.17 hornet or .22 hornet

macandels

Well-Known Member
hi boys,, could do with some info here. thinking about buying 1 of the above. but which 1. it will be used for range work and hunting. which would be better for me . i will be reloading. fired a 22 hornet but as yet haven't had a go at a 17 hornet. been told that ammo availability in this country might be a problem for the 17. and out to what range do you shoot the .17.
thanks boys .
 
I can only speak as a .17 hornet owner but am a fan. Fast, flat and plenty of sting on varmints. Great for corvids and bunnies right out to 300 metres but a little marginal for foxes with the 20gr bullets but perfectly capable of dropping Charlie with a well placed shot and if limited to sensible range. The 25gr Berger hollow points are a better choice for foxes if you are reloading.
 
I'd go with the .22, easy to load for, better range of projectiles, easy to find components.
Had mine for a good few years now and it continues to be the rifle I reach for above the others in the safe.

Neil. :)
 
I too have used both and would go for the 22 version every time. There's nothing wrong with the 17Hornet but it's quite hard to see where it fits in. As Penyard said it's flat shooting and is good for small vermin but certainly not ideal for foxes whereas the 22 version will deal with foxes out two a couple of hundred yards. A 17 HMR or 22 will deal with rabbits perfectly well.
As far as reloading is concerned, I reload for the 22 but would imagine loading for the smaller version would be difficult as there is so little powder involved any slight variation would affect accuracy.
 
never fired the 17 hornet and ive only owned the .22 hornet for a short time but i must admit i like it, its very simple to reload for and ive got mine shoting groups around the size of a 5p at 100yrds, tho this said if you can shoot a .17 hornet out to 300yrds i think that will excell what the .22 can do but i must admidt 300 yrds seems a long way to throw a very small bullet. so far ive taken foxes out to 140yrds with my hornet and to be fair thats about as far as i would like to push it for now. the only reason i personaly would look at a .17 hornet over the .22 would be if i wasnt going to use it for foxes
 
hi boys,, could do with some info here. thinking about buying 1 of the above. but which 1. it will be used for range work and hunting. which would be better for me . i will be reloading. fired a 22 hornet but as yet haven't had a go at a 17 hornet. been told that ammo availability in this country might be a problem for the 17. and out to what range do you shoot the .17.
thanks boys .

I don’t get many opportunities to shoot weird emergent calibres, but a kindly soul offered me the try of a (right-handed) moderated CZ527 American in .17 Hornet reloaded with 25gr Hornady V-Max & HP.

It was bewitching to fire … no recoil … just a ‘phuttt’ sound like a .22rf sub-sonic. Even after reorganising the bench around to left plane to suit me it gave impressive bug-hole groups. These were a little high from me, which we agreed was due to different eyes.

This is IMO the best reincarnation of the .22 Hornet (5.6x35R Vierling) case which has been around since 1930. The parent calibre is difficult to reload, and has been outclassed and overtaken by the .222/.223 cartridges but still hangs on in a niche of it’s own. There are lots of classic rifles for it too.

I would pull the trigger on a fox if armed with a standard .22 Hornet in SP, but am not sure about the .17 Hornet loaded with V-Max.

I’ve read all the hype, but a 25gr bullet is too light to maintain momentum much beyond 200yds. The .17Ho. and .22Ho. are matched if pushed to 200yds, but the .17Ho. is so much flatter over the distance, and safer on the ricochet aspect. My feeling is that it’s the ideal tool for long range bunny-bashing, but isn’t up to much else.

http://www.hornady.com/store/17-Hornet-25-gr-HP-Custom/

http://www.hornady.com/store/22-Hornet-35-gr-V-MAX/

http://www.hornady.com/store/22-Hornet-45-gr-SP/
 
Its a no contest as a varmint round.

The 17 cal shoots far flatter moves less in the wind and hits with more energy.
And As stated has NO perceivable recoil and a much reduced risk of ricochets over the slower 22 H

At 200 yrds (from a 100 yrds zero)
22 Hornet drops 5.8" and is blown off target by 7" in a meagre 5 MPH cross wind

The 17 Hornet - drops only 2" and drifts 2.8" in comparison. Massively better performance.

Interestingly, the impact energy also favours the 17 cal The 17 cal delivers 290 FPE compared to the 22 Hornets - 196 FPE

Truth is , although the 22 Hornet still has a place and does a job... it is totally outclassed and outgunned by everything around it. It is a historic calibre that has a place in some shooters affection - others have their rose tinted specs firmly on and will refute any facts given.

However being objective and looking at the facts , the 17 H is by a country mile , the better vermin calibre and I would defy anybody to show otherwise

ATB
Alan
 
Last edited:
I don’t get many opportunities to shoot weird emergent calibres, but a kindly soul offered me the try of a (right-handed) moderated CZ527 American in .17 Hornet reloaded with 25gr Hornady V-Max & HP.

