.22 vs .25

[coondogger]

Stop me if you've heard this before, but I'm curious about the consensus (if one exists) on this board regarding the relative merits of .22 caliber versus .25 caliber. Now, we're talking about defense, not target or plinking.

 

[rcmodel]

Consensus? BWhahahahahahahah!!!!!!!!

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=466805&highlight=.25+auto

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=450002&highlight=.25+auto

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=440748&highlight=.25+auto

The only thing I can tell you for sure is that the better ones are probably more reliable then the .22 RF versions of the same gun due to the centerfire ammo.
And the ammo costs a lot more for the same level of practice.

rc

 

[Kleanbore]

The only things I think I know for sure are those pointed out by rcmodel--oh yeah, and it is often easier to find .22 ammo.

 

[mljdeckard]

I've wasted so many electrons trying to convince people not to carry either, I'm not even going to bother.

.25 has a (slightly) heavier bullet, .22 has more velocity, and is much more likely to penetrate enough to do some damage.

FOR THE RECORD, I will never let anyone whom I actually care if they live or die to carry anything smaller than a 9mm. But choosing between these two, I would easily grab my Ciener .22 kit loaded with 15+1 Stingers and put as many of them as possible into the center of mass.

 

[rugerman07]

The .22 is the winner hands down! My personal opinion of the .25 caliber is, it's the most worthless cartridge ever made.

 

[mljdeckard]

I very much agree. If I were fighting for my life, and there was a .25 Raven on the ground next to a 5lb rock, I would have to think really hard.

 

[SwampWolf]

If I were fighting for my life, and there was a .25 Raven on the ground next to a 5lb rock, I would have to think really hard.

I guess you'd be between a rock and the proverbial hard place!

 

[Ron James]

If you must carry a small easily concealable firearm { and I have in the days before Kel-Tec and North American } then the smart money is on the .25 ACP. Most people refuse to believe it but the .25 if more effective than the .22. People start quoting velocity, forgetting the 22 is tested from a 16 or 18 inch barrel. The velocity is much less coming out of a 2 inch barrel and the slightly larger cross section of the .25 gives better results. The most compelling factor is the reliability, as stated the rimmed 22 Long rifle is notorious for jamming in small automatics, the .25 ACP , never { if your firearm is in good repair } . This why in the times past, the police used to carry .25's as back up. If I only had my small Colt Vest Pocket to slip in my pocket when I go for a walk or skip down for a gallon of milk, I wouldn't feel uncomfortable at all.

 

[troyboy94]

My dad had .25 one jammed every other shot. His friends got shot 2 times in the face and 3 in the chest by someone and got outa the hospital 4 hours later.

 

[rcmodel]

+1
14" - 16"+ in Ballistic Gel is gonna leave a mark.
And nobody says you can only shoot once!

http://www.brassfetcher.com/CCI Blazer and Sellier and Bellot FMJ.html

http://www.brassfetcher.com/var25acp.html

and got outa the hospital 4 hours later.

That right there is just very hard to believe.

rc

 

[GodGuns&Guitars]

In the '70's one of our U/C's shot a BG in the gut with a 25. The guy stood there and exclaimed, "You shot me!" I think it was the next day he changed over to carrying a 45. BG walked to the ambulance under his own power.

 

[Ron James]

" and walked to the ambulance under under there own power " and what does that prove, that there are no proven one shot stops to the body?? In Michigan we had a patrolman shot in the head with a .25. His wife is a widow. On the farm we shot livestock in the head with a 22 short., they all dropped dead. I have seen people absorb large caliber bullets and keep trucking, I have also seen people shot once in the body and fall over dead. And if some one had a firearm that jammed every other round, well they may not have been too smart if they kept it. Lets stick to the facts and not personal rants, OK , for every story that you heard from " somebody who knew the friend of who it happen too" myself and other experienced people on this forum can tell you first hand accounts of actual gun fights where the worthless .25 and .22 has left men dead on the ground :banghead:

 

[rbohm]

between the .22 and the .25, i say these days it is 6 of one and 1/2 dozen of the other. these days the .25 has improved ballistics and is equal to the .22lr. shot placment is very important with the smaller calibers, and both can stop a bad guy. that said i also would prefer to carry a larger caliber, minimum of a .380.

 

[mljdeckard]

I don't want to carry any caliber that is known to leave welts.

 

[GoodKat]

Why?whywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhy???????????????

Why would you ever want/need anything smaller than an NAA guardian .32?

 

[w_houle]

I have shot at a big ball of clothes I was going to throw away and fished out the bullets. All of the .25 ACP I recovered had no deformation at all. I recovered the .22 Yellow Jacket bullets and the had opened up from 3/8" to 7/16"

I don't want to carry any caliber that is known to leave welts.

Meh, You want something that'll leave welts? My Mosin Nagant will leave welts on you when you shoot it

His friends got shot 2 times in the face and 3 in the chest by someone and got outa the hospital 4 hours later.

I don't know if true, but if true It had most likely sucked the fight out of your friend, which is a good way of getting away from someone. Sometimes it's just a matter of getting away, not killing someone!

 

[Gordon]

Cheese and crackers ! I've sure seen a pile of dead guys from .25s. More that got shot and walked away. NONE ever said they did much after getting shot , other than seeking medical care however. Even the Ravens are startlingly reliable.
All that said I don't carry a .25 MUCH any more, but I DID for 30 years.

 

[DasFriek]

I see no reason ever to carry a .22/.25 since .380's can be had in the same size small package and carry a much better caliber.Due to this i see very few reasons why a person would carry a .22/.25 for any reason.
Id say most people feel a .380 is the smallest caliber for SD and i tend to agree.


Personally id make 9mm my smallest caliber for SD,for HD its .45acp or nothing.

 

[Jim K]

At one time, small gun meant either a .22 or a .25; today there are guns in 9mm P that are not a lot bigger than the little 25's. The .22/25 still is more slender, though, and more concealable.

A small problem that not many people mention: It takes considerably more striker force to fire a RF .22 than a CF .25, so small .22's are often not as reliable as the equivalent size in .25.

Jim

 

[alistaire]

A Colt Vest Pocket (.25ACP) will drive tacks all day. At the end of the day you will be able to reuse the tacks. Personally if I didn't have a .45 in my pocket, I'd rather shoot someone with a .25 than throw used tacks in his face.

 

[rbohm]

A Colt Vest Pocket (.25ACP) will drive tacks all day. At the end of the day you will be able to reuse the tacks. Personally if I didn't have a .45 in my pocket, I'd rather shoot someone with a .25 than throw used tacks in his face.

perhaps throw the used tacks at someone, then drive them with the .25?

if i had the money i would buy a derringer lm-4 in .45acp. they are about the size of the average .25 pocket pistol and you get 5 rounds of .45acp.

 

[rhinoh]

Completely unscientific test but I owned a small Beretta 22 then later bought a 25, was shooting at some 2x4 lumber and was astounded to see the .25 wouldn't go all the way through a pine 2x4! The 22 did however...

BTW I bought the 25 for a very specific reason because it was about 1/8 shorter than the 22. Had a vehicle that had a snap out cup holder in the console the 25 would hide under and the 22 wouldn't, most people never realized the cup holder would snap out and certainly wouldn't have suspected a small gun secreted under it