looking at putting a new gopher gun in 22 hornet
- Thread starter 1887
- Start date
CCI small magnum pistol primers
40 grain VMax
12.5 to 13+ grains of Lil Gun should easily fit into the case, with the bullet seated just deep enough to to be held straight.
The Lyman Sharps rifles I've seen have long throats so overall length isn't an issue, like it is in bolt action rifles.
I can squeeze 12.5 grains of Lil Gun into my cases, which are loaded for a Ruger M77 and a Stevens 322-A, with 35 grain Vmax.
A friend, with the same rifle as the one you want to get, uses the 40 grain Lil Gun load in his rifle with excellent, consistent results.
H110 is also a great powder, that can give better velocities but not quite as consistently accurate in slower twist bores.
My rifles give close to 3000fps with the 35 grain bullets.
My friends Lyman Sharp, gives similar velocities with the 13.5 grain Lil Gun load.
No signs of pressure in any of the rifles, with any of these loads.
Lil Gun is a great powder for the 22 Hornet and similar cartridges.
It is quite fast and has very fine grains, which settle very easily into the case and likes to be compressed.
It was developed for the 410 shotshell.
One thing about the Hornet, it tends to be hard on cases, split necks and excessive stretch etc.
I partialy neck size only for my rifles as does my but with the Lyman.
You may seriously want to look at the 22K Hornet version instead.
I have been contemplating cutting new chambers in my rifles for the 22K Hornet, but I have several hundred cases/loaded cartridges on hand, so why bother, when the extra velocity really isn't needed.
One pound of Lil Gun will load appx 500+ cartridges in the Hornet.
40 grain VMax
12.5 to 13+ grains of Lil Gun should easily fit into the case, with the bullet seated just deep enough to to be held straight.
The Lyman Sharps rifles I've seen have long throats so overall length isn't an issue, like it is in bolt action rifles.
I can squeeze 12.5 grains of Lil Gun into my cases, which are loaded for a Ruger M77 and a Stevens 322-A, with 35 grain Vmax.
A friend, with the same rifle as the one you want to get, uses the 40 grain Lil Gun load in his rifle with excellent, consistent results.
H110 is also a great powder, that can give better velocities but not quite as consistently accurate in slower twist bores.
My rifles give close to 3000fps with the 35 grain bullets.
My friends Lyman Sharp, gives similar velocities with the 13.5 grain Lil Gun load.
No signs of pressure in any of the rifles, with any of these loads.
Lil Gun is a great powder for the 22 Hornet and similar cartridges.
It is quite fast and has very fine grains, which settle very easily into the case and likes to be compressed.
It was developed for the 410 shotshell.
One thing about the Hornet, it tends to be hard on cases, split necks and excessive stretch etc.
I partialy neck size only for my rifles as does my but with the Lyman.
You may seriously want to look at the 22K Hornet version instead.
I have been contemplating cutting new chambers in my rifles for the 22K Hornet, but I have several hundred cases/loaded cartridges on hand, so why bother, when the extra velocity really isn't needed.
One pound of Lil Gun will load appx 500+ cartridges in the Hornet.
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- Location
- WMU248 near Edmonton
yes the hornet is a ###y little case.
the only drawback as pointed out is the thin necks and splitting.
the only drawback as pointed out is the thin necks and splitting.
I have a Kimber of Oregon model 82 22 hornet. Lovely rifle, but fussy about loads. This one likes Lil Gun. - dan
Yes, it's scoped. I don't which scope is on it at this point.
Six months ago, it wore a Leupold fixed 12 with AO.
I see where you're coming from.
I have a Sako in 222 and Ruger #1 in 223rem, as well as an MVP in 223rem.
I like 22 bores, so have the rimfires up to 22WMR. They all have their place and purpose. For instance the 22WMR is my bunny gun, out to 150 yards. Today, I had to put down a young WT Buck with it, because it had been hit by a vehicle and left with a broken shldr and broken rear leg. To bad, that Deer was born about 50 yards from my front step, almost the same spot I had to put it out of it's misery.
