The pesky .22 Hornet again, buzzing around me head.

[Ugly Sauce]

I am interested in very low power loads in the .22 Hornet with a cast bullet. As low as 750fps, same as the CCI "Quiet" .22LR loads.

Have any of you achieved good accuracy (minute of grouse at 25 yards) with such a load? If so what powder did you use.

Second question, has anyone tried the heavy jacketed .22 bullets in the 70 grain range in a .22 Hornet, in full power loads, and what velocities did you get?

TIA.

 

[Armorer 101]

Every factory Hornet I have seen has a 14 or 16 twist barrel. It takes a 9 -10 twist to stabilize a 60g Anguilla SSS bullet.
So a 40g RN cast with Bullseye at 750 fps should do well because the 16 twist is the same twist as a 22 rim fire which uses a very fast powder, faster than Bullseye. You can cast pure lead with 2% tin and size to groove diameter at 750 fps.
But the twist that will stabilize the 35 & 40s .224s will not work with the 70g bullets. A twist rate has a top and a bottom bullet length/weight at diameter for stability. It takes a 9 twist to stabilize the 60g Anguilla SSS bullet. I built a single shot to shoot that round.

 

[Ugly Sauce]

Thank you. Yes, I've noticed that the Aguilla SSS load tumbles out of some of my .22's. Some of them shoot it accurately.

 

[Dave DeLaurant]

I loaded some .223 cases with 35 grain Hornet bullets and Trail Boss once, trying for something in the vicinity of .22 WMR, but my local indoor wouldn't let me shoot them.

Since the range is more comfortable with .22 Hornet, maybe I'll give that combination a try someday -- I really need a chronograph like the Labradar or Magnetospeed to evaluate anything beyond group size, though.

 

[Crosshair]

Heaviest I have ever shot in the 22 Hornet is a 55 grain in a custom Virgin Valley barrel that I bought used. They would just barely stabilize, but not give good accuracy. 50 grain SP shoots great.

As for powder, I'd try a medium to fast pistol powder.

 

[Ugly Sauce]

I've always used IMR4227 for my normal power, jacketed bullets with great results. I'm guessing that getting a cast bullet down to turtle speed will require Bullseye.

 

[Ugly Sauce]

Doing some quick research, it looks like the HR/NEF barrels have been made with 1:16, 1:12, and 1:9" twists over the years. ? But, I'm not that interested in heavy bullets, just curious. I'm really interested in a super slow cast bullet load. I've never used my .22 bullet mold, so I need to cast some up and see what they weigh. They are round nose though, and should be short enough regardless of weight.

 

[Sniper66]

I've shot 35, 40, and 45gr bullets in my Savage Model 25. The bigger the bullet the worse the accuracy, at least for me. Of course, what I'm doing is not your interest. I'm not trying to control noise, even though the less noisy 22Hornet is preferable to the .223 or .204 when shooting prairie dogs.....scares them less, but not much. My 35gr Hornet loads run around 3000fps, which is a deadly prairie dog load and wicked accurate.

 

[Ugly Sauce]

I've been shooting a 50 grain Hornady SP/SX in my NEF for quite some time. It shoots well, and opens up good on skunk/raccoon/feral cat size pests. Not explosive, kind of mimics the same kind of wound channel you would see on a deer having been shot with a 30-30, or something like that.

I've never shot it at 100 yards, as pest-control is more of a 25 yard proposition, so I can't really say how accurate it is, other than fine at 25 and I assume good at 50 at least. Could be grouping good at 100...but I just don't know. !!!

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

I've been shooting a 50 grain Hornady SP/SX in my NEF for quite some time. It shoots well, and opens up good on skunk/raccoon/feral cat size pests. Not explosive, kind of mimics the same kind of wound channel you would see on a deer having been shot with a 30-30, or something like that.

I've never shot it at 100 yards, as pest-control is more of a 25 yard proposition, so I can't really say how accurate it is, other than fine at 25 and I assume good at 50 at least. Could be grouping good at 100...but I just don't know. !!!

 

[Ugly Sauce]

Oh man, I want some! I promise NOT to shoot any enemy personnel. !!! Where the heck did you get that?

 

[GooseGestapo]

I’ve got a few (less than a dozen) of the Mil-spec ammo from when I worked at a gun shop in high school circa 1973. They’re full metal jacket.

I’ve shot my Lyman #22515 mold, 49.5gr semi pointed flat nose cast bullets, tumble lubed over 2.5gr iirc of Bullseye when I first bought the molds circa 1994. They shot surprisingly well! 3/4” at 25yds iirc. However, lubricating and gas checking them to .225” results in much better accuracy. Loaded over 2.9gr they run 1,350 for 3/4” at 50yds.

Point of impact shifts dramatically with changes in velocity from ~750fps to 2,000fps with 4.5gr of Unique or 6.2gr of #2400 (my favorite Hornet load!), vs a full power 45gr gr load a 2,700+fps.

Re-sighting the gun is necessary. But, the Hornet with cast bullets is a very useful load! I’ve shot squirrels, deer and pigs with it . It’s just a bit more powerful than a .22wmr.

Added, My Ruger has a 1/14” twist barrel and will “loosen up” with 55gr bullets. Trying some 60gr Hornady PtSpts was a disappointment. No key holes, but all 5shots at 100yds showed “tipping” bullets with an 8” group.
I once shot a 5-shot all touching with 50gr Hornady soft points. 11.8gr of Acc1680 at 2,400fps. Shot it at dusk. Next day I used same 5 cases, same sleeve of primers, same seating, ect. Shot a 1.4” group! Go figure!

 

[Sniper66]

This is fascinating info and pictures. Thanks for posting them.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

Oh man, I want some! I promise NOT to shoot any enemy personnel. !!! Where the heck did you get that?

Id heard the story about the label years ago from one of our old Scout Masters who was a B-52 crew chief. I think one of our other THR members actually owns that box, lol.

 

[Lnf Crzr]

Next up, some 45gr for the Ruger #1 Hornet

A bit time consuming with the powder coat.

 

[Ugly Sauce]

I’ve got a few (less than a dozen) of the Mil-spec ammo from when I worked at a gun shop in high school circa 1973. They’re full metal jacket.

I’ve shot my Lyman #22515 mold, 49.5gr semi pointed flat nose cast bullets, tumble lubed over 2.5gr iirc of Bullseye when I first bought the molds circa 1994. They shot surprisingly well! 3/4” at 25yds iirc. However, lubricating and gas checking them to .225” results in much better accuracy. Loaded over 2.9gr they run 1,350 for 3/4” at 50yds.

Point of impact shifts dramatically with changes in velocity from ~750fps to 2,000fps with 4.5gr of Unique or 6.2gr of #2400 (my favorite Hornet load!), vs a full power 45gr gr load a 2,700+fps.

Re-sighting the gun is necessary. But, the Hornet with cast bullets is a very useful load! I’ve shot squirrels, deer and pigs with it . It’s just a bit more powerful than a .22wmr.

Added, My Ruger has a 1/14” twist barrel and will “loosen up” with 55gr bullets. Trying some 60gr Hornady PtSpts was a disappointment. No key holes, but all 5shots at 100yds showed “tipping” bullets with an 8” group.
I once shot a 5-shot all touching with 50gr Hornady soft points. 11.8gr of Acc1680 at 2,400fps. Shot it at dusk. Next day I used same 5 cases, same sleeve of primers, same seating, ect. Shot a 1.4” group! Go figure!

Hey good info. Yeah, I'm not sure what I'll do about change of impact between small game loads and full power loads.