Anyone use H110 for .22 Hornet?

[Savage30L]

I see some discussions of people using H110 for pistol cartridges, where some claim that magnum primers are necessary for good ignition. I plan to load up some .22 Hornets with H110 and was going to use small rifle primers. Will this work?

Edited to add: I see that the Hodgdon reloading site and Shooter's Reference both list small rifle primers in their loads, which gives me some confidence.

 

[Docendo Discimus]

Will this work?

Yes

 

[Savage30L]

Lyman's loads are all with Winchester small rifle primers.

 

[jmorris]

Lil’gun is the best powder I have found for .22 Hornet, it’s actually the only round I use it for these days.

 

[BBarn]

As already stated, H110 with small rifle primers is just fine. I personally prefer Accurate 1680, Alliant 300MP, and Lil'gun, but H110/W296 work well. I prefer small pistol primers in some loads per data in the Speer manual.

The 22 Hornet is quite sensitive to loading techniques. The brass is very thin, and I would suggest 0.1gr increments in powder charges in the tiny case when fine tuning loads.

 

[Litetrigger]

During the over forty years I've been loading for the Hornet (half dozen different rifles) I tried dozens of powder-bullet-primer-case combinations, and not in one instance did the occasionally recommended small pistol primers produced better accuracy/performance. It's now a moot point anyhow because the introduction and use of Lil'gun powder has brought new life to the Hornet.

 

[alsaqr]

Been reloading the .22 Hornet since i traded for a BSA Martini with a Winchester model 43 barrel in the late 1960s. Currently own four rifles in .22 Hornet caliber. Virtually all of my reloads have used Alliant 2400 or IMR 4227 powder. One load uses small pistol primers.

A friend brags on his Hornet reloads using Hodgdon CFE BLK powder: i bought a can of the stuff at Cabela's last Sunday. Will run some reloads with that powder soon.

 

[Savage30L]

I have 2400 and 4227 also....just thought I'd try H110.

 

[BBarn]

All three will work, as I'm sure you know. H110 will probably produce higher velocities than the other two. A friend of mine likes 4227 in his Hornet.

 

[jmorris]

The 22 Hornet is quite sensitive to loading techniques.

I agree, I get the best results by only sizing enough of the neck to hold the bullet and rest “blown out”, makes a substantial difference vs normal FL sized cases.

 

[ttittle]

I load H110 for 350 legend and have no problems with standard primers.

 

[tominboise]

I use WW296 and Rem 6-1/2 primers in my Hornet. Works well so far.

 

[GooseGestapo]

H110 is superior with the 30-35gr bullets in my 24”bbl Ruger.
Lil’Gun gets better velocity and excellent accuracy with a 40gr bullet.
For the 45-46, I prefer 14.0gr of H4198. Velocity is about 150fps slower but accuracy is astonishing.
My Marlin M1894CL ..218Bee taught me this!
Though the same 12.5gr of LilGun gets 3,000fps from my Marlin with the Armscor 40gr FNJHP’s (same as Ruger with a Sierra 40gr Varminter HP.).

Since acquiring the little Marlin, the Ruger/Hornet has only gone to the range twice in 7yrs…

BTW; I use CCI -500’s SPP.

 

[Savage30L]

I plan to use the Midway bulk 45-grain soft points. The powders I have available are H110, Hercules 2400, and IMR 4227. One of my local stores is showing Li'l Gun in stock....whether it's actually there, or not, is anyones guess. But I intend to find out.

By the way, I'll be loading for a Winchester 43, and I'll probably never shoot the load myself, as I am storing this gun for a relative who is moving to Thailand. I just want to load up some rounds for him in case he ever moves back to the states and wants to take possession of the gun again.

 

[FROGO207]

I am also a fan of Lil Gun in Hornet ammo. A full dipped case carded off and compressed with a 40 or 45 grain hornet bullet is my most accurate load. Its around 13 grains of LG.

Saving my H110 for my 30 Carbine ammo.

 

[alsaqr]

By the way, I'll be loading for a Winchester 43, and I'll probably never shoot the load myself, as I am storing this gun for a relative who is moving to Thailand.

