.22lr killing ability taken too lightly?

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Csinn

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I know it’s a small round and not that powerful and there are much better cartridges, but I believe the .22lr is taken lightly for it’s ability to kill. I know a .223 is better for coyotes but I’ve dropped one at 65 yards in a berry row because it was what I had on the tractor, and I’m not a great shot. When we butcher our hogs we used to use a .30-30 from 8ft or so cause bigger would mean better kill but it would go right through the head and not kill. From 2-3ft from the head we get 1 shot kills every time with standard .22lr hollow pts. I’d never use it for deer or game of that size obviously but it’s our most used cartridge because the smaller rifles easily fit on a tractor and rounds are cheap and most things shot are rabbits or gopher size. In a pinch we have used them on animals up to coyote size and always brought them down at 70yrds or under. I feel like it’s actually fairly deadly for the closer shots and if you take some time to aim but all I ever hear is “it’s only good for plinking and can’t really kill anything”.
 
As far as killing for slaughter. When i worked at the butcher shop. Anything under a 100 lbs we used a stun gun. It used a nail gun charge. It pushed out a rod. Up to 300 lbs a 22 rifle. The bigger animals we used a mini 14. As far as game. Shot placement is key. The poachers like 22lr.
 
Anyone who thinks a .22 LR won't kill you is a fool. All guns can kill and there is no changing that once it happens. Even a non-fatal gunshot wound is a life changing event.

I have shot lots of things with the .22 LR and it does kill. From water moccasins up to hogs, a well placed shot will drop things. Most of my shooting with a .22 LR is on jackrabbit sized game and even cheap bulk bullets kill well. When I am hunting bobcats, racoons, or coyotes, I generally switch to Velocitors and have had great results. They both expand and penetrate.

The .22 LR is a very versatile cartridge when used within its limitations. It should also always be treated with the same respect given to other firearms.
 
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I personally have seen a .22lr kill a 600lb elk, and I've seen the .22lr fail to kill a 2lb grouse.

I don't think anybody argues that a .22lr won't kill. Eventually.
Its the "eventually" part that turns many people off to .22lr as anything more than pest control.
 
A MiniMag or Velociter is around 150 fpe. Plenty to kill most varmints with ethically as long as range is kept reasonable, say, under 50 yards depending upon the varmint. Now humans, nobody wants to get shot and a .22 can and has certainly killed humans on purpose and accidentally. It ain't nothing to fool around with and neither are the higher powered air rifles. For a coyote or bobcat or of that nature I would much rather the .22 Magnum or Hornet or .223 even even the .243 is they are at a distance.
 
It depends on shot placement. I watched my father shoot a hog between the eyes at point blank range while it was eating corn but the angle was wrong. The hog just grunted and kept eating the corn while blood was pouring out of it's nose and had to be shot again.
I was accidentally shot in the hand with a 22 hollow point and believe me I have a great respect for the round.
I don't use it for anything larger than groundhogs and raccoons.
 
When I was a kid my dad killed everything up to 800 lbs steers with a .22. Contact range brain shots. The rifle was a Winchester 74. That same model rifle was exported to Britain in WW 2 for home island defense and SAS operations. I don't recommend hunting anything bigger than a raccoon with a 22LR. But can kill big critters by someone that knows how. The past world record Alaska Brown bear was killed by an Eskimo woman with a single shot 22 short. She is considerably braver than I am.
 
3Crows said:
A MiniMag or Velociter is around 150 fpe. Plenty to kill most varmints with ethically as long as range is kept reasonable, say, under 50 yards depending upon the varmint. Now humans, nobody wants to get shot and a .22 can and has certainly killed humans on purpose and accidentally. It ain't nothing to fool around with and neither are the higher powered air rifles. For a coyote or bobcat or of that nature I would much rather the .22 Magnum or Hornet or .223 even even the .243 is they are at a distance.
Click to expand...

I agree that there are much better choices for bobcats and coyotes, but I occasionally hunt small pieces of land where the .22 LR is all the landowner will allow. Most shots are between 30-50 yards and the Velocitors work well.
 
ECVMatt said:
I agree that there are much better choices for bobcats and coyotes, but I occasionally hunt small pieces of land where the .22 LR is all the landowner will allow. Most shots are between 30-50 yards and the Velocitors work well.
Click to expand...
Aguila makes to wicked 22 ammo.
Personally 22LR is great for night calling where shots are usually inside 100 yards.
I have come to like the 17 hmr for anything under 223.
 