It was bewitching to fire … no recoil … just a ‘phuttt’ sound like a .22rf sub-sonic. Even after reorganising the bench around to left plane to suit me it gave impressive bug-hole groups. These were a little high from me, which we agreed was due to different eyes.


This is IMO the best reincarnation of the .22 Hornet (5.6x35R Vierling) case which has been around since 1930. The parent calibre is difficult to reload, and has been outclassed and overtaken by the .222/.223 cartridges but still hangs on in a niche of it’s own. There are lots of classic rifles for it too.

I would pull the trigger on a fox if armed with a standard .22 Hornet in SP, but am not sure about the .17 Hornet loaded with V-Max.

I’ve read all the hype, but a 25gr bullet is too light to maintain momentum much beyond 200yds. The .17Ho. and .22Ho. are matched if pushed to 200yds, but the .17Ho. is so much flatter over the distance, and safer on the ricochet aspect. My feeling is that it’s the ideal tool for long range bunny-bashing, but isn’t up to much else.

http://www.hornady.com/store/17-Hornet-25-gr-HP-Custom/

http://www.hornady.com/store/22-Hornet-35-gr-V-MAX/

http://www.hornady.com/store/22-Hornet-45-gr-SP/



how can something going over 3000 fps go phuttt like a 22lr ?what mod are you using? my cz 17 hornet seems to shoot around .5 moa 5 shot groups but i'm working on it.it sure is a pleasure to shoot mind.
 
I haven't heard anybody talk about the 22 K hornet on here. The K hornet is an improved hornet, just rechamber a hornet, fire form your cases from standard hornets, and you have an extra 200 fps
 
im still 50/50 on which to get, but very interesting to hear your thoughts. still not sure if I can get the ammo for the 17 here in north wales. some shops seem a bit empty on supplies.
 
Last edited:
to be honest i really think to get the most out of either you really need to reload for them

I bought my .22H intending to load myself from the word go, but got 400 rounds of Remington 25 grain ammo in the deal.
It shot very well, so well I almost didn't bother to load for it, I have but only because I had already collected all the dies etc before buying the rifle.

Neil. :)
 
I recently invested in a .17 Fireball. I know it is not a Hornet, but I cannot fault the little round. Factory ammo is expensive, but once you have cases then it can be reloaded for similar money to feeding a .17 HMR. It is also less fiddly to reload than the Hornet for those of us with fat fingers.

Good for foxes, can be a bit fast for smaller verging at close range (<100yds) though. Very flat, pretty much point and shoot from 25 out to 200 with right zero. I shoot 17, 20 and 25gr bullets at the moment, with good success.

Good luck with your choice.

Mark
 
I'd like to try the .17 hornet! I've got a .17HMR and have shot many foxes out to 200 yards in the engine room and always get exits the size of golf ball on the other side. I'm using 17 grain Hornady V-Max. So based on my experiences with the .17HMR, I would only imagine that the 17 hornet is even better, so I'd go for the .17!
 
.17 Hornet, if the only option was .17 hornet or 22 hornet. However, I'm very happy with the HMR.
 
I've got a .17HMR and
......have shot many foxes out to 200 yards in the engine room
...and always get exits the size of golf ball on the other side.
.....I'm using 17 grain Hornady V-Max.

Am intrigued.
these three things don't often go together
i get no exits with .224 VMax from 15-250 yds pushed at higher speeds from a .222
with an 17hm2 shooting 17gr vmax with similar terminal velocities at closer range I get no exits even on rabbits
 
Am intrigued.
these three things don't often go together
i get no exits with .224 VMax from 15-250 yds pushed at higher speeds from a .222
with an 17hm2 shooting 17gr vmax with similar terminal velocities at closer range I get no exits even on rabbits

That's bazar because when I hit rabbits, the damage is savage! It usually puts a big hole in them and drags all the guts out with it, or leaves the head as just a ragged bag of skin!

On foxes though, I guess it all depends where you hit them, but I've never not had an exit with the .17hmr!

What ammo are you using?
 
Personally I don't think the 17HMR was ever intended to shoot foxes with at 200 yards. I've shot them out to 125 yards but wouldn't go any further, incidentally I never got an exit wound at that range and in truth wouldn't expect one from a chest shot.
 
Last edited:
That's bazar because when I hit rabbits, the damage is savage! It usually puts a big hole in them and drags all the guts out with it, or leaves the head as just a ragged bag of skin!

On foxes though, I guess it all depends where you hit them, but I've never not had an exit with the .17hmr!

What ammo are you using?

Sorry the the no exit on rabbits bit was at long range
close up sure, they open like an apple

same 17gr vmax in .17
 
Back
Top