I have a 22 hornet , bought it about 14 years back and chucked in the 17 HMR . Both the 17 and 22 hornets have a big advantage in the fact that its half the powder fill of say a 223 case yet does pretty much most what the majority do with their 223 . Half the powder means a very long barrel life and a lot easier to moderate. A tub of lil'gun lasts a heck of a long while even for the heavy user. You could run home cast bullets also , just drop the speed back a tad in the 22 version .
If you already have a 223 or 222 your likely better just using that though . I am tending to just use the .223 in its place more and more and of course they both tend to blow rabbit heads off . 200 yards .22 hornet 45 grain at 2800 runs a FV 10 mph at around 4" 140 zero needs +2 moa elivation at said 200 yds , 35 v max gives 3000 fps but has a terrible BC wind and drops make it harder than the 45s to shoot but fragments faster at lower velocity impacts ( genuinely its hard to shoot those v-max at 200 unless conditions are perfect) .
The Switch to none toxic ( IF it ever fully
happens ) will make the current .22 Hornet largely redundant i feel .
Comparing factory ammo costs the Hornet packs tend to be 25 per box not the normal 20 a box so remember that one .
On a good day my .22 hornet will go 0.5 moa at 200 yards reliably , with drops and wind getting difficult to call after that i dont look to stretch things unless its a finishing shot. Its fun to play with at longer ranges though
The most fantastic rifle for denning foxes / cubs you can get the lot in one long sitting far easier so long as you have a half way decent moderator . Did i mention how cheap it is to hand load , seriously cheap !
If you already have a 223 or 222 your likely better just using that though . I am tending to just use the .223 in its place more and more and of course they both tend to blow rabbit heads off . 200 yards .22 hornet 45 grain at 2800 runs a FV 10 mph at around 4" 140 zero needs +2 moa elivation at said 200 yds , 35 v max gives 3000 fps but has a terrible BC wind and drops make it harder than the 45s to shoot but fragments faster at lower velocity impacts ( genuinely its hard to shoot those v-max at 200 unless conditions are perfect) .
The Switch to none toxic ( IF it ever fully
happens ) will make the current .22 Hornet largely redundant i feel .
Comparing factory ammo costs the Hornet packs tend to be 25 per box not the normal 20 a box so remember that one .
On a good day my .22 hornet will go 0.5 moa at 200 yards reliably , with drops and wind getting difficult to call after that i dont look to stretch things unless its a finishing shot. Its fun to play with at longer ranges though
The most fantastic rifle for denning foxes / cubs you can get the lot in one long sitting far easier so long as you have a half way decent moderator . Did i mention how cheap it is to hand load , seriously cheap !
