 9x18 Hornady.

But rimfire weapons DO seem to be far more particular about their kind of fodder. I've even seen where two instances of the same make and model were more reliable with different brands of ammunition.

My own current Black Widow has been 100% reliable with CCI Maxi-Mags. But when I tried CCI's TNT HPs, two out of five cylinder holes consistently needed repeated strikes. Looking at the two different rounds, it was easy to see that the TNT had a visably thinner rim than the Maxi-Mags. Apparently in my gun, at least, that meant those cylinder chambers had just enough play to make the hammer strike unreliable.

However, good rimfire ammo which I've tested at the range with various .22 handguns for a couple of hundred rounds has proven to be as reliable as center-fire -- provided I didn't drench the gun in something like Hoppe's Benchrest and then throughly remove the excess (that's what happened to my Makarov. Benchrest really is penetrating, and the excess totally messed up the Hornady ammo in the top of the magazine).`

[mec]

probably not exactly what you want- the barrel lengths being sporting revolver size but there is a table down toward the end:
http://tools.sixgunner.com/old%5Fmodel/guests/maximag.htm
I've never had a squib or misfire with WMR ammunition but have had quite a few with various long rifles.

[Tacoma]

Can't help you with the .32 but I can tell you that the 22 mag has been reciently and consistantly reported ( on other forums) to produce around 1000 fps w 40 gr bullets and 1300fps w 30 gr (gold dot) out of a 2" bbl. That equates to 110-130 fp of ME.