Actually, the Cree Woman Bella Twin killed the world record grizzly bear with a .22 Long in 1953 (but that is just a 22 short bullet in a 22 LR case). The account (https://www.ammoland.com/2017/06/be...-world-record-grizzly-and-more/#axzz7oWvWFfqX) stated that she thought it was less risky to shoot the bear than not shoot it.

Interesting photo of the skull in the article. Shot placement is everything.

I have used a 22 LR and 22 WMR to give the coup de grace to a number of wounded or medically distressed animals. When I was in high school hunting ringtails and raccoons for skins we used 22 LRs. And, my CCW is a NNA Black Widow in 22 WMR (highly concealable and comfortable to carry).

The 22 LR and 22 WMR are workhorse cartridges. If you know you are going to go after specific species larger than a grey fox, then there are bigger and better options. But since most of the time you will be encountering an irate rattlesnake or malicious varmint, it will be all you need. Anyone who underestimates their ability to kill is not behaving rationally.
 
The thing that I have found out about the high velocity lighter bullet weight 22's like CCI Stingers is they aren't as accurate in my 22's as is standard velocity Remington Target or CCI Green tag. It seemed to me that the higher velocity and lighter bullet Stingers were making up for bad shot placement by collateral damage. I get much cleaner and more humane kills with good shot placement from CCI Green Tag or Remington Target. I prefer the Green Tag if it is available.
 
Growing up on a farm I’ve seen a lot of animals “put down” with 22lr. I’ve seen 2000 lb bulls fall over like they were with hit with a 45-70 and I’ve seen dogs flop like you stabbed them. It’s just not reliably effective.

I personally want use a 22 to kill an animal that isn’t a rodent or pest of some kind. That said the OP is right, it is generally underrated imo.
 
d2wing said:
When I was a kid my dad killed everything up to 800 lbs steers with a .22. Contact range brain shots. The rifle was a Winchester 74. That same model rifle was exported to Britain in WW 2 for home island defense and SAS operations. I don't recommend hunting anything bigger than a raccoon with a 22LR. But can kill big critters by someone that knows how. The past world record Alaska Brown bear was killed by an Eskimo woman with a single shot 22 short. She is considerably braver than I am.
Click to expand...
My Grandpa used a single shot Winchester with a .22 short for all his hogs,goats and cattle. Never knew of him to have to shoot twice. .22 rimfire is certainly not the best choice for many critters but it is amazing what the dinky round can kill if close enough to the animal and properly placed.
 
When I was like 10 we came across a rabid coon in the road ditch near our house and my oldest brother went home and got a 10/22 and 3 magazines for good measure and I watched him shoot it 30 times before it died. Like 10 of those were to the front of the skull and glanced off without penetrating. I would never believe it if someone told me the story but I was there. On the other hand I’ve seen dozens of other animal as large or much larger than a coon drop from a single shot. Maybe it was because it was rabid?

In general I agree that the killing power of a 22 is greatly underestimated. The penetration is really quite impressive in soft tissue.
 
I have shot several coons that were either rabid or had distemper before our dogs could get to them. A 22 is enough for a coon. I wouldn't want to face off against an angry wild boar, rabid coyote, elk, or an enraged bull/cow with a 22. Especially in low light.
 
Lots of people in 2022 get their information
from the various internet sources and
from magazine articles and such.
Not as many today that have field experience with other than the fad
stuff. I personally know a good many
that go strictly by whatever is on their
game cameras or online videos as
far as animal behaviour and territory
 
someguy2800 said:
When I was like 10 we came across a rabid coon in the road ditch near our house and my oldest brother went home and got a 10/22 and 3 magazines for good measure and I watched him shoot it 30 times before it died. Like 10 of those were to the front of the skull and glanced off without penetrating. I would never believe it if someone told me the story but I was there. On the other hand I’ve seen dozens of other animal as large or much larger than a coon drop from a single shot. Maybe it was because it was rabid?
Click to expand...

I’d be more prone to bet your brother was shooting hollow points. I’ve recovered hundreds of hollow point slugs which smashed against the skull of coons without penetrating.

I’ve killed thousands of coons with 22LR’s, between hunting over hounds, tunnel raiding with terriers, squalling/calling, and running traplines. Some coons DO just seem to be possessed by invulnerable spirits, but most will go quietly to a shot to the head - even using hollow points, regardless of penetration - or to the heart/lungs.

Three weeks worth of hound hunts thawing in the sun to take to the furbuyer.
C0EDF1D2-DF9E-427E-9705-6E8D1096361A.jpeg

An afternoon’s work running terriers into foundations under abandoned barns on my properties:
065569D5-5AF2-448C-8A78-1AA7D6738EBE.jpeg
 
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