.17Mach2 or 22LR?

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rbernie

rbernie

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I'm going to rebarrel my 10/22, and I can't decide if I want to move to 17Mach2 or not. The rifle is used primarily as a training aid right now, with an eye towards small-game hunting when the opportunity presents itself.

Thots?
 
.22lr is dirt cheap, but .17M2 has the cool factor. Decide which is more important. Both will kill small game (squirrels, bunnies) just as well within 30 yards. If you want more power, go with either .22mag or .17HMR.

Personally, I'd stick with .22lr and if you want either more power of the rimfire mags, or just the cool factor of .17M2, then buy a gun for that.
 
I've been out of pocket for a while, so excuse my ignorance, but what is the difference between .17HMR and .17 Mach2?

Thanks,
Steve
 
Has .17HMR lost some popularity, or has the .17M2 just augmented it?

What's the .17M2 for? Squirrels, etc.? Chipmunks? Ants? I'm assuming it has a pretty flat trajectory.

Thanks,
Steve
 
or has the .17M2 just augmented it?
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Yep.

.17M2 is intended for pretty much whatever .22lr is used for. Only real advantage is a flatter trajectory due to the higher velocity. Energy is about the same.
 
I'm pretty much convinced that the 17Mach2 is just another way of getting folks to spend more money on gun barrels. :) In reality, it's a way to get a .17 caliber rimfire in a 'traditional' 22LR action. If you have a 10/22 in 22Mag you can convert to 17HRM, and if you have a 10/22 in 22LR you can convert to 17Mach2, aka 17M2.

It's kinda nice to think about being able to shoot a smaller/faster/flatter-shooting caliber out of my 22LR. The real question in my mind is how efficient the round is on squirrel/rabbit compared to a 40gr-36gr 22LR. After all, the real velocity gain in 17M2 comes from simply pushing a slightly smaller projectile that only has half the weight (17grain) of a current hi-vel (36-31 grain) 22LR.

Has anyone actually used it yet on small game to see how well it holds together?
 
Never used the .17, but the one (and thus far only) rabbit I've shot was with a .22lr from a Winchester 190 (.22s, l, or lr). Range was 7-10 yards. Entry wound was about two or 3 ribs back, exit wound was at the front shoulder on the off side. It blew about 1/4 of the internal organs out on the exit. Would be interesting to see, on the same kind of shot, if the .17 even exited, and if so whether it would be so dramatic.
 
This is just my opinion, but if you are planning on shooting small game with ANY high velocity ammo, (like the .17Mach2) you should only do headshots. Those fast bullets just tear up too much meat on little critters.

But, this is from the same guy that thinks .22 Magnum is too much rifle for squirrel hunting...
 
I think the .17M2 is just an expensive gimmick. For about 90% of us, that is the only justification we need to want to buy it. However, in this case, I would adivise you to stick with .22LR. The choices of .22LR ammo is at an all time high. You can get superfast 37 gr. loads if you want or you can stick to the old reliable 40 gr. loads that have worked forever. Either way, the cost of a good reliable .22 HP is going to be about three times cheaper than the .17M2! If you really want to reach out past 75 yards on varmints, then get a .223 or some other bigger round. If you want to shoot small game dead within say 75 yards (most certainly within 50 yards), why spend a fortune to do it? Stick to the .22LR. The .17M2 is just a overpriced solution to a equation that has already been solved.
 
I should note that the ammo I was using in the rabbit hunting mentioned above was Federal copper-plated "High-Velocity" hollow points. IIRC that uses 36gr bullets.
 
Those fast bullets just tear up too much meat on little critters.
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That's what I'm worried about. With obvious exceptions for rodents, if I shoot it I also intend on eating it. That means that fragmenting bullets are NOT what I'm looking for.
 
I have no idea whether or not the .17M2 will fragment, but I have a feeling it will either rip stuff up on small animals or not penetrate far enough on larger ones. That has been my experience with Hyper Velocity .22 LR anyway. I would imagine it would be doubly true for the .17M2.

What El Rojo said was right on.

It looks like a fun target round though.
 
Thanks for the info. I think that I'm just gonna keep this puppy as a 22LR - I can't see any compelling reason to change it.
 
I would go with the .22LR, no contest.
Simply put, it will more than less be the equal of the .17 out to 50 yards or so. I consider that to be my maximum range for squirrels anyhow (although some of you may be better than I am).
Yes, the .17 is "Ballistically superior" but who cares? The animal will never know the difference.
And since the gun will be used mostly for practice anyway, might as well go with the one that is cheaper to shoot and more common.
 
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