17hmr or 22

[25 Sharps]

I was paying £9.50 until quite recently, I hear what you're saying. But compared to C/F HMR is cheap.

Not if you reload and keep an eye out for consumables cheap on here, excluding brass and my time I'm loading .223 for 25p-30p a pop, hornet for the same, 6.5 x 55 & .308 for 40p - 50 p a round. HMR locally is as much as £25-30p so really not a lot in it. I also have control of the quality of my ammo which as we all know is the main issue with HMR.

to the OP, if noise is an issue .22 with subs is a cracking round, (not literally), HMR. Will but you another 50-70 yards but is noisy. If you get the chance then get both, accurate .22s can be picked up for £<100 so needn't break the bank, but SERIOUSLY consider the WMR over the HMR. If you're prepared to / interested in Reloading then go .22 and one of the hornets....

If you want to shoot all uk deer then you need the .243, whose to say you haven't got previous experience already and therefore it's too big? But I'd go swede instead

 

[25 Sharps]

Most have expensive rifles and scopes so where's the skill ?? Truly spoken by someone who has never stalked well done !
And how do you know this guy hasn't got experience ??? I'll have next weeks lottery numbers off you pal seeing as your clearly clairvoyant .....
for all we know this guy could've been on 20+ paid stalks with a pro or hand a very experienced mentor showing him the ropes ..... My opinion.

or could be ex forces with no experience of hunting calibres, or previous experience with .22 but little knowledge of the relatively new HMR wonder calibre. I took a chap out lamping Friday who had .243 and an open ticket at grant purely because he is ex forces.

or (I know this will get some people hot under the collar) he could be granted a .243 with a mentoring or accompanied condition.

the query was which rimfire is best, the .243 doesn't really come into it.

 

[Harry Brown]

Not if you reload and keep an eye out for consumables cheap on here, excluding brass and my time I'm loading .223 for 25p-30p a pop, hornet for the same, 6.5 x 55 & .308 for 40p - 50 p a round. HMR locally is as much as £25-30p so really not a lot in it. I also have control of the quality of my ammo which as we all know is the main issue with HMR.

to the OP, if noise is an issue .22 with subs is a cracking round, (not literally), HMR. Will but you another 50-70 yards but is noisy. If you get the chance then get both, accurate .22s can be picked up for £<100 so needn't break the bank, but SERIOUSLY consider the WMR over the HMR. If you're prepared to / interested in Reloading then go .22 and one of the hornets....

If you want to shoot all uk deer then you need the .243, whose to say you haven't got previous experience already and therefore it's too big? But I'd go swede instead

Well we all have differing opinions but WMR will bounce harder than a .22lr sub sonic. Lot's of shooters only have small plots of land surrounded by public roads etc, and this is why my LR is not used much TBH. I have much larger areas to shoot over, but why travel to those with a R/F when there's quarry available warranting a bigger cal.
Reloading is just not cost effective at this moment in time for myself and testing loads etc is time consuming.
A lot of shooters complain on this forum about calibre restrictions but the FLO's have a difficult balancing task between us enjoying our sport and public safety, obviously safety will/must always come first.

 

[25 Sharps]

Harry is this based on any experience of spending time shooting the 2 calibres side by side on the same ground, as I wholly disagree? I have shot 0.22 LR, HMR and WMR on the same pieces of ground and the amount of noticable of ricochets I have had from the calibres run in the same order as those listed. If you shoot the lighter polymer tipped bullets in WMR they aren't going much slower than HMR and have thin jackets and more mass so in my opinion and experience are more likely to break up than HMR which in turn is less likely to break up than the 0.22LR which is renowned for bouncing.

As for the small land theory, my first fox permission and that which I applied WMR for before I had an open ticket, is a 12 acre small holding with houses on 2 sides and a riding school, village and road only a few hundred yards away, this was cleared no problem. I sold that WMR to get a HMR because of the hype, the HMR is now gone and the WMR is back in the cabinet.

 

[jimbo1984]

or could be ex forces with no experience of hunting calibres, or previous experience with .22 but little knowledge of the relatively new HMR wonder calibre. I took a chap out lamping Friday who had .243 and an open ticket at grant purely because he is ex forces.or (I know this will get some people hot under the collar) he could be granted a .243 with a mentoring or accompanied condition.the query was which rimfire is best, the .243 doesn't really come into it.

correct !!

 

[Blacknsilver]

My apologies

 

[Taff]

You all have it wrong .270,.22 hornet,.22 rf, why ? Because that's what I have, you all seem to worry about experience, you need to come over here , at least once a week I get asked about which round they should use, as in which one fits my gun, I think there in a blue box ?,no wonder we have so many shooting accidents.

 

[redrbr]

I'm with most people on this: go for both.
I tend to use my .22 more than than my .17HMR at the moment, but that's mostly to do with the land where I'm currently shooting. Other differences aside, you might need the same flexibility.
If it's one or the other, I'd get a .22. It'll do the job; it's cheap to shoot; and it's fun to shoot.

Good luck.

 

[DAVIDAIKEN]

I was paying £9.50 until quite recently, I hear what you're saying. But compared to C/F HMR is cheap.