Be careful in reloading for the Winchester model 43 rifle. That rifle is a beefed up .22 rimfire; the action quickly develops excessive headspace with hot loads.

i've owned six or seven of those rifles. IME: The rifles chambered for .25-20 and .32-20 seldom develop head space problems: Those chambered for .22 Hornet and .218 Bee do often have problems, especially with hot loads.

 

[Savage30L]

Be careful in reloading for the Winchester model 43 rifle. That rifle is a beefed up .22 rimfire; the action quickly develops excessive headspace with hot loads.

i've owned six or seven of those rifles. IME: The rifles chambered for .25-20 and .32-20 seldom develop head space problems: Those chambered for .22 Hornet and .218 Bee do often have problems, especially with hot loads.

Thanks for the tip, that will affect how I load for the gun. I might wait until I can get some Li'l Gun powder, since that seems to produce appropriate velocities with the lowest pressures.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

The slow magnum pistol powders have always been a good choice for the 22 Hornet.

When Lil'Gun came a few reloaders tried it in the 22 Hornet and IMO that powder breath new life into the cartridge. The tests I've seen from friends shows excellent accuracy and a good improvement on velocity. An additional bonus is, the higher velocities are generated with much less pressure than the other magnum powders. Sometimes up to 30% less with some bullet weights. Again, IMO, that is THEE powder for the 22 Hornet.

Unfortunately I can't give you numbers because I don't own one. I'm going on what I have seen on the range with a few shooting buddies. I did shoot the ammo and it was fun since accuracy wasn't difficult to achieve. If you choose not to use Lil'Gun, going back to your original question, yes, H110 will work well.

If you do give it a try please give us a range report as compared to H110/W296 and any other magnum pistol powder you try.

 

[30-06-270peasant]

Back when my super 16 22hornet was a young spry buck, the only powder I had available was imr 4198 I was using in my marlin 45/70. The powder served its purpose but, I saw few flakes of powder in the short tube.
Not sure when I made the switch to win 296 but, that's all I use for the hornet.
The old super 16 is a retired conversational piece now. It shot wings off mosquitoes at 50yrds in its heyday.
An eabco custom 24" 22hornet took its spot, still fiddling with loads.
Primers and powder are hard to rake in nowadays. Plinking days have tapered down.

 

[Savage30L]

I ended up loading 50 rounds using 11.0 grains of Lil' Gun behind 45-grain Midway SP Spitzers.

 

[FROGO207]

Well how'd they do? Bet you liked them!

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I ended up loading 50 rounds using 11.0 grains of Lil' Gun behind 45-grain Midway SP Spitzers.

View attachment 1143325

I'm not so sure I would have loaded up 50 rounds before I tested the load.
IMO that charge is a little low. Hodgdon recommends a load between 12.0gr and 13.0gr with that bullet.
Which primer did you use?
In any case, like I said in my post above, I'm betting you will like that powder.

 

[Savage30L]

As I said before, I might never shoot them. They are for a relative who probably will never shoot them either. I think he wants to leave the gun to a grandchild who does not yet exist, and might or might not ever exist.

As for the charge, I was originally planning on 12 grains, but we looked in the Hornady manual and they recommended charges ranging from 8.7 to 11 grains, and 11 is supposed to give 2500 fps. Given that it was a Winchester model 43 I was loading for, and not a Ruger #3 or Winchester model 70, I opted for a conservative load.

When I get around to my .45 Long Colt Marlin loads, there will certainly be load work-up, and a range of strengths from medium to stout.

Edited to add: If I ever reload any more .22 Hornet (I do have the dies), it will be for a different person, and will definitely be a ladder of loads.

 

[Savage30L]

As a side note: Last night I looked on line for what factory .22 Hornet ammo costs now. Holy Crap!! There is $120-$180 worth of ammo in that box!

 

[Weflyfast]

Be careful in reloading for the Winchester model 43 rifle. That rifle is a beefed up .22 rimfire; the action quickly develops excessive headspace with hot loads.

i've owned six or seven of those rifles. IME: The rifles chambered for .25-20 and .32-20 seldom develop head space problems: Those chambered for .22 Hornet and .218 Bee do often have problems, especially with hot loads.

This is the case I have found- and had to shim the bolt on several guns to fix headspace issues-