The 22 Hornet extends the range out past 200 yards, with more than enough energy to tumble bunnies and marmots.
Something to consider, a lot of military air force, survival rifles were chambered for the 22Hornet.
It's a very capable little cartridge once the loader/shooter understands and works within its capabilities.
The 22Hornet factory rounds work out to about half the price of the 222/223.
I don't think I ever bought factory hornet ammo. Loaded it for years though. I don't use it much any more, just got out of the habit and . 22 rimfire , .222, and .223 do everything I need.
I should have mentioned the 22-250 as well, which has been a closet queen for years. I finally broke down and sold the 220 Swift.
But, the key words in your posts and mine are we use the stuff that best suits our purposes and your choices could easily cover 95% of most people's needs
But, the key words in your posts and mine are we use the stuff that best suits our purposes and your choices could easily cover 95% of most people's needs
I have an older pre 64 model 70 in 22 hornet that absolutely loves both the 40 grain and 35 grain vmaxes. Primer is CCI 500 in both loads, R-P cases and lil gun. The 35 grain load is 13.1 grains for 3090 fps and the 40 grain is 12.5 for 2870 fps. The R-P cases seemed to have more capacity than the W-W or PPU cases that I tried. The drawback to that is they also seem have thinner necks. I only neck size as that’s the only 22 hornet I use and all cases were shot in the same gun. I’ve been lucky in that I haven’t lost cases to splitting necks but I do anneal my cases after every firing. I do have a 222, 223, and 220 swift but the lil hornet gets shot more than all 3 combined because of the performance I get out of the tiny cartridge and the number of loads I can get per lb of powder. Hope that helps
I keep the 22-250 for coyotes. 223 and 222 barrels last better than 22-250 and that matters if you're shooting at gopher-field volumes. 220 swift is the same but more so.
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- Location
- Saskatchewan
My Anschutz .22H is the exception it seems. For hand load powder - it likes W296 powder better than Lil Gun. AA1680 is pretty good too. Lil gun is about the "middle" of accuracy and speed in my loads. 2400 and I or H 4227 come in last. The Sierra 45 gr. hornet bullets are very good, as are the Winchester 45 HP and the Hornady 35 Vmax. I can't shoot the Hornady 40 gr. Max, too long for my .22 hornet magazine but they are wonderful in all three of my .222 rifles.
I struggled with accuracy and case life in my .22 Hornet rifles until I discovered the Lee collet die. What a great tool to use with the Hornet's thin neck, and loose chamber specifications. Helps case life and accuracy and requires no lube. Win, Win, Win!
I struggled with accuracy and case life in my .22 Hornet rifles until I discovered the Lee collet die. What a great tool to use with the Hornet's thin neck, and loose chamber specifications. Helps case life and accuracy and requires no lube. Win, Win, Win!
That makes perfect sense to me. It's the main reason I finally released my grip on the 220 Swift and I don't miss it at all.
The 22-250 is likely next on the move along block.
I started using the 6.5x55, with 95 grain v max over 38.5 grains of Varget and for a while, the 6mm Reminton with 95 grn SST.
I like the Tikka 6.5 better for all sorts of reasons so that's my go to Coyote rifle these days. Which aren't nearly as often as they were 5 years ago.
Your Anschutz isn't an exception at all. I've had 22 Hornets in the past, especially a lovely little custom Martini, built on a Cadet action, that would not shoot any bullet well with Lil Gun. It had a 1-14 twist rate but so do my other Hornets.
That Martini really liked H110 and W296. Velocities weren't as good but accuracy was exceptional.
My Stevens prefers WC680, identical to AA1680, but not enough difference for field use.
Rifles chambered for the 22 Hornet are a lot of fun and very useful. Could easily be pressed into service on Deer during a life or death survival situation, with some common sense thrown in and ranges around 30-50 yards. Ideal, NO. Doable, yes.
