Do you think .22 Rimfire is becoming obsolete?

If supply was able to meet demand, there wouldn't be a shortage and probably even more people would be buying .22.


No kidding...
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The 40 will leave before the 22.

Obsolete? No

But it has become a "niche" cartridge to me-----have 4 or 5?? rifles---can't remember since I haven't even touched them in over 2 years-----and 2 handguns.

They never get shot because there is no ammo---went it does show up, it costs what 9mm ammo does----why bother.

Last time I even shot a .22 was nearly a year ago--when I bought a new Single Six---the price was right and always wanted another one since I sold off the last one.

I've also passed on some very nice .22 rifles due to the ammo situation.

They never get shot because there is no ammo---went it does show up, it costs what 9mm ammo does----why bother.

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I just looked online and found 10 ammo shops with 22 LR delivered below $.08 per round. I don't know where you buy your 9mm but I need a hookup.

I buy a case every now and then -- just browse the net until I find a buy and then Get enough to make it worth my while.

Although I still long for the days when I could buy a case of Winchester Wildcat for $100 -- about $0.02 a round.

They never get shot because there is no ammo...

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The nationwide shortage is over - there may still be pockets around the country that have not caught up.

Our local gun shop has been getting an ever increasing supply over the last 3 or 4 months - I know he finally started refusing the higher priced stuff - like everyone else, he would take anything any supplier could send him until a few months ago.

Looking at his shelves, I'm thinking he's probably now started refusing bulk / normal priced 22.

His 22 runs between 6 and 9 cents a round, depending on the flavor.

Another small, new shop told me the other day he had actually refused some 22 deliveries - being a new / small shop, he's had a lot of trouble getting 22 over the last 18 months or so he's been in business.

I've actually seen some 22 in the case during the middle of the day at our local Walmart, but I'm thinking the scalpers are still at work there.

Don't overpay folks! If you're in no hurry you can afford to wait for 22 to appear in your area at a decent price.

I have 6000 stashed and will buy more when I take the grandkids out to shoot. I like to keep ammo for all my guns stashed in case they become hard to get , now have a steel cabinet the size of my safe just to hold ammo and components[emoji23][emoji3][emoji3]

Well you succeeded to generate interest by that provocative statement. However foolish it may be. Just fyi, There were Remington Golden Bullets on sale in a store near my house yesterday for UNDER 5 CENTS PER ROUND. I predict that when 22 rim fire becomes readily available at a reasonable price again the sales of 22 guns will go crazy. Everyone who ever punched a hole in a bulls eye loves a good 22. The only people who don't love them are weenies who are totally afraid of all guns.

NO....it will be around long after we are all taking dirt naps.

Obsolete? Not hardly. If a large retailer offered it by the case at $30/brick they could sell truckloads in a day right now.

That said, although I have .22 rifles and handguns and an ample supply of fodder for them, I made a point of buying a 357/38 rifle and revolver and reloading components. Particularly in the rifle, a modest power .38 special has minimal recoil, is fun to shoot at .22 distances (50 yards and under), has pretty decent accuracy, and actually does a very nice job on small game (especially rabbits). They cost a little more than .22LR, but you can readily buy ammo and reloading components are available as well. Naturally you can also load 'em up with full house .357 mag loads for a different experience...

I still like and enjoy shooting .22 at the range and in the field, but the last few years have made me diversify.

.22 RF Obsolete ?

Absolutely not !

This Obsolescence Theory has had many positive and negative factors to come into play .

Negative : Buy all you can, or don't buy at all, etc....

Positive : I bought some Browning ammo this week. Forgot the price but decent. New names and producers to fill in the gaps.

As you said, you can shoot 9mm for about $0.20/round, but that is still double what 22LR costs. Nearly everyone has a 22 rifle and if you're into handguns, you probably have at least one 22. Got to feed them. No, it is not obsolete or even close to being unpopular. If people aren't shooting them, it's because they don't have sufficient ammo to waste.

Of the current rimfires, the only one that I personally see will/may peter out is the .17 HMR. The 22 WMR will rule. But it is not for everyone.