The post is either .17hmr or .22lr so the cost of c/f has no relivance on the original post. As I say, .17hmr is way dearer then .22lr

 

[joe soapy]

I'm applying for my FAC. Decided on .243. But I want a rifle for rabbits and crows etc. Can't decide between 17 hmr or 22.
Any help or thoughts would be appreciated.
Thankyou

.

based on your options the question you should ask yourself IMO is,
"On a wander around my permission, which caliber is most likely to result in a successful hunt".
My answer based on experience is the HMR every time.

 

[Whitebeard]

The OP is applying for a 243 to get the 243 he must have good reason, having permission with deer present, paid for stalks or a severe fox problem is all thats needed, the HO guidelines (soon to be legally binding in England and Wales) say that if the criteria is met a certificate must be issued, he then wants either a 17 HMR or 22RF for crows and rabbits, once again if he satisfies the good reason a certificate must be granted.
Nowhere or anywhere during this process of application does experience factor in, experience in handling firearms has no bearing on the FAC application process whatsoever but we all know that many licensing authorities like to pile on unnecessary conditions that do nothing but hamper the shooter going about his legal passtime

Ian.

 

[Orion]

Nowhere or anywhere during this process of application does experience factor in, experience in handling firearms has no bearing on the FAC application process whatsoever.........

Ian, see HO Guidance 13.4(iii) and 13.26. Both sections factor in experience of firearms use which the police will want, to satisfy the overriding requirement of ensuring "no danger to the public safety or to the peace" before a certificate can be issued.

 

[25 Sharps]

The OP is applying for a 243 to get the 243 he must have good reason, having permission with deer present, paid for stalks or a severe fox problem is all thats needed, the HO guidelines (soon to be legally binding in England and Wales) say that if the criteria is met a certificate must be issued, he then wants either a 17 HMR or 22RF for crows and rabbits, once again if he satisfies the good reason a certificate must be granted.
Nowhere or anywhere during this process of application does experience factor in, experience in handling firearms has no bearing on the FAC application process whatsoever but we all know that many licensing authorities like to pile on unnecessary conditions that do nothing but hamper the shooter going about his legal passtime

Ian.

Will have to look but if the whole guidelines become law I'm sure that last time I looked there was a section on assessing an applicants suitability for any given type of firearm based on experiece, or has it been removed?

 

[25 Sharps]

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/firearms-law-guidance-to-the-police-2012

Take from the introduction

"13.4 Apart from having a “good reason” in principle, an applicant’s reasons for owning firearms
should be genuine. Equally, any reason to refuse an application must be clearly justified
and explained. Chief officers of police should exercise caution in dealing with cases where
the applicant presents a nominal reason for possessing firearms but may have ulterior
motives. The police will be expected to make reasonable inquiries to verify the applicant’s
“good reason” for the possession of firearms. This may include:

i. a request for written authorities where relevant (and possible).

ii. verification of the likelihood of the quarry species being present.

iii. the suitability of land for the firearms requested commensurate with the
applicant’s experience."

"13.26 It is desirable that new applicants should have some previous experience of the safe
use of firearms before using such rifles. Experience is neither cartridge nor ammunition
type exclusive. It may include the shooting of any quarry species. The aspect that police
are looking to be satisfied about is the competency of the applicant to take a safe shot
every time. The shooting of any quarry requires a safe backstop for the shot, and such
experience is transferable between quarry species."

 

[Whitebeard]

It says it is desirable but does not say you have to have experience where as it does say a certificate must be issued if all criteria are met.
However we all know that for the time being this is only guidence.

Ian

 

[25 Sharps]

It says it is desirable but does not say you have to have experience where as it does say a certificate must be issued if all criteria are met.
However we all know that for the time being this is only guidence.

Ian

Lets try this again

"The police will be expected to make reasonable inquiries to verify the applicant’s
“good reason” for the possession of firearms. This may include:

iii. the suitability of land for the firearms requested commensurate with the
applicant’s experience."

i.e. part of satisfying good reason (one of the criteria that must be met) is the applicant should have sufficient experience with the type of firearm, to quote the latter section, the police are looking for competency of the applicant "to take a safe shot every time."

Are you seriously suggesting that all someone needs is ground with deer on where they have permission, cleared for .308, no medical or criminal record and they must be given a .308, even if they've never fired even an air rifle?????

Because that's how it reads!

 

[Harry Brown]

The post is either .17hmr or .22lr so the cost of c/f has no relivance on the original post. As I say, .17hmr is way dearer then .22lr

If go out and shoot ten rabbits with either the LR or my HMR I don't for one moment concern myself over the difference in cost between the two rounds ...Call me frivolous.

 

[DeerDucksFishin]

have you seen any rifles for sale lately im struggling to find a CZ or ruger all adverts on guntrader are for future stock thanks

 

[Whitebeard]

Lets try this again

"The police will be expected to make reasonable inquiries to verify the applicant’s
“good reason” for the possession of firearms. This may include:

iii. the suitability of land for the firearms requested commensurate with the
applicant’s experience."

i.e. part of satisfying good reason (one of the criteria that must be met) is the applicant should have sufficient experience with the type of firearm, to quote the latter section, the police are looking for competency of the applicant "to take a safe shot every time."

Are you seriously suggesting that all someone needs is ground with deer on where they have permission, cleared for .308, no medical or criminal record and they must be given a .308, even if they've never fired even an air rifle?????

Because that's how it reads!

Im not suggesting anything of the sort however not having had previous experience of handling firearms is not a valid reason for not granting a FAC when all other criteria has been met.

Ian.

 

[VSS]

I bet the OP is wishing he'd never asked....