Knee jerk often, 22lr isn't going anywhere. Why do you think there's none in the stores? I'll give you a hint people are buying it all.
Something I've suggested to some people recently is match grade 22 hasn't gone up in price and is readily available so work on your precision shooting.

not a chance. 22lr has and probably for the next 100 years still will be, the de-facto standard for introduction to firearms, precision target shooting, and many international disciplines.

and yes, through the whole scare, Eley Match never budged in price or availability. I was perfectly fine.

Of the major calibers we have today, .22LR, 9mm, 40S&W, .45ACP, 39 Special and .357 Mag, how many do you think will still be in great demand in the year 2066? (50 years from now). If I was a betting man, I'd bet that .22LR would still be popular while the others would be replaced by the latest, greatest center-fire (or electric fire or whatever) ammo. .22LR has never been more popular, has never sold more per annum and will continue to be produced in 2066.

larryh1108 said:

Of the major calibers we have today, .22LR, 9mm, 40S&W, .45ACP, 38 Special and .357 Mag, how many do you think will still be in great demand in the year 2066? (50 years from now). If I was a betting man, I'd bet that .22LR would still be popular while the others would be replaced by the latest, greatest center-fire (or electric fire or whatever) ammo. .22LR has never been more popular, has never sold more per annum and will continue to be produced in 2066.

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I do not think 9mm NATO is going anywhere. I would wager .22lr and 9mm NATO will do the best at keeping their market share, with .40 S&W coming in last of the group. The ones I would be worried about disappearing by then (wait, why do I care about 50 years from now? I guess for kids or grand-kids that inherit my guns) are things like .45 GAP, .357 SIG, 10mm AUTO, those could end up on the endangered list (who are we kidding, .45 GAP is already there)

lol... Remington .22 LR isn't even worth $.05/round in my opinion.

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I see that a lot. I bet I shoot 10-15k of Remington Thunderbolts and Golden Bullets through a wide variety of guns and they are no more likely to fail than other bulk ammo. They are fine for plinking from 25 round magazines and I can't count the number of squirrels I have killed using these two "horrible" rounds.

Are they as good as Blazer? Definitely dirtier. Winchester makes some pretty shabby 22 LR bulk ammo and Federal makes some really quality 22 LR ammo.

Do you think .22 Rimfire is becoming obsolete?


Not in this world at this time.

Actually, I can think of an easy way for .22 rimfire to go away: a ban on lead bullets.

I do not believe it will ever become obsolete. it's simply too useful a combination between cost/recoil/weight/applications.

What I really believe we will see in not too many years (barring odd election issues) will be a glut of 22. There are scalpers with literally millions of rounds sitting in basements. We sill see the day when there are auctions and estate sales with 10,000 round lots of 22. whether it be on GB, armslist, or traditional means; they will start to dump them if the market goes soft.

Originally posted by TruthTellers

lol... Remington .22 LR isn't even worth $.05/round in my opinion.

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Remington .22 LR isn't worth $0.000000000005 in my experience.

I will no longer buy Remington in any caliber -- if their rimfire is so bad, why chance losing the elk or mulie of a lifetime because of bad ammo?

TruthTellers said:

lol... Remington .22 LR isn't even worth $.05/round in my opinion.

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Vern Humphrey said:

Remington .22 LR isn't worth $0.000000000005 in my experience.

I will no longer buy Remington in any caliber -- if their rimfire is so bad, why chance losing the elk or mulie of a lifetime because of bad ammo?

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Great! More for us!

Our guns eat Remington .22LR like it's candy.

I figure 22 LR will be around for a long, long time and as to 9mm ever costing less I really don't care because I really do not own a 9mm or have any desire to own a 9mm unless I grab a Browning Hi Power and only an older one or maybe a P08 or P38. I also really do not much care what others view as good or bad .22 rimfire ammunition. Have at it. Half the failure to fire 22 rimfire I have seen and examined were a result of light firing pin strikes and the remainder was lousy ammunition. Anyway, 22 rimfire is not going anywhere anytime soon. For those who dislike the caliber or specific brand? Don't buy it, God I love America.

